Vineta Sareika, violin

Sinfonietta Rīga State Chamber Orchestra

Conductor Normunds Šnē

Programme:

Antonio Vivaldi, ‘The Four Seasons’, a cycle of violin concerti

You would be hard-pressed to name a classical piece of music more popular than Antonio Vivaldi’s set of violin concerti ‘The Four Seasons’. The cycle consists of four violin concerti published in 1725 in the compilation entitled ‘Il cimento dell’armonia e dell’inventione’ or ‘The Contest Between Harmony and Invention’. True enough: this music is lacking neither harmony nor invention: Vivaldi has had a field day painting scenes from nature and human life and deciphering them verbally in the score with great gusto.
According to the composer, in the spring, birds sing and streams rustle; meadows bloom; a shepherd’s dog is barking and the gentle nymphs are dancing. In the summer, the sun is grilling; the birdsongs seem weary. Suddenly there is a fresh breeze of wind. It gains strength. There are thunder claps in the distance. ‘The bothersome mosquitos and flies keep circling until a scary storm begins, lashing the fields. In the autumn, peasants celebrate the harvest, dance at the wine festival and hunt. In the winter, the composer’s teeth chatter and he longs to find himself at home,  in front of the fire.

Alongside Sinfonietta Rīga and Normunds Šnē, Vineta Sareika, one of the greatest Latvian musicians of today, will take part in this performance of Vivaldi’s ‘The Four Seasons’ – the first violin of the world-renowned Artemis Quartet, an experienced concertmaster and a brilliant solo musician.