Antonio Lucio Vivaldi was a Baroque music composer, a virtuoso violinist and a Venetian priest. He was born in 1678 in Venice and was taught to play the violin by his father when he was a young boy. When he was in his mid teens, he took an interest in becoming a priest and was ordained at the age of twenty five. He appeared to have a sickness that may very well have been asthma, so he was unable to play wind instruments. This shortness of breath, however, did not prevent him from playing the violin or composing music.
Antonio Vivaldi spent many years playing with his father and eventually took his first position as master of the violin at an orphanage in Venice in 1703. There, he would teach the young boys and girls what he could of playing the violin. Six years after taking this position at the orphanage, he lost the job and spent the following year as a freelance musician. He was then asked to return to the orphanage after the board realized how important it was for them to have Vivaldi there. Following his return to the orphanage, he spent much of his time composing his own music.
In the early 1700s, Antonio Vivaldi began composing music for operas. He had his own style, which was new and relatively unorthodox, that caused him difficulty throughout his career. Some of his work was not to public taste and so was not really accepted, until he was offered the position of Maestro di Cappella by Prince Phillip of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1718. He spent about three years there producing more operas. His musical career continued to improve greatly after this, receiving commissions from nobles and royalty and so on; however this height was not too long lived. After a time, his music was once again not seen as the music of the time and he soon ran into financial difficulties. He eventually had to sell many of his manuscripts in order to make his way back to Vienna. He passed away in 1741.
This particular musician may not have achieved the greatness that such musicians as Mozart and Bach did, but he was successful in breaking away from the traditional music at the time. His music may have been forgotten for a time, but was rediscovered in the early 1900s and is still enjoyed by an audience today. Antonio Vivaldi is seen as the composer who changed baroque in such a way that it became more classical in style and is proof of his innovative ways. In fact, Vivaldi was quite an influence on Bach, who transcribed many of the concertos created by Vivaldi. It is unfortunate that he was not as recognized, but he was more or less the start of the evolution of the period music. Bach continued the change and was more recognized for it as he made a larger splash in the public eye than Vivaldi ever did.
Antonio Vivaldi was more a quiet priest who kept more to himself, especially as a result of his health, but this did not hinder his affect on music. His talent may not have been as appreciated as it should have been during his life, but he is shown more of the recognition he deserves today. |
