What Vivaldi achieved with this vastly important collection was the definitive organization of musical material into a unified and highly expressive form which allowed for, up until that time, an unimagined freedom of invention as well as an enormous capacity for drama and surprise. 3 publicly confirmed what a number of Venetians had begun to grasp: that here was a genius who was bringing the Baroque concerto form to its pinnacle of perfection while simultaneously initiating a new approach to instrumental musical expression. It is evident, however, that some of his concertos were already in private circulation, and that the publication of L'Estro Armonico, Op. Three years later, his Opus 2, a set of violin sonatas, appeared. Vivaldi's role enabled him to experiment with his compositional ideas and techniques, and by 1705, he had earned enough of a reputation to publish his Opus 1, a series of trio sonatas. The instrumental ensembles of the Pieta, already acknowledged as unusually high in achievement, eventually became a source of public admiration, and Sunday concerts were often attended by capacity crowds. Vivaldi's skill as a violinist as well as his organizational abilities made him the ideal man for the role. ![]() That Vivaldi was appointed, in part at least, because of his composing abilities seems assured by the fact that his superior at the Pieta was Francesco Gasparini, a former pupil of Corelli and a capable operatic composer. It is clear that his family was not well-off and was unable to support him in the manner of Albinoni, who remained an amateur composer until well into his thirties. It's possible that Vivaldi's decision to join the priesthood solved the problem of earning a living and thus allowed him to practice the art he was obsessed with. Thus began the career of the man known to all as "Il Prete Rosso" (the Red Priest), due to his extraordinary shock of red hair. His relationship with the Pieta would last for the rest of his life, and was a central point around which his musical activities would revolve. The same year, he was appointed as maestro di violino by the Ospedale della Pieta, a charitable religious foundation dedicated to the education and upbringing of female orphans. Afterwards, Vivaldi gave up any pretense of being a man of the cloth and instead concentrated on his musical career. He studied to be a priest, and was ordained in 1703. Mark's, and there are indications that the young Antonio received his early musical schooling from within the family. ![]() Vivaldi’s most famous work, The Four Seasons ![]() This is ironic, considering this great Baroque composer's close association in the public's mind to everything Venetian – an association only rivaled by Canaletto. For such an outstanding composer, relatively little is known about Vivaldi's life beyond the fact that he was born and raised in Venice.
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