An incredibly eerie atmosphere in the first and second movements is achieved perfectly. I really love the contrasting characters of the first movement’s opening-the rapid waves interrupted by mourning, ominous (as if warning) clouds. The solo violin in the first movement keeps hinting at a climax but never reaches it (not a flaw at all), leading into the second movement, in which the “waiting” feeling develops with creeping chromaticism in the tutti sections. In the third movement, storms return, but they are still interrupted. We get closer to the climax, and we, a few times at least, can just touch it, but the piece ends, and we never see the large explosion the typical Vivaldi piece would provide. I think that’s one of this concerto’s beauties. The solo violin in this piece is very delicate, which is not common for Vivaldi to do through an entire piece, though he often seems to favour this approach in E minor. Ornaments riddle its melodies; intricate lines weave around themselves. This is late Vivaldi-dark, spontaneous, and rebellious.
I think that’s what’s fascinating about him. A lot of his pieces don’t reach that climax and when they do in some pieces, they are perfect. I think even his happy pieces have an air of nihilism and sarcasm about them. I certainly believe that his pieces are a mirror to his life and how he viewed it
@@paulbraunstein2290 Can't agree more about that 'nihilism and sarcasm' in Vivaldi's happy pieces. Reminds me to one of his quote, 'human feelings are difficult to predict'.
Don’t get me wrong I adore Vivaldi. But I listen to many of his concertos and I think 🙄here we go again; predictable and lacking inspiration. But then there are always these diamonds that make one breathless with admiration. I do prefer his early works which are genuine works of genius. This e minor concerto is one of his better ones.
I guess he must have been pressured to deliver as much and as fast as he could, with the same commend to not reinvent the wheel each time and to reuse and reuse... I don't write music but I write code and I face the same boring issue!
J.J. Quantz, who learned composition by studying Vivaldi, wrote: "As a result of excessive daily composing, and especially after he had begun to write theatrical voice pieces, he [Don Antonio] sank into frivolity and eccentricity both in composition and in performance; in consequence his late concertos did not gain as much approbation as his first." What do you think?
He was a mass producer, though many of his later works actually have the La Stravaganza quality imho. For example RV 552 and 386. I myself prefer his pre 1730 instrumental works in gereral, and his post 1725 operas.
I think it depends on who's playing and how much they exaggerate those amazing innovative passages. To much of the "bizarre" and it can really get nauseating. I do not think a fascinating piece like the second movement of this concerto needs exaggerated effects from the violinist for Vivaldi's ideas to be understood.
Del Vivaldi - Quantz admired Vivaldi’s op.3 (early style) which adhered to the expected norms (composition-wise) as it was a ground breaking, influential and eye-opening set of concertos that JS Bach also studied and admired but also it’s important to know that Quantz was a theorist and critic and as such he perhaps didn’t understand or even appreciate the fact that Vivaldi mastered the art of vocal composition. This art is clearly heard in the Red Priest’s late instrumental solo masterworks such as his “late” violin concertos. These gems are dominated NOT by musical rules and constraints but by the beauty of musical spontaneity, poetry and creative genius. By this time Vivaldi had broken free from what was expected in a solo concerto. In this aspect Vivaldi was ahead of his contemporaries. That’s why his late style was not so appreciated by the purists of the time such as Quantz, Avison, Tartini and others. Because of this revolutionary vision Vivaldi had in his music many contemporaries simply didn’t get it.
I have uploaded it on IMSLP. Approval is pending, it will be available once they review the copyright. imslp.org/wiki/Violin_Concerto_in_E_Minor,_RV_278_(Vivaldi,_Antonio)
Did Vivaldi write all these notes in with only the use of a quill, or were there other tools involved? This seems like it would take forever to write out.
