The creator of hundreds of spirited, extroverted instrumental works, Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi is widely recognized as the master of the Baroque instrumental concerto, which he perfected and popularized more than any of his contemporaries. Vivaldi's kinetic rhythms, fluid melodies, bright instrumental effects, and extensions of instrumental technique make his some of the most enjoyable of Baroque music. He was highly influential among his contemporaries and successors: even as esteemed a figure as Johann Sebastian Bach adapted some of Vivaldi's music. Vivaldi's variable textures and dramatic effects initiated the shift toward what became the Classical style; a deeper understanding of his music begins with the realization that, compared with Bach and even Handel, he was Baroque music's arch progressive. Though not as familiar as his concerti, Vivaldi's stage and choral music is still of value; his sometimes bouncy, sometimes lyrical Gloria in D major (1708) has remained a perennial favorite. His operas were widely performed in his own time.Eighteenth century tourists flocked to the Sunday services at Venice's wealthy religious establishments. Jean-Jacques Rousseau himself wrote a glowing report of the music sung in the Scuole grandi, or confraternal churches, of the city; he specifically claimed that the music at the Venetian Pio Spedale della Pietá was far superior to Venetian opera singing, and might rival any musical performance in the world. The "hospital" of the Pietá maintained a large (female) choir and a professional maestro di cappella; in addition, for nearly 40 years they were in the habit of commissioning music from Venice's own Antonio Vivaldi. Many of his more splendid choral works for the church received their first performances at the Pietá, including the single best-known piece in his lifetime, Vivaldi's Magnificat in G minor.

In its best-known form, RV 610, Vivaldi's Magnificat disposes the canticle text (Luke 1:46-55) across nine movements. It serves the festal celebrations of the evening Vespers service. In this version, a full string ensemble supports a mixed choir -- either four or eight voices plus soloists. The very beginning features a homophonic wall of sound, praising God in a highly chromatic idiom; Vivaldi used the same lush progression in at least four other pieces of music, two mass movements and two concerti. The second movement resembles a brief instrumental concerto, with an active violin Ritornello, three successive vocal solos, and a "punning" interruption by the full choir that echoes the word omnes (everyone). A central trio of choral movements each display Vivaldi's witty sense of text-painting: an affective chromatic passage with seventh leaps for Et misericordia (and His mercy), a stormy string accompaniment for Fecit potentiam (He has showed strength with His arm), and a wild orchestral unison for the Deposuit (He has cast down the proud). Two further soli movements (one of which suddenly introduces two oboes) and a choral hymn lead to the final chorus. Vivaldi once again presents a musical pun, as the text "As it was in the beginning" refers to the very chromatic opening music; a jubilant fugue brings the piece to a close.

Source: AllMusic (https://www.allmusic.com/composition/magnificat-for-4- voices-chorus-2-oboes-strings-continuo-in-g-minor-rv-61 0-mc0002361285).

Although originally composed for Voice (2 Sopranos, Alto, Tenor, Mixed Chorus (SATB)) & Orchestra (2 Oboes, Strings & Continuo), I created this arrangement of "Et misericordia ejus et progen" (And His mercy is for those who fear Him) from Magnificat in G Minor for Winds (Flute, Oboe, English Horn & Bassoon) and Strings (2 Violins, Viola & Cello)).