´óÏó´«Ã½

Donald Macleod introduces the life and music of the Venetian priest, feted in his lifetime as both composer and violinist, yet destined to die in obscurity in faraway Vienna.

Antonio Vivaldi's name is now inextricably linked with Venice's charitable institution the Ospedale della Pietà, where the female residents benefitted from his skills as composer, violinist, teacher and impresario. As a boy, Vivaldi was taught by his father, inheriting both his red hair and his skill as a violinist. Young Antonio was soon to be seen deputising for his father in the orchestra of the Basilica of St. Mark's. As the eldest son in a poor family, Vivaldi was destined for the priesthood, and he was ordained in 1703. Combining the careers of musician and priest wasn't unusual at the time, and that same year Vivaldi was appointed violin teacher at the Pietà. Donald Macleod presents a selection of music Vivaldi wrote specially tailored to display the dazzling array of talents offered by the girls of the Pietà including an ensemble concerto for two recorders, two oboes, bassoon and two violins. He also introduces a concerto from Vivaldi's op.3 - the first collection to make his name outside Italy and regarded as the most influential music publication of the first half of the eighteenth century.