Antonio Vivaldi conveyed the beauty and dramatic conflicts of nature in his instrumental music with an intensity unparalleled by his contemporaries. In the violin concerto “Tempesta di mare” (The Storm at Sea), and the flute concertos "La notte" (The Night), and "Il gardellino" (The Goldfinch) Vivaldi demonstrates how adept he is in using the solo instruments, and how he uses their sounds to evoke unique affects and atmospheres depicting nature.

While Vivaldi doesn’t have a direct connection with Latin America, besides writing an opera on about the famous Mexican ruler Moctezuma, the Baroque music of Western Europe was widely performed there, introduced by the Jesuits. Vivaldi’s concerto for two mandolins will be performed on two charangos (small Andean stringed instruments of the lute family, from the Quechua and Aymara indians), with the addition of quenas (Andean wood flutes) to the string orchestra, giving our listeners a taste of the fusion of traditional and folk instruments that might have been heard in the New World.

Program: Flute Concerti "La notte" RV 439, and "Il gardellino" RV 428
Violin Concerti ''La Tempesta di Mare'' RV 253, and D Major, RV 229
Concerto for Two Mandolins* RV532 (*performed with Andean Instruments)

Performers: Edson Scheid, Baroque violin, Rodrigo Tarraza, traverso, Carlos Boltes, and Scott Hill, charango, with strings and basso continuo players of Crescendo Period Instrument orchestra, and Gonzalo Cortés and Rodrigo Tarraza, quenas, directed by Christine Gevert from the harpsichord.

This concert will also be performed the previous day, Sat., October 5, 2024 at 6 pm at Trinity Church ~ 484 Lime Rock Rd., Lakeville, CT 06039

Support for these concerts has been provided by the Connecticut State Department of Economic and Community Development/Connecticut Office of the Arts (COA) from the Connecticut State Legislature, and NBT Bank. We also thank WMHT Radio for their ongoing support.