Seasonal splendour

Light spirited or melancholy. Sad or scintillating. But always spellbinding, impetuous and charged with diabolic virtuosity. From the lively, runaway beginning to “Spring”, The Four Seasons is certainly the most popular work in Baroque repertory. And one of the most beloved pieces of music in all time. It is made up of four concertos which, programmatically, are accompanied by descriptive and narrative sonnets, attributed to Vivaldi himself. These descriptions frame the progress of the dance-like music, attributing musical motifs to the emotional spirit that extols each of the year’s four seasons. A live performance of this music always triggers an enormous expectation in the audience as the solo violinist faces devilishly difficult technical difficulties.

The Baroque Orchestra of Seville (Orquesta Barroca de Sevilla-OBS), recipient of the National Award for Music in 2011, and one of the most prestigious orchestral ensembles of its kind in Europe, performs Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. Andrea Marcon, a specialist and close collaborator of the OBS, conducts, and the impressive violinist Chouchane Siranossian performs as the soloist.

Composed in 1721, The Four Seasons, was published in 1725 along with 8 other violin and orchestra concerti that make up Il cimento dell´armonia e dell´inventione, Op. 8. This collection by Vivaldi, in tune with the tendencies of the period, abandons the manner of the concerti grossi and introduces another model of concerto virtuoso and soloist which continues to captivate the audience three centuries later.