Date of Award

2022

Document Type

Program Notes Open Access

Degree Name

Master of Music (MM)

Department

Music

First Advisor

Dr. Rachel Cornacchio

Abstract

Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) paved an unconventional path to become a composer. Born in Venice where his father, Giovanni Battista was a violinist at St. Mark’s Basilica, Vivaldi was not trained to be a musician, though it is clear that he studied violin at a young age. Instead, he studied to be a priest, and was ordained in March 1703. In September 1703, Vivaldi was appointed maestro di violino at the Ospedale de Pietá, a Venetian orphanage for girls devoted to musical training and performance. Over the years, he was promoted to successively higher ranks, culminating in his appointment to the position of maestro di capella in 1735. His time at the Ospedale de Pietá was tumultuous. At one point, the institution could not afford to retain him, and at other times Vivaldi took long absences to travel Europe to compose and attend performances of his operas. In 1737, Vivaldi left the priesthood after the Church censured him for inappropriate conduct. In 1738, Vivaldi was terminated from the Ospedale de Pietá. He returned to Vienna, where he died in 1741.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Comments

This submission was created as part of MUAP 622 RC

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