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(1678-1741), Italian composer and violinist, was the most influential of his age. He was born March 4, 1678, in Venice, and was trained by his father, a violinist at Saint Mark's Cathedral. He was ordained a priest in 1703 and began teaching that year at the Osp ....

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.... his concertos, and his religious music reflects the operatic style of the era. His most famous and younger contemporary, J. S. Bach, studied his works during his formative years, and some of Vivaldi's violin concertos and sonatas exist only as transcriptions, mostly for harpsichord, made by Bach. Vivaldi's concertos provided a model for this genre throughout Europe, affecting the style even of his older contemporaries. Over 300 of his concertos are solo concertos ( there are 220 for violin, others for bassoon, cello, oboe, and flute). Others are concerti grossi, 25 for two solo violins and 32 for three or more instruments. A few are ripieno concerto ....