Quote:
Originally Posted by s_k
Hmmm, I've always thought vivaldi is a bit simple and overrated.
It somehow annoys me.
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There were definitely way better composers active during the Baroque period than Vivaldi. To name a few:
- Claudio Monteverdi (very early Baroque, I think he died before Vivaldi was born)
- Jean-Baptiste Lully
- Arcangelo Corelli
- Henry Purcell
- Domenico Scarlatti
- Dietrich Buxtehude
- Giovanni Batista Pergolesi
And of course Bach, Handel, and Telemann. Compared to all these composers, I think Vivaldi was playing it safe in terms of composition style. His music is not extremely radical for the period, and the arrangements are quite simple, compared to Bach's arrangements, for example. Don't get me wrong, I love Vivaldi's music, but I also think it is a little overrated. A lot of people tend to define Baroque music by citing Vivaldi, and in my opinion, that's not really apt. Sure, you can't talk about 17th century music without mentioning him in the slightest, but his music is certainly not definitive of the period.
Aside from all that, when people talk about Vivaldi's compositions, they tend to mention only the Four Seasons concertos and overlook his other work. I guess that's just how things were meant to be
. As a flutist, I think his flute concertos are absolutely gorgeous. My favourite one to listen to and play is the Flute Concerto in D Major (RV 248):