Lute Concerto In D Major (Vivaldi)
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The Lute Concerto in D major, RV 93, is one of four works featuring the solo
lute A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck (music), neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. More specifically, the term "lu ...
, 2
violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...
s, and
basso continuo Basso continuo parts, almost universal in the Baroque era (1600–1750), provided the harmonic structure of the music by supplying a bassline and a chord progression. The phrase is often shortened to continuo, and the instrumentalists playing th ...
written by
Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist, impresario of Baroque music and Roman Catholic priest. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lif ...
. Vivaldi wrote the piece in 1730-1731, a period in which he wrote two of his other works featuring the lute: the trios for
violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...
and lute in
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. The G natural minor scale is: Changes n ...
and
C major C major is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and its parallel min ...
.


Analysis

The concerto is in three
movements Movement may refer to: Generic uses * Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece * Movement (sign language), a hand movement when signing * Motion, commonly referred to as movement * Movement (music), a division of a larger c ...
: *I. '' Allegro giusto'' *II. '' Largo'' *III. ''Allegro'' The first movement is in a fast tempo and begins with a
ritornello A ritornello (Italian; "little return") is a recurring passage in Renaissance music and Baroque music for orchestra or chorus. Early history The earliest use of the term "ritornello" in music referred to the final lines of a fourteenth-century ...
played by the violins and then repeated by the solo lute. According to
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
critic Brian Robins, the ritornello "contrasts a tuneful opening theme with a more lyrical motif in the
minor mode In Western classical music theory, the minor scale refers to three scale patterns – the natural minor scale (or Aeolian mode), the harmonic minor scale, and the melodic minor scale (ascending or descending). These scales contain all th ...
." During the movement, the solo lute plays melodies in contrast to the ritornello. The movement consists of several sections, almost all of which incorporate a portion of the ritornello melody. The second movement also consists of several sections. Robins describes this movement as a "reflective meditation by the soloist" against accompaniment by the violins and
pizzicato Pizzicato (, ; translated as 'pinched', and sometimes roughly as 'plucked') is a playing technique that involves plucking the strings of a string instrument. The exact technique varies somewhat depending on the type of instrument: * On bowe ...
bass. Robins praises the movement's "exquisitely simple shift from
triple Triple is used in several contexts to mean "threefold" or a " treble": Sports * Triple (baseball), a three-base hit * A basketball three-point field goal * A figure skating jump with three rotations * In bowling terms, three strikes in a row * I ...
to
duple meter Duple metre (or Am. duple meter, also known as duple time) is a musical metre characterized by a ''primary'' division of 2 beats to the bar, usually indicated by 2 and multiples (simple) or 6 and multiples ( compound) in the upper figure of the ti ...
." The third and final movement is another fast movement in a 6/8
time signature A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates th ...
which Robins describes as having "a bit of
tarantella Tarantella () is a group of various Southern Italy, southern Italian Italian folk dance, folk dances originating in the regions of Calabria, Campania, Sicilia, and Apulia. It is characterized by a fast Beat (music), upbeat tempo, usually in Ti ...
-like feel." The soloist also has the option of playing the
half note In music, a half note (American) or minim (British) is a Musical note, note played for half the duration of a whole note (or semibreve) and twice the duration of a quarter note (or crotchet). It was given its Latin name (''minima'', meaning "le ...
s in the movement using a more vigorous 12/8 time signature.


Performance

The concerto uses the lute primarily in a high register. The lute parts are written primarily as
chords Chord or chords may refer to: Art and music * Chord (music), an aggregate of musical pitches sounded simultaneously ** Guitar chord, a chord played on a guitar, which has a particular tuning * The Chords (British band), 1970s British mod ...
, and the lute player is intended to play
arpeggio An arpeggio () is a type of Chord (music), chord in which the Musical note, notes that compose a chord are individually sounded in a progressive rising or descending order. Arpeggios on keyboard instruments may be called rolled chords. Arpe ...
s based on these chords. The piece also includes important parts for the violins. In modern times, the concerto is usually played on
guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
.
Yes Yes or YES may refer to: * An affirmative particle in the English language; see yes and no Education * YES Prep Public Schools, Houston, Texas, US * Young Eisner Scholars, in Los Angeles, New York City, Chicago, and Appalachia, US * Young Ep ...
guitarist
Steve Howe Stephen James Howe (born 8 April 1947) is an English musician, best known as the guitarist and backing vocalist in the progressive rock band Yes (band), Yes across three stints since 1970. Born in Holloway, London, Holloway, North London, Howe d ...
performed the second movement on guitar on the band's 2002 live album ''
Symphonic Live ''Symphonic Live'' is a video and live album by the English progressive rock band Yes, released on DVD and a single CD on 18 June 2002 by Eagle Vision and subsequently on two CDs and on Blu-ray by Eagle Records. The album documents the group's ...
'', into which he incorporated a number of
improvisation Improvisation, often shortened to improv, is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. The origin of the word itself is in the Latin "improvisus", which literally means un-foreseen. Improvis ...
s. It has also been performed on guitar by more classical soloists, such as
John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (November 15, 2022)Classic Connection review, ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...
. The piece is also sometimes played on
mandolin A mandolin (, ; literally "small mandola") is a Chordophone, stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally Plucked string instrument, plucked with a plectrum, pick. It most commonly has four Course (music), courses of doubled St ...
. The concerto is played on the
Ontario Parliament Network The Ontario Parliament Network (stylized ONT.PARL since 2018) is a television channel in the Canada, Canadian province of Ontario, established in 1986 to broadcast the parliamentary procedure, parliamentary proceedings of the Legislative Assembly ...
and is performed by Canadian guitarists
Liona Boyd Liona Maria Carolynne Boyd, (born 11 July 1949) is a Canadian classical guitarist often referred to as the 'First Lady of the Guitar'. Music career Early years Boyd was born in London and grew up in Toronto. Her father grew up in Bilbao, Spai ...
and
Norbert Kraft Norbert Kraft (born 21 August 1950) is a Canadian guitarist, music teacher, producer and arranger. Life Born in Linz, Austria, Kraft's family emigrated to Canada in 1954. He studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music at Toronto with Carl van Feggel ...
. It has become the channel's classical staple.


Legacy

In 2014, Vivaldi's lute concerto ranked #78 on the
ABC Classic FM ABC Classic, formerly ABC-FM (also ABC Fine Music), and then ABC Classic FM, is an Australian classical music radio station available in Australia and internationally. Its website features classical music news, features and listening guides. I ...
Classic 100 Baroque and Before countdown. In 2007 it had ranked #75 on the station's Classic 100 concerto countdown. The
autograph An autograph is a person's own handwriting or signature. The word ''autograph'' comes from Ancient Greek (, ''autós'', "self" and , ''gráphō'', "write"), and can mean more specifically: Gove, Philip B. (ed.), 1981. ''Webster's Third New Intern ...
manuscript of Vivaldi's lute concerto is currently at the
Turin National University Library The National University Library (), located in Turin, Italy, is one of the country's main libraries. It was founded in 1720 as the Royal University Library by Victor Amadeus II, who unified collections from the library of the University of Turi ...
in Turin, Italy. The 2nd movement, Largo, was incorporated into
Georges Delerue Georges Delerue (12 March 1925 – 20 March 1992) was a French composer who composed over 350 scores for cinema and television. Delerue won numerous important film music awards, including an Academy Award for '' A Little Romance'' (1980), three C ...
's Oscar-winning score for the 1979 film
A Little Romance ''A Little Romance'' is a 1979 American romantic comedy film directed by George Roy Hill and starring Laurence Olivier, Thelonious Bernard, and 13-year-old Diane Lane in her film debut. The screenplay was written by Allan Burns and George Roy H ...
and played (on guitar) in the 1972 Western
The Cowboys ''The Cowboys'' is a 1972 American Western film starring John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, and Bruce Dern, and featuring Colleen Dewhurst and Slim Pickens. It was the feature film debut of Robert Carradine. Based on the 1971 novel of the sam ...
.


See also

*
List of compositions by Antonio Vivaldi The following is a list of compositions by the Italian Baroque composer Antonio Vivaldi (1678–1741). Works with opus number The following is a list of compositions by Vivaldi that were published during his lifetime and assigned an opus number. ...


References


External links

* {{authoritycontrol Concertos by Antonio Vivaldi 1730s works Compositions for lute Compositions in D major