Introduction: Vivaldi: Something Completely Different (01:18)

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Scott Yoo will trace the secrets behind Antonio Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" as he travels across southern Italy. Renowned musicians, violin makers, singers, and experts will contribute to this episode.

Vivaldi In Venice (06:47)

"The Four Seasons" is the most recorded work in the world. Listen to an excerpt of "Laetatus Sum in C Major," a recently discovered composition. Yoo visits the Basilica di Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari to learn about Vivaldi's sacred music.

Vivaldi In Tuscany (06:39)

Brad Repp and Aldo Gentileschi comprise Duo Baldo. Yoo and the musical comedians discuss how Vivaldi wrote "Four Seasons" to mimic the sounds of the Italian countryside.

Violin Maker (05:13)

Yoo discusses Vivaldi's purchase of a violin from Antonio Stradivari. Plane flights and humidity can cause the sound post to shift. Igor Moroder explains the differences between constructing a violin in the present day and in Stradivari's time.

Cremona, Italy (07:18)

Yoo describes how the passing of knowledge between master and apprentice died when Napoleon Bonaparte invaded Italy. Yoo plays a movement by Vivaldi using musical instruments made by Benedicte Friedmann, Marianne Jost, Min sung Kim, and Luca Salvadori. Violins take forty years to mature.

Vivaldi In Siena (03:47)

The violin is the leading instrument in classical music in modern times. Yoo explains how the human voice was the most capable instrument during the Middle Ages. Alessandro Carmignani and Antonio Artese explore Medieval songs at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana.

Evolution of Music (06:30)

Artese discusses the transition from Renaissance to Baroque music. As instruments and technology advances, composers become inspired. Artese plays variations that Beethoven, Brahms, or Bach may have written to demonstrate Vivaldi's influence on other compositions.

Vivaldi's Lost Works (05:19)

Yoo describes how a priest brought Vivaldi's compositions to the Turin Library in 1926. Portions of "Spring" from "Four Seasons" are adapted into the opera, "Giustino." Yoo plays an excerpt of "L'Amoroso."

Vivaldi In Bergamo (03:23)

Listen to an excerpt of "Winter" from "Four Seasons." Yoo plays a Stradivari violin at the Church of San Pietro; a Swiss Bank owns the violin valued at over $15 million.

Vivaldi's Return to Venice (05:26)

The first movement of "Winter" in "Four Seasons" inspires "Farnace." Accompanied by Yoo and other musicians, Maria Luigia Borsi sings an aria. Vivaldi's passions include the church and opera.

Credits: Vivaldi: Something Completely Different (00:56)

Credits: Vivaldi: Something Completely Different