The Four Seasons (Vivaldi)

The Four Seasons (Italian: Le quattro stagioni) is a group of four violin concerti by Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi, each of which gives a musical expression to a season of the year. They were written about 1723 and were published in 1725 in Amsterdam, together with eight additional violin concerti, as Il cimento dell'armonia e dell'inventione ("The Contest Between Harmony and Invention").

The Four Seasons is the best known of Vivaldi's works. Unusually for the time, Vivaldi published the concerti with accompanying poems (possibly written by Vivaldi himself) that elucidated what it was about those seasons that his music was intended to evoke. It provides one of the earliest and most-detailed examples of what was later called program music—music with a narrative element.

Vivaldi took great pains to relate his music to the texts of the poems, translating the poetic lines themselves directly into the music on the page. In the middle section of the Spring concerto, where the goatherd sleeps, his barking dog can be marked in the viola section. Other natural occurrences are similarly evoked. Vivaldi separated each concerto into three movements, fast-slow-fast, and likewise each linked sonnet into three sections.

List of concertos and movements

Vivaldi's arrangement is as follows:

• Concerto No. 1 in E major, Op. 8, RV 269, "Spring" (La primavera)
  1. Allegro (in E major)
  2. Largo e pianissimo sempre (in C-sharp minor)
  3. Allegro pastorale (in E major)
• Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 8, RV 315, "Summer" (L'estate)
  1. Allegro non molto (in G minor)
  2. Adagio e piano - Presto e forte (in G minor)
  3. Presto (in G minor)
• Concerto No. 3 in F major, Op. 8, RV 293, "Autumn" (L'autunno)
  1. Allegro (in F major)
  2. Adagio molto (in D minor)
  3. Allegro (in F major)

	"L'inverno" (Winter), First movement, Allegro non molto (3:18) Performed by the United States Air Force Band
Problems playing this file? See media help.

• Concerto No. 4 in F minor, Op. 8, RV 297, "Winter" (L'inverno)
  1. Allegro non molto (in F minor)
  2. Largo (in E-flat major)
  3. Allegro (in F minor)

Sonnets and allusions

There is some debate as to whether the four concertos were written to accompany four sonnets or vice versa.^[1] Though it is not known who wrote these sonnets, there is a theory that Vivaldi wrote them himself, given that each sonnet is broken down into three sections, neatly corresponding to a movement in the concerto. Whoever wrote the sonnets, The Four Seasons may be classified as program music, instrumental music that intends to evoke something extra-musical ^[2] and an art form which Vivaldi was determined to prove sophisticated enough to be taken seriously.^[3]

In addition to these sonnets, Vivaldi provided instructions such as "The barking dog" (in the second movement of "Spring"), "Languor caused by the heat" (in the first movement of "Summer"), and "the drunkards have fallen asleep" (in the second movement of "Autumn"). The Four Seasons is used in the 1981 film The Four Seasons along with other Vivaldi concertos for flute.

Recordings by Wichita State University Chamber Players

The four concertos each consist of several movements, and the following performances in the year 2000 are by the Wichita State University Chamber Players, an ensemble of the Wichita Symphony Orchestra:

Recording history

The first recording of The Four Seasons is a matter of some dispute. There is a compact disc of one made by the violinist Alfredo Campoli which is taken from acetates of a French radio broadcast; these are thought to date from early in 1939.^[4] The first proper electrical recording was made in 1942 by Bernardino Molinari, and though his adaptation is somewhat different from what we have come to expect from modern performances, it is clearly recognisable. This first recording by Molinari was made for Cetra, issued in Italy and subsequently in the United States on six double-sided 78s in the 1940s. It was then reissued on long-playing album in 1950, and was once again reissued on compact disc.^[5]

Not surprisingly, further recordings followed. The next was in 1948 by the violinist Louis Kaufman, mistakenly credited as the 'first' recording, made during the night in New York using 'dead' studio time and under pressure from a forthcoming musicians strike. The performers were The Concert Hall Chamber Orchestra under Henry Swoboda, Edith Weiss-Mann (harpsichord) and Edouard Nies-Berger (organ).^[6] This recording helped the re-popularisation of Vivaldi's music in the mainstream repertoire of Europe and America following on the work done by Molinari and others in Italy. It won the French Grand Prix du Disque in 1950, was elected to the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2002, and in 2003 was selected for the National Recording Registry in the Library of Congress. Kaufman, intrigued to learn that the four concertos were in fact part of a set of twelve, set about finding a full score and eventually recorded the other eight concertos in Zürich in 1950, making his the first recording of Vivaldi's complete Op. 8.^[7]

I Musici followed in 1955 with the first of several recordings of The Four Seasons with different soloists. The 1955 set with Felix Ayo was that ensemble's first recording of any music; subsequent I Musici recordings feature Felix Ayo again in 1959, Roberto Michelucci in 1969, Pina Carmirelli in 1982, Federico Agostini in 1990, and Mariana Sîrbu in 1995. The 1969 recording by the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields conducted by Neville Marriner, featuring soloist Alan Loveday, reputedly moved the piece from the realm of esoterica to that of program and popular staple.^[8]

I Solisti di Zagreb under the baton of Antonio Janigro with Jan Tomasow as violin soloist and Anton Heiller on the harpsichord followed in 1957 on the Vanguard label, further reissued under the Philips and other labels. Wilfrid Howard Mellers OBE an English music critic, musicologist and composer wrote about this performance "...the soloists phrase their lyricism beautifully." ^[9] J.T. (John Thornton) wrote about this recording on HIFI Stereo Review (October 1958, page 88):

"Of all the Vanguard stereo releases, this one is tops! It has everything. Just like London's magnificent release of Petronchka. this recording of Vivaldi's "Seasons" is so fine it is almost impossible to single out any element of it and call it "best." Here is matchless ensemble playing, topped by Tomasow's secure playing. Janigro reveals his talent for conducting, which competes with his considerable talent for cello playing. Le quattro slaggioni emerges as a double triumph, that rare joining of all forces, musical and engineering, to produce a topnotch recording, a credit to the industry, a standard to aim for, an issue to be proud of. I hope Vanguard makes a deal of money with it too, for this is no accident. It took planning and good engineering. The Solomon brothers, who run Vanguard, should be congratulated. Now. if someone will tell certain distributors and dealers that The Seasons" does not begin and end with hunting, fishing, baseball, and football, and if the dealers will get as excited as I am, then Vanguard will make profits and make more records with the Zagreb Solisti, to make more collectors happy to spend money on such discs. A fine example of a delightful circle.^[10]

Ivan Supek wrote about this recording:

"I will attempt to convey to you how much this performance means to me, and might mean to you, as well. My first encounter with the records took place almost thirty years ago, when “our” Antonio revealed to me the true significance of the piece of another great Antonio, his famous namesake, whose “Le Quattro Staggioni” I could hardly listen any more because of the “grand”, actually too grand, performances usual at that time, let alone enjoy them. What a change it was – a window into a new world; music is fast, precise and true to life, the intonation is correct, the continuo appropriate, and the violin of beautiful sound in fitting correlation with the Zagreb Soloists. The self-assured and fine tone of Jan Tomasow’s solo violin relates perfectly with the Soloists; the entire performance is impregnated with the spirit of Janigro’s perfectionism, leaving the music and its soul fully exposed. It had been for a long time the only performance I could listen to. Only during [the] last decade some new kids, playing authentic instruments, have offered to me similar pleasure and insights into the music of Antonio Vivaldi and, to my great pleasure, Janigro’s performance is no longer the only choice for me. In my opinion, this also shows how Janigro’s performance in co-operation with the Zagreb Soloists was far ahead its time, as corroborated by Igor Stravinski who claimed that it was the most beautiful performance of “Le Quattro Staggioni” he had ever heard, a statement which I only recently learned about. No wonder, since such “bareness” and precision of Janigro’s interpretation must have appealed to him. It was much later that I discovered the excellence of the recording as well. At that time, the Zagreb Soloists were recording for Vanguard, mostly in Vienna at various locations, and this particular recording was made in 1957 at Rotenturmstrassaal. Recording was produced by Seymour Solomon, chief producer of the entire edition, who would personally come from the USA to oversee every recording to be made by the Zagreb Soloists, whereas the Vanguard branch in Vienna “Amadeo” was in charge of the organisation. (My gratitude to one of the founders of the Zagreb Soloists, Mr. Stjepan Aranjoš, for providing me with some important insights). Janigro was a perfectionist, often rather merciless, not only in matters of music but also in terms of the sound, so he participated directly and intensely in [the] recording process, which was quite uncommon at that time. All that great care, by all participants in the project, is amply reflected in the recording itself, resulting in an airy performance of appropriate spaciousness and extension, with only occasional “congestion” of high tones in forte sections." ^[11]

Paul Shoemaker wrote about this recording:

Nothing I have heard changes my view that the best Seasons ever was performed by Jan Tomasow and I Solisti di Zagreb and beautifully recorded by Vanguard at the very beginning of the stereo era. If you have almost every other version of the Seasons, you’ll want this one, too. If money and space are no obstacle, it might be worth having.^[12]

Nigel Kennedy's 1989 recording of The Four Seasons with the English Chamber Orchestra sold over two million copies, becoming one of the best-selling classical works ever.^[13] Gil Shaham and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra recorded The Four Seasons as well as a music video for the first movement of "Winter" that was featured regularly on The Weather Channel in the mid-1990s.

The World's Encyclopedia of Recorded Music in 1952 cites only two recordings of The Four Seasons – by Molinari and Kaufman. By 2011 approximately 1,000 different recorded versions have been made since Campoli's in 1939.

Commensurably, it has become an aspect of these recordings for classical musicians to distinguish their version of The Four Seasons from others', with historically informed performances, and embellishments, to the point of varying the instruments and tempi, or playing notes differently from the listener's expectation (whether specified by the composer or not).^[14] It is said that Vivaldi's work presents such opportunities for improvisation.^[15]

Derivative works

Derivative works of these concerti include arrangements, transcriptions, covers, remixes, samples, and parodies in music—themes in theater and opera, soundtracks in films (or video games), and choreography in ballet (along with contemporary dance, figure skating, rhythmic gymnastics, synchronized swimming, etc.)—either in their entirety, single movements, or medleys. Antonio Vivaldi appears to have started this trend of adapting music from The Four Seasons, and since then it has expanded into many aspects of the performing arts (as have other instrumental & vocal works by the composer). This contest between harmony and invention (as it were) now involves various genres around the world:

1726 (or 1734)

• Vivaldi re-scored his Spring allegro, both as the opening sinfonia (third movement), and chorus (adding lyrics) for his opera Dorilla in Tempe.
• Johann Sebastian Bach used the theme of Spring's first movement for the third movement (aria) of his cantata Wer weiß, wie nahe mir mein Ende? BWV 27.

1739

• Nicolas Chédeville (France) arranged Vivaldi's four seasons (as "Le printems, ou Les saisons amusantes"), for hurdy-gurdy or musette, violin, flute, and continuo.

1765

• The French composer Michel Corrette composed and published a choral motet, Laudate Dominum de Coelis, subtitled "Motet à Grand Chœur arrangé dans le Concerto de Printemps de Vivaldi". The work, for choir and orchestra, consists of the words of Psalm 116 set to the music from Vivaldi's Spring movement with vocal soloists singing the solo concerto parts.^[16]

1808

• Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony contains many of the same themes, including drunken peasants and a storm. Beethoven had acquired a solid grounding in baroque music from his teacher Albrechtsberger.

1969

• The Swingle Singers (France) recorded an album (The Joy of Singing) based on Vivaldi's work (and other composers').

1970

• Ástor Piazzolla (Argentina) published Estaciones Porteñas, "The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires", and these have been included in "eight seasons" performances, along with Vivaldi's work, by various artists.

1972

• Moe Koffman (Canada) recorded a jazz album of Vivaldi's four seasons.^[17]

1976

• The New Koto Ensemble (Japan) recorded Vivaldi's 4 seasons, on their koto instruments.^[18]

1978

• Michael Franks (United States) composed a vocal serenade based on the theme of Vivaldi's summer concerto (adagio).^[19] This was subsequently covered by WoongSan (Korea) in 2010.^[20]

1982

• Patrick Gleeson (United States) recorded a "computer realization" of Vivaldi's four seasons.

1984

• Thomas Wilbrandt (Germany) composed and recorded "The Electric V" (later adapted for film), which interprets Vivaldi's work with ambient electronics, vocals, and samples of the original concerti.
• Roland Petit (France) choreographed a ballet (entitled "Les Quatre Saisons") to an I Musici performance of Vivaldi's work.

1987

• Ben Shedd (United States) produced a scenic tour of nature with Vivaldi's four seasons (narrated by William Shatner).^[21]

1990

• A MIDI arrangement of Concerto No. 1 in E major by Passport Designs was included with Windows 3.0.

1993

• Jean-Pierre Rampal (France) recorded arrangements of Vivaldi's four seasons for flute^[22] (also recorded by Jadwiga Kotnowska).

1995

• Arnie Roth (United States) recorded "The Four Seasons Suite", including sonnets (recited by Patrick Stewart). This may or may not be considered a derivative work, depending on whether Vivaldi's translated sonnets were meant to be narrated with the music (versus being read in Italiano, or silently by the audience).^[23]

1997

• The Baronics (Canada) recorded surf guitar versions of the violin concertos in Vivaldi's four seasons (one movement from each).^[24]
• French musician Jacques Loussier composed and recorded, with his trio, jazz-swing interpretations of the Four Seasons.

1998

• The Great Kat (England/United States) recorded a shred guitar (and violin) version of Vivaldi's summer presto.^[25]
• Vanessa-Mae (Singapore/Britain) recorded her crossover version of Vivaldi's summer presto, for electric violin.^[26]

1999

• The Chinese Baroque Players recorded arrangements of Vivaldi's four seasons for traditional Chinese instruments.^[27]
• Petrova & Tikhonov (Russia) performed their long program to a medley of Vivaldi's seasons to win the European Figure Skating Championships.

2000

• Venice Harp Quartet (Italy) recorded arrangements of Vivaldi's four seasons for harp ensemble.^[28]
• Gustavo Montesano (Argentina) recorded a tango guitar version of the spring allegro, with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.^[29]
• Jochen Brusch (Germany) & Sven-Ingvart Mikkelsen (Denmark) recorded arrangements of Vivaldi's 4 seasons for violin and organ.^[30]

2001

• Bond (Australia/Britain) recorded two singles based on Vivaldi's winter, with electric strings (violin, cello, viola), vocals, and electronic beats,.^[31] They similarly interpreted a movement from each season for Peugeot car advertisements (2009).
• Ferhan & Ferzan Önder (Turkish twin sisters) recorded a transcription of the Four Seasons for two pianos by Antun Tomislav Šaban.^[32]
• BanYa (South Korea) recorded a dance version of Vivaldi's winter for the Pump it Up video game.
• Susan Osborn (United States) recorded a new age vocal serenade based on Vivaldi's winter largo.^[33]
• The Charades (Finland) recorded Vivaldi's presto as "Summer Twist", for surf guitar ensemble.^[34]
• An electronic cover of the song was recorded by Takayuki Ishikawa (under the pseudonym dj TAKA) with the title "V" for the rhythm game Beatmania IIDX 5th Style. The song has become one of the most popular in the series, being included in every release since its debut.

2003

• Red Priest (UK) recorded arrangements of Vivaldi's 4 seasons for recorder.^[35]
• Hayley Westenra (New Zealand) adapted the musical piece called "Winter" into a song titled "River of Dreams" which is sung in English. It was recorded for her Pure album in July 10.

2004

• Tafelmusik (Canada) arranged a cross-cultural arts special based on Vivaldi's four seasons, involving a Chinese pipa, Indian sarangi and Inuit throat-singing.^[36]

2005

• Dark Moor (Spain) recorded an electric guitar version of Vivaldi's winter (allegro non molto), and this was later integrated into the Finnish video game Frets on Fire.^[37]

2006

• Juliette Pochin (Wales) volumed an operatic suite of sonnets to Vivaldi's four seasons on her debut album.
• Accentus chamber choir (France) recorded a choral version of Vivaldi's concerto for winter (complete).^[38]
• Stéphane Lambiel (Switzerland) performed his long program to a medley of Vivaldi's seasons to win the World Figure Skating Championships.

2007

• Celtic Woman (Ireland) recorded the winter largo with vocals (Italian lyrics).^[39] The youngest former member Chloë Agnew originally recorded it for her Walking in the Air album which was released in 2002.
• PercaDu (Israel) performed an arrangement of Vivaldi's winter (allegro non molto), for marimbas with chamber orchestra.^[40]
• Mauro Bigonzetti (Italy) choreographed a ballet of Vivaldi's "Les quatre saisons" for a French-Canadian dance company.^[41]
• Tim Slade (Australia) directed a documentary (entitled "4") of four classical violinists and their homelands (in Tokyo, Thursday Island, New York, and Lapland), as they relate to Vivaldi's four seasons.^[42]
• Seoul Metropolitan Traditional Music Orchestra performed complete concertos with arrangement for Korean traditional music (gugak) orchestra by Seong-gi Kim. It was recorded live and released with CD from Synnara Music same year.^[43]

2008

• Sveceny & Dvorak (Czech Republic) produced both an album and stage production of world music based on Vivaldi's four seasons.^[44]
• Yves Custeau (Canada) recorded a rock & roll "one man band" version of the spring allegro.^[45]
• Daisy Jopling (England/United States) recorded a violin & hip-hop version of Vivaldi's winter (allegro non molto), and also performs it reggae style.^[46]
• Innesa Tymochko (Ukrain) performed her crossover version of Vivaldi's summer presto, for violin.^[47]
• Wez Bolton (Isle of Man) recorded a cover version of Vivaldi's winter (allegro non molto), based on the Japanese video game "Beatmania" remix.^[48]
• Patrick Chan (Canada) performed his long program to a medley of Vivaldi's seasons to win the Canadian Figure Skating Championships.^[49]

2009

• Absynth Against Anguish (Romania) produced an electronic (trance) version of Vivaldi's four seasons.^[50]
• Riccardo Arrighini (Italy) recorded Vivaldi's four seasons for solo piano, in the style of jazz.^[51]
• Christophe Monniot recorded ambient jazz interpretations of Vivaldi's four seasons.^[52]
• Christian Blind (France) recorded a surf-guitar/acid-rock version of Vivaldi's spring allegro.^[53]
• Sodagreen (Taiwan) launched their "Vivaldi Project" and begun to release a series of 4 pop albums based on the image of Vivaldi's four seasons: Spring/Daylight, Summer/Fever, Autumn/Story and Winter/Endless. The project was completed in 2015 with the release of the fourth album.

2010

• Art Color Ballet (Poland) performed their "4 elements" show to Vivaldi's summer presto, arranged by Hadrian Filip Tabęcki (Kameleon).^[54]
• David Garrett (Germany) recorded a crossover version of Vivaldi's winter (allegro non molto), combining classical violin with modern rock music.^[55]

2011

• Black Smith (Russia) performed Vivaldi's summer presto in the style of thrash metal music (likewise, this movement has been covered numerous times by aspiring electric guitar virtuosos, and other crossover musicians).^[56]
• Angels (Greece) performed their crossover version of Vivaldi's summer presto, for electric strings.^[57]
• Szentpeteri Csilla (Hungary) performed her crossover version of Vivaldi's summer presto, for piano.^[58]
• Leonel Valbom (Portugal) remixed Vivaldi's summer presto with VST Synths.^[59]
• Tim Kliphuis (Netherlands) performed Vivaldi's spring allegro, as a crossover of world music styles.^[60]

2012

• German-born British composer Max Richter created a postmodern and minimalist recomposition released as "Recomposed Vivaldi – The Four Seasons". Working with solo violinist Daniel Hope, Richter discarded around 75% of the original source material while the running time was reduced to 44 minutes playing time.^[61]
• Aura (Japan) recorded an a cappella arrangement of Vivaldi's four seasons, and had also performed Vivaldi's Spring chorus (from Dorilla in Tempe) on a prior album.^[62]
• Sinfonity (Spain) performed Vivaldi's four seasons for "electric guitar orchestra".^[63]
• Bachod Chirmof (USA) produced a MIDI recording & animation of Vivaldi's winter (movements I & III).^[64]
• Tornado Classic (Russia) performed Vivaldi's summer presto, with electric guitar and slap bass.^[65]
• The symphonic rock band Trans-Siberian Orchestra used a portion of the first movement of the Winter Concerto in their song "Dreams of Fireflies (On A Christmas Night)" on their Dreams of Fireflies EP. The song also uses a portion of Mozart's "Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen," which it had used previously.

2013

• Richard Galliano (France) recorded Vivaldi's 4 seasons concertos for accordion, as well as a few of his opera arias on the instrument.^[66]
• Vito Paternoster (Italy) recorded Vivaldi's Le quattro stagioni in the form of sonatas for cello.^[67]
• Periodic (Germany) produced a megamix of Vivaldi's four seasons, which incorporates electronica with samples of the classical version.^[68]
• Steven Buchanan (USA) produced a tetralogy of "midseasons" (slow movements and corresponding sonnets) from Vivaldi's program music.^[69]

2014

• The Piano Guys (USA) recorded a crossover between Vivaldi's Winter and "Let it Go" from Disney's Frozen. The members of the group made an arrangement for piano and cello.^[70]
• Along with the original composition of "Winter" included in Fantasia: Music Evolved, there are also two mixes: the "Alt Rock" mix, and the "Steve Porter" mix.

2015

• Nihad Hrustanbegovic (The Netherlands) recorded Vivaldi's 4 seasons concertos for solo accordion, Zefir Records^[71]
• Zozimo Rech and Adrianne Simioni (Brazil) recorded Le Quattro Stagioni with electric guitar and acoustic guitar, Astronomusic^[72]
• Lupe Fiasco's songs "Summer", "Fall", "Winter", & "Spring" on his album "Tetsuo & Youth"

2016

• Justin Bird (New Zealand) transcribed Vivaldi's Four Seasons for solo piano.^[73]

• Mike Georgia (USA) recorded an electric guitar take on Vivaldi's Four Seasons. Taking the first movement from each concerto and used software drums, electric bass, acoustic and electric guitars.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Four Seasons (Vivaldi).

Wikisource has original text related to this article: The Four Seasons Sonnets

• The Four Seasons: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
• Free scores of The Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi at Mutopia Project nau.edu/ BinAural Collaborative Hypertext
• An in-depth overview and comparison of recordings of the Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi on WETA 90.9's website