Vivaldi ‘Gloria’ & Scarlatti ‘Laetatus Sum’
Concert details
Vivaldi’s joyous setting of the Gloria is always a pleasure to perform and to hear. It was possibly written from 1713-17 for the residents of the Ospedale della Pietà, one of four charitable institutions for the orphaned and abandoned girls of Venice, many of whom had been fathered by philandering noblemen or Grand Tour visitors to the north Italian city-state. Vivaldi taught music to and composed for the Pietà’s girls and, it is believed, used its talented pool of older singers to perform chorus parts notated for tenor and bass.
Alessandro Scarlatti’s Laetatus Sum is a first for Thanet Festival Choir. Scarlatti’s sacred music is very different from his operas and chamber cantatas. This setting of the first verse of Psalm 122, “Laetatus sum” exalts the Holy City, Jerusalem, and offers a universal prayer for peace and prosperity.