The Concerto for Strings in G major, RV 151, commonly referred to as the , is a concerto for orchestra without soloists by

Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque music. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lifetime was widespread ...

. It was written between mid-1720 and 1730, and is one of the composer's best-known concertos.

Composition

The ''Concerto alla rustica'', unlike some other of Vivaldi's concertos, did not include a descriptive programme. It was composed some time between mid-1720 and 1730, during which time Vivaldi was working on his ''Contest Between Harmony and Invention'', Op. 8—the work from which his best-known set of compositions, ''The Four Seasons'', derives. The manuscript of this concerto was written partially on the same paper as his chamber version of the Goldfinch Concerto, ''Il Gardellino'', RV 90b. The musicologist Michael Talbot has said that since that concerto was supplied to the court of the

Ottoboni family The Ottoboni were an aristocratic Venetian family, who gained prominence in Rome after the 17th century, mainly due to the papacy of Alexander VIII and his cardinal nephew, Pietro Ottoboni, known for his patronage of musicians and painters. Cardi ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, it is likely that the ''Concerto alla rustica'' was as well.

Structure

The concerto is in three movements and typically takes between 5 and 6 minutes to perform. It is scored for a

string orchestra A string orchestra is an orchestra consisting solely of a string section made up of the bowed strings used in Western Classical music. The instruments of such an orchestra are most often the following: the violin, which is divided into first ...

and ''basso continuo'', and includes two oboes in its final movement. The movements are as follows: The first movement is a ''moto perpetuo''—a virtuoso piece for a Baroque orchestra in

G major G major (or the key of G) is a major scale based on G, with the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. Its key signature has one sharp. Its relative minor is E minor and its parallel minor is G minor. The G major scale is: Notable com ...

. It veers to

G minor G minor is a minor scale based on G, consisting of the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. Its key signature has two flats. Its relative major is B-flat major and its parallel major is G major. According to Paolo Pietropaolo, it is the ...

towards the final bars of the movement. The second movement is slow and contrasting, with long chords. The third movement is dance-like and swift. This last movement emphasizes the sharpened fourth degree of the scale ( C sharp), therefore using a

Lydian mode The modern Lydian mode is a seven-tone musical scale formed from a rising pattern of pitches comprising three whole tones, a semitone, two more whole tones, and a final semitone. : Because of the importance of the major scale in modern music ...

—a trait common to

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has ...

. This feature was probably known to Vivaldi thanks to the Polish-style sonatas and concertos of his contemporary

Georg Philipp Telemann Georg Philipp Telemann (; – 25 June 1767) was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hi ...

Use in popular culture

The ''Concerto alla rustica'', which is among Vivaldi's best known concertos, has been featured in a number of films and TV series, among them: * '' All That Jazz'' by

Bob Fosse Robert Louis Fosse (; June 23, 1927 – September 23, 1987) was an American actor, choreographer, dancer, and film and stage director. He directed and choreographed musical works on stage and screen, including the stage musicals '' The Paja ...

(1979) * ''

Gramps Is in the Resistance ''Gramps Is in the Resistance'' or Papy fait de la résistance is a French war comedy film directed by Jean-Marie Poiré in 1983. Plot Héléna Bourdelle, a.k.a. "La Bourdelle", is a world-renowned opera singer and the wife of maestro André Bou ...

'' by

Jean-Marie Poiré Jean-Marie Poiré (; born 10 July 1945) is a French film director, and screenwriter. He is the son of the producer Alain Poiré. Filmography As director * ''Les petits câlins'' (''The Little Wheedlers'') (1978) * '' Retour en force'' (''Return ...

(1983) * ''

El Aura ''The Aura'' ( es, El aura, links=no) is a 2005 neo-noir psychological thriller film directed and written by Fabián Bielinsky and starring Ricardo Darín. It is Bielinsky's second and final feature film before his death in 2006. The plot revolve ...

'' by

Fabián Bielinsky Fabián Bielinsky (3 February 1959 – 29 June 2006) was an Argentine film director. Career Fabián Bielinsky was born in Buenos Aires on February 3, 1959. Bielinsky started to make films early in life, while still a high school student in the ...

(2005) * ''

Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette Josèphe Jeanne (; ; née Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last queen of France before the French Revolution. She was born an archduchess of Austria, and was the penultimate child ...

'' by

Sofia Coppola Sofia Carmina Coppola (; born May 14, 1971) is an American filmmaker and actress. The youngest child and only daughter of filmmakers Eleanor and Francis Ford Coppola, she made her film debut as an infant in her father's acclaimed crime drama film ...

(2006) * '' Mijo'' (2015), the second episode of the television series ''

Better Call Saul ''Better Call Saul'' is an American crime and legal drama television series created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould. Part of the ''Breaking Bad'' franchise, it is a spin-off of Gilligan's previous series, '' Breaking Bad'', and serves as a ...

'', created by

Vince Gilligan George Vincent Gilligan Jr. (born February 10, 1967) is an American writer, producer, and director. He is known for his television work, specifically as creator, head writer, executive producer, and director of AMC's ''Breaking Bad'' (2008– ...

. * '' Freaky Tuesday'', Season 3 Episode 5 of

GLOW Glow or GLOW may refer to: In science and technology In computing and telecommunications * Glow (JavaScript library), an open-source JavaScript library created by the BBC * Glow (Scottish Schools National Intranet), a telecommunications project i ...

opens with a riff on the "It's Showtime, Folks!" montage in All That Jazz

References

External links

*
Performance of ''Concerto alla rustica'' by the Gardner Chamber Orchestra
from the

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts, which houses significant examples of European, Asian, and American art. Its collection includes paintings, sculpture, tapestries, and decorative arts. It was foun ...

{{Antonio Vivaldi Concertos by Antonio Vivaldi Concertos for orchestra Baroque music Compositions in G major