by Pat Merewether

Created on: January 14, 2008

I visited my Uncle Mike while he was recovering from an auto accident. I was only thirteen and a bit frightened of what I might see, or hear, or smell. I entered the room, relieved to find Uncle Mike sitting in his recliner with his arm and leg in a cast. He had nearly died, at least that's what my cousin told me. Now looked quite peaceful, almost happy. He was listening to something through a headset and smiled when he saw me and motioned me to come into the room.

"Listen to this," he said softly and gave me the headset. I put it on, not knowing to expect. He pushed the button on his tape player and the most beautiful music I'd ever heard flowed into my ears and melted my heart. I'd never heard it before, but I knew I'd want to hear it again and again, and I have. Uncle Mike recovered fully and he told me once that "Mr. Vivaldi" helped a lot.

The music was written by Antonio Vivaldi, hundreds of years before Uncle Mike became ill, before I was born. What I listened to that night was Concerto No. 2 In G Minor, "summer" (l'estate) - Adagio from Vivaldi's Four Seasons. What a legacy! To compose music that beautiful that lasts forever.

Antonio Vivaldi was born in Venice in 1678. He was ordained a priest in 1703 but soon gave up saying Mass due to physical problems caused by what is believed to have been asthma.

He wrote music throughout his life from concertos to operas. He spent much of his life as a teacher at the Ospedale della Piet, which was called the orphanage' but in reality was a home for the unwed mothers of the nobility.
He wrote dozens of concertos and a number of operas until the time of his death in July of
1741.

Vivaldi fell into virtual obscurity until manuscripts of his music were found in the 1920's and 1930's. in a monastery. Three hundred concertos and more than a dozen operas were discovered and Vivaldi's music was again played end performed. Today he is one of the most successful composers of any age outselling many of the many modern pop stars.

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