Antonio Vivaldi is one of the most recognizable composers of classical Baroque style of music, particularly his series of violin concertos known as “The Four Seasons.†He was born in 17th century Venice, Italy and was a virtuoso violin-playing priest. In fact, he was called “The Red Priest†(el prete rosso) due to his red colored hair. Many of his musical compositions and violin concertos were written for the female music ensemble at a home for abandoned children where he did his priestly work, but he also wrote dozens of operas. During his lifetime, and while his musical influence was widespread across mainland Europe, he had a few successful stagings of these operas. However, Vivaldi would die a poor man and his music would eventually fade into relative obscurity. It wasn’t until the 20th century that Vivaldi’s pieces would be triumphantly revived.
