›Le Grand Tour‹ was the magical word in the 17th and 18th century for ›well-born‹ sons from Northern and Central Europe. At the verge of manhood they were sent on educational and pleasure trips to Italy, sometimes for months or even years. None too few lost their heart – to the Italian music! The Neue Hofkapelle Osnabrück invites us on a Grand Tour to the top centers of Italian instrumental music of this time: from Rome via Bologna up to the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice. This downright mystical place attracted under Antonio Vivaldi’s lead music lovers from all over Europe, not least with his resounding laguna impressions with titles like ›Night‹, ›Storm at Sea‹ or ›La Follia‹ – Vivaldis vertiginous homage to the Venetian carnival.