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GENERAL ENGLISH · ENGLISH IN VIDEO · UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

VIVALDI’S
FOUR
SEASONS
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1 Warm up

Match the following words connected to music to the definition.

1. ensemble a. an old instrument similar to a piano

2. woodwinds b. a piece of music which includes a couple of tunes or more, these

tunes are then repeated in a complex manner
3. brass c. a piece of music written for a single instrument to be played
together with an orchestra
4. strings d. a small group of musicians

5. percussion e. instruments such as drums and a tambourine

6. harpsichord f. instruments such as flutes and clarinets

7. concerto g. instruments such as French horns and trumpets

8. fugue h. instruments such as violins and guitars

A B C D E F

Can you name the photographs?

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VIVALDI’S FOUR SEASONS

2 Understanding the introduction

First, listen to part of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons (00:00-01:30).

When you have finished, quickly answer the following questions in pairs.

• What does it make you think of?

• How does it make you feel?
• What instruments do you think you can hear?

Now, put the following sentences from the video you are going to watch in order from 1 - 8. The first
one is done for you.

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.

However, even more notable is the fact that they have stories to tell.

In providing specific plot content for instrumental music, Vivaldi was generations ahead of his time.

It’s been featured in uncounted films and television commercials, but what is it and why does it sound
that way?

It’s some of the most familiar of all early 18th-century music.

Light, bright, and cheerful. 1

The Four Seasons are famous in part because they are a delight to the ear.

This is the opening of "Spring" from The Four Seasons by Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi.

Watch the video (00:00 - 00:56) to check your answers.

Now find words and phrases in the script with the following meanings.

1. included in a special manner

2. an unknown number

3. to some extent

4. worth paying attention to

5. together with

6. wanted to

7. giving

8. very advanced for the age in which he lived

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3 Focus on vocabulary
Part A: Write the following extracts into the correct gap in the following definitions.
a safe place chasing or looking excited and enthusiastic feelings and emotions
no living parents period of time someone who lived takes your attention

1. simultaneously (adv.): taking place over the same as something else

2. pursuit (n): for something
3. refuge (n): giving protection from weather and danger
4. expressive (adj.): clearly displaying
5. contemporary (n): in the same period of time
6. electrifying (adj.): making someone incredibly
7. orphan (n): a child with
8. diversion (n): something which away from regular life or what you are
doing

Part B: Complete the following sentences with a word from the same family as the word in brackets.

1. The police officer had a very blank , making it very difficult to know what he was
thinking. (expressive)
2. Nadia volunteers at the local community centre, teaching English to . (refuge)
3. There was an accident on the main road, so the police were traffic through a
nearby village. (diversion)
4. My daughter is at university in Chicago studying history. She loves it. (contemporary)
5. Tragically, his parents were both killed in a car crash while he was a baby, so he spent the early
years of his life in an . (orphan)
6. I’m telling you, when he started playing guitar, the whole audience was absolutely
. (electrifying)
7. Have you seen the news? Police are a drunk driver. It’s terrifying to watch!
(pursuit)
8. Last night there were explosions in two separate areas of Paris, though no one is
thought to be injured. (simultaneously)

Now in pairs, answer the questions.

1. What is the most electrifying music or drama performance you have ever seen?
2. What activities do you do as a diversion from work?
3. Are people often quite expressive in your culture? Or not? How do they show their emotions?
4. Are you someone who is good at doing several things simultaneously, or do you prefer to just
focus on one thing?
5. Where is your favourite place to take refuge?
6. What happens to orphans in your country? Are there places for them to go?

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4 Comprehension

Watch the rest of the video (00:56 - 04:02) and answer the following questions.

1. What, according to the poems, is happening at the beginning of "Spring"?

a. The season is welcomed with joyful birdsong.

b. The flowers are beginning to grow.
c. The snow is starting to melt and the air is getting warm.
d. The animals are beginning to wake from their winter sleep.

2. What event changes the tone of the music?

a. Hunters enter the forest, meaning danger for the animals.

b. Pollution from a nearby town begins to kill the wildlife.
c. Dangerous animals enter the area.
d. The weather changes, which affects the animals.

3. What happens in the fields in "Summer"?

a. They are full of families playing and eating.

b. They are negatively affected by harsh weather.
c. Animals play with each other in the sun.
d. The crops grow and reach towards the sun.

4. What does "Autumn" bring?

a. Colder weather and animals starting to stay inside

b. The sound of leaves falling from trees
c. Hunters looking for animals
d. The calls of birds leaving for warmer places

5. What did Vivaldi use to perform The Four Seasons?

a. A large orchestra featuring woodwinds, drums and brass instruments

b. A harpsichord and string instruments
c. Only woodwind instruments
d. Only brass instruments

6. What did Vivaldi try to do with his music?

a. Provide entertaining music that everyone could enjoy

b. Write complicated tunes which amazed contemporary musicians
c. Repeat ideas in different pieces of music
d. Create music in ways that had not been done before

7. What instrument did Vivaldi play?

a. The harpsichord
b. The French horn
c. The trumpet
d. The violin

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8. How did the Venetian girls’ school prepare its students for the future?

a. They learned cookery, sports and how to play at least two instruments.
b. They learned several languages and how to write music.
c. It prepared them for a music career in case they did not marry.
d. It taught them what they needed to find a good husband.

5 Multi-word phrases

Complete the sentences with one of the following words. You will need to use one more than once.

with / out / for / in / of / up / from

1. I was in a bar last night when a fight broke . It was really scary.
2. I can’t say I’m very interested Politics. I find it all very boring.
3. That girl over there really reminds me your sister.
4. I find the quality of the bread in France really varies place to place.
5. I forgot to tell you. Your name popped in conversation yesterday when I was talking to
Sian!
6. We should stop watching this film. I don’t think it’s going to be suitable the children at all.
7. I’d like to begin the tomato soup please, and then I’ll have the vegetable pie with a side
order of fries.
8. Sorry, I can’t talk. I need to dash , but I’ll be back later this afternoon! OK?

6 Talking point

In pairs, answer the following questions.

1. Do you normally listen to Classical Music? Why/Why not?

2. What was your opinion of the music you heard today? When you heard the music, were your
ideas the same as the ideas discussed in the video?
3. Is classical music popular in your country? Can you go and see performances anywhere?
4. After the work you did today, would you be interested in listening to other classical pieces of
music, or more music by Vivaldi? Why/Why not?

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7 Extended activity/homework

Listen to one of the seasons from Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons in full.

Write at least 150 words about the ideas, images and feelings that it gives you. Remember that there
are no right or wrong answers.

Be sure to check your spelling, grammar and punctuation.

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Transcripts
2. Understanding the introduction

B.Schwarm: 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? This is the opening of "Spring" from The Four Seasons by Italian
composer Antonio Vivaldi.

B.Schwarm: 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.

B.Schwarm: If one were to read the poems simultaneously to hearing the music, one would find the
poetic scenes synchronising 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.

B.Schwarm: Not only is there musical thunder and lightning, there are also more birds, wet,
frightened and unhappy. In "Summer", the turtle dove sings her name "tortorella" in
Italian, before a hailstorm flattens the fields. "Autumn" brings eager hunters dashing
out in pursuit of their prey.

B.Schwarm: The "Winter" concerto begins with teeth chattering in the cold 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.

B.Schwarm: 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.

B.Schwarm: 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.

B.Schwarm: 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 Pieta, a Venetian girls’ school where Vivaldi was Director of
Music.

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B.Schwarm: 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. 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.

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VIVALDI’S FOUR SEASONS

Key

1. Warm up

10 mins.
This gives students a chance to look at some music-related vocabulary that is used in the video. Note that fugue and
concerto are both pieces of music but have different purposes. When the students have dealt with the vocabulary,
you may want them to shut their eyes while they listen to the music. The purpose is to get them to engage with
what they think it is about before the video gives them ideas. Obviously, there are no right or wrong answers.
1. d 2. f 3. g 4. h 5. e 6. a 7. c 8. b

Note some useful pronunciation:

-percussion /p@­k2Sn/
-harpsichord /­hA:psIkO:d/
-concerto /k@n­tSe@t@U/
-fugue /fju:g/
A string instrument(s); B woodwind instrument(s); C brass instrument(s); D percussion instrument(s); E a harpsichord;
F an ensemble

2. Understanding the introduction

12 mins.
This allows students to see the beginning of the script and to deal with some vocabulary ahead of hearing the
rest.
Note: you can decide how long students should listen to The Four Seasons. Provided link allows you to listen to
part of the piece. We advise playing a minute and a half to two minutes.
Script:
1. Light, bright, and cheerful.
2. It’s some of the most familiar of all early 18th-century music.
3. It’s been featured in uncounted films and television commercials, but what is it and why does it sound that
way?
4. This is the opening of "Spring" from The Four Seasons by Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi.
5. The Four Seasons are famous in part because they are a delight to the ear.
6. However, even more notable is the fact that they have stories to tell.
7. 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.
8. In providing specific plot content for instrumental music, Vivaldi was generations ahead of his time.

Phrases from the script

1. featured 2. uncounted 3. in part

4. notable 5. accompanied by 6. intended to
7. providing 8. (generations) ahead of his time

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3. Focus on vocabulary

Part A
5 mins.
Ask the students to try this unaided to begin with and then check their work with a reference if required. Ensure
students can correctly pronounce the target vocabulary.
1. period of time 2. chasing or looking 3. a safe place
4. feelings and emotions 5. someone who lived 6. excited and enthusiastic
7. no living parents 8. takes your attention

Part B
10 mins.
Students are likely to need a reference to complete this. Encourage students to link the meaning of the word they
have covered in Part A with the word they use in Part B. You may want students to look at other words in the
same family too. This is good practice with any new vocabulary that they learn. When they have completed that
and have the answers, ask them to discuss the questions. Circulate and help as needed.
1. expression 2. refugees 3. diverting 4. contemporary
5. orphanage 6. electrified 7. pursuing 8. simultaneous

4. Comprehension

10 mins.
Ask students to read and predict the answers ahead of watching the video, then watch to check their predictions.
1. a 2. d 3. b 4. c 5. b 6. a 7. d 8. c

5. Multi-word phrases

5 mins.
This allows students extra practice with vocabulary used in the video. You may want to extend this by asking
students to think of other words they could add to the words in bold and how that would affect the meaning. For
example, break out vs. break in vs. break down vs. break up
1. out 2. in 3. of 4. from 5. up 6. for 7. with 8. out

6. Talking point

10 mins.
Ask students to discuss the questions in pairs or small groups. Circulate and help as needed. You could opt to play
them more of the music from The Four Seasons at this point to prompt further discussion on the ideas and images
it gives them.

7. Extended activity/homework

30 mins +.
You could do this as an extended class activity, although some students may feel more comfortable doing this
alone. If students want to write a short story about what they imagine, encourage this. They may equally be
happy to describe a series of unconnected images.

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