| Antonio Vivaldi's Violin Strings | |
|---|---|
|
Origin |
Antonio Vivaldi |
|
Type |
Violin Strings |
|
Effects |
Generates weather and related events from each corresponding season |
|
Activation |
Playing |
|
Collected by |
Warehouse 12 and 13 |
|
Section |
|
|
Aisle |
358249-5524 |
|
Shelf |
982409-8194-482 |
|
Date of Collection |
July 21, 1864 and April 8, 2014 |
| [Source] | |
Origin[]
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque music. Along with Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel, Vivaldi ranks amongst the greatest Baroque composers and his influence during his lifetime was widespread across Europe, giving origin to many imitators and admirers. He pioneered many developments in orchestration, violin technique and programmatic music. He consolidated the emerging concerto form into a widely accepted and followed idiom.
Vivaldi composed many instrumental concertos, for the violin and a variety of other musical instruments, as well as sacred choral works and more than fifty operas. His best-known work is a series of violin concertos known as the Four Seasons. They were a revolution in musical conception: in them Vivaldi represented flowing creeks, singing birds (of different species, each specifically characterized), a shepherd and his barking dog, buzzing flies, storms, drunken dancers, hunting parties from both the hunters' and the prey's point of view, frozen landscapes, and warm winter fires. Unusually for the period, Vivaldi published the concerti with accompanying sonnets (possibly written by the composer himself) that elucidated what it was in the spirit of each season that his music was intended to evoke. The concerti therefore stand as one of the earliest and most detailed examples of what would come to be called program music—in other words, music with a narrative element.
Many of his compositions were written for the all-female music ensemble of the Ospedale della Pietà, a home for abandoned children. Vivaldi began studying for the priesthood at the age of 15 and was ordained at 25, but was given dispensation to no longer say public Masses due to a health problem. Vivaldi also had some success with expensive stagings of his operas in Venice, Mantua and Vienna. After meeting the Emperor Charles VI, Vivaldi moved to Vienna, hoping for royal support. However, the Emperor died soon after Vivaldi's arrival, and Vivaldi himself died in poverty less than a year later.
Effects[]
Each string is paired with its opposite with opposing seasonal effects, Summer and Winter, Autumn and Spring. The Summer string causes dry winds and heat while the Winter chills the area and condenses moisture into rain and sleet. Spring encourages rapid plant growth and increases vitality, Autumn induced rapid vegetation decay and drains energy.
If played as part of a piece that evokes a particular season the effects are amplified over a large area. Two strings can be used at a time unless they're seasonally incompatible. Using all four at once has never been done, but is theorized to have a stabilizing effect on the weather.
Collection[]
The spring and summer strings were located in a Sofia orchestra theatre in 1864. Agents collected both with no location on the remaining pair.
The autumn string was listed among the sold artifacts in 2009 by James MacPherson and remains unrecovered.