Four Seasons Op. 8 n°4 : Winter

About this work

Before the solo violin even sets off, Winter is already shivering. The strings repeat small, close attacks, then rapid passagework evokes the wind, hurried footsteps and chattering teeth. Vivaldi does not describe a white landscape viewed through a window: he puts the listener outside, without a scarf.

The Largo suddenly reverses the viewpoint. The soloist sings in the warmth by the fire while pizzicatos evoke rain outside. In the last movement, we walk carefully on the ice, slip, fall and start again; the winds finally enter into battle. Every episode has such a clear musical gesture that the sonnet seems to be read directly through the orchestra.

Attacks in the first movement must be short without becoming dry, and the silences must retain the tension of the cold. In the Largo, let the melody breathe above regular rain that never overwhelms it. The finale is best rehearsed scene by scene: measured steps, slide, run, gusts. Once these characters are clear, speed becomes a result rather than camouflage.


What the document contains

One 35-page full score and one 7-page solo part.
The violin I, violin II, viola and cello parts.
Six PDFs in an archive and one separate MIDI file.

This edition is associated with the Mutopia project and the MutopiaBSD licence. The included licence notices must accompany every copy.