What makes it great vivaldis four seasons

The recording by the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields conducted by Neville Marriner, featuring soloist Alan Loveday, reputedly moved the piece from the realm of esoterica to that of program and popular staple. Derivative works of these concerti include arrangements, transcriptions, covers, remixes, samples, and parodies in music—themes in theater and opera, soundtracks in films or video games , and choreography in ballet along with contemporary dance, figure skating, rhythmic gymnastics, synchronized swimming, etc.

This contest between harmony and invention as it were now involves various genres around the world:. Skip to main content. Search for:. Licenses and Attributions. While he was a lover of opera, the brilliant mind of Vivaldi was captivated by the idea of being able to describe landscapes or scenes in ways that correlated with human behavior and emotions, but without setting the music to specific words.

So, while "The Four Seasons" were composed to honor the themes put forth in the previously-linked sonnets, Vivaldi composed the music in such a way that the technical playing and interpretations of the string musicians told the story - sans narration.

He also included unique dynamic instructions that remain intact in the scores today. The musicians get to use their imaginations, and the imagination of the conductor, to interpret what Vivaldi imagined in his head when he wrote notes to the musicians. He worked as the Maestro de Violino violin teacher there and wrote some of his most famous works during that period of time.

And, with talent and fame such as his, he certainly had a choice in the matter. A Connolly Music Publication. Vivaldi was determined to prove that descriptive music could be sophisticated, intricate and virtuosic enough to be taken seriously — and that it could advance the cause of the concerto at the same time. With his unequalled gift for orchestral colour and melody, if anyone could do it, Vivaldi could. So did he succeed? Yes and no. With his elevation of descriptive music, Vivaldi ignited a debate that lasted for centuries and saw the art of telling stories through wordless sounds criticised by those who believed music should transcend earthly description.

Where Vivaldi undeniably did succeed was in his successful exploration of compositional techniques — those that made The Four Seasons. No wonder musicians talk of the intense imagination and character required to bring these concertos off. The earliest taping still available was made by violinist Louis Kaufman and the strings of the New York Philharmonic in — it sounds robust but pretty unsubtle, too. In the young virtuoso Anne-Sophie Mutter made her first recording of the work, conducted by Herbert von Karajan — who insisted strings should sound rich and sustained in Baroque music just as in Brahms.