Beatus vir
RV 598
Antonio Vivaldi made three settings of Psalm 111 (112) “Beatus vir” (“Blessed is the man who fears the Lord”). The two surviving examples could hardly be more different: the large-scale RV 597 (Carus 40.012/00) for double choir and the small but exquisite and effective setting RV 598. The latter, composed by Vivaldi for his female pupils at the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice, is of moderate difficulty.
The scholarly Urtext edition of this work by Uwe Wolf is based on the autograph score. In the approximately eight-minute piece, there is an engaging back-and-forth of choral sections and solo passages: for instance, an alto solo is followed by a duet for two sopranos before the choir makes its entrance. Particularly interesting is the lack of a basso continuo in most of the solo passages, which lends them a floating, ethereal quality. Vivaldi renders the Psalm’s juxtaposition of the “godless” and the “God-fearing” with striking musical contrasts. The work concludes with a jubilant doxology, providing a fitting climax. With limited musical forces, the composer succeeds in creating an impressive and varied interpretation of the psalm text.
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Composer
Antonio Vivaldi
| 1678-1741Antonio (Lucio) Vivaldi was an Italian composer and violinist of the Baroque period.
It is assumed that his father, who was a musician himself, was responsible for Vivaldi's musical education. However, he began his professional career as a priest, which earned him the nickname Il prete rosso (the red-haired priest).
From 1703, Vivaldi worked intermittently as a violin teacher and composer at the Ospedale della Pietà, an orphanage for girls in Venice, until shortly before his death. Initially, he also worked there as a priest, but relinquished this role after three years. He wrote numerous chamber music works and concertos for his pupils at the Pietà. The famous Four Seasons are particularly well-known and often performed today. Vivaldi also composed sacred and secular vocal music and was an opera composer and director.
Of over 800 works known today, only 135 were published during Vivaldi's lifetime. After his death, Vivaldi's compositions were initially largely forgotten. Many of his works were rediscovered and published, particularly in the 20th century. Among them is the Gloria in D RV 589, the very first sheet music edition published by Carus-Verlag.
Personal details
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Editor
Uwe Wolf
| 1961As a musicologist, Dr. Uwe Wolf is particularly at home in the 17th and 18th centuries. The focus of his work ranges from the time of Monteverdi and Schütz to Bach and the generation of Bach's sons and pupils through to Viennese Classicism. He has been head of the editorial department at Carus-Verlag since October 2011. Prior to this, he worked in Bach research for over 20 years. Personal details
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Continuo realization
Andreas Gräsle
| 1964Andreas Gräsle (harmonium) studied church music in Stuttgart (organ: Jon Laukvik) and took his concert diploma in organ with Daniel Roth in Saarbrücken, followed by early music studies with Andrea Marcon. He was a scholarship holder of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), and a prizewinner at the International Johann Pachelbel Competition in Nuremberg in 1991. From 1996 to 2003 he was choirmaster and organist at the Augustinuskirche in Schwäbisch Gmünd, and in April 2003 he became district choirmaster in Ditzingen. In addition, he is much in demand as chamber music partner, organist and harpsichordist. He has made several CDs of organ and chamber music, and his own improvisations and arrangements of children’s songs round off his musical activities. He has taught score reading at the Musikhochschule Stuttgart since 1997. Personal details
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