Kyrie (Vivaldi)

The Kyrie in G minor (RV 587) by Antonio Vivaldi is a setting of the Kyrie for two cori (two orchestras, each with respective four-part chorus) written between 1720-35. This is the only extant setting of the Kyrie the composer wrote.

Kyrie, RV 587

RV 587 is divided into three movements. The first movement begins with an orchestral interlude based on a modified version of the first movement of the composer's Magnificat. The chorus is adorned with descending quavers in the orchestra. The second movement is a duet between cori and for two soprani in each cori. The final movement unites the two cori with a brief grave and enters a fugue. The fugue would later be reworked for the composer's Concerto Madrigalesco (RV 129).