Norwegian Baroque Orchestra, Edward Higginbottom, Anita Brevik - Vivaldi: Gloria (2005)

It was first recorded as compositions originally written for a women's choir.
The first time this music was performed, the orphan girls sang and played all the instruments. Most of the girls were the children of prostitutes and came from the Ospedale della Pieta institution in Venice. For almost 40 years (1703-1740), Vivaldi was a teacher in this house for women without a family. His association with Ospedale della Pieta had musical and historical consequences.
Educated and ordained to the priesthood, Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (1678-1741) was nicknamed the "Red Priest" because of his red hair. However, he suffered from a respiratory illness, most likely asthma, so it was difficult for him to celebrate Mass where he was supposed to sing the liturgy. For this reason, he devoted more and more time to writing.
After his death, Vivaldi was surprisingly quickly forgotten. Other composers became fashionable in Venice, and Vivaldi's music was rarely performed outside the city. It took almost 200 years before his music received the recognition it deserved. Today, Vivaldi is one of the most performed classical composers in the world.