“Four Seasons” is perhaps Vivaldi's most famous work, as well as one of the most recognizable pieces of classical music from the Baroque era. It was composed in 1725, 16 years before Vivaldi's death in 1741, as part of a 12-concerto opus, Op. 8, entitled Il cimento dell'armonia e dell'inventione (The Contest Between Harmony and Invention). “Four Seasons” embodies the first 4 violin concertos, one for each Season (Spring, Fall, Winter, Summer), each with 3 movements (first fast, second slow, and third fast). Vivaldi's first four concertos in Op. 8 had been circulating in manuscript for a time, becoming a favorite of Count Václav Morzin. When Vivaldi finished Op. 8 with the other 8 concertos, he added sonnets & prose to The “Four Seasons” and dedicated it to the Count (1; ch. …show more content…
72-73). This could have been multi-purpose in nature. First, the Count was an admirer, but also nobility. Since the Baroque era was the Age of Absolutism (the masses appeasing the nobility), composers generally vied for the attention of noble patrons to support their craft. So, the dedication could be used as a way to appease an already infatuated patron, perhaps cementing future work from him. Likewise, Vivaldi was a priest, and the Count had recently completed building a monastery for the Church. The dedication could serve dual-purpose as a "thank you" for the Count's support of the Church. The Baroque era had musicians striving for innovative pieces to get interest from noble patrons, but they had to exercise restraint to keep from offending them (which would prevent patronage). So, Vivaldi had a constant struggle to innovate for sponsorship yet restrain to keep from losing it. It was perhaps in this light that Vivaldi formed Op. 8 and “Four Seasons”, as a way to explore and push his music (e.g. the "sound fonts" he uses to paint the seasons in “Four Seasons”) while still remaining politically correct for