Spring (1st movement, Allegro) - Antonio Vivaldi

'Spring' violin concerto in E major, 1st movement 'Allegro'.

I recently got into 'The Four Seasons' a set of violin concertos by the baroque composer Antonio Vivaldi.

The music is now some of the most recognisable and recorded, and rightly so - the natural emotions, images and voices that come through the concertos are breathtaking.

Through phototgraphs I have myself taken over the past couple of years (as in my only other music video as of yet, the Bach double violin concerto Largo movement) I have tried to capture the varying moods and situations I feel are presented through the music (with aid from the sonnets that accompany the concertos of 'The Four Seasons')

I have written a little to accompany each picture and show how I have perceived the music and chosen pictures I find suitable to go with it, and show a sort of story, as is the feature in a lot of (but not all) great music:

-We begin with a spring sunrise, bringing the joyous life and warmth to the world after a chill night.

-The birds, with the slanted, amber sun settling on the trees, begin their beautiful chorus that epitomises spring days.

-Then the peaceful warmth and scent of spring reaches its crux at midday.

-This is followed by the sudden appearance of clouds that shroud the sun.

-A storm of rain and thunder follows.

-Then hope, as rays of the sun begin to break through the cloud cover.

-And joy, as the sky yields to the power of the sun and once again the day is beautiful.

-Evening settles on the green pastures as the sun sinks to sleep once more.

-Finally, the land and sky darken into myriad beautiful colours as the sun disappears behind the horizon, waiting to make another appearance the next day.


I hope you enjoy this video. I still need to get hold of the other two movements of the Bach concerto, which I shall certainly then upload. In the meantime, I may well make more videos of 'The Four Seasons', perhaps all the movements (I need to make more videos!) However, I feel I should become more familiar with some movements/concertos before I put them to video.

Naturally I do not hold the copyright or anything, but I believe music is an art, and a pleasure, and we shouldn't be held from enjoying it by silly laws and greedy corporate bosses. I truly believe that Vivaldi would have wanted his music enjoyed like this. Perfectly fair to expect to proft from it when he was alive, but now he is not, all that surely can matter to him is to have as many as possible appreciate his music.

The soloist is Cho-Liang Lin, and the accompaniment is performed by the International Sejong Soloists.

There are videos similar to this elsewhere on youtube, but I feel the sound here is a definitive version, especially as it is a Naxos recording. There has been only a partial detraction of quality in the video-making/uploading process.

A long description, but luckily only necessary on this, the first movement of the whole series of concertos!

Enjoy :)

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Antonio
• Vivaldi
• Spring
• movement
• one
• 1st
• four
• seasons
• violin
• concerto
• nature
• major

[creativemachine]

Who played this version?

[thelightisahead]

@creativemachine

Cho-Liang Lin on solo, with the 'Sejong' soloists accompanying :)

It's a Naxos CD, great version isn't it!

[spearofdestinyfanboy]

mos times i listen to other stuff. but this hits you deep inside

[thelightisahead]

Vivaldi does that to me a lot :) and he wrote so much more great music than the Four Seasons! I'd post it, but I'm busy a lot of the time, and my computer has such limited space that audio quality doesn't save satisfactorily at the moment :S

[backoswacko10]

why arent there composers like Vivaldi, Beethoven, Haydn today?

[thelightisahead]

I guess modern composers have to be modern and innovative, and maybe it's harder to judge 'genius' until at least a century later... I suppose the composers you mention were innovating in their own time and must have seemed as modern to those times as ours do today. But I still agree!

[Bluzme]

this sounds very American

[MeinComp]

My roommates think I'm retarded for listening to this...IT'S FOR A MUSIC CLASS DAMN IT

[isis347]

this version is really fast.

[Gerappaaaa]

@thelightisahead I totally agree. @backoswacko10 There are a lot of composers like them.. But "modern composers have to be modern". For example Yann Tiersen with his own avantgard and new age-style music. :) 

[charlesbai123]

nice picture at 2:30

[friend0604]

from 2:29 to 2:30!!the modulation was so majestic :O

[johnnywindows1]

@burtonfan85 Last night I watched a documentary on Bach's life, I then looked up the lyrics translation for Sheep may Safely Graze, then saw a note from my daughter 'Love U Daddy' - I cried like a girl.... great music...

[samuele963]

bello