Seasonal Musical Project: Winter Lament Composition and Vivaldi’s Influence

Winter Lament is a short musical composition inspired by an older poem I wrote years ago. In preparing it for a new musical setting with the assistance of Udio.com, I made a few adjustments and added some “oh oh” lead-in lyrics. I’ve found that modern musical genres on Udio often benefit from lyrical elements such as “oh ohs,” “hey heys,” and/or “yea yeas,” so I’ve learned to incorporate them where they enhance the piece.

This composition is the first of four seasonal pieces I plan to set to music—a project clearly inspired by Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, which I listened to incessantly during my college years so many decades ago. While I may not possess Vivaldi’s genius, I find myself with the time now to explore this creative endeavor. Unfortunately, I can no longer compose music myself—my saxophone playing skills have long since faded, my keyboard abilities are modest at best, and my youngest brother is the guitarist of the family. Thus, I rely on Udio and my prompts to bring these compositions to life, though it often takes numerous attempts before I find a result that resonates.

The current video serves as a placeholder until I can source better imagery, but it suffices for now. Also contemplating retitling the work “February’s Calling,” from the first line of the refrain/chorus. The phrase “February’s calling” is employed as an insistent and contrasting metaphor to emphasize the emotional tension between the harsh, cold realities of winter and the speaker’s longing for warmth and companionship.

In any event, given the heat of August, I thought we might all appreciate the cooling sensation offered by the winter verses and images.