VIVALDI

VIVALDI

1. 4 March 1678 - 28 July 1741

   • Born in Venice

2. His parents were Giovanni Battista Vivaldi and Camilla Calicchio

   • Vivaldi's father was a professional violinist who taught Antonio how to play. They then toured Venice together performing the violin
   • It is also thought that Vivaldi studies with Giovanni Legrenzi as a boy, but there is no evidence to support this speculation.

3. His five siblings were: Margatira Gabriela, Cecilia Maria, Bonaventura Tomaso, Zanetta Anna and Francesco Gaetano

4. Vivaldi's health was a problem, he had a form of asthma. This did not really affect his musical endeavours but he did have to stop playing wind instruments.

5. He began training to become a priest in 1693 (age 15) and was ordained in 1703 (age 25)

   • In 1704 he was excused from celebrating Mass because of his ill health
   • He was nicknamed il Prete Rosse (The Red Priest) because of the colour of his hair

6. In autumn of 1703, he was appointed as a violin teacher at the Ospitale della Pieta in Venice; a few laters later he was made conductor there

7. Vivaldi composed both vocal and instrumental music, as well as sacred and secular music.

   • He composed over seven hundred pieces (sonatas, operas, concertos - 221 solo violin concerto's)
   • Vivaldi is considered to be one of the greatest eighteenth century musicians with superb ability
   • He favoured the three movement concerto (fast - slow - fast)
     • The two other movements are in the same key, the middle movement is in the same or closely related key
     • Concerto grosso: a small group of solo players, set against a full orchestra
   • He wrote concertos for many solo instruments (flute, the clarinet, the trumpet or the mandolin)
   • Some of his music was thematic, giving musical descriptions of events or natural scenes
     • The Seasons
   • His music was extremely popular during and after his lifetime. His pieces were copied and admired by J.S.Bach.
   • Vivaldi was one of the great names of the European music scene in the eighteenth century

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