Tuesday 15 December 2009

ABC Wednesday V for Vivaldi








Here we see Giovanni Antonini playing Vivaldi's concerto RV 443 on the recorder.



Vivaldi was born on 4th of March, 1678 in Venice, Italy
He died on July 28, 1741 in Vienna, Austria

He was a composer of the baroque period, like Bach, Handel, Haydn, Telemann, Albinioni..
Baroque 1600-1750
Most of us know The Four Seasons by Vivaldi.

Nicknamed the "Red Priest" because of his red hair, Vivaldi was trained for music and the priesthood by his father. He left the priesthood in 1703 because of ill health, but continued to pursue a musical career. He became head of the Conservatory of the Ospedale della Pieta which housed over 6000 orphaned girls. Music was an integral part of their training at the Conservatory and Vivaldi wrote over 400 concertos for his students.

His personality was one of contrasts - quickly changing from irritated to very calm. His music reflected this trait. It also showed contrasts in dynamics, harmony and varied rhythms. The Four Seasons was his most popular work for which he wrote sonnets to match the seasons.





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ABC is created by Denise Nesbitt.For more interesting ABC posts click on the logo in the sidebar or Here. This week we are looking for words beginning with V.

35 comments:

Anya said...

De favoriet van mijn Papa :-)
Hij is er helemaal weg van !!
Mooi stukje geschreven over zijn meesterwerk.
Hij is een wereldster voor altijd
:-)

Fijne avond
Anya :-)

Sylvia K said...

Great V post for the day, Wil! Vivaldi is one of my favorites and I really enjoyed reading about him, learned a couple of things I didn't know about him and that's always good.

Hope you have a great day!

Sylvia

Rune Eide said...

Now that was a V with a Vengeance! Fine music accompanied by interesting text - or vice-versa :-)

Amy said...

It's amazing Vivaldi wrote over 400 concertos! Really interesting post, Wil. And I so enjoyed the recorder piece - thank you!

Leslie: said...

A very well-known composer who has done vibrant pieces!

Dina said...

Thanks for these life facts that make Vivaldi more than just a great name.
And such a small recorder can make such big music. Nice!

anthonynorth said...

I didn't know much about Vivaldi. Thanks for that. Informative, as always.

Janie said...

Interesting to learn more about Vivaldi. That was a vivacious and dynamic selection!

Vicki Lane said...

Vivaldi has always been a favorite of mine, especially The Four Seasons. Thanks, Reader Wil!

Anonymous said...

Had much of Mozart in mind tonight, as both of them lived in Vienna, at least in thoughts 'we' did meet.
Please have a wonderful Wednesday.

Cloudia said...

Thank you , Wil, for introducing us to the man behind the music we love.



Aloha, Friend!


Comfort Spiral

XoXo said...

Bedankt voor de informatie...Ik heb eens gehoord van Vivaldi. Mooi. Fijne avond!

Tumblewords: said...

Always good to learn more about someone much admired! Your banner is superb, too!

Q said...

One of my favorite composers.
I enjoyed learning more about him.
Thanks for the music.
Sherry

Hildred said...

Amazing and beautiful performance. Great accompanying text, - learned lots about Vivaldi that I didn't know. Thank you for a fine posting.

Etje said...

Vivaldi, mijn favoriete componist

MaR said...

Fantastic choice for V!! how lovely, thanks!

V is for...

Wsprsweetly Of Cottages said...

A lovely post and a beautiful header...just beautiful!!

penny said...

He certainly is a virtuoso musician, Wil. I enjoyed his music and history too. Thanks for a delightful V post. I hope you have a very nice day.

I really like your festive header.

Cezar and Léia said...

Thanks so much for this beautiful video, it's a gift for our ears and beauty for our hearts!
It's really touch my heart as I used to be a music teacher, but it was many years ago...nice memories!
By the way I'm enchanted by the lovely picture in your header!
Hugs
Léia

Miss_Yves said...

Très belle interprétation de Vivaldi!
Connaissez-vous celles du fantasque Nigel kennedy ?

Rose said...

Thanks for all the fascinating info, Reader Wil! This just goes to show how limited my musical education is. I've heard Vivaldi before and am familiar with "The Four Seasons," but somehow I didn't realize he was from the same period as Bach and Handel. Nor did I know he wrote sonnets. Thanks for enlightening me!

Roger Owen Green said...

All I own of Vivaldi is Four Seasons. I knew he wrote a lot more' thanks for the info.

photowannabe said...

Beautiful music and thank you for the information to round it out. 400 concertos is quite amazing.

Kim, USA said...

My first time to see somebody playing a recorder in a concert WOW!! That is so awesome music..thanks for sharing!



My ABC

Vagabonde said...

J’aime beaucoup Vivaldi et ai écouté avec plaisir la performance de Antonini – il est vraiment un virtuose du recorder. J’ai un CD de Vivaldi ou l’instrument principal est la mandoline – c’est très beau aussi.

Rajesh said...

You have beautifully depicted the personality of musical genius.

Bhimbetka Cave Paintings

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

Thanks Reader Wil,

even a recorder can make beautiful music.

Etje said...

Ben idd ziek geweest, had een 5 tal dagen de griep maar is gelukkig weer voorbij

Arkansas Patti said...

Vivaldi is new to me so thank you for the introduction. Sounds like he may have been manic-drepressive but thankfully for us, they did not have medication then that could have tamed his genius.

Unknown said...

Thank you for this post about Vivaldi! It's fascinating that his music and personality were so similar. I didn't know that!

jay said...

I do love Vivaldi. I think his music speaks to such a wide range of people, too. That's a piece I've never heard though. Thanks for that!

Louis la Vache said...

«Louis» loved this!

When he lived in Paris, he had the privilege of hearing "The Four Seasons" at La Sainte Chapelle.

len said...

i love Vivaldi, I have his Cd. My favorite of all is Four Seasons

len said...

hello can we exchange links?