Antonio Vivaldi was born into an Italian family in March of 1678 to a father who was a professional violinist. The young Vivaldi travelled frequently with his father when he was young, and it did not take long for him to follow in his father’s footsteps. Beginning in 1693, Vivaldi was trained for the priesthood. He remained in training for ten years and in the priesthood for an additional three years after this, but he soon quit, blaming his illness, which most modern physicians identify as bronchial asthma. Despite this reasoning, it is often suspected that Vivaldi left the priesthood after receiving a free education in order to pursue his dreams as a violinist and composer. Although he remained pious for the remainder of his life, this theory is strengthened by accounts of his retiring from at least one sermon to write down a fugue that had come to him at the pulpit. Regardless of his reasons for leaving, joining the priesthood was very advantageous for Vivaldi, particularly as Baroque Venice was the musical capital of Europe at the time, and thus it offered him arguably the very best education he could have found. After his time spent in the priesthood, Vivaldi began working as a violin teacher at the Ospedale della Pietà, an orphanage in Venice, Italy. These institutions were well known for aspiring young musicians, and often concerts held by these students were popular among the Venetian nobility and foreign visitors. These performances became so prominent during the 18th century that they even began to rival performances held at the opera houses. It is highly likely that some of this fame can be attributed to Vivaldi, as after he had become established at the institution, it became known as the ospedale with the most prestigious instrumental instruction. This position was extremely important for Vivaldi’s career because in addition to teaching these young orphans, this job proffered him the opportunity to compose; the position
Antonio Vivaldi was born into an Italian family in March of 1678 to a father who was a professional violinist. The young Vivaldi travelled frequently with his father when he was young, and it did not take long for him to follow in his father’s footsteps. Beginning in 1693, Vivaldi was trained for the priesthood. He remained in training for ten years and in the priesthood for an additional three years after this, but he soon quit, blaming his illness, which most modern physicians identify as bronchial asthma. Despite this reasoning, it is often suspected that Vivaldi left the priesthood after receiving a free education in order to pursue his dreams as a violinist and composer. Although he remained pious for the remainder of his life, this theory is strengthened by accounts of his retiring from at least one sermon to write down a fugue that had come to him at the pulpit. Regardless of his reasons for leaving, joining the priesthood was very advantageous for Vivaldi, particularly as Baroque Venice was the musical capital of Europe at the time, and thus it offered him arguably the very best education he could have found. After his time spent in the priesthood, Vivaldi began working as a violin teacher at the Ospedale della Pietà, an orphanage in Venice, Italy. These institutions were well known for aspiring young musicians, and often concerts held by these students were popular among the Venetian nobility and foreign visitors. These performances became so prominent during the 18th century that they even began to rival performances held at the opera houses. It is highly likely that some of this fame can be attributed to Vivaldi, as after he had become established at the institution, it became known as the ospedale with the most prestigious instrumental instruction. This position was extremely important for Vivaldi’s career because in addition to teaching these young orphans, this job proffered him the opportunity to compose; the position
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