Antonio Lucio Vivaldi

Born: March 4, 1678 in Venice, Italy Died: July 28, 1741 in Vienna, Austria

8 Facts:

1. Vivaldi was a sickly child (most likely asthmatic). His father was a barber and a violinist. He wanted Vivaldi to be a priest, but also taught him to play the violin.

2. At age fifteen he entered the priesthood. He was nicknamed the “Red Priest” because of his red hair and the fact that he liked to wear red robes.

3. At age 25, Vivaldi got a job teaching music at a school for orphan and runaway girls in Vienna. He taught, composed and conducted at the Pieta orphanage for thirty-six years.

4. The girls at the orphanage gave concerts for people. They were hidden from the audience behind iron gates. Since they performed in a church, the audience was not allowed to clap, so they showed their appreciation by shuffling their feet, coughing and blowing their noses loudly.

5. Vivaldi pioneered the concerto form consisting of three movements (fast- slow-fast), which other composers adopted, and still use today.

6. Johann Sebastian Bach respected and admired Vivaldi’s music and arranged some of his concertos for keyboard.

7. Vivaldi was playful, putting jokes in his music. He was sensitive to criticism and was also vain.

8. Vivaldi died on July 28, 1741 from a mysterious inflammation. He was poor when he died and his music was considered old-fashioned. His music was rediscovered over one hundred years later and is still very popular today.