Vivaldi took up the post the year after becoming a priest, and the year after that saw the publication of his first music. The standard of music-making was so high that many leading figures would perform in concert with the foundlings. What he took only slightly more seriously was his position as maestro di violino (and later superintendent) of the Conservatorio dell’Ospedale della Pietà, one of the most famous musical centres in Venice, founded for the care and education of orphan girls. The Church remained a useful backcloth for the remainder of his life but it seems that his priestly duties were never taken terribly seriously. Vivaldi was a lifelong asthmatic and complained of chest pains during services. When he was 15 he began training for the priesthood but no sooner had he been ordained in 1703 than he was given a dispensation from saying Mass. His father was a violinist at San Marco and Vivaldi inherited his gift for the instrument, as well as his red hair (hence his nickname ‘the Red Priest’). He was born in Venice when the city, though long past the height of its mercantile power, was the musical capital of Europe. Now he’s considered to be one of the most important figures of the Baroque era. ![]() Even in the mid-20th century, Vivaldi’s reputation as a composer was so small that not even the exact date of his birth or the place and date of his death had been established his music was very rarely played in the 19th century.
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