Antonio Vivaldi, a renowned composer, was also known throughout Europe as a violin virtuoso, and to a lesser extent as a lutenist and mandolinist.
Cultural Impact
Johann Sebastian Bach, a young composer, intensively studied Vivaldi's music and transcribed some of his violin concertos for keyboard, which influenced Bach's conception of the Baroque concerto.
Performer Biography
Jeffrey Biegel won the First Grand Prize in the 1989 Marguerite Long International Piano Competition and First Prize in the 1985 William Kapell/University of Maryland International Piano Competition.
Interpretation
Jeffrey Biegel's arrangement of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons for piano incorporates Baroque-inspired ornamentation, scale patterns, and a broadening of textures, building upon a published transcription by Ricordi.
Recording & Production
This recording is dedicated to Hanna Saxon, former President of the South Florida Chapter of the Chopin Foundation of the United States, and was sponsored in her memory by the chapter.
Compositional Technique
Despite Vivaldi's extensive output, music for the keyboard is conspicuously absent from his compositions.
Performer Biography
Jeffrey Biegel, the pianist and arranger on this album, was unable to hear or speak until undergoing surgery at age three, leading to a 'reverse Beethoven' phenomenon in his musical life.
