Vivaldi, The Four Seasons

What's it about?

In St. Stephen's Cathedral, hear gentle breezes and mighty thunderstorms, bird calls and the barking of a dog, the hunt and a peasant dance, which Vivaldi composed into his Four Seasons. Vivaldi, like no other, understood how to create musical images that stimulate the imagination and captivate the audience. Where would it be more fitting to perform Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons" - a parable of life and death - than in Vienna's St. Stephen's Cathedral, where the funeral ceremonies were also celebrated after the composer's death in 1741? Vivaldi came to Vienna impoverished in 1740, hoping to enter the service of the Emperor. He died just ten months later and was therefore buried in Vienna. J. S. Bach's Violin Concerto in E major complements the program, for which the composer took Vivaldi's concertos as a model. It therefore contains echoes of Vivaldi on the one hand, and Bach's unmistakable musical spirit with virtuoso solos on the other. In the dialogue between the strings and the soloist, an entertaining and airy concert experience is created, which wonderfully rounds off Vivaldi's Four Seasons. Performers Harmonia Ensemble Wien