Classical Music: Antonio Lucio Vivaldi

Antonio Lucio Vivaldi, born in Venice, Italy on March 4, 1678, was a 17th and 18th century composer who’s become one of the most renowned figures in European classical music. The virtuosic violinist was baptized immediately after his birth, likely due either to his poor health or to an earthquake that shook the city that day. It is believed that either the trauma of the earthquake led his mother, Camilla Calicchio, to dedicate him to the priesthood, or perhaps because in his day training for the priesthood was often the only possible way for a poor family to obtain free schooling, a probable cause considering he had five siblings.

His father, Giovanni Battista Vivaldi, was a barber before becoming a well-respected violinist, employed at St.

Programmatic music would only flourish in the Romantic period, while Vivaldi used it in Spring – so Vivaldi was a composer ahead of his time in writing concertos, and in writing fresh melodies.

Rhythmic verve can be seen by the complexities of the melodic rhythms in Vivaldi’s work. In Spring, the triplet rhythm is used with semiquaver beats. Such employment of rhythm instead of the homophonic chords, or regular division of notes provides more individualism to the melody that sings above the other parts, which is critical in an orchestral work. Thus, it can be seen that the rhythm employed by Vivaldi can serve its purpose well, and showcases Vivaldi’s competence in composition for a group of instruments.

Vivaldi’s skillful treatment of color can be seen in his Op 10, RB533. In one section, the second flute imitates the theme played initially by the first flute, characterized by a chain of semiquavers. In this section, the flutes are playing at a high register, which would idiomatically showcase its lightness of tone and virtuosity, while interweaving their melodic lines to form a seamless work of art. This would not be possible without the tone color of the flute. Hence, it is conclusive that Vivaldi is skillful in his treatment of tone color in the