son to the table, where together they pored over the manuscript in
which Antonio had made a start on a new Sonata da Camera. The
priest put all his concentration into the music, living it again,
feeling where he wanted the piece to go. Without a word he picked
up his pen and dipped it into the inkpot his father pushed towards
him. After a moment’s hesitation a first note appeared on paper,
and then another, and another. Until a single fluent movement of
his hand produced a torrent of notes capable of withstanding
Giambattista’s most stringent scrutiny. And the pain in the
Antonio’s chest was as good as gone.
That Sunday morning was colder than ever. Over the past few days
the temperature had plunged below freezing every night and this
morning again the sun had not had the strength to lift the mercury
above zero. On his way to the Pietà, Antonio Vivaldi was assailed by
the scent of freshly baked bread and pìnza, a cake that for a
thousand years had been made especially for the Feast of Epiphany.
Before entering the auditorium of the Ospedale della Pietà he paused
for a moment on the quayside, pulling closer around him his
tabarro, his beautiful new woollen cloak. The wind had died down
but there was still a wild, razor-edged breeze. From where he stood
he could see the Slavonic seamen and hear them swearing as they
hacked away the ice from around the keels of their ships. He was
more used to the sound of them singing at their work: lovely
songs from their Dalmatian fatherland, sometimes sentimental,
sometimes full of passion, but always a source of inspiration to
him. Vivaldi had heard that the ice could be so powerful that it
could crush even these great ships, so he understood why the men
were labouring so furiously.
His glance moved along the quay towards the place where
muted morning sunshine shone upon the dome of Santa Maria della
Salute. The landing stage was nearly deserted. Many skippers had
taken their ships out early, apparently afraid of getting stuck,
icebound in harbour for they did not know how long. Even on the
Riva degli Schiavoni itself there was almost nothing going on. The
26
15-42 Chapter 1.indd 26 22-11-2007 14:08:55
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