Julia Fischer Plays “Autumn”

Unknown-18The vibrant Fall colors outside my window are a great excuse to listen to Vivaldi’s third concerto, “Autumn” from “The Four Seasons. Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) was writing and playing this music at a time when the violin was developing as a virtuosic instrument. There’s a youthful joy in this music, as if he’s saying, “Look what the violin can do!” The key to playing this music well is to make the technical passages sound effortless and fun.

The piece is in three contrasting movements (fast, slow, fast). Here is a video by Julia Fischer and The Academy of St. Martin in the Fields:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVNo64WfV7o

To get an idea of how many ways this music can be played, listen to this performance which uses instruments similar to those in Vivaldi’s time. Notice the difference between the Baroque and modern bow. Can you hear a difference in the sound which is created? Also notice the sparing use of vibrato. Here, violinist Giuliano Carmignola performs with the Venice Baroque Orchestra:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei-_g6a5sF0

Listen to Vivaldi’s Winter and Spring concertos here. Leave a comment below with your thoughts on these performances.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/vivaldi-the-four-seasons/id594725105″]Find on iTunes http://www.amazon.com/Vivaldi-Seasons-Fischer-Violin-Academy/dp/B001URA624″]Find on Amazon

About Timothy Judd

A native of Upstate New York, Timothy Judd has been a member of the Richmond Symphony violin section since 2001. He is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music where he earned the degrees Bachelor of Music and Master of Music, studying with world renowned Ukrainian-American violinist Oleh Krysa.

The son of public school music educators, Timothy Judd began violin lessons at the age of four through Eastman’s Community Education Division. He was a student of Anastasia Jempelis, one of the earliest champions of the Suzuki method in the United States.

A passionate teacher, Mr. Judd has maintained a private violin studio in the Richmond area since 2002 and has been active coaching chamber music and numerous youth orchestra sectionals.

In his free time, Timothy Judd enjoys working out with Richmond’s popular SEAL Team Physical Training program.

1 thought on “Julia Fischer Plays “Autumn””

  1. Dear Timothy,
    I am glad we are connected–you have an exciting and brilliant career.
    Congratulations to Julia as well.
    I had 3 meals with Ruggiero Ricci in Malaysia in 1999–a quiet and humble man–sorry that he passed away last year.
    I am a self-taught fiddler–never good enough, so I play only for charities.
    Warm regards
    Peter, Melb, Australia

    Reply

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