October: Piece of the Month

Wassily Kandinsky, Autumn in Murnau, 1908 (private collection)

How should I start. Music is life in tunes and rhythms. Music captures life, seasons and feelings. And October has a piece of its own: Autumn by Antonio Vivaldi, a part of the Four Seasons violin concerti. The Four Seasons by Vivaldi are some of the most well-known pieces by Vivaldi, or by any composer, for that matter! Here some facts about the piece (you can read about Vivaldi’s life in the article “Antonio Vivaldi: Il Prete Rosso ‘The Red Priest”):        

“Autumn” is a beautiful piece played by many students and professional musicians. Each of the Four Seasons concerti was published accompanied by a poem by an unknown writer (maybe Vivaldi?). In the poem accompanying “Autumn,” there are peasants dancing and singing all over town, excited about the harvest! This fact was new to me, and I am very excited to share this with you.

The piece was written at the same time as the other three seasons concerti. They were written around the year 1720 and published in 1725 in Amsterdam, Holland. Vivaldi composed the pieces while he was the court chapel master in Mantua.

So many different violinists, chamber ensembles and many other musicians performed the piece, and I urge you to listen to the different interpretations. Write in the comments which of the Four Seasons concerti is your favourite – and please do not forget to subscribe to our newsletter!