Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (1678 – 1741) was an Italian
composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque
music. Along with Johann Sebastian Bach and George
Frideric Handel, Vivaldi ranks amongst the greatest
Baroque composers and his influence during his lifetime
was widespread across Europe, giving origin to many
imitators and admirers. He pioneered many developments
in orchestration, violin technique and programmatic
music. He consolidated the emerging concerto form into
a widely accepted a...(+)
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (1678 – 1741) was an Italian
composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque
music. Along with Johann Sebastian Bach and George
Frideric Handel, Vivaldi ranks amongst the greatest
Baroque composers and his influence during his lifetime
was widespread across Europe, giving origin to many
imitators and admirers. He pioneered many developments
in orchestration, violin technique and programmatic
music. He consolidated the emerging concerto form into
a widely accepted and followed idiom. He composed many
instrumental concertos, for the violin and a variety of
other musical instruments, as well as sacred choral
works and more than fifty operas. His best-known work
is a series of violin concertos known as the Four
Seasons. Many of his compositions were written for the
all-female music ensemble of the Ospedale della Pietà,
a home for abandoned children. Vivaldi began studying
for the priesthood at the age of 15 and was ordained at
25, but was given dispensation to no longer say public
Masses due to a health problem. Vivaldi also had some
success with expensive stagings of his operas in
Venice, Mantua and Vienna. After meeting the Emperor
Charles VI, Vivaldi moved to Vienna, hoping for royal
support. However, the Emperor died soon after Vivaldi's
arrival, and Vivaldi himself died in poverty less than
a year later.
After almost two centuries of decline, Vivaldi's
musical reputation underwent a revival in the early
20th century, with much scholarly research devoted to
his work. Many of Vivaldi's compositions, once thought
lost, have been rediscovered – in one case as
recently as 2006. His music remains widely popular in
the present day and is regularly played all over the
world. Vivaldi wrote more than 500 other concertos.
About 350 of these are for solo instrument and strings,
of which 230 are for violin, the others being for
bassoon, cello, oboe, flute, viola d'amore, recorder,
lute, or mandolin. About forty concertos are for two
instruments and strings, and about thirty are for three
or more instruments and strings.
Source: Wikipedia
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_Vivaldi).
Although originally scored for Bassoon solo & baroque
orchestra (2 Violini, Viole, Violoncelli, Contrabassi &
Cembalo) I created this Interpretation of the Concerto
in G Minor (RV 496) for Winds (Flute, Oboe, French Horn
& Bassoon) & Strings (2 Violins, Viola & Cello).
SHEET MUSIC