Vivaldi in Prague

Description

The famous "Four Seasons" by Vivaldi are dedicated to Count Wenzel von Morzin of Prague. In 1718, he traveled to Venice with his "orchestra virtuosissimo" and hired Vivaldi as "maestro di musica italiano." Thus began an era of close musical exchanges between Venice and Prague. This relationship, which marked an entire generation of Czech composers, is at the heart of the present production "Vivaldi in Prague." It features concertos by Frantisek Jiranek, who was employed in Count Morzin's chapel and studied in Venice in Vivaldi's circle from 1724 to 1726, and by Antonin Reichenauer, whose musical thinking was strongly influenced by Vivaldi's school. The program is completed by a bassoon concerto by Vivaldi dedicated to Count Morzin, an aria from a Vivaldi opera performed in Prague in 1730, and two arias from Vivaldi pasticcios, reconstructed by Robert Rawson for this production. These pasticcios were compiled by the Venetian impresario Antonio Denzio from popular Vivaldi operas and presented to the Prague public with new texts, also in Czech.