Vivaldi

Since 1978, the 300th anniversary of Vivaldi's death, there has been an explosion of serious writing about his music, life and times. Much of this has taken the form of articles published in academic journals or conference proceedings, some of which are not easy to obtain. The twenty-two articles selected by Michael Talbot for this volume form a representative selection of the best writing on Vivaldi from the last 30 years, featuring such major figures in Vivaldi research as Reinhard Strohm, Paul Everett, Gastone Vio and Federico Maria Sardelli. Aspects covered include biography, Venetian cultural history, manuscript studies, genre studies and musical analysis. The intention is to serve as a 'first port of call' for those wishing to learn more about Vivaldi or to refresh their existing knowledge. An introduction by Michael Talbot reviews the state of Vivaldi scholarship past and present and comments on the significance of the articles.

Contents: Introduction; Part I Biographical Studies: The fortunes of Vivaldi biography, from Pincherle to the present, Michael Talbot; Antonio Vivaldi e i Vivaldi, Gastone Vio; Antonio Vivaldi prete, Gastone Vio; Vivaldi dagli archivi di Mantova, Claudio Gallico; I nove 'principi di altezza' corrispondenti di Vivaldi e la dedica enigmatica del Concerto RV 574. Alla ricerca dell'indirizzario perduto, Carlo Vitali; Documenti inediti su Vivaldi a Roma, Fabrizio Della Seta; Wenzel von Morzin as a patron of Antonio Vivaldi, Michael Talbot; Vivaldi e il Teatro La Pergola a Firenzi: nuove fonti, William C. Holmes. Part II Source Studies: Towards a Vivaldi chronology, Paul Everett; Vivaldi's marginal markings: clues to sets of instrumental works and their chronology, Paul Everett; Vivaldi at work: the autograph of the 'Gloria' RV 589, Paul Everett; Vivaldi's Quadro? The case of RV Anh. 66 reconsidered, Michael Talbot; La famosa mano di Monsieur Roger: Antonio Vivaldi and his Dutch publishers, Rudolf Rasch; Vivaldi and Lotti: two unknown borrowings in Vivaldi's music, Kees Vlaardingerbroek. Part III Analytical and Genre Studies: Le opere giovanili di Antonio Vivaldi, Federico Maria Sardelli; Vivaldi's 'Crucifixus' in its descriptive and rhetorical context, Jasmin Cameron; Formal structure in Vivaldi's variation sets, Nicholas Lockey; 'Die schwarze Gredel', or the parallel minor key in Vivaldi's instrumental music, Bella Brover-Lubovsky; Ueber die Beziehungen zwischen einigen Concerto- und Sinfonia-Sätzen Vivaldis, Karl Heller; The dramatic in Vivaldi's cantatas, Colin Timms; Vivaldi's Serenatas: long cantatas or short operas?, Michael Talbot; Antonio Vivaldi's setting of Teuzzone: dramatic speech and musical image, Reinhard Strohm; Name Index.

Michael Talbot, Emeritus Professor, University of Liverpool, UK