Concerto for Two Trumpets (Vivaldi)

Vivaldi composed the Concerto for Two Trumpets in C major possibly in the 1720s in Venice.[2] It is his only trumpet concerto;[2] it is not known for whom he wrote it. It seems unlikely that he wrote it for the Ospedale della Pietà, because the ensemble there comprised voices, strings and keyboard. It was written for the natural trumpet of the time; [3] as a valveless instrument this was limited to the notes of the natural harmonic series which means that its music tends to stay close to its home key.[4]

A manuscript was found in the Renzo Giordano Collection at the National Library in Turin, which holds much of Vivaldi's personal collection.[3] It was first published, edited by Gian Francesco Malipiero, by Casa Ricordi in 1950.[3] Vivaldi also used the second movement for his Violin Concerto in C major, RV 110.[3]

The concerto is structured in three movements:[2][3]

1. Allegro
2. Largo
3. Allegro

The outer movements display the virtuosity of the soloists in passage-work and fanfares.[3][2] The two trumpets usually play together in the solo passages, but at times also play with the strings in the tutti parts.[3]

In the first movement, the strings modulate to a minor key, which returns to the major when the trumpets re-enter. In the middle movement of only six measures, the trumpets are silent,[3] with both the style and harmony being unsuitable for the instrument.[4] It is in a languid mood, set with sustained chords from the strings.[2] The third movement, beginning with fanfare arpeggios in canon from the soloists, is in a triple metre and brings the work to a vigorous conclusion.[3]

• Concerto for 2 Trumpets in C major, RV 537 (Vivaldi, Antonio): Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
• Vivaldi, Concerto for 2 Baroque Trumpets / Josh Cohen and Nathaniel Mayfield, Baroque Trumpets. Performed Live in Montreal on Feb. 18, 2009 on YouTube