“Antonio Vivaldi: Teaching and Composing for the Venetian Conservatories (Ospedali)”

Kensy Berggren Music 214 – Baroque/Classical Music History 12-1-08

1 Beginning in the late seventeenth century, Venice was home to four orphanages for young girls. These institutions, the Ospedale della Pietà, Mendicanti, Incurabili, and Ospedaletto a St. Giovanni e Paolo, sought to raise the girls properly, and in doing so, music was integrated into the daily routine. Girls in these conservatories had the opportunity to develop their musical talents and continue their success outside of the ospedali. Musicians and composers, including Antonio Vivaldi, were hired as teachers and conductors of the ospedali’s performing groups. Thus, the Venetian Conservatories of the eighteenth century provided not only a setting for the study of music, but a rich environment conducive to musical achievement of composers as well, an environment in which Antonio Vivaldi was inspired to compose works such as The Four Seasons for the flourishing talents of the girls at the ospedali. Each of the four ospedali housed girls from different backgrounds, and therefore, was run differently. The Ospedale della Pietà took in abandoned, and largely illegitimate, infants. The Medicanti was home to the impoverished. Those afflicted with incurable diseases were cared for at the Incurabili. The Ospedaletto housed orphaned children.1 The Pietà was the only one of the Ospedali to accept infants2 and the first to offer musical training.3 After they were taken in, girls were raised in a very structured environment.4 Their schedule included mass, music, work, and time for rest.5 The musical training the girls received iltimately manifested itself in public concerts, that drew audiences from far and wide. Russian traveler of the time, Petr Andreevic

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Daniel Heartz, Music in European Capitals: the Gallant Style, 1720-1780 (New York: W.W. Norton and Company, Inc., 2003), 178-179. 2 Jane L. Baldauf-Berdes, Women Musicians of Venice: Musical Foundations, 1525-1855 (New York: Clarendon Press, 1996), 48. 3 The first all girls choir emerged around 1540. Ibid., 107. 4 After an infant was placed in the scaffetta (a small revolving door located on the exterior wall of the home), a bell was rung and a portinara (female caretaker) would take the infant. The time of day was noted by a scrivana (senior woman) as well as the infant’s condition, clothes, rich or poor, and any name. William Packer, Arts and Ideas: Vivaldi and the Chorus of Unwanted Children. The Financial Times Limited, (2005). The infants were then turned out to wet nurses across Venice. Heartz, 178. 5 Baldauf-Berdes, 79.

2 Tolstago commented, “…people come to Venice from all parts with the wish to refresh themselves with these angelic songs.”6 The music spoke sweetly to the listeners while the faces and identities of the girls remained largely anonymous. Traveler Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote, “I caught sight of a delicate cage; behind the grillwork young women performed assiduously some sweet music at a fast tempo.”7 For some girls, the concerts were also an opportunity to be exposed to the public. Girls at the Pietà were divided into ranks. The figlie di commun performed domestic tasks within the institution, the figlie di coro were the musicians, and the privileggiate del coro were the elite musicians who received marriage offers and publicity.8 As they grew older, girls made the decision of staying at the Pietà, entering the convent, or marrying.9 Through this exposure, the girls’ talents were brought to light, and for some, musical opportunities went beyond the ospedali, leading to performances with some of Venice’s most prestegious operas or orchestras.10 ………. The movements of the concertos in The Four Seasons are programatic and based on four sonnets that Vivaldi wrote about each of the four seasons. L’Estate (“Summer”) is in G Minor 6

Walter Kolneder, Antonio Vivaldi: His Life and Work (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1970), 10. 7 Baldauf-Berdes, 235. Landon quotes traveler Edward Wright, “…and this is all the more amusing since their persons are concealed from view.” H.C. Robbins Landon, Vivaldi, Voice of the Baroque (New York: Thames and Hudson, 1993), 29. In addition to the proceeds from these concerts, funding for these institutions came from the state. Heartz quotes Charles de Brosses saying, “There are four of these, made up of illegitimate and orphaned girls and those whose parents are not in a position to raise them. They are brought up at the expense of the state and trained solely to excel in music.” Heartz, 180. 8 Landon, 28. 9 Micky White, “Vivaldi’s Violins: The Accounts of Ospedale della Pietà.” Soundpost Online, 2. Retrieved February 22, 2008 from http://www.soundpostonline.com/archive/summer2002/page10.htm 10 Maddelena Lombardini (1745-1818) is an example of a student of the ospedali who became a famous professional musician. Though she was not poor or orphaned, Lombardini was a student of the Mendicanti. (Daughters of aristocracy as well as paying students from the Venice area took music lessons at the Ospedali. Heartz, 180.) During her time there, Lombardini was also a student of the violinist Tartini. He wrote her a letter during a time he could not give her a lesson in person. This letter contained detailed suggestions and guidelines for her violin practicing and playing. (Giuseppe Tartini, A letter from the late Signor Tartini to Signora Maddalena Lombardini (now Signora Sirmen) published as an important lesson to performers on the violin. (New York: Johnson Reprint Corp., 1967).) Upon leaving the ospedale, Lombardini married musician Lodovico Sirmen and went on tour with him. They performed duets that are believed to be their own compositions.

3 and is reminiscent of harsh heat and strong winds. L’Autunno (“Autumn”), in F Major, speaks of pleasant temperatures and hunting. “Winter” (L’Inverno) is in F Minor and depicts chattering teeth and running on ice. The first of these four concertos is the focus of this analysis. It is in E Major and is titled La Primavera (“Spring”). This piece takes its inspiration from the following sonnet: “Spring has come, and birds greet it Festively with a cheerful song; And with the breath of gentle breezes Springs trickle with a sweet murmur. Lightning and thunder, elected to announce it, Come and cover the air with a black cloak, Once they are quiet, the birds Return to their enchanting song. Then on the pleasant, flowered meadow A goatherd, with his faithful dog at his side, Sleeps to the sweet murmur of fronds and plants. To the festive sound of a rustic bagpipe Nymphs and shepherds dance under the beloved canopy At the brilliant appearance of spring.”11

Vivaldi labeled the score of these concertos with parts of the sonnets’ corresponding text. Flowing lines represent “trickling of the springs.” (Refer to Example 1.) The use of trills and high pitches depict the “song of the birds.” (Refer to Example 2.) Quiet chromatic steps mimic the “murmur of the fronds and plants” while “the barking dog” is heard in an eighth note preceding a quarter note, and the violin soloist plays “the sleeping goatherd.” (Refer to Example 3.) Furthermore, the shepherds’ and nymphs’ “rustic dance” is heard in a light 12/8 time signature. (Refer to Example 4.) These references to the sonnet, in addition to the tempo, dynamic, and phrase markings, give the performers an idea of how Vivaldi would have wanted his concertos to be played. ……….

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Landon, 59.

4 Antonio Vivaldi’s contributions to music are extensive and immeasurable.12 His musical opportunities in the church, and more importantly at the Ospedale della Pietà, greatly influenced his compositions and contributions to musical history. The virtuous violin concertos Vivaldi composed in his teaching position are timeless and considered common repertoire in music academia. His programmatic The Four Seasons, especially, is popular today and is easily recognized by the common ear.13 Vivaldi’s musical contributions have manifested themselves to influence other composers and musical structure as well as provide future generations timeless entertainment and appreciation of the works themselves.

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Pincherle, 128. The Four Seasons has historically been used for many an occasion. “Spring,” especially, has been used as the background for television commercials, movie soundtracks (examples include “All That Jazz” and “The Four Seasons”), and weddings. It is also commonly used in music therapy sessions. 13

5 Bibliography Arnold, Denis. The New Grove Italian Baroque Masters: Monteverdi, Frescobaldi, Cavalli, Corelli, A. Scarlatti, Vivaldi, D. Scarlatti. New York: W.W. Norton, 1984. [ML390 .N492 1984] NWU, Cochrane-Woods Library. Baldauf-Berdes, Jane L. Women Musicians of Venice: Musical Foundations, 1525-1855. New York: Clarendon Press, 1996. [780.82 B451W] College of Saint Mary Library. Berdes, Jane L., ed. “Three Violin Concertos.” Recent Researches in the Music of the Classical Era 28. Madison: A.R. Editions, Inc., 1991. Bowers, Jane, and Judith Tick, eds., Women Making Music: The Western Art Tradition, 11501950. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1986. 62-89. [ML82 W67 1986] NWU, Cochrane-Woods Library. Everett, Paul. Vivaldi, The Four Seasons and Other Concertos, op. 8. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996. Green, Aaron. Vivaldi’s Four Seasons: Notes and Historical Information. About.com: Classical music. Retrieved September 20, 2008 from http://classicalmusic.about.com/od/baroqueperiod/ss/fourseasons.htm Heartz, Daniel. Music in European Capitals: The Gallant Style, 1720-1780. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, Inc., 2003. 178-189. [ML240.3.H432003] Doane College Library. Hughes, Dom Anselm, and Gerald Abraham, eds. The New Oxford History of Music. Vol. 5, Opera and Church Music 1630-1750. London: Oxford University Press, 1960. [ML160 N44, vol. 3] NWU, Cochrane-Woods Library. Hugill, Robert. Preface to: Maddalena Lombardini Sirmen, Eighteenth-Century Composer, Violinist and Businesswoman. Scarecrow Press, Inc., 2002. Retrieved September 29, 2008 from http://www.musicwebinternational.com/classRev/2004/Jan04/Sirmen_book.htm Kolneder, Walter. Antonio Vivaldi: His Life and Work. Transl., Faber and Faber Limited, 1970. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1970. 65, 194-195. [ML 410 V82K553] UNL, Music Library Landon, H.C. Robbins. Vivaldi, Voice of the Baroque. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1993. 28-29, 52. [ML410 V82L3 1993] UNL, Music Library. Martin, Arlan Stone. Vivaldi Violin Concertos: A Handbook. Metuchen: Scarecrow Press, 1972. [ML134.V7 M4] NWU, Cochrane-Woods Library.

6 Neuls-Bates, Carol, ed., Women in Music: An Anthology of Source Readings from the Middle Ages to the Present, 2d ed., Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1996. [ML82 W65 1996] NWU, Cochrane-Woods Library. Orford, Emily-Jane Hills and Pellettieri, Graham. (2008). It’s the Time of the “Seasons.” Strings. 16. Retrieved September 27, 2008 from eLibrary database. Pendle, Karin, ed., Women in Music: A History. 2d ed., Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1991. 79-80. [ML82 W6 1991] NWU, Cochrane-Woods Library. Landon, H.C. Robbins. Vivaldi: Voice of the Baroque. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996. Sadie, Julie Anne, ed. The Norton/Grove Dictionary of Women Composers. New York, Norton, 1995. [REF ML105 .N38 1995], NWU Cochrane-Woods Library. Strunk, Oliver, ed., Source Readings in Music History. Rev. ed. / Leo Treitler. New York: Norton Publishing, 1998. 281-337. [ML160 M865 1984] NWU, Cochrane-Woods Library. Tartini, Giuseppe. A letter from the late Signor Tartini to Signora Maddalena Lombardini (now Signora Sirmen) published as an important lesson to performers on the violin. New York: Johnson Reprint Corp., 1967. Valish, Christine, violinist with Lincoln Civic Orchestra. Interview by author 18 November 2008, Lincoln. Vivaldi, Antonio. “The Four Seasons” and other violin concertos: in full score, op. 8, complete. New York, Dover Publications, 1995. Vivaldi, Antonio. The Four Seasons. Movements performed by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. EMI, 1984.