Antonio Vivaldi (1678 – 1741) was probably born in
Venice, Italy. The priest Vivaldi, in view of his wild
red hair often called “the red priest” (Il Preto
Rosso), worked the largest part of his life as a music
master at the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice,
originally an orphanage for extra-marital girls. For an
important part this may not only have influenced the
score of his works (there were only women to play and
sing), but could also be the reason for the fact that
he frequently made u...(+)
Antonio Vivaldi (1678 – 1741) was probably born in
Venice, Italy. The priest Vivaldi, in view of his wild
red hair often called “the red priest” (Il Preto
Rosso), worked the largest part of his life as a music
master at the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice,
originally an orphanage for extra-marital girls. For an
important part this may not only have influenced the
score of his works (there were only women to play and
sing), but could also be the reason for the fact that
he frequently made use of easy to listen to melodies,
as these were mostly intended for a young female
audience. His most famous work, of course, is Le
Quattro Stagioni (The Four Seasons). He died in Vienna,
during one of his journeys. The first movement of
Vivaldi’s Stabat Mater has been used in the
soundtrack of the movie “The talented
Mr.Ripley”.
During his lifetime, Vivaldi was popular in many
countries throughout Europe, including France, but
after his death his popularity dwindled. After the end
of the Baroque period, Vivaldi's published concerti
became relatively unknown, and were largely ignored.
Even his most famous work, The Four Seasons, was
unknown in its original edition during the Classical
and Romantic periods.
In the early 20th century, Fritz Kreisler's Concerto in
C, in the Style of Vivaldi (which he passed off as an
original Vivaldi work) helped revive Vivaldi's
reputation. This spurred the French scholar Marc
Pincherle to begin an academic study of Vivaldi's
oeuvre. Many Vivaldi manuscripts were rediscovered,
which were acquired by the Turin National University
Library as a result of the generous sponsorship of
Turinese businessmen Roberto Foa and Filippo Giordano,
in memory of their sons. This led to a renewed interest
in Vivaldi by, among others, Mario Rinaldi, Alfredo
Casella, Ezra Pound, Olga Rudge, Desmond Chute, Arturo
Toscanini, Arnold Schering and Louis Kaufman, all of
whom were instrumental in the revival of Vivaldi
throughout the 20th century.
Vivaldi's Stabat Mater only uses the first ten stanzas
of the hymn. The music (originally keyed in F Minor) is
generally slow and melancholy, with allegro only being
used once in the Amen, and all the other movements not
going faster than andante. Movements 4, 5, and 6 are
identical to the first three musically. Stabat Mater
for solo alto and orchestra, RV 621, is a composition
by the Italian baroque composer Antonio Vivaldi on one
of the Sorrows of Mary. It was premiered around 1727.
Source: Wikipedia
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_Vivaldi).
Although originally written for for Violins, Violas,
Solo alto or Countertenor and Basso continuo, I created
this Interpretation of the "Stabat Mater" (RV 621) for
Winds (Flute, Oboe, English Horn, French Horn &
Bassoon) & Strings (2 Violins, Viola, Cello & Bass).
