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The Instrumentalist
Venice. 1704. In this city of glittering splendour, desperation and destitution are never far away. At the Ospedale della Pietà, abandoned orphan girls are posted every through a tiny gap in the wall every day.
Eight-year-old Anna Maria is just one of the three hundred girls growing up within the Pietà's walls – but she already knows she is different. Obsessive and gifted, she is on a mission to become Venice’s greatest violinist and composer, and in her remarkable world of colour and sound, it seems like nothing with stop her.
But the odds are stacked against an orphan girl – so when the maestro selects her as his star pupil, Anna Maria knows she must do everything in power to please this difficult, brilliant man. But as Anna Maria’s star rises, threatening to eclipse that of her mentor, the dream she has so single-mindedly pursued is thrown into peril…
From the jewelled palaces of Venice to its mud-licked canals, this is a story of one woman’s irrepressible ambition and rise to the top, of loss and triumph, and of who we choose to remember and leave behind on the path to success.
Eight-year-old Anna Maria is just one of the three hundred girls growing up within the Pietà's walls – but she already knows she is different. Obsessive and gifted, she is on a mission to become Venice’s greatest violinist and composer, and in her remarkable world of colour and sound, it seems like nothing with stop her.
But the odds are stacked against an orphan girl – so when the maestro selects her as his star pupil, Anna Maria knows she must do everything in power to please this difficult, brilliant man. But as Anna Maria’s star rises, threatening to eclipse that of her mentor, the dream she has so single-mindedly pursued is thrown into peril…
From the jewelled palaces of Venice to its mud-licked canals, this is a story of one woman’s irrepressible ambition and rise to the top, of loss and triumph, and of who we choose to remember and leave behind on the path to success.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published August 15, 2024
885 people are currently reading
22822 people want to read
About the author
Harriet Constable
2 books161 followersHarriet Constable is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker living in London. Her work has been featured by the New York Times, the Economist, and the BBC, and she is a grantee of the Pulitzer Center. Raised in a musical family, The Instrumentalist is her first novel. It has been selected as one of the Top 10 Debuts of 2024 by the Guardian.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,077 reviews
March 11, 2024
And when her daughter asks what she might do with her life one day, what she might be, she will tell her: anything.
Um, really? In eighteenth century Venice? And the thoughts of a poor street prostitute who has tried to drown herself and her new baby out of desperation just days ago?
This is my least favourite kind of historical fiction which just puts modern women with all our twenty first century attitudes and assumptions back into a historical setting. It's silly, it does an injustice to history and to all our female forebears who found ways to negotiate with patriarchal restraints and constraints but, importantly, not like this.
Anna Maria della Pieta was a real person, a virtuosic violinist and composer, but I bet she never went storming into the office demanding to be made Master of Music because 'I make the Pieta a lot of gold. If you want the famous Anna Maria della Pieta to keep smiling and playing, you'll give me the role. You need me more than I need you.'
The illusion was smashed for me already when 8 year old Anna Maria in her convent for abandoned babies is already thinking like this, before she's even seen a violin: 'some know they are destined for greatness. Anna Maria della Pieta is destined for greatness. At eight, she knows this.'
There has clearly been research into the daily life in Venice but the plot feels almost cartoon-like in its broad brush strokes: Anna is so ambitious that she neglects her girl friends but they all forgive her at the end; Anna confronts the male Maestro and accuses him of passing off her work as his own : 'Do you know, I really thought that once I was old enough, you would credit me? I thought I held your respect... I've been a fool.'
If you want to write historical fiction that speaks to me then you need to research the thought and psychological world of the time, not just the material setting - and the plain fact is that eighteenth century Venetian women, let alone orphans in convents, simply didn't think, speak and act as we do. (Not even the Brontes' or Austen's most spirited heroines a century later stride around issuing demands, asserting their greatness and overturning the institutions of women's lives, even when they do achieve some levels of independence and agency).
This book makes a feminist fairy tale out of history.
Thanks to the publisher for an ARC via NetGalley
September 19, 2024
An impressive historical fiction novel that kept me interested and entertained throughout the 336 pages. Set in the 18th century we are taken to the opulent palaces of Venice to its Mucky and sinister canals.
Inspired by true events, this was a story of survival against all odds and the genius of Anna Maria della Piétro and the girls that made up the Venice’s figlie di coro.
I really enjoyed this short novel and was music to my ears after going through a summer of mediocre books.
This was an intriguing tale, of ambition, loss and above the power of one woman to overcome adversity through the power of music in the 18th century.
Inspired by true events, this was a story of survival against all odds and the genius of Anna Maria della Piétro and the girls that made up the Venice’s figlie di coro.
I really enjoyed this short novel and was music to my ears after going through a summer of mediocre books.
This was an intriguing tale, of ambition, loss and above the power of one woman to overcome adversity through the power of music in the 18th century.
August 2, 2024
The Instrumentalist by Harriet Constable is inspired by the true story of Anna Maria della Pieta, a Venetian orphan and violin prodigy who studied under Antonio Vivaldi.
Venice, 1695: Orphan of the famous Pieta, Anna Maria is eight when she meets Antonio Vivaldi. He is a harsh teacher but notices Anna’s talent right away. She wants to compose like Vivaldi. He isn’t a mare instrumentalist as he put it, playing just an instrument. Those who are remembered are composers. She hatches her plan for composing, but she needs to be a maestro in order to publish her compositions.
She isn’t bothered by his harsh manners as others are. She doesn’t concentrate on feelings as others do. She prioritizes sound, expression, and perfecting each note. This is the path to greatness and adoration by others.
The life throws opportunities at her and then tests her persistence. When Vivaldi is sick for months, the less talented teacher who lacks the skill, the speed and understanding of her, takes over the teaching. Not only that, when she is already known throughout the Pieta, she is still expected to scrub the floors as the rest of the girls, leaving her fingers blistered which she needs in good shape for her instrument.
This story explores the fate of a Venetian orphan, which was a marriage to anyone who would have her. Thus, Anna Maria is determined to change her fate and be the best violinist.
There is very little known about Anna Maria. The setting is historically researched but the interpretation of Anna Maria’s life is fiction which is slowly revealed.
This story has a feminist approach and at times raises a question if one would behave with such authority as an orphan child in the 18th century.
Overall, it is an interesting story of Pieta orphans and the opportunity they were given when almost none was existent for them.
Source: ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Venice, 1695: Orphan of the famous Pieta, Anna Maria is eight when she meets Antonio Vivaldi. He is a harsh teacher but notices Anna’s talent right away. She wants to compose like Vivaldi. He isn’t a mare instrumentalist as he put it, playing just an instrument. Those who are remembered are composers. She hatches her plan for composing, but she needs to be a maestro in order to publish her compositions.
She isn’t bothered by his harsh manners as others are. She doesn’t concentrate on feelings as others do. She prioritizes sound, expression, and perfecting each note. This is the path to greatness and adoration by others.
The life throws opportunities at her and then tests her persistence. When Vivaldi is sick for months, the less talented teacher who lacks the skill, the speed and understanding of her, takes over the teaching. Not only that, when she is already known throughout the Pieta, she is still expected to scrub the floors as the rest of the girls, leaving her fingers blistered which she needs in good shape for her instrument.
This story explores the fate of a Venetian orphan, which was a marriage to anyone who would have her. Thus, Anna Maria is determined to change her fate and be the best violinist.
There is very little known about Anna Maria. The setting is historically researched but the interpretation of Anna Maria’s life is fiction which is slowly revealed.
This story has a feminist approach and at times raises a question if one would behave with such authority as an orphan child in the 18th century.
Overall, it is an interesting story of Pieta orphans and the opportunity they were given when almost none was existent for them.
Source: ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
August 10, 2024
This story of Anna Maria della Pietà is extraordinary as it is, but Harriet Constable did a very good job portraying her. For me, historical fiction based on the lives of real people is a success when I spend a lot of time reading Wikipedia (or other sources) to see what really happened and what not. It’s clear that the whole book is about Anna Maria and Antonio Vivaldi, and the way they worked together for years. It’s also clear that none of the things they say to each other in the book, is true.
What is true is that she was an extraordinary gifted person and since she reached a respectable age (she reached the age of 86) many, many people in those days enjoyed her music and her concerts. Vivaldi became even more famous – maybe not because his music was more beautiful but because female composers tend to be forgotten sooner by the big public.
I just loved the book because of Anna Maria’s synaesthesia and the way the author used this to give (literally) more colour to the story. I like to listen to music while I read so the choice what to listen to while reading this book was not a difficult one.
I’ve read in several reviews that Anna Maria is not a very likable person. Indeed, she’s not al soft and friendly and polite all the time. But what do we know? We know almost nothing about her life except from her music. I think it’s a bold choice to portray her as very fierce, sometimes cold and unfriendly; what life would she have lived if she didn’t come up for herself? Still, nowadays women who are fierce and strong and know what they want to reach for themselves in life are called cold and altogether unlikable. So nothing new there – and a great pity because I think the author did a lot of research and painted a believable portrait of Anna Maria.
Thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing and Netgalley for this review copy.
What is true is that she was an extraordinary gifted person and since she reached a respectable age (she reached the age of 86) many, many people in those days enjoyed her music and her concerts. Vivaldi became even more famous – maybe not because his music was more beautiful but because female composers tend to be forgotten sooner by the big public.
I just loved the book because of Anna Maria’s synaesthesia and the way the author used this to give (literally) more colour to the story. I like to listen to music while I read so the choice what to listen to while reading this book was not a difficult one.
I’ve read in several reviews that Anna Maria is not a very likable person. Indeed, she’s not al soft and friendly and polite all the time. But what do we know? We know almost nothing about her life except from her music. I think it’s a bold choice to portray her as very fierce, sometimes cold and unfriendly; what life would she have lived if she didn’t come up for herself? Still, nowadays women who are fierce and strong and know what they want to reach for themselves in life are called cold and altogether unlikable. So nothing new there – and a great pity because I think the author did a lot of research and painted a believable portrait of Anna Maria.
Thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing and Netgalley for this review copy.
August 16, 2024
Warning: very long and ranty
When I was a small child living in Washington DC, I had a story tape called Vivaldi’s Ring of Mystery. These tapes were produced by the company Classical Kids to introduce small children to classical music, and subscribed to by middle-class mothers like mine – I think we had ones on Handel and Mozart as well. Although this tape has passed into the mists of time and we will now never know whether it was a work of brilliance or a load of rubbish, it has always stayed with me. I remember the story of an orphan girl living with nuns in Venice who had grown up hearing the legend of a special violin that only one heir could play. In the climactic scene, she rose from an audience of orphans to reveal herself as the lost genius. (There was also a very scary scene in the cemetery on Isola di San Michele). While I may have messed up some of these details – where does the titular ‘ring of mystery’ come in? – the sheer atmosphere and the music made this story unforgettable for my seven-year-old self.
And then we have Harriet Constable’s debut novel, The Instrumentalist. As Bridget Jones would say: GAH.
I am very much not a fan of faux-feminist historical fiction that feels the only way to celebrate the lives of women is to make them behave exactly like twenty-first century protagonists and/or to tear down famous men. This has the unfortunate result of erasing the struggles and machinations of women who did not have the same mindsets that we do but achieved within the boundaries that were set for them. It also suggests that the only way women can be talented is if men are abusive fakes. (See also: Odysseus in Madeline Miller’s Circe). Obviously, I am all for historical fiction that shows that these men were flawed individuals and not idealised heroes, but this kind of your-idol-has-feet-of-clay approach never feels feminist to me.
The Instrumentalist doubles down. It’s based on the real life of Anna Maria della Pietà, an orphan growing up in the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice after being abandoned there as a baby at the very end of the seventeenth century. By the early eighteenth century, both she and her fellow orphans were being tutored in music by Antonio Vivaldi, who became master of violin at the Ospedale in 1703. Vivaldi composed most of his major works while he was at the Ospedale, and also wrote a lot of music for the figlie di coro, the student orchestra. Anna Maria would go on to have a long and successful career in her own right, being named ‘Maestra’ at the age of just twenty-four and composing and performing throughout her life until her death in 1782, when she was in her eighties.
This is irresistible material, and it’s not surprising that Constable was drawn to it – Anna Maria della Pietà has already inspired at least one other historical novel, Barbara Quick’s Vivaldi’s Virgins. But The Instrumentalist doesn’t work in any way at all. Anna Maria herself is a big problem. I liked the idea that, growing up in the Ospedale, she might gradually perceive that the only option for her other than a forced marriage or the sweated labour of lace-making would be entry into the figlie di coro, and so set her sights on a place in the orchestra. Constable takes it too far, however, giving Anna Maria fierce artistic ambition from the start, which feels as inauthentic as much of the rest of the historical detail in this novel. Anna Maria ‘offers a cool professional smile’ to Vivaldi as an impoverished teenage orphan girl at a time when the very idea of being ‘professional’ would make little sense. She wants to get into the figlie two years early because otherwise ‘she will be average, normal’ – what on earth does this even mean in the early modern period? I’m very relaxed about writers playing with modern language and concepts in historical fiction if they know what they’re doing (see: Lauren Groff’s Matrix), but Constable’s choices just weaken her story.
It gets worse. Anna Maria is intensely difficult to like. I actually appreciated that Constable made her so single-minded that she becomes ruthless. This rings more true for her background and situation than would generosity and solidarity. But she’s a terrible cliche, somebody who can pick up a violin and just knows how to play, who is unable to fail unless there’s some external intervention like a broken finger. Then there’s what the narrative does to Vivaldi. Constable seems to feel that she can’t foreground Anna Maria without tearing him down. She strongly implies that he sexually assaults and rapes the girls, shows him destroying Anna Maria’s work, and she also makes Anna Maria a crucial part of the composition of both La stravaganza and the Four Seasons. This review explains much better than I can why this is a historical nonsense. Writing for the Guardian, Constable outright admits that all the Vivaldi experts she spoke to told her that Vivaldi did not compose with the girls of the figlie, but ‘I still feel there might be more to the story. The ingredients are just too compelling: enormous talent and ambition, plus endless demand for new music, plus the fact that we have erased or demeaned the role women have played in the arts generally.’ So, basically, she wanted it to be true so she made it up. I just don’t think this is OK. Vivaldi himself was also hardly privileged; he was born poor, with health problems, and died in poverty, believing his music had been forgotten.
On top of all this... The Instrumentalist is very badly written. It has an incredible setting but no atmosphere whatsoever, thanks to vague writing like this: 'At the edge of the promenade, where hefty wooden pillars shoot up and gondoliers tie their boats, merchants have laid rugs and wares. There are spices and silk cloths and salts and carved woods, feathers and carnival masks and cottons and coloured wools. And then there is the wonder on the faces of those stepping on to shore. Venice is made from moments like this: starry-eyed dreamers first touching foot to land... Every step is a movement, every beat marks a change'. It's repetitive, melodramatic, and although she has some musical training, Constable tells us nothing at all about learning or playing the violin. Anna Maria is given synaesthesia, a device I thoroughly hate in fiction, and here it seems to be used to evade descriptions, so every violin piece is written like this: 'She is away, chasing reds and blues, tumbling with the speed of the greens and greys'. We get no sense at all of the actual music. This is such a shame, because I still so want to read the novel this promised to be. Maybe, despite that title, I'll just have to check out Vivaldi's Virgins.
I received a free proof copy of this novel from the publisher for review.
When I was a small child living in Washington DC, I had a story tape called Vivaldi’s Ring of Mystery. These tapes were produced by the company Classical Kids to introduce small children to classical music, and subscribed to by middle-class mothers like mine – I think we had ones on Handel and Mozart as well. Although this tape has passed into the mists of time and we will now never know whether it was a work of brilliance or a load of rubbish, it has always stayed with me. I remember the story of an orphan girl living with nuns in Venice who had grown up hearing the legend of a special violin that only one heir could play. In the climactic scene, she rose from an audience of orphans to reveal herself as the lost genius. (There was also a very scary scene in the cemetery on Isola di San Michele). While I may have messed up some of these details – where does the titular ‘ring of mystery’ come in? – the sheer atmosphere and the music made this story unforgettable for my seven-year-old self.
And then we have Harriet Constable’s debut novel, The Instrumentalist. As Bridget Jones would say: GAH.
I am very much not a fan of faux-feminist historical fiction that feels the only way to celebrate the lives of women is to make them behave exactly like twenty-first century protagonists and/or to tear down famous men. This has the unfortunate result of erasing the struggles and machinations of women who did not have the same mindsets that we do but achieved within the boundaries that were set for them. It also suggests that the only way women can be talented is if men are abusive fakes. (See also: Odysseus in Madeline Miller’s Circe). Obviously, I am all for historical fiction that shows that these men were flawed individuals and not idealised heroes, but this kind of your-idol-has-feet-of-clay approach never feels feminist to me.
The Instrumentalist doubles down. It’s based on the real life of Anna Maria della Pietà, an orphan growing up in the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice after being abandoned there as a baby at the very end of the seventeenth century. By the early eighteenth century, both she and her fellow orphans were being tutored in music by Antonio Vivaldi, who became master of violin at the Ospedale in 1703. Vivaldi composed most of his major works while he was at the Ospedale, and also wrote a lot of music for the figlie di coro, the student orchestra. Anna Maria would go on to have a long and successful career in her own right, being named ‘Maestra’ at the age of just twenty-four and composing and performing throughout her life until her death in 1782, when she was in her eighties.
This is irresistible material, and it’s not surprising that Constable was drawn to it – Anna Maria della Pietà has already inspired at least one other historical novel, Barbara Quick’s Vivaldi’s Virgins. But The Instrumentalist doesn’t work in any way at all. Anna Maria herself is a big problem. I liked the idea that, growing up in the Ospedale, she might gradually perceive that the only option for her other than a forced marriage or the sweated labour of lace-making would be entry into the figlie di coro, and so set her sights on a place in the orchestra. Constable takes it too far, however, giving Anna Maria fierce artistic ambition from the start, which feels as inauthentic as much of the rest of the historical detail in this novel. Anna Maria ‘offers a cool professional smile’ to Vivaldi as an impoverished teenage orphan girl at a time when the very idea of being ‘professional’ would make little sense. She wants to get into the figlie two years early because otherwise ‘she will be average, normal’ – what on earth does this even mean in the early modern period? I’m very relaxed about writers playing with modern language and concepts in historical fiction if they know what they’re doing (see: Lauren Groff’s Matrix), but Constable’s choices just weaken her story.
It gets worse. Anna Maria is intensely difficult to like. I actually appreciated that Constable made her so single-minded that she becomes ruthless. This rings more true for her background and situation than would generosity and solidarity. But she’s a terrible cliche, somebody who can pick up a violin and just knows how to play, who is unable to fail unless there’s some external intervention like a broken finger. Then there’s what the narrative does to Vivaldi. Constable seems to feel that she can’t foreground Anna Maria without tearing him down. She strongly implies that he sexually assaults and rapes the girls, shows him destroying Anna Maria’s work, and she also makes Anna Maria a crucial part of the composition of both La stravaganza and the Four Seasons. This review explains much better than I can why this is a historical nonsense. Writing for the Guardian, Constable outright admits that all the Vivaldi experts she spoke to told her that Vivaldi did not compose with the girls of the figlie, but ‘I still feel there might be more to the story. The ingredients are just too compelling: enormous talent and ambition, plus endless demand for new music, plus the fact that we have erased or demeaned the role women have played in the arts generally.’ So, basically, she wanted it to be true so she made it up. I just don’t think this is OK. Vivaldi himself was also hardly privileged; he was born poor, with health problems, and died in poverty, believing his music had been forgotten.
On top of all this... The Instrumentalist is very badly written. It has an incredible setting but no atmosphere whatsoever, thanks to vague writing like this: 'At the edge of the promenade, where hefty wooden pillars shoot up and gondoliers tie their boats, merchants have laid rugs and wares. There are spices and silk cloths and salts and carved woods, feathers and carnival masks and cottons and coloured wools. And then there is the wonder on the faces of those stepping on to shore. Venice is made from moments like this: starry-eyed dreamers first touching foot to land... Every step is a movement, every beat marks a change'. It's repetitive, melodramatic, and although she has some musical training, Constable tells us nothing at all about learning or playing the violin. Anna Maria is given synaesthesia, a device I thoroughly hate in fiction, and here it seems to be used to evade descriptions, so every violin piece is written like this: 'She is away, chasing reds and blues, tumbling with the speed of the greens and greys'. We get no sense at all of the actual music. This is such a shame, because I still so want to read the novel this promised to be. Maybe, despite that title, I'll just have to check out Vivaldi's Virgins.
I received a free proof copy of this novel from the publisher for review.
June 30, 2024
I received an advanced reading copy of this book from Bloomsbury via NetGalley.
After reading a lot of SFF this year I wanted a change of pace, and an historical fiction novel about one of Vivaldi's protégés and her rise to become a maestra di violino. Anna Maria della Pietà has fascinated me for a long time, largely because we know so little about her life and her works, so the premise of The Instrumentalist attracted me immediately.
Here's the blurb:
Initially I really enjoyed this. The writing is strong and Venice is painted in vibrant brush strokes that really bring the setting to life. Anna Maria's childhood at the orphanage and her discovery of the violin were compelling and her burgeoning relationship with Vivaldi (who is never actually named in the novel after an Introductory note explaining who her tutor is) gripped me.
Unfortunately my initial love for the book was short-lived. Because this was a review copy I felt more of an obligation to continue reading to the end than I normally would, but had that not been the case I think I would have DNFd at around the halfway mark. There were a few things that irritated me early on that I was happy to ignore, but as the book progressed I found them more and more bothersome. Despite the blurb stating that "the odds are stacked against" Anna Maria, there's never really any sense that she struggles to achieve anything. The story is a fairly linear sequence of events in which Anna Maria wants something, gets it, is abrasive and horrible to the people around her, and is then forgiven because she's brilliant. This formula repeats fairly regularly, and the lack of any real dramatic tension makes it hard to want to keep turning the page.
One of the main challenges in writing historical fiction is balancing the history - the things we know to be true - with the fiction in order to craft a compelling narrative. That's especially difficult with a figure like Anna Maria della Pietà, about whom very little is known. In the author's note Constable acknowledges that she has moved some events around "for dramatic purposes", but I found that the manner in which this was done actually took away from what the book was trying to acheive.
There are a couple of instances in particular where I find the shuffling around of events and characters to stray away from artistic license and into the realm of historical revisionism. The first is in the character of Chiara. In real life Chiara della Pietà was a student of Anna Maria's born nearly 20 years after the maestra and taught by her. In the novel she becomes a peer and a rival, someone who Anna Maria contends with for a place in the orchestra and who later betrays Anna Maria's trust to Vivaldi. Given that the novel is explicitly concerned with the way women are erased from history, this felt like a betrayal of an historical figure who should be remembered alongside Anna Maria as a virtuoso in her own right, rather than rewritten as a villain.
This criticism also extends to the treatment of Vivaldi in the novel and, in particular, the way in which Anna Maria's contributions to his music are portrayed. It's almost certainly a fact that the women of the Ospedale della Pietà worked closely with Vivaldi and helped write his music, often without any credit, but Constable takes this a step further, giving full credit to Anna Maria for both La stravaganza and the Four Seasons. La stravaganza was written in 1712, when Anna Maria was around 16 years old. The provenance of Vivaldi's Four Seasons is not entirely clear but it's likely that they were composed during a period when Vivaldi was the court chapel master in Mantua in around 1718-1720, not when he was in Venice in roughly 1711 (which is when this section of the novel takes place).
It's this painting of Anna Maria as the driving force behind all of Vivaldi's success and fame that feels a little disingenuous. The novel is very much exploring the fact that women's lives and accomplishments are very often minimised, and Anna Maria della Pietà is a great example of this given that her works are not readily accessible in the present day. It's not outside the realms of possibility that she did co-write with Vivaldi and it's a matter of fact that Vivaldi wrote many of his works for the women of the Pietà to perform, and I suspect license has been taken to extend that to La Stravaganza and the Four Seasons purely because they're the most well-known of Vivaldi's works for most people, but personally I felt like the desire to insert Anna Maria into all of Vivaldi's work lessened the point. By the time the Four Seasons were published Anna Maria had already been dubbed "Maestra" (at the age of 24, rather than 17 as she is in the novel). For the narrative to want to so directly link her to Vivaldi's greatest work at the expense of highlighting own accomplishments seems to actually be diminishing her rather than achieving the author's aim.
This desire to paint Vivaldi out of his own life comes to a head in the final third of the book, which is less about celebrating the brilliance of Anna Maria and the other women of the orphanage that it is about demonising and tearing down the character of Vivaldi. He's painted as almost abusive, stealing Anna Maria's life's work and burning her compositions in front of a class of younger students. Perhaps the attempt here is to invert the idea of women being written out of history, to make us feel uncomfortable about the treatment of Vivaldi here in the hope that it will cause us to reflect on the way women are treated in historical records, but if that's the case I don't think it succeeds particularly well. Rather than providing an opportunity for reflection it instead feels mean-spirited, and it lends a sour note to what should be a celebration of the brilliance of Anna Maria.
The author's note opens with the statement that The Instrumentalist is "a work of fiction inspired by true events from the life of Anna Maria della Pietà". I think that I would have enjoyed this more had it not been marketed as historical fiction. If the real names had been stripped out and this was purely a work of fantasy then the muddling up of historical details and the anachronistic characterisation, with every character reading like they've stepped straight out of the 21st century, wouldn't be issues. There would still have been the problem of Anna Maria always seeming to get what she wants without issue, but I think I would have been more forgiving of that had I not expected that I was reading about the life of a real person who succeeded against very real odds.
With all this criticism it probably seems like I hated this book, which isn't the case. I liked it a lot more at the beginning than I did at the end, and the thought definitely crossed my mind about halfway through that perhaps I didn't want to finish it, but on reflection I enjoyed it more than I didn't. I wouldn't be in a rush to re-read it, and if the author continues to write in historical genres then I'm not sure I would continue to read her work since I like my historical fiction to be more grounded in the actual history, but if her next book were instead a work of pure fiction I would definitely pick it up.
After reading a lot of SFF this year I wanted a change of pace, and an historical fiction novel about one of Vivaldi's protégés and her rise to become a maestra di violino. Anna Maria della Pietà has fascinated me for a long time, largely because we know so little about her life and her works, so the premise of The Instrumentalist attracted me immediately.
Here's the blurb:
A dazzling historical debut set in eighteenth-century Venice, about the woman written out of the story of one of history's greatest musical masterpieces
Venice. 1704. In this city of glittering splendour, desperation and destitution are never far away. At the Ospedale della Pietà, abandoned orphan girls are posted every through a tiny gap in the wall every day.
Eight-year-old Anna Maria is just one of the three hundred girls growing up within the Pietà's walls – but she already knows she is different. Obsessive and gifted, she is on a mission to become Venice’s greatest violinist and composer, and in her remarkable world of colour and sound, it seems like nothing with stop her.
But the odds are stacked against an orphan girl – so when the maestro selects her as his star pupil, Anna Maria knows she must do everything in power to please this difficult, brilliant man. But as Anna Maria’s star rises, threatening to eclipse that of her mentor, the dream she has so single-mindedly pursued is thrown into peril…
From the jewelled palaces of Venice to its mud-licked canals, this is a story of one woman’s irrepressible ambition and rise to the top, of loss and triumph, and of who we choose to remember and leave behind on the path to success.
Initially I really enjoyed this. The writing is strong and Venice is painted in vibrant brush strokes that really bring the setting to life. Anna Maria's childhood at the orphanage and her discovery of the violin were compelling and her burgeoning relationship with Vivaldi (who is never actually named in the novel after an Introductory note explaining who her tutor is) gripped me.
Unfortunately my initial love for the book was short-lived. Because this was a review copy I felt more of an obligation to continue reading to the end than I normally would, but had that not been the case I think I would have DNFd at around the halfway mark. There were a few things that irritated me early on that I was happy to ignore, but as the book progressed I found them more and more bothersome. Despite the blurb stating that "the odds are stacked against" Anna Maria, there's never really any sense that she struggles to achieve anything. The story is a fairly linear sequence of events in which Anna Maria wants something, gets it, is abrasive and horrible to the people around her, and is then forgiven because she's brilliant. This formula repeats fairly regularly, and the lack of any real dramatic tension makes it hard to want to keep turning the page.
One of the main challenges in writing historical fiction is balancing the history - the things we know to be true - with the fiction in order to craft a compelling narrative. That's especially difficult with a figure like Anna Maria della Pietà, about whom very little is known. In the author's note Constable acknowledges that she has moved some events around "for dramatic purposes", but I found that the manner in which this was done actually took away from what the book was trying to acheive.
There are a couple of instances in particular where I find the shuffling around of events and characters to stray away from artistic license and into the realm of historical revisionism. The first is in the character of Chiara. In real life Chiara della Pietà was a student of Anna Maria's born nearly 20 years after the maestra and taught by her. In the novel she becomes a peer and a rival, someone who Anna Maria contends with for a place in the orchestra and who later betrays Anna Maria's trust to Vivaldi. Given that the novel is explicitly concerned with the way women are erased from history, this felt like a betrayal of an historical figure who should be remembered alongside Anna Maria as a virtuoso in her own right, rather than rewritten as a villain.
This criticism also extends to the treatment of Vivaldi in the novel and, in particular, the way in which Anna Maria's contributions to his music are portrayed. It's almost certainly a fact that the women of the Ospedale della Pietà worked closely with Vivaldi and helped write his music, often without any credit, but Constable takes this a step further, giving full credit to Anna Maria for both La stravaganza and the Four Seasons. La stravaganza was written in 1712, when Anna Maria was around 16 years old. The provenance of Vivaldi's Four Seasons is not entirely clear but it's likely that they were composed during a period when Vivaldi was the court chapel master in Mantua in around 1718-1720, not when he was in Venice in roughly 1711 (which is when this section of the novel takes place).
It's this painting of Anna Maria as the driving force behind all of Vivaldi's success and fame that feels a little disingenuous. The novel is very much exploring the fact that women's lives and accomplishments are very often minimised, and Anna Maria della Pietà is a great example of this given that her works are not readily accessible in the present day. It's not outside the realms of possibility that she did co-write with Vivaldi and it's a matter of fact that Vivaldi wrote many of his works for the women of the Pietà to perform, and I suspect license has been taken to extend that to La Stravaganza and the Four Seasons purely because they're the most well-known of Vivaldi's works for most people, but personally I felt like the desire to insert Anna Maria into all of Vivaldi's work lessened the point. By the time the Four Seasons were published Anna Maria had already been dubbed "Maestra" (at the age of 24, rather than 17 as she is in the novel). For the narrative to want to so directly link her to Vivaldi's greatest work at the expense of highlighting own accomplishments seems to actually be diminishing her rather than achieving the author's aim.
This desire to paint Vivaldi out of his own life comes to a head in the final third of the book, which is less about celebrating the brilliance of Anna Maria and the other women of the orphanage that it is about demonising and tearing down the character of Vivaldi. He's painted as almost abusive, stealing Anna Maria's life's work and burning her compositions in front of a class of younger students. Perhaps the attempt here is to invert the idea of women being written out of history, to make us feel uncomfortable about the treatment of Vivaldi here in the hope that it will cause us to reflect on the way women are treated in historical records, but if that's the case I don't think it succeeds particularly well. Rather than providing an opportunity for reflection it instead feels mean-spirited, and it lends a sour note to what should be a celebration of the brilliance of Anna Maria.
The author's note opens with the statement that The Instrumentalist is "a work of fiction inspired by true events from the life of Anna Maria della Pietà". I think that I would have enjoyed this more had it not been marketed as historical fiction. If the real names had been stripped out and this was purely a work of fantasy then the muddling up of historical details and the anachronistic characterisation, with every character reading like they've stepped straight out of the 21st century, wouldn't be issues. There would still have been the problem of Anna Maria always seeming to get what she wants without issue, but I think I would have been more forgiving of that had I not expected that I was reading about the life of a real person who succeeded against very real odds.
With all this criticism it probably seems like I hated this book, which isn't the case. I liked it a lot more at the beginning than I did at the end, and the thought definitely crossed my mind about halfway through that perhaps I didn't want to finish it, but on reflection I enjoyed it more than I didn't. I wouldn't be in a rush to re-read it, and if the author continues to write in historical genres then I'm not sure I would continue to read her work since I like my historical fiction to be more grounded in the actual history, but if her next book were instead a work of pure fiction I would definitely pick it up.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 7, 2025
Every so often, you read a novel that pulls at your heartstrings with memorable characters and masterful storytelling. The Instrumentalist transported me to 17th-century Venice and the story of Anna Maria Della Pieta, a protege of Antonio Vivaldi and one of the greatest violinists of her time. Anna Maria was left at an orphanage called the Pieta, known for its elite music training and orchestra known as the Ospedale della Pieta. Based on her real life, it tells of her passion for the violin and her quest to rise to fame in this male-dominated world. The Instrumentalist also shares the significant contributions of the orphan orchestra to music. Be sure to read the author's note. 🎵 🎻
This is Constable's debut novel, and I was completely enthralled with her rich and vivid prose that is so immersive I could almost hear the music and feel all the emotions that Anna Maria experiences. This historical fiction novel beautifully explores themes of passion, obsession, betrayal, revenge, ambition, loss, identity, perfectionism, societal norms, and determination. Anna Maria's life is challenging at times, although she is more fortunate than most orphans. I have played the violin off and on for many years, but I don't think you need any music experience to appreciate the exquisite notes this novel has to offer. Brava! 👏
This is Constable's debut novel, and I was completely enthralled with her rich and vivid prose that is so immersive I could almost hear the music and feel all the emotions that Anna Maria experiences. This historical fiction novel beautifully explores themes of passion, obsession, betrayal, revenge, ambition, loss, identity, perfectionism, societal norms, and determination. Anna Maria's life is challenging at times, although she is more fortunate than most orphans. I have played the violin off and on for many years, but I don't think you need any music experience to appreciate the exquisite notes this novel has to offer. Brava! 👏
April 17, 2024
A lot of people will enjoy this colourful romp through Venice and la Pietà, and it is simple reading to fill a few summer days, but it is often trite and repetitive. While Vivaldi surely benefitted from the musical talents available (why else would he invest his time and energy), this is more fiction than historical fiction. Take it with a pinch of salt. As the author comments in her notes, “History continues to be imagined”. Most historians would argue that some decent hard factual research is what makes history history, not a vivid imagination.
Good for some, but not a great read for many.
Good for some, but not a great read for many.
November 9, 2024
4,5
Novela que está inspirada en la historia real a de Anna María della Pieta, una niña huérfana veneciana, un prodigio del violín que estudió con Vivaldi.
Nos encontramos en Venecia en 1695, donde Anna una niña huérfana tiene un talento con el violín que nadie tiene, y con un profesor severo. Anna quiere componer y ser la mejor en un mundo donde no es nada fácil.
.
Me ha encantado como Anna va superando cada obstáculo hasta conseguir lo que quiere, a veces llega a ser un poco egoísta, pero se ve una gran evolución de ella al final de la historia…
.
No es una novela de giros inesperados pero si una historia de superación, de luchar por lo que uno quiere aunque no tenga nada. Con unos personajes que te van a sorprender, y una ambientación muy lograda, sin ser demasiado descriptiva estás dentro de Venecia desde el comienzo.
.
De este personaje se sabe muy poco, y la autora en su nota final, magnífica, interpreta su vida con todo lo que ha podido documentarse. Un enfoque feminista, que nos cuenta también la interesante historia sobre los huérfanos de Pieta y la oportunidad que se les daba cuando no existían para nadie.
.
Muy recomendable si te gusta este tipo de novela, muy ágil de leer y realmente conmovedora.
Novela que está inspirada en la historia real a de Anna María della Pieta, una niña huérfana veneciana, un prodigio del violín que estudió con Vivaldi.
Nos encontramos en Venecia en 1695, donde Anna una niña huérfana tiene un talento con el violín que nadie tiene, y con un profesor severo. Anna quiere componer y ser la mejor en un mundo donde no es nada fácil.
.
Me ha encantado como Anna va superando cada obstáculo hasta conseguir lo que quiere, a veces llega a ser un poco egoísta, pero se ve una gran evolución de ella al final de la historia…
.
No es una novela de giros inesperados pero si una historia de superación, de luchar por lo que uno quiere aunque no tenga nada. Con unos personajes que te van a sorprender, y una ambientación muy lograda, sin ser demasiado descriptiva estás dentro de Venecia desde el comienzo.
.
De este personaje se sabe muy poco, y la autora en su nota final, magnífica, interpreta su vida con todo lo que ha podido documentarse. Un enfoque feminista, que nos cuenta también la interesante historia sobre los huérfanos de Pieta y la oportunidad que se les daba cuando no existían para nadie.
.
Muy recomendable si te gusta este tipo de novela, muy ágil de leer y realmente conmovedora.
December 9, 2024
The Instrumentalist by Harriet Constable is a historical fiction set in 1704 Venice and the story of Anna Maria, who is an Orphan turned Violist. She became a child prodigy and was taught music by the renowned Antonio Vivaldi.
I loved the character portrayal of Anna Maria and especially her strength, determination and strong headed mind to pursue music. She is such a strong personality who has changed the way of men dominated industry of music and stardom in her own ways.
It was refreshing to read about the era and the book touched my heart even more since this was based on true events. The Anna Maria della Pietà was the limelight of the music industry during the 70s and even this book.
In terms of writing style, the start was pretty decent and slow. The book picks up after the third part and suddenly the whole narrative style or writing as you can say - is sounding so much more lush, mature and descriptive!!
As they say, "You Are Where You Are Because Of The Choices That You Have Made" and this is the exact portrayal and the lesson I take from Anna Maria's journey. Ending the review with a beautiful quote I've come across, “I’m not what I’ve done. I’m what I’ve overcome.”
I loved the character portrayal of Anna Maria and especially her strength, determination and strong headed mind to pursue music. She is such a strong personality who has changed the way of men dominated industry of music and stardom in her own ways.
It was refreshing to read about the era and the book touched my heart even more since this was based on true events. The Anna Maria della Pietà was the limelight of the music industry during the 70s and even this book.
In terms of writing style, the start was pretty decent and slow. The book picks up after the third part and suddenly the whole narrative style or writing as you can say - is sounding so much more lush, mature and descriptive!!
As they say, "You Are Where You Are Because Of The Choices That You Have Made" and this is the exact portrayal and the lesson I take from Anna Maria's journey. Ending the review with a beautiful quote I've come across, “I’m not what I’ve done. I’m what I’ve overcome.”
January 8, 2025
Set in Venice in the 17th century, this book tells the fictional story of a real person of history, Anna Maria della Pietà, who is left at an orphanage run by nuns and eventually studies under the renowned (but unnamed) maestro Antonio Vivaldi. She forms close bonds with a few other orphans. At the age of eight, she is offered an opportunity to learn to play an instrument and is found to possess an extraordinary gift for violin. She obtains a coveted place in the orchestra, eventually gaining first chair violin and secretly assisting her mentor in his compositions.
The story arc follows Anna Maria’s ambition and how it impacts her friendships. Her character is deeply developed, portraying Anna Maria as exceptionally talented, synesthetic, naïve, and impetuous. She is driven to achieve the status of a famous violinist and composer. Unfortunately, she lived in an age when women were seen as instrumentalists who were incapable of producing art, and her mentor is given credit for her achievements.
As mentioned in the author’s note, it highlights the contributions made by unknown female composers to our compendium of classical music. It also explores class differences of the era, and the many challenges facing people at the lower ranks. This is a book sure to please fans of classical music, especially those that feature unsung women in history.
The story arc follows Anna Maria’s ambition and how it impacts her friendships. Her character is deeply developed, portraying Anna Maria as exceptionally talented, synesthetic, naïve, and impetuous. She is driven to achieve the status of a famous violinist and composer. Unfortunately, she lived in an age when women were seen as instrumentalists who were incapable of producing art, and her mentor is given credit for her achievements.
As mentioned in the author’s note, it highlights the contributions made by unknown female composers to our compendium of classical music. It also explores class differences of the era, and the many challenges facing people at the lower ranks. This is a book sure to please fans of classical music, especially those that feature unsung women in history.
July 8, 2025
La violinista de Harriet Constable es una historia que no solo se desliza entre palabras, sino que suena, vibra y resuena como una melodía antigua que parecía olvidada.
Desde la primera escena, una madre que, entre las sombras de una Venecia quebrada, deposita a su hija recién nacida en la scaffetta del Ospedale della Pietà, supe que estaba ante un relato que iba a romperme un poco por dentro. Y así fue. Me encontré de la mano de Anna Maria della Pietà, una niña sin nombre, sin linaje, sin voz… y sin embargo destinada a dejar un eco imborrable en el tiempo.
La pluma de Constable, sutil y delicada, logra lo que muy pocos autores consiguen: hacer que la música se convierta en lenguaje literario. En cada página pude escuchar no solo los violines, las arias y los aplausos, sino también los silencios. Esos silencios pesados que envuelven a las mujeres que la historia, generación tras generación, ha preferido callar. Y en ese silencio nace la fuerza de Anna Maria, una niña con los dedos encallecidos de tanto tocar, con el alma herida de tanto soñar.
Pocas veces he leído una novela que describa la música con tanta belleza, rozando lo sinestésico, pintando con palabras los colores de las notas, los paisajes de las melodías. Sentí la emoción vibrando bajo mi piel, porque la música, en este libro, no es solo un telón de fondo: es la protagonista silenciosa, el hilo invisible que une a los personajes con la eternidad.
La relación entre Anna Maria y Vivaldi me sacudió por dentro. No es la típica relación maestro-discípula. Es una danza tensa de admiración, ambición y traición silenciosa. Ella, encerrada entre los muros del orfanato, con su destino escrito en la soledad; él, libre para vagar por Europa dejando tras de sí conciertos y fama. Y en medio, la música como un puente y como una barrera.
Porque La violinista no es solo la historia de una mujer prodigiosa y silenciada. Es un homenaje a todas las voces que se apagaron antes de tiempo, a todos los nombres borrados de la memoria colectiva, a todas las manos invisibles que ayudaron a escribir las páginas más hermosas de la historia del arte sin recibir nada a cambio. Es un grito silencioso contra el olvido.
Al terminar, sentí una mezcla de melancolía y gratitud. Melancolía por todo lo que Anna Maria y tantas otras mujeres como ella tuvieron que soportar. Gratitud porque ahora, gracias a Constable, su eco sigue sonando, su música no se perdió, su nombre no se borró, su sueño sigue vivo. Me sentí testigo privilegiada de ese renacer.
A veces, los libros no cambian el mundo, pero cambian la forma en que miramos el pasado. Y eso, a veces, también es una forma de salvación.
Desde la primera escena, una madre que, entre las sombras de una Venecia quebrada, deposita a su hija recién nacida en la scaffetta del Ospedale della Pietà, supe que estaba ante un relato que iba a romperme un poco por dentro. Y así fue. Me encontré de la mano de Anna Maria della Pietà, una niña sin nombre, sin linaje, sin voz… y sin embargo destinada a dejar un eco imborrable en el tiempo.
La pluma de Constable, sutil y delicada, logra lo que muy pocos autores consiguen: hacer que la música se convierta en lenguaje literario. En cada página pude escuchar no solo los violines, las arias y los aplausos, sino también los silencios. Esos silencios pesados que envuelven a las mujeres que la historia, generación tras generación, ha preferido callar. Y en ese silencio nace la fuerza de Anna Maria, una niña con los dedos encallecidos de tanto tocar, con el alma herida de tanto soñar.
Pocas veces he leído una novela que describa la música con tanta belleza, rozando lo sinestésico, pintando con palabras los colores de las notas, los paisajes de las melodías. Sentí la emoción vibrando bajo mi piel, porque la música, en este libro, no es solo un telón de fondo: es la protagonista silenciosa, el hilo invisible que une a los personajes con la eternidad.
La relación entre Anna Maria y Vivaldi me sacudió por dentro. No es la típica relación maestro-discípula. Es una danza tensa de admiración, ambición y traición silenciosa. Ella, encerrada entre los muros del orfanato, con su destino escrito en la soledad; él, libre para vagar por Europa dejando tras de sí conciertos y fama. Y en medio, la música como un puente y como una barrera.
Porque La violinista no es solo la historia de una mujer prodigiosa y silenciada. Es un homenaje a todas las voces que se apagaron antes de tiempo, a todos los nombres borrados de la memoria colectiva, a todas las manos invisibles que ayudaron a escribir las páginas más hermosas de la historia del arte sin recibir nada a cambio. Es un grito silencioso contra el olvido.
Al terminar, sentí una mezcla de melancolía y gratitud. Melancolía por todo lo que Anna Maria y tantas otras mujeres como ella tuvieron que soportar. Gratitud porque ahora, gracias a Constable, su eco sigue sonando, su música no se perdió, su nombre no se borró, su sueño sigue vivo. Me sentí testigo privilegiada de ese renacer.
A veces, los libros no cambian el mundo, pero cambian la forma en que miramos el pasado. Y eso, a veces, también es una forma de salvación.
October 6, 2024
*https://www.instagram.com/mrsb_book_r...
🎻Observer debut novel and Harper’s Bazaar Book to Look out for in 20204, The Instrumentalist is a historical fiction composition by Harriet Constable. A story filled with song, disloyalty, ambition, gender wars and excess, this is a well-researched opus by London based writer Harriet Constable.
🎻Venice and the eighteenth century are two fascinating subject areas to set a novel. My curiosity about this time and location of The Instrumentalist was aroused. I do appreciate historical fiction tales inspired by real life figures and events so Harriet Constable’s debut seemed like a book I would appreciate. In the beginning I was quite taken with the opening sequences around the main character Anna Maria’s history, birthplace and early upbringing. The roots seemed to take effect, but as the novel progressed and Anna Maria grew, I wasn’t so sure I liked her. Determined, selfish and at times challenging, Anna Maria is a protagonist who is hard to click with. I could see her intentions and goals, but her way of going about it as well via her interactions, and her judgements of certain situations wasn’t to my liking. This is shame as I desperately wanted to like Anna Maria and her overall journey. I will say that I valued the author’s craft, obviously Constable has spent so much time to rearching this story and bringing to life for her audience. I also liked the setting, location and timeframe, I think these areas of the book were portrayed well on the page. I think this book also has a fair bit to say commentary wise about gender, power and class systems in the musical world in the past.
🎻Readers who love to listen to classical music, or those who like to escape to past worlds may appreciate this one.
🙏I wish to thanks @tandemcollectiveglobal, the publisher and author, as well as my other reading pals. Please do check out their views on the book, their accounts are tagged in my comments.
3 stars 🌟 🌟🌟
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🎻Observer debut novel and Harper’s Bazaar Book to Look out for in 20204, The Instrumentalist is a historical fiction composition by Harriet Constable. A story filled with song, disloyalty, ambition, gender wars and excess, this is a well-researched opus by London based writer Harriet Constable.
🎻Venice and the eighteenth century are two fascinating subject areas to set a novel. My curiosity about this time and location of The Instrumentalist was aroused. I do appreciate historical fiction tales inspired by real life figures and events so Harriet Constable’s debut seemed like a book I would appreciate. In the beginning I was quite taken with the opening sequences around the main character Anna Maria’s history, birthplace and early upbringing. The roots seemed to take effect, but as the novel progressed and Anna Maria grew, I wasn’t so sure I liked her. Determined, selfish and at times challenging, Anna Maria is a protagonist who is hard to click with. I could see her intentions and goals, but her way of going about it as well via her interactions, and her judgements of certain situations wasn’t to my liking. This is shame as I desperately wanted to like Anna Maria and her overall journey. I will say that I valued the author’s craft, obviously Constable has spent so much time to rearching this story and bringing to life for her audience. I also liked the setting, location and timeframe, I think these areas of the book were portrayed well on the page. I think this book also has a fair bit to say commentary wise about gender, power and class systems in the musical world in the past.
🎻Readers who love to listen to classical music, or those who like to escape to past worlds may appreciate this one.
🙏I wish to thanks @tandemcollectiveglobal, the publisher and author, as well as my other reading pals. Please do check out their views on the book, their accounts are tagged in my comments.
3 stars 🌟 🌟🌟
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October 20, 2024
Anna Maria della Pietà was destined to drown in one of Venices canals. Instead, she became the greatest violinist of the 18th century.
I really enjoyed this historical novel centering Anna Maria de la Pietà, a Venetian orphan in the 18th century under Antonio Vivaldi’s tutelage, whose synesthesia lends color and credibility to her remarkable prodigiousness with violin starting at a young age.
Vivaldi is best know for The Four Seasons, a series of violin concertos. I did some research on the Figlie do Coro, mean Daughters of the Choir. Many of Vivaldi’s compositions were written for the female music ensemble of the Ospedale della Pietí, a home for abandoned children where Vivaldi was employed from 1703 to 1715 and from 1723 to 1740. And these female musicians may have in fact (likely) contributed to Vivaldi’s prolific compositions too.
As the author’s note at the end explains, Anna Maria de la Pietà is a real historical figure who was indeed famous for her unmatched violin abilities.
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced reader copy of this excellent book. I already bought a copy for my dad and recommended it to several other people!
I really enjoyed this historical novel centering Anna Maria de la Pietà, a Venetian orphan in the 18th century under Antonio Vivaldi’s tutelage, whose synesthesia lends color and credibility to her remarkable prodigiousness with violin starting at a young age.
Vivaldi is best know for The Four Seasons, a series of violin concertos. I did some research on the Figlie do Coro, mean Daughters of the Choir. Many of Vivaldi’s compositions were written for the female music ensemble of the Ospedale della Pietí, a home for abandoned children where Vivaldi was employed from 1703 to 1715 and from 1723 to 1740. And these female musicians may have in fact (likely) contributed to Vivaldi’s prolific compositions too.
The figlie di coro is considered the greatest orchestra in the world. There are other orchestras in the Republic and beyond, but the Pietà’s one is unsurpassed. There are about forty members, and most girls are auditioned at sixteen… They get nicer clothes, more regular baths, better food…. if you’re not in the figlie by seventeen, you’re put to work—lace-making or dishwashing or something else awful…
Most of the members are in their late teens, early twenties. Girls can choose to stay in the orchestra their entire career, so getting a spot is tough. But places do become available every year. The pestilence killed half the orchestra once. That would have been a good year to audition...
As the author’s note at the end explains, Anna Maria de la Pietà is a real historical figure who was indeed famous for her unmatched violin abilities.
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced reader copy of this excellent book. I already bought a copy for my dad and recommended it to several other people!
April 9, 2024
2.7 rounded up. Was hoping to love but was disappointed - but I’m sure others will enjoy.
The storytelling in this book is incredibly immersive which makes it easy to dive in, visualise the world and characters, and, importantly, keep you reading. That said, the writing is frankly horrible. It’s incessantly repetitive, rushed, strained and juvenile. It’s such a shame because the premise of the book is so interesting but the entire text feels more like a young adult or teen book in its tone. If that’s your thing then you’ll love this, again the storytelling is great so there’s much to be enjoyed, but personally I found it irritating.
(Also as a history graduate the contrived events and happenings pained me - as if an eight year old orphan girl in 18th Century Venice knew she was going to change the world 👹👹👹👹)
I’m grateful to Bloomsbury for an Advanced Proof of this!
The storytelling in this book is incredibly immersive which makes it easy to dive in, visualise the world and characters, and, importantly, keep you reading. That said, the writing is frankly horrible. It’s incessantly repetitive, rushed, strained and juvenile. It’s such a shame because the premise of the book is so interesting but the entire text feels more like a young adult or teen book in its tone. If that’s your thing then you’ll love this, again the storytelling is great so there’s much to be enjoyed, but personally I found it irritating.
(Also as a history graduate the contrived events and happenings pained me - as if an eight year old orphan girl in 18th Century Venice knew she was going to change the world 👹👹👹👹)
I’m grateful to Bloomsbury for an Advanced Proof of this!
January 15, 2024
A confident, imaginative and often visceral voice that grips from the first page and does not let go until the end. You know you’re in safe hands from the first few sentences.
The plot and the story speak for themselves – I had no inkling or awareness of Anna Maria della Pieta and her fascinating story. I should note, I usually avoid historical fiction, especially the kind that’s set a few centuries ago. The Instrumentalist is set as far back as the (early) 18th century. Yet against those odds, I couldn’t put it down. It’s also one of those rare, densely-packed books that will stand up to re-reading.
Congratulations to the author.
I received my copy from a Bloomsbury event, was not asked to provide a review of any kind, but felt compelled to give one.
The plot and the story speak for themselves – I had no inkling or awareness of Anna Maria della Pieta and her fascinating story. I should note, I usually avoid historical fiction, especially the kind that’s set a few centuries ago. The Instrumentalist is set as far back as the (early) 18th century. Yet against those odds, I couldn’t put it down. It’s also one of those rare, densely-packed books that will stand up to re-reading.
Congratulations to the author.
I received my copy from a Bloomsbury event, was not asked to provide a review of any kind, but felt compelled to give one.
September 17, 2024
If ever in need of an adjective, open any particular page of this book and you will find any one you may need or want. This book could've been condensed to less than 100 pages.
Here is a paragraph example... and this book is not about seagulls ....
At the Rialto fish market the gulls are insatiable. They swoop and sway, diving like pellets of hail toward the stalls, greedy for the last morsel of bream, the slithers of sardine. Shoppers duck flinging their hands over head. .... movements met by furious flutters and indignant squares etc etc., on and on and on.
Why, I ask!
Here is a paragraph example... and this book is not about seagulls ....
At the Rialto fish market the gulls are insatiable. They swoop and sway, diving like pellets of hail toward the stalls, greedy for the last morsel of bream, the slithers of sardine. Shoppers duck flinging their hands over head. .... movements met by furious flutters and indignant squares etc etc., on and on and on.
Why, I ask!
October 14, 2024
I didn't like this at all and managed three quarters of it before deciding that I didn't like it enough to put in my suitcase to come home. I thought it was pretentious and really quite a silly way of describing prodigous talent ! The interest for me lay in the workings of the orphanage. I will also add that I love Vivaldi's music very much.
February 3, 2025
This was a beautiful novel about a young female orphan who played the violin, heard color in the musical notes, and was trained by Antonio Vivaldi. It was kind of a wild ride!
April 1, 2024
This is the story of Anna Maria della Pietà, an orphan who turns out to be a musical prodigy excelling in playing the violin and ends up becoming the favourite student of the well known Antonio Vivaldi. While we have all heard of the great composer and musician, Vivaldi, Anna Maria’s name has been forgotten in history.
Fortunately no longer as @harriconstable vividly brings to life this extraordinary story of passion, ambition, music and poetry. Anna Maria’s narrative is not borne out of luck but sheer determination and hard work. I was absolutely riveted with her story, her incredible musical talents that shines with all the colours of the rainbow but also her struggles and the sacrifices she makes along the way to pursue her dream to be the greatest female musician and composer ever in history.
Set in 18th century Venice, the reader is transported to a romantic and magical city buzzing with creativity and the arts, to jewelled palaces and opulence but also to the dark and seedy backstreets of the canals. This book definitely makes me want to visit Venice again soon!
This is an empowering story, beautifully told and will captivate your heart. It will also change what you think you know of Vivaldi and how his greatness was supported by a great number of talented women, including Anna Maria della Pietà. I’m so excited for you all to read it - I adored it! I definitely will not be forgetting Anna Maria’s name and story for a long time!
Fortunately no longer as @harriconstable vividly brings to life this extraordinary story of passion, ambition, music and poetry. Anna Maria’s narrative is not borne out of luck but sheer determination and hard work. I was absolutely riveted with her story, her incredible musical talents that shines with all the colours of the rainbow but also her struggles and the sacrifices she makes along the way to pursue her dream to be the greatest female musician and composer ever in history.
Set in 18th century Venice, the reader is transported to a romantic and magical city buzzing with creativity and the arts, to jewelled palaces and opulence but also to the dark and seedy backstreets of the canals. This book definitely makes me want to visit Venice again soon!
This is an empowering story, beautifully told and will captivate your heart. It will also change what you think you know of Vivaldi and how his greatness was supported by a great number of talented women, including Anna Maria della Pietà. I’m so excited for you all to read it - I adored it! I definitely will not be forgetting Anna Maria’s name and story for a long time!
July 19, 2024
A fine piece of historical fiction that tells the story of Anna Maria della Pièta. I'd heard of the Pièta but not about Anna Maria - not just one of the most accomplished violinists but a Master of Music at the orphanage - a very unusual post for a woman to have in the 1700s.
Harriet Constable has pulled together as much factual information she could about Anna Maria in order to tell a fictional tale of how the orphaned girl came to prominence. She was taught (as many were) by Antonio Vivaldi. The inference that the girls themselves played a significant part in Vivaldi's compositions is not difficult to believe knowing all that we do now about how big a role women played in successful men's success stories.
This is a really interesting and engaging story. I listened to quite a few of the compositions (Vivaldi's) as I read the book. He's not my favourite composer but he was an excellent composer.
I'd definitely recommend this book whether you are musically minded or not. It's a good story, well told.
Thankyou to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the advance review copy.
Harriet Constable has pulled together as much factual information she could about Anna Maria in order to tell a fictional tale of how the orphaned girl came to prominence. She was taught (as many were) by Antonio Vivaldi. The inference that the girls themselves played a significant part in Vivaldi's compositions is not difficult to believe knowing all that we do now about how big a role women played in successful men's success stories.
This is a really interesting and engaging story. I listened to quite a few of the compositions (Vivaldi's) as I read the book. He's not my favourite composer but he was an excellent composer.
I'd definitely recommend this book whether you are musically minded or not. It's a good story, well told.
Thankyou to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the advance review copy.
October 1, 2024
I had engaged this book with the greatest expectations. I was soon disappointed.
Other reviews note the wonders of Venice. I saw none of that. I did not eveh find an interesting description of the orphanage.
The ability to see colors in sound becomes a bit overdone and tiresome.
The events are carbon copies of each other.
The writing does not compel.
Of course, there is the PC notion that a woman was the creator of Vivaldi's great works, foir which there is no foundation.
Page after page of repetitious events that do not drive the plot forward. The last is no differennt than the first.
How did it get such great ratings?
How was it published.
If you are a reader of truly great writers like Amor Towles or Erik Larson - pass this pulp.
Other reviews note the wonders of Venice. I saw none of that. I did not eveh find an interesting description of the orphanage.
The ability to see colors in sound becomes a bit overdone and tiresome.
The events are carbon copies of each other.
The writing does not compel.
Of course, there is the PC notion that a woman was the creator of Vivaldi's great works, foir which there is no foundation.
Page after page of repetitious events that do not drive the plot forward. The last is no differennt than the first.
How did it get such great ratings?
How was it published.
If you are a reader of truly great writers like Amor Towles or Erik Larson - pass this pulp.
November 17, 2024
DNF about half way through. It felt like the same chapter being repeated over and over and over and over…. Plus the language and behaviour did not reflect the time at all - a key hate in poor historical fiction.
June 17, 2025
Este libro me transportó a una Venecia del siglo XVIII, un relato de época donde las calles intrincadas, el histórico Ospedale della Pietà, la figura de Antonio Vivaldi y, por supuesto, Anna Maria della Pietà, se erigen como protagonistas.
La autora se propuso plasmar, con la mayor precisión posible a partir de los datos disponibles, la historia de un personaje real, reconocido en su tiempo, pero lamentablemente olvidado: Anna Maria della Pietà. Ella fue una de las violinistas más destacadas de su siglo y, para muchos, la musa inspiradora de Vivaldi. En esta ciudad de deslumbrante ostentación, la miseria y la desesperación eran una realidad palpable, llevando a que muchas niñas fueran abandonadas en el Ospedale. Anna Maria, una de ellas, sabía que era diferente de las otras trescientas niñas que crecían a su lado. Con una personalidad obsesiva y un talento innegable, se propuso convertirse en una célebre violinista. Cuando Vivaldi la selecciona como su estudiante, ella sabe que debe hacer todo lo posible para impresionar a este genio de trato complejo.
La autora relata con detalle la vida en el Ospedale y el desarrollo musical de Anna Maria. Nos muestra su relación con las compañeras dentro y fuera de la orquesta, así como el vínculo de admiración, teñido a veces de un matiz de odio, con su maestro, el compositor de "Las cuatro estaciones" y "La stravaganza". Resulta fascinante cómo la escritora sugiere que esta última obra pudo ser adjudicada a Anna Maria, invitando a la reflexión sobre cuántas de las composiciones de Vivaldi fueron realmente suyas o cuánto contribuyó ella a su creación. Es sabido que durante este período, Vivaldi "compuso" una vasta cantidad de piezas, lo que añade un velo de misterio a la autoría.
La autora realiza un excelente trabajo documental. A pesar de ser una novela histórica que maneja numerosos detalles de la época y del mundo musical, su prosa es sencilla y dinámica, cargada de colores, notas y diálogos que te sumergen en la atmósfera. Aunque el ritmo no es siempre vertiginoso, la intensidad emocional y el poder de la narrativa me mantuvieron enganchada. Me sorprendió su habilidad para traducir la experiencia musical a palabras, haciendo que la música misma sea casi un personaje más en la historia.
"La violinista" es una oportunidad para conocer a una de esas mujeres olvidadas por la historia, que se atrevieron a soñar con algo que parecía imposible para los cánones de su sociedad.
“Para completar una obra musical hacen falta miles de pequeñas decisiones. Hay que decidir si se sube o se baja por la partitura, si detenerse o continuar, si subir los agudos o bajarlos graves, si acelerar el ritmo o ir más despacio. Si concluir de golpe o lentamente …”
La autora se propuso plasmar, con la mayor precisión posible a partir de los datos disponibles, la historia de un personaje real, reconocido en su tiempo, pero lamentablemente olvidado: Anna Maria della Pietà. Ella fue una de las violinistas más destacadas de su siglo y, para muchos, la musa inspiradora de Vivaldi. En esta ciudad de deslumbrante ostentación, la miseria y la desesperación eran una realidad palpable, llevando a que muchas niñas fueran abandonadas en el Ospedale. Anna Maria, una de ellas, sabía que era diferente de las otras trescientas niñas que crecían a su lado. Con una personalidad obsesiva y un talento innegable, se propuso convertirse en una célebre violinista. Cuando Vivaldi la selecciona como su estudiante, ella sabe que debe hacer todo lo posible para impresionar a este genio de trato complejo.
La autora relata con detalle la vida en el Ospedale y el desarrollo musical de Anna Maria. Nos muestra su relación con las compañeras dentro y fuera de la orquesta, así como el vínculo de admiración, teñido a veces de un matiz de odio, con su maestro, el compositor de "Las cuatro estaciones" y "La stravaganza". Resulta fascinante cómo la escritora sugiere que esta última obra pudo ser adjudicada a Anna Maria, invitando a la reflexión sobre cuántas de las composiciones de Vivaldi fueron realmente suyas o cuánto contribuyó ella a su creación. Es sabido que durante este período, Vivaldi "compuso" una vasta cantidad de piezas, lo que añade un velo de misterio a la autoría.
La autora realiza un excelente trabajo documental. A pesar de ser una novela histórica que maneja numerosos detalles de la época y del mundo musical, su prosa es sencilla y dinámica, cargada de colores, notas y diálogos que te sumergen en la atmósfera. Aunque el ritmo no es siempre vertiginoso, la intensidad emocional y el poder de la narrativa me mantuvieron enganchada. Me sorprendió su habilidad para traducir la experiencia musical a palabras, haciendo que la música misma sea casi un personaje más en la historia.
"La violinista" es una oportunidad para conocer a una de esas mujeres olvidadas por la historia, que se atrevieron a soñar con algo que parecía imposible para los cánones de su sociedad.
“Para completar una obra musical hacen falta miles de pequeñas decisiones. Hay que decidir si se sube o se baja por la partitura, si detenerse o continuar, si subir los agudos o bajarlos graves, si acelerar el ritmo o ir más despacio. Si concluir de golpe o lentamente …”
August 23, 2024
Anna Maria della Pietà (all the orphan girls are given the surname della Pietà) has an innate talent for music. She is determined to become a member of the Ospedale’s famous orchestra – an intensely competitive environment – to become first violinist of the orchestra and, eventually, be acclaimed maestro. The alternative is either marriage when she reaches child-bearing age or a life of drudgery. For Anna Maria music is everything and nothing will stand in her way, not even friendships, something she comes to regret when it’s too late.
‘The girl had notes before she had words, and those notes have always had colours’. Anna Maria experiences musical notes and melodies in the form of colours. Even the sounds of everyday life in early 18th century Venice – the songs of gondoliers, the cries of street traders, the chiming of church bells – are a kaleidoscopic symphony. ‘Tones and hues float up, high above the city, hanging like notes on a stave, matching the sounds below.’
To borrow a phrase from art, there’s a strong element of chiaroscuro (the use of light and dark elements) in the story. So we have the contrast between the glittering palazzos of the rich and the dank alleyways housing brothels where young people, even children, are forced to sell themselves for a few denari. Even within the Ospedale della Pietà there’s a contrast between the privileges given to the girls in the orchestra – better food, better clothing – and the privations experienced by the other orphans. And whilst frequently reminded they are the offspring of ‘monsters’ and fortunate not to have been drowned at birth, the Ospedale is reliant on their musical talents for donations from wealthy patrons.
And then there’s Antonio Vivaldi, newly arrived as music tutor at Ospedale della Pietà. On the plus side, he’s a virtuoso violinist, a talented composer and an inspirational teacher who is instrumental (sorry!) in facilitating Anna’s membership of the orchestra and acquisition of her own custom-made violin. But he’s also egotistical, demanding that Anna’s early attempts at composition match his own style, and becoming vengeful when her talent threatens to outshine his own. And, as the historical evidence shows, he’s not averse to taking credit for the work of others – the author has Anna give him an idea about a composition based on the seasons – or of cultivating unsavoury relationships with young pupils.
Told in lush prose, Anna Maria’s story is one of ambition and an unwavering determination to succeed, but also the personal cost that comes with it.
‘The girl had notes before she had words, and those notes have always had colours’. Anna Maria experiences musical notes and melodies in the form of colours. Even the sounds of everyday life in early 18th century Venice – the songs of gondoliers, the cries of street traders, the chiming of church bells – are a kaleidoscopic symphony. ‘Tones and hues float up, high above the city, hanging like notes on a stave, matching the sounds below.’
To borrow a phrase from art, there’s a strong element of chiaroscuro (the use of light and dark elements) in the story. So we have the contrast between the glittering palazzos of the rich and the dank alleyways housing brothels where young people, even children, are forced to sell themselves for a few denari. Even within the Ospedale della Pietà there’s a contrast between the privileges given to the girls in the orchestra – better food, better clothing – and the privations experienced by the other orphans. And whilst frequently reminded they are the offspring of ‘monsters’ and fortunate not to have been drowned at birth, the Ospedale is reliant on their musical talents for donations from wealthy patrons.
And then there’s Antonio Vivaldi, newly arrived as music tutor at Ospedale della Pietà. On the plus side, he’s a virtuoso violinist, a talented composer and an inspirational teacher who is instrumental (sorry!) in facilitating Anna’s membership of the orchestra and acquisition of her own custom-made violin. But he’s also egotistical, demanding that Anna’s early attempts at composition match his own style, and becoming vengeful when her talent threatens to outshine his own. And, as the historical evidence shows, he’s not averse to taking credit for the work of others – the author has Anna give him an idea about a composition based on the seasons – or of cultivating unsavoury relationships with young pupils.
Told in lush prose, Anna Maria’s story is one of ambition and an unwavering determination to succeed, but also the personal cost that comes with it.
June 30, 2024
I love historical fiction. I appreciate a well researched story, but the sense of place wasn't really there, the sense of history neither. You can write about a feminist character without having to sacrifice the authenticity of the era you are writing about. This is clearly written by a woman that enjoys the privileges of this Century and can't relate to the women that lived in the Century when the book is set. Historical fiction is something else, sorry.
January 26, 2024
I love Italy and historical fiction, so I chose this book from a collection of ARC's and I feel like I've found gold. The story was terribly intriguing and so cleverly written. I devoured it. I hope to read more by Ms. Constable.
Read
January 16, 2025The Four Seasons is a banger, this book was not.
April 16, 2025
La portada es hermosa y el tema me pareció de lo más interesante.
El capítulo 1 fue muy bueno y sinceramente la lectura me pareció algo floja y en momentos me daba cuenta que seguíamos ya había cambiado capítulo y parece que seguía en el anterior así que ahí perdía el interés.
Y otra cosa creo que la protagonista era así por la vida que había tenido desde su nacimiento.
Espero leer más adelante a la autora seguro que tendrá otro interesante tema recuerden que soy doña segunda, terceras oportunidades
Saludos
El capítulo 1 fue muy bueno y sinceramente la lectura me pareció algo floja y en momentos me daba cuenta que seguíamos ya había cambiado capítulo y parece que seguía en el anterior así que ahí perdía el interés.
Y otra cosa creo que la protagonista era así por la vida que había tenido desde su nacimiento.
Espero leer más adelante a la autora seguro que tendrá otro interesante tema recuerden que soy doña segunda, terceras oportunidades
Saludos
July 21, 2024
I was swept away by the music of Harriet Constable's absorbing debut.
Anna Maria lives and breathes music, and the way she sees it in colours is absorbing and wondrous. Venice is a wonderful and awful setting. The fact that the Pietà and the figlie del coro existed is amazing. It gives hope, purpose, and the joy of music to the students, but it also creates pressure to achieve this, is a system open to abuse, and there's so much power held over them.
The friendship of the girls and women is so important. Anna Maria is an intense character with a fierce devotion and determination to become a Maestro and composer that you can't help but admire. But I despaired at her ruthlessness when it came to anything, anyone, else she loved. It's only as she reaches the top that she finally acknowledges the dark side of the Pietà and the figlie; that Vivaldi is both saviour and destroyer.
With themes of child abandonment, grief, poverty, prostitution, and growing up in a strict religious house, The Instrumentalist is a captivating and fascinating read.
Anna Maria lives and breathes music, and the way she sees it in colours is absorbing and wondrous. Venice is a wonderful and awful setting. The fact that the Pietà and the figlie del coro existed is amazing. It gives hope, purpose, and the joy of music to the students, but it also creates pressure to achieve this, is a system open to abuse, and there's so much power held over them.
The friendship of the girls and women is so important. Anna Maria is an intense character with a fierce devotion and determination to become a Maestro and composer that you can't help but admire. But I despaired at her ruthlessness when it came to anything, anyone, else she loved. It's only as she reaches the top that she finally acknowledges the dark side of the Pietà and the figlie; that Vivaldi is both saviour and destroyer.
With themes of child abandonment, grief, poverty, prostitution, and growing up in a strict religious house, The Instrumentalist is a captivating and fascinating read.
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