Closing concert: Eight Seasons
The idea for Terje Tønnesen's version of The Four Seasons arose when he was engaged to play the work in the late 1990s. At that time, Vivaldi's classic was one of the most frequently performed works in classical music – a piece that audiences felt they already knew inside out. Tønnesen therefore wanted to recreate something of what audiences must have experienced when The Four Seasons was performed for the very first time: a vivid, dramatic and unprecedented narrative in musical form.
Grappa, which released the recording with Terje Tønnesen and the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra, described the project as “Vivaldi's Four Seasons as you've never heard them before!”. Here, the ensemble throws all classical trappings overboard and delivers a raw, energetic live recording in which The Four Seasons is brought into the 21st-century soundscape. In the span between past and present, everything imaginable pops up: samples, tape cues, wind machines, thunder plates, bagpipes, drums, and dogs—all driven by a high-octane ensemble running on full throttle.
At the same time, this is a version which, despite its radical expression, is close to Vivaldi's own intentions. The poems Vivaldi used as a program for the music set the tone, and Tønnesen follows them consistently. Perhaps that is precisely why, paradoxically, this is one of the most faithful interpretations, even though it breaks with tradition. The Norwegian seasons, with their more extreme extremes than in continental Europe, also leave their mark on the interpretation and create a musical span that moves from glowing warmth to icy cold – physically noticeable to the listener.
Where Vivaldi depicts nature and village life, Astor Piazzolla paints a raw, urban, and human passion in his own version of The Four Seasons. Vivaldi's work dates from around 1720, while Piazzolla's tango seasons came into being over 200 years later, in 1965. Two composers, two continents, two vastly different musical expressions, but one common idea: to capture and express the cycle of the year through music. One in Baroque Venice, the other in vibrant Buenos Aires.
Practical information:
- Doors open 30 minutes before the start of the event
- Parking available at Aurdal kirke
Foto: Antero Hein
