The Instrumentalist
A Novel
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4.6 • 7 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
For fans of The Queen’s Gambit and The Handmaid’s Tale, award-winning journalist Harriet Constable’s unforgettable novel tells the story of classical music as it has never been told before.
Inspired by true events, The Instrumentalist tells the story of Anna Maria della Pietà—orphan, musical prodigy and favourite student of Antonio Vivaldi. Anna Maria is on a mission: to become Venice’s greatest violinist and composer. In her remarkable world of colour and sound, it seems as if nothing can stop her. But it is 1704 and she is, after all, a girl. The pursuit of her ambition will test everything Anna Maria holds dear.
With echoes of internationally renowned historical fiction such as Tuscan Daughter by Lisa Rochon, Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell and Perfume by Patrick Süskind, The Instrumentalist brings to life the remarkable story of one of classical music’s most important yet overlooked figures. It is guaranteed to transport even the most unmusical of readers into a whole other realm.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Constable's mellifluous debut draws on the life of composer Anna Maria della Pietà (1696–1782), an orphan who became a violin prodigy at the age of eight and was tutored by Antonio Vivaldi. Raised at the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice, Anna Maria dreams of becoming the youngest member of the orphanage's renowned orchestra. She's learned to play the flute and the oboe, but she finds her calling when she hears the violin. Sure enough, her new teacher, the virtuoso Vivaldi, sees promise in Anna Maria's playing. When she's 13, he invites her to collaborate with him. Anna Maria says she's been thinking about writing a piece about spring, which gives Vivaldi the idea for his Four Seasons concerti. By the time Anna Maria is 17, she chafes at Vivaldi's insistence on keeping her contributions secret. When she claims she's destined for greatness as a composer in her own right, Vivaldi belittles her. Anna Maria then leaves the orphanage in a huff, and struggles to survive after pawning a necklace and living in a hovel. Constable richly portrays the city's opulence and its seedy underside, and she charms in her portrayal of her fiery young protagonist. This will appeal to fans of historicals with strong female leads.
