Although the exact details behind the inspiration for Le quattro stagioni (The Four Seasons) remains a mystery, many music historians believe it was written during the years Vivaldi spent in Mantua There are also suggestions he was inspired by the sonnets that accompany the text. Inspired by landscape paintings by Italian artist Marco Ricci, Vivaldi composed the Four Seasons roughly between 1720 and 1723, and published them in Amsterdam in 1725, in a set of twelve concerti entitled Il cimento dell'armonia e dell'inventione (The Test of Harmony and Invention). Click to see full answer.
The music is accompanied by beautiful Italian sonnets, possibly written by Vivaldi himself after he was inspired by painter Marco Ricci's paintings of the seasons. It's even customary in some concerts that a narrator reads the poems before the performance, to bring the musical story to life. Vivaldi was inspired to create The Four Seasons by the landscape paintings of a fellow Venetian, the artist Marco Ricci. Using scenes of Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter as his inspiration, he composed the set in the early 1720s, and they were published in 1725 as part of a collection titled Il cimento dell'armonia e dell'inventione (The Test.
THE FOUR SEASONS: 1: Concerto No.1 in E Major, RV 269, 'SPRING' Allegro / Largo / Allegro (Pastorale dance) 2: Concerto No.2 in g minor, RV 315, 'SUMMER' Allegro non molto - Allegro / Adagio – Presto – Adagio / Presto (Summer Storm) 3: Concerto No.3 in F Major, RV 293, 'AUTUMN' Allegro (Peasant Dance and Song) / Adagio molto (Sleeping Drunkards) / Allegro (The Hunt) 4: Concerto No.4 in f minor, RV 297, 'WINTER' Allegro non molto / Largo / Allegro One of the earliest uses of music was in the accompaniment of theatrical dance and story-telling, so it is natural that composers should from time to time produce what we know as 'program music' – music written to portray events, activities or moods such as pastoral scenes or storms. Music representing the moods of the four seasons has always been popular, and baroque composers such as Werner and Fischer among others produced cycles of concertos representing the fours seasons. But none were to do so in such precise pictorial detail as Antonio Vivaldi in his Four Seasons concertos. As a descriptive basis for his Four Seasons, Vivaldi took four Sonnets, apparently written by himself. Each of the four sonnets is expressed in a concerto, which in turn is divided into three phrases or ideas, reflected in the three movements (fast-slow-fast) of each concerto. The published scores (by Estienne Roger of Amsterdam in 1725) are marked to indicate which musical passages are representative of which verses of the sonnet. It is advisable, at least during the first few hearings, to follow the sonnets and music together, for they are bound up with one another to an extent rarely heard in any other programmatic pieces either of the baroque period or subsequently. |
|
ANTONIO VIVALDI (1678-1741): The FOUR SEASONS The Modena Chamber Orchestra, Leader, and solo violin, Francesco Calvi Caterina Montanari, harpsichord continuo GLORIA in D, RV 589 Mimi Coertse & Ina Dressel, sopranos / Sonja Draxler, alto Vienna Academy Chorus & State Opera Orchestra Conductor Hermann Scherchen | |
This lyrical performance by the Modena Chamber Orchestra under Maestro Calvi reflects every detail of the original sonnets.... the birds of spring, a summer storm, the peasants' revelries when the autumn harvest is completed, the chattering teeth as the winter wind blows. English text of the sonnets is enclosed with the CD. 'Four Seasons' recordings are usually accompanied on a CD by some similar string concertos. The Baroque Music Club CD however has taken the opportunity to offer something different and a complete contrast in sound, with Vivaldi's magnificent Gloria in a wonderful performance full of sensitivity and detailing. Here on one CD is something familiar, something perhaps a little less known. The Gloria will certainly prove a revelation to those unfamiliar with it. Total Time: 74:51. Click the image for full information and music samples. |
![Marco Ricci Four Seasons Paintings Marco Ricci Four Seasons Paintings](/uploads/1/1/9/4/119441719/682652021.jpg)
Marco Ricci Four Seasons Paintings Value
Marco Ricci Shoes
Dr Marco Ricci
The Four Seasons is a set of four violin concertos composed by 17th and 18th century composer Antonio Vivaldi. Vivaldi was born on March 4th 1678, in Venice, Italy and was renowned for his Baroque styled concertos and operas. He was a prolific composer who created numerous works and became “a highly influential innovator in form and pattern” (biography.com). He was also ordained as priest but chose to follow through with his passion for music. Giovanni Battista Vivaldi, Vivaldi’s father, was a professional violinist and taught Vivaldi how to play, but as his violin practice flourished “a chronic shortness of breath barred him from mastering wind instruments” (biography.com).
Amongst the most popular pieces in the Classical music repertoire, The Four Seasons is Vivaldi’s best-known work. Composed between 1720 and 1723, during the Baroque period, Vivaldi published his work in 1725 in Amsterdam as part of a set of twelve concerti. Uncommon to the time, The Four Seasons were published with accompanying poems, possibly written by Vivaldi, to illustrate what is was about the seasons that his music was designed to evoke. Vivaldi was inspired by many landscape paintings by Marco Ricci, an Italian artist of the time, and wanted to represent each season.
All three movements are written in Ritornello form and are performed in common time. In each movement there are five instruments used Violin I, Violin II, Viola, Cello, Bass.
The first movement is mainly homophonic and is performed
Amongst the most popular pieces in the Classical music repertoire, The Four Seasons is Vivaldi’s best-known work. Composed between 1720 and 1723, during the Baroque period, Vivaldi published his work in 1725 in Amsterdam as part of a set of twelve concerti. Uncommon to the time, The Four Seasons were published with accompanying poems, possibly written by Vivaldi, to illustrate what is was about the seasons that his music was designed to evoke. Vivaldi was inspired by many landscape paintings by Marco Ricci, an Italian artist of the time, and wanted to represent each season.
All three movements are written in Ritornello form and are performed in common time. In each movement there are five instruments used Violin I, Violin II, Viola, Cello, Bass.
The first movement is mainly homophonic and is performed