Antonio Vivaldi

Antonio Lucio Vivaldi [anˈtɔːnjo ˈluːtʃo viˈvaldi], born on 4 March 1678 in Venice and died on 28 July 1741 in Vienna, was an Italian Baroque violinist and composer. He was also a Catholic priest.

Vivaldi was one of the most famous and admired violin virtuosos of his time ("incomparable violin virtuoso" according to a contemporary account); he is also recognised as one of the most important composers of the Baroque period, as the main initiator of the solo concerto, a genre derived from the concerto grosso. His influence, in Italy as well as throughout Europe, was considerable, and can be measured by the fact that Bach adapted and transcribed more works by Vivaldi than by any other musician.

His activity spanned the fields of instrumental music, particularly for the violin but also dedicated to an exceptional variety of instruments, religious music, and operatic music. It led to the creation of a considerable number of concertos, sonatas, operas, and religious pieces: he boasted that he could compose a concerto faster than the copyist could transcribe it. A Catholic priest, his red hair earned him the nickname il Prete rosso, "The Red Priest", a moniker perhaps more known in Venice than his real name, as Goldoni recounts in his Memoirs.

His musical output, part of which was published during his lifetime, was quickly forgotten after his death, as was his name, as was the case for many 18th-century composers. It only regained some interest among scholars in the 19th century, with the rediscovery of Johann Sebastian Bach. His true recognition came during the first half of the 20th century, thanks to the work of scholars and musicologists such as Arnold Schering or Alberto Gentili, the involvement of musicians such as Marc Pincherle, Olga Rudge, Angelo Ephrikian, Gian Francesco Malipiero or Alfredo Casella, and the enthusiasm of enlightened amateurs like Ezra Pound.

Today, some of his instrumental works, notably the four concertos known as The Four Seasons, are among the most popular in the classical repertoire.