The four Seasons

The Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi are the four concerts that open the collection of 12 solo concerts Il Cimento dell'Armonia e dell'Inventione op. 8, which saw its first publication in 1725. Vivaldi preceded each season with a short "demonstrative sonnet". He was in fact a great master of the so-called descriptive music and the Four Seasons are an admirable example, as not only the titles refer generically to the natural scenes typical of the various seasons, but the verses that make up the sonnets of each single season are also imitated in detail and transposed into a musical key with extraordinary mastery and naturalness.

The sonnets

  • Spring

    Concerto Nº 1 in E major, opus 8, RV 269 (Spring)

  • L'Estate

    Concerto Nº 2 in G minor, opus 8, RV 315 (The Summer)

  • The autumn

    Concerto Nº 3 in F major, opus 8, RV 293 (The Autumn)

  • The winter

    Concerto Nº 4 in F minor, opus 8, RV 297 (Winter)

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