Light, bright, and cheerful. It's some of the most familiar of all early 18th century music. It's been featured in uncounted films and television commercials, but what is it and why does it sound that way?
輕快、明亮、雀躍: 是大家最熟悉的 18世紀初期音樂的一部份, 曾出現在無數的電影和電視廣告中。 是什麼?為什麼聽起來如此 輕快、明亮,和雀躍呢?
This is the opening of "Spring" from "The Four Seasons," by Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi. "The Four Seasons" are famous in part because they are a delight to the ear. However, even more notable is the fact that they have stories to tell. At the time of their publication in Amsterdam in 1725, they were accompanied by poems describing exactly what feature of that season Vivaldi intended to capture in musical terms. In providing specific plot content for instrumental music, Vivaldi was generations ahead of his time.
這是《四季》中「春季」的序曲, 乃義大利作曲家 安東尼奧·維瓦爾第所作。 《四季》有名的部分原因 是它悅耳動聽; 但更顯著的是這音樂述說著故事。 1725年在阿姆斯特丹 音樂與伴隨的詩篇同時發佈, 詩裡描述著維瓦爾第地 試圖用音樂捕捉的每個季節的特色。 維爾瓦第為樂器演奏的音樂 提供了具體的情節內容, 比當時的人先進了好幾代。
If one were to read the poems simultaneously to hearing the music, one would find the poetic scenes synchronizing nicely with the musical imagery. We are told that the birds welcome spring with happy song, and here they are doing exactly that. Soon, however, a thunderstorm breaks out. Not only is there musical thunder and lightning, there are also more birds, wet, frightened, and unhappy.
如果同時欣賞音樂和讀詩, 就會發現詩所描寫的景像 和音樂的意境完美同步。 詩裡的鳥兒以快樂的歌聲迎接春天, 音樂裡也正是如此。 [擬啁啾鳥鳴的樂聲] 不久,雷雨交加。 音樂不僅呈現雷聲和閃電, 還有更多濕淋淋、 害怕、不快樂的鳥兒。 [小提琴聲]
In "Summer," the turtle dove sings her name "tortorella" in Italian, before a hail storm flattens the fields. "Autumn" brings eager hunters dashing out in pursuit of their prey.
「夏天」裡,班鳩唱著它的 意大利名字「tortorella」, [擬 tortorella 聲] 接著,冰雹夷平了田園。 [擬冰雹暴的樂聲] 「秋天」以熱切衝出打獵 的獵人們開場。
The "Winter" concerto begins with teeth chattering in the cold
[小提琴聲]
before one takes refuge by a crackling fire. Then it's back out into the storm where there'll be slips and falls on the ice. In these first weeks of winter, the old year is coming to a close, and so does Vivaldi's musical exploration of the seasons.
「冬天」協奏曲的開始 是哆嗦打顫的牙齒, [提琴顫音] 接著向劈啪作響的火堆 尋求溫暖和庇護。 [撫慰的樂聲] 又回到了暴風雪中, 易滑動、跌倒的冰上世界。 [張力的樂聲] 當舊的一年在冬初數週結束, 維瓦爾第探索季節的音樂 也到了尾聲。
Not until the early 19th century would such expressive instrumental program music, as it was known, become popular. By then, larger, more varied ensembles were the rule with woodwinds, brass, and percussion to help tell the tale. But Vivaldi pulled it off with just one violin, strings, and a harpsichord. Unlike his contemporary Bach, Vivaldi wasn't much interested in complicated fugues. He preferred to offer readily accessible entertainment to his listeners with melodies that pop back up later in a piece to remind us of where we've been. So the first movement of the "Spring" concerto begins with a theme for spring and ends with it, too, slightly varied from when it was last heard.
直到19世紀初期 如此用樂器表達的音樂才開始流行。 自那時起,更大型、 更多變化的合奏成為慣例, 用木管樂器,黃銅 和打擊樂器協助說故事。 但維瓦爾第僅僅以一把小提琴、 弦樂和大鍵琴就達成了。 不像與他當代的巴赫, 維瓦爾第對複雜的賦格沒什麼興趣。 他情願提供聽眾平易近人的娛樂, 那些事後聆聽,會觸景生情, 回想起舊地的旋律。 「春天」協奏曲的第一樂章 從春天的主題開始和結束, 開始和終結有些許的變化。
It was an inspired way to attract listeners, and Vivaldi, considered one of the most electrifying violinists of the early 18th century, understood the value of attracting audiences. Such concerts might feature himself as the star violinist. Others presented the young musicians of the Pietà, a Venetian girls' school where Vivaldi was Director of Music. Most of the students were orphans. Music training was intended not only as social skills suitable for young ladies but also as potential careers for those who might fail to make good marriages.
[春天樂章] 這是種吸引聽眾,啟發靈感的方式。 維瓦爾第 被認為是18世紀初 最令人興奮的小提琴家之一, 他了解吸引聽眾的重要性。 有時候他是音樂會的首席小提琴手; 其他時候則由威尼斯皮耶塔女子學校 的年輕音樂家演奏。 他擔任該校的音樂總監, 大多數學生是孤兒。 音樂不僅訓練年輕女士 適合的社交技能, 也是若她們未能得到好婚姻時 能夠從事的職業。
Even in the composer's own time, Vivaldi's music served as diversion for all, not just for the wealthy aristocrats. 300 years later, it's an approach that still works, and Vivaldi's music still sounds like trotting horses on the move.
即使在維瓦爾第自己的時代, 他的音樂為所有的人解悶, 不限於服務富有的貴族。 三百年後,他的方法仍行得通。 維瓦爾第的音樂聽起來 仍像是快步小跑的馬匹。