In 1725, Antonio Vivaldi published a collection of twelve violin concertos in Amsterdam entitled Il cimento dell'armonia e dell'inventione, which means The Dispute between Harmony and Imagination. The first four works of this cycle, known today as The Four Seasons, have become a fixture on concert platforms. Three hundred years later, they still inspire admiration – not only for their dazzling virtuosity, but also for their evocative soundscape. During the concert, all four concertos from this cycle will be performed by the young violinist, already an early music master, Théotime Langlois de Swarte and the Wrocław Baroque Orchestra. We will also hear compositions by other Italian Baroque composers: Claudio Monteverdi, Marco Uccellini, and Francesco Geminiani.

The evening will begin with Claudio Monteverdi’s Adoramus te Christe—a meditative miniature arranged by the concert’s director, violinist Théotime Langlois de Swarte. Other instrumental gems of the Italian Baroque will follow: the Madrigalesco Concerto in D minor RV 129, for strings, Uccellini’s graceful Aria Quinta sopra la Bergamasca à 3, and Vivaldi’s dramatic Violin Concerto in D minor RV 813. Another opportunity to showcase the French artist’s skill will be Geminiani’s Concerto grosso in D minor op. 1 no. 12, based on Arcangelo Corelli’s famous Sonata op. 5 no. 12—the "La follia" theme has become one of the most frequently arranged variations in music history. The programme will also include an image of a sea storm from Vivaldi’s pastoral opera The Faithful Nymph, and Grave, the second movement of the Violin Concerto in B flat major RV 370.

The main composition of the evening  will be The Four Seasons. This cycle represents the pinnacle of the Baroque instrumental concerto and is also an expression of musical sound painting—a concept known as imitazione della natura. Vivaldi skillfully weaves onomatopoeic effects into the work: the attentive listener will discern birdsong, the baying of a dog, the buzzing of horseflies and mosquitoes, thunder heralding an approaching storm, and the chattering of teeth in the frost. These elements are closely related to the content of the four sonnets that accompanied the first edition of the concertos – the author of the poetic stanzas is unknown (some speculate that it may have been the composer), but they most likely preceded the music and served as inspiration for it. The series reveals humanity’s vital bond with nature and its dependence on its rhythm. The extraordinary melodic inventiveness, vibrant rhythms, and expressiveness of the pieces make them immensely popular.