361. Vivaldi in the Shadow of Light, The Four Seasons

The moment the lights came on, everything on the stage shocked people's eyes.

The string group of each voice plays as if one person is playing.

Draw the bow neatly, and move the head neatly with the sonorous rhythm.

That conductor.

At first, his movements were so small that the people at the far end of the seat could barely see him moving, but no matter how far or near he was, everyone felt that he was like the eyes of the whole stage, and the rise and fall of his shoulders as he breathed affected the changes in the music.

When a strong string stroke of the viola group sounded, the angle of his bent left arm was slightly raised.

The intensity of the whole music instantly increased by a point, but it was still so layered.

As the amplitude of his movements gradually increased, the plucking of the strings of a single orchestra became heavier and heavier.

Like all foreshadowings, 0.1 seconds before the final reveal.

Jiang Yuzhen raised her hand holding the bow.

Spitting and sucking room.

Her bow, brushing her strings.

She closed her eyes.

At this moment, the opportunity on the stage seemed to have shifted to her.

Her piano sound is not tactful and melodious.

Her waving arms, like a sharp knife, opened and closed like this, tearing open a corner of the stage alive.

At this moment, feeling the strong audio-visual sense brought by the stage, Qin Jian's arm was covered with a layer of fine goosebumps.

...

First of all, it is important to mention the old joke about how Vivaldi wrote a violin concerto and then copied it a thousand times.

Even if it's an old joke.

In that star-studded Baroque era, Vivaldi was a respected forerunner, a violinist, and a master composer.

One of the most criticized things is that 'all of his string works sound almost indistinguishable.' ’

"It's like a kaleidoscope of a work. —Fritz Liszt.

Liszt's speech may have been influenced by his teacher Czerny.

This is probably due to Beethoven's deep prejudice against Vivaldi, which seems to have affected the young Czerny.

If we go back further, it is easy to see that Mozart was full of praise for Vivaldi.

To make a simple guess here, it may be that Beethoven and Mozart's master-apprentice relationship broke down because of this.

But that's not the point of the story.

Importantly, even Beethoven had to admit that Vivaldi had indeed pioneered a new approach.

In his composition, he divided the wind and string ensembles into two groups, a smaller group of soloists and a whole ensemble. ’

The two will talk or compete depending on the situation.

Later he discovered that this kind of contest could even leave the wind part behind.

A solo instrument and a string orchestra are sufficient.

Later, a great set of string works was born, "Adventures of Harmony and Creativity".

To this day, this monumental work still represents a major concerto form.

As we all know, concertos often provide space for composers and performers to experiment with timbre.

If this is to be confirmed, there is no better example than the four concertos that were circulated before the birth of The Adventure of Harmony and Creativity.

They are independent of the concerto.

Often known as 'The Four Seasons'.

Spring, summer, autumn and winter, four-part concerto.

...

"Four seasons. ”

This set of works is so famous that its fame itself even surpasses that of its creator.

In the record stores in Salzburg or on the streets of Hamburg, Qin Jian has seen countless times that the record with 'The Four Seasons' printed on it is placed on the shelves.

Countless versions.

Although the four pieces are so similar, it can be difficult for orchestras that want to reinterpret them to find a new way to play them.

So it's a shame that most of the Four Seasons records on the market just let these melodies go from beginning to end.

Qin Jian likes Vivaldi.

The recovery of spring, the scorching heat of summer, the harvest of autumn, and the fierceness of winter.

He was all too familiar with these four pieces.

It's just that there seems to be a slight problem with the order of the performances on the stage at this point.

The opening is winter.

This alone is enough to explain the commander's refusal to abide by the rules.

The surging and fast string rhythm still maintains the cold atmosphere of the stage after Jiang Yuzhen's lead note is added.

The harpsichord resurfaces in the string chords, and the dynamics change from whispering to roaring.

Just as the icy movement was about to end, the conductor on stage tapped his left hand lightly.

The music changes again and again.

Transferring flowers and trees to the brightness of spring, Jiang Yuzhen uses the violin to mimic the birdsong and the murmuring of flowing water, announcing the arrival of 'spring', like a beautiful dream about the appearance of people.

But the sudden chorus of cellos was like a thunderous lightning.

In the pouring rain, the rhythm of the viola's accompaniment to two notes resembles the barking of a sheepdog.

It's like a shepherd waking up in a moment, and the music changes again.

Summer's Adagio guide sounded slowly in the early morning of a lazy hot night.

The shepherd pushed the door open.

A false alarm.

The weather in midsummer is changeable, and the violin's skillful strength and speed change vividly.

The conductor and the orchestra accentuate this characteristic.

It seems to be a prominent foreshadowing of the unusual dream just now.

Again with a transposition, autumn begins with a dance celebrating the harvest, and the music finally comes to an end in a drunken.

A scene of fragments of four concertos is like a musical fairy tale of the changing seasons from the audience's perspective.

"It's wonderful. ”

I have to say that the other party is smarter than himself.

Just when Qin Jian was about to raise his hand and applaud.

A blinding light rose from behind the orchestra.

The entire large screen completely illuminates the stage.

Winter's chords sound again.

Qin Jian's eyes were stunned, and along with the music, some black lines appeared on the big screen after a brief flash of snowflakes.

These flowing lines form simple patterns on the white curtain.

The trembling simple little man struggled to move forward in the wind outlined by the lines.

In front of the villain is a hut with a fire.

As the picture becomes a warm little room again, the little man lies on the bed supported by the lines.

Qin Jian watched all this incredulously, which completely coincided with the previous musical scene in his mind.

When the villain falls asleep, the music returns to spring.

After the thunder of the cello, the music returned to summer.

The moment the villain clumsily gets off the bed, the lines of the big screen outline a wheat field again.

The music has changed to autumn.

The villain seemed to be harvesting, when suddenly a dog with a line of lines ran towards him.

Throughout the chase, outside of the strings, a loud and holy chant resounded throughout the music.

That's when people noticed that there was also a choir in the orchestra pit.

The solemn church mass did not cause any discomfort in the cold wind.

At the end of the music, the villain on the big screen is running faster and faster in the amplitude of the conductor's swings.

On the screen, a spired room suddenly appeared in front of the villain.

The audience was nervous about this scene.

Finally, avoiding the hounds, the villain stepped into the church door to the weakening plucking of the strings.

"Boom!!"

It was like a loud closing of the door, all the big money slapped the piano case together, and all the singers sounded this line word by word.

Under the lamppost, the silver figure bent down sharply, and his hands were clenched into fists high above his head.

All the sounds disappeared at this moment.

Only the villain on the big screen is panting violently with his knees on his knees, and the lines are shaking.

...

The conductor gasped violently.

Moment.

He turned, his mouth muttering as if he was counting.

Two seconds or three seconds later.

He raised his hand slightly,

Then the whole orchestra stood up.

Take a bow.

Right in this moment.

The light and shadow on the big screen change again.

The small house with a spire was rendered in color and turned into a church.

The villain has an extra red robe.

The hounds outside the church door turned into a bently kneeling.

Freeze frame.

A row of subtitles appears.

‘The Four Seasons’

'Cai Song's Works'

...

Vivaldi, also a cardinal, was a pioneer in the creation of opera.

It was still in that star-studded Baroque era.

Qin Jian's pupils swayed.

At this moment, he seemed to understand why it was the opening of such a scene.

It's just that.

"Is this still an opera?"