https://youtu.be/6mTEpicRFwM
Iuditha Triumphans, which is a Hymn written by Vivaldi (a catholic priest from Venice) with a libretto in Latin based on the story of Judith who cut off the head of Holofernes, the enemy of God’s people, was written by Vivaldi in his last years at Venice, to celebrate the triumph of the Catholic Republic over the forces of the Islamic Turks in the campaign of Corfu, a Greek Island in the Southern Adriatic. The hymn which is RV 644 in the opus of Antonio Vivaldi, is one of the greatest oratorios in the history of music, but which is mostly unknown because of the anti-Catholic bigotry of most modern music faculties and critics.
Theologically, the oratorio represents the triumph of Holy Mother Church over all Her enemies, even in the darkest hours of Her existence on earth. And for this reason, it is an excellent choice in the musical repertoire of any Catholic home.
To follow along,you can find the libretto in Latin and English, here.
Thank you for sharing this heavenly and majestic masterpiece. I had to stop it at the end of the first 3 minutes because it hit me that certain parts of the glorious melody sounded very familiar to me. And bingo! It came to mind that those riffs I heard were also part of another very well-known Turkish-Ottoman Marchind Band piece that was composed by İsmail Hakki Bey called “Ceddin Deden”. Listen to the below marching song and then play Vivaldi’s piece from minutes 2 – 3.
Was the Ottoman Military Band Music composer intending to mock Vivaldi’s masterpiece? I am pretty sure he was!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wfa_W10PVGk