In 2010, musicologist Andrew Woolley unearthed a lost flute concerto composed by Antonio Vivaldi while perusing the National Archives of Scotland in Edinburgh.
The lost and found concerto is titled Il Gran Mogol which refers to a name given Muslim emperors who controlled western India in the 16th century. By Vivaldi’s time, these rulers had established connections with Europe and built a strong empire notable for its patronage of the arts.
A bit of mystery surrounds Vivaldi’s Il Gran Mogol. How did the Italian concerto end up lost only to be found in Scotland hundreds of years later? Some think that the manuscript was acquired in Italy and brought home by the flute-playing Scottish nobleman, Lord Robert Kerr, during a Grand Tour of Europe in the 1730’s.
Vivalid's concerto was premiered by the ensemble La Serrenissima in 2011 but has since been recorded by Ashley Solomon with the ensemble Florilegium on their newest release.
