--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Evening Concert, Sainte-Chapelle\" The…" description: "\"“Evening Concert, Sainte-Chapelle\" The celebrated windows flamed with light directly pouring north across the Seine; we rustled into place. Then violin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/175/john-updike-396_violins_evening-concert-sainte-chapelle-the-cele_1881974.jpg" --- # Evening Concert, Sainte-Chapelle" The celebrated windows… ![“Evening Concert, Sainte-Chapelle" The celebrated windows flamed with light directly pouring north across the Seine; we rustled into place. Then violins vaunting Vivaldi's strident strength, then Brahms, seemed to suck with their passionate sweetness, bit by bit, the vigor from the red, the blazing…” quote by John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/175/john-updike-396_violins_evening-concert-sainte-chapelle-the-cele_1881974.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/175/john-updike-396_violins_evening-concert-sainte-chapelle-the-cele_1881974.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/175/john-updike-396_violins_evening-concert-sainte-chapelle-the-cele_1881974.jpg) > ““Evening Concert, Sainte-Chapelle" The celebrated windows flamed with light directly pouring north across the Seine; we rustled into place. Then violins vaunting Vivaldi's strident strength, then Brahms, seemed to suck with their passionate sweetness, bit by bit, the vigor from the red, the blazing blue, so that the listening eye saw suddenly the thick black lines, in shapes of shield and cross and strut and brace, that held the holy glowing fantasy together. The music surged; the glow became a milk, a whisper to the eye, a glimmer ebbed until our beating hearts, our violins were cased in thin but solid sheets of lead.”” [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The music and architecture intertwine, turning visual splendor into emotional resonance that both enlightens and burdens the observer. **In simple terms:** Art and sound merge, creating a powerful, overwhelming experience. Key Takeaway Notice how sensory overload can both inspire and weigh you down. Themes art music perception emotion Mood reflective intense Type descriptive poetic When to use this quote - concert attendance - museum visit - creative writing - visual arts appreciation Key Concepts aesthetic experience symbolism Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance awe with personal comfort? - When does intensity become oppressive? A Different Perspective The description may romanticize intensity, ignoring personal discomfort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beating Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beating-heart/) [Evening Concert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evening-concert-2662791/) [Vaunting Vivaldi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vaunting-vivaldi-2662793/) [Violins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violins/) [Violins Vaunting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violins-vaunting-2662792/) [Vivaldi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vivaldi/) ## Related quotes > [The guitar player that I'm doing my solo tour with, Angel Vivaldi, he's been releasing incredible guitar albums and people just don't really know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-strauss/the-guitar-player-that-i-m-doing-my-solo-tour-with-angel-vivaldi-he-s/) [Nita Strauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-strauss/) > [“Then, just at the peak of complacency, when it was assumed that the climate of the world had changed forever, when the conductor of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-helprin/then-just-at-the-peak-of-complacency-when-it-was-assumed-that-the/) [Mark Helprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-helprin/) > [I think of music a lot when I paint. The theme of it to a degree is music. So instead of literally putting in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-shanks/i-think-of-music-a-lot-when-i-paint-the-theme-of-it-to-a-degree-is/) [Nelson Shanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-shanks/) > [It was Vivaldi's Mandolin Concerto, Francesca Abraham realized as the radio alarm went off. Lively, unrelentingly upbeat, it was the perfect tempo in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-ragen/it-was-vivaldi-s-mandolin-concerto-francesca-abraham-realized-as-the/) [Naomi Ragen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-ragen/) > [I think in Baroque music, especially in the case of Bach, what really transformed Bach's musical language, what changed it for him was hearing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahan-esfahani/i-think-in-baroque-music-especially-in-the-case-of-bach-what-really/) [Mahan Esfahani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahan-esfahani/) > [Vivaldi didn't write 400 concertos; he wrote one concerto 400 times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/igor-stravinsky/vivaldi-didn-t-write-400-concertos-he-wrote-one-concerto-400-times/) [Igor Stravinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/igor-stravinsky/) > [“I am warned of evils that await me,” continued Vivaldi, musing; “of events that are regularly fulfilled; the being who warns me, crosses my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-radcliffe/i-am-warned-of-evils-that-await-me-continued-vivaldi-musing-of-events/) [Ann Radcliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-radcliffe/) > [Mozart. Vivaldi. Van Gogh. Stretched their genius on struggle, stress and survival.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-cannon/mozart-vivaldi-van-gogh-stretched-their-genius-on-struggle-stress-and/) [Billy Cannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-cannon/) > [“You can find him by following the leaping shadows along the walls of the school corridor, for Father Vivaldi often paces there and waves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-lowery-collins/you-can-find-him-by-following-the-leaping-shadows-along-the-walls-of/) [Pat Lowery Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-lowery-collins/) > [These days I think the composers of music influence me more than any photographers or visual creators. I see something exciting or lovely and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-steiner/these-days-i-think-the-composers-of-music-influence-me-more-than-any/) [Ralph Steiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-steiner/) > [What is at the higher levels of meaning consciousness is like a hyperspace in which each point is equidistant from the other and where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-irwin-thompson/what-is-at-the-higher-levels-of-meaning-consciousness-is-like-a/) [William Irwin Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-irwin-thompson/) > [Learning a play is one thing, but to learn to play Vivaldi's 'Four Seasons' without music: that's brilliant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-moore/learning-a-play-is-one-thing-but-to-learn-to-play-vivaldi-s-four/) [Roger Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-moore/) > [“And you listen to some of that meticulous Mozart stuff and Vivaldi and you realize that they knew that too. They knew when to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-richards/and-you-listen-to-some-of-that-meticulous-mozart-stuff-and-vivaldi/) [Keith Richards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-richards/) > [I found myself face to face with a long line of people resembling extras off the set of Night of the Living Dead: shuffling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-frank/i-found-myself-face-to-face-with-a-long-line-of-people-resembling/) [Joan Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-frank/) > ['Spring One' probably has only four bars of Vivaldi in it, but it feels like it's all Vivaldi. It's odd. It's a bit like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-richter/spring-one-probably-has-only-four-bars-of-vivaldi-in-it-but-it-feels/) [Max Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-richter/) ## More by John Updike > [Life is a roller coaster, you have your ups and downs unless you fall off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/life-is-a-roller-coaster-you-have-your-ups-and-downs-unless-you-fall/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Children are not a zoo of entertainingly exotic creatures, but an array of mirrors in which the human predicament leaps out at us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/children-are-not-a-zoo-of-entertainingly-exotic-creatures-but-an/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I assume my stance, and take back the club, low, slowly; at the top, my eyes fog over, and my joints dip and swirl…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-assume-my-stance-and-take-back-the-club-low-slowly-at-the-top-my/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [The New England spirit does not seek solutions in a crowd; raw light and solitariness are less dreaded than welcomed as enhancers of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-new-england-spirit-does-not-seek-solutions-in-a-crowd-raw-light/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I imagine most of that stuff on the information highway is roadkill anyway.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-imagine-most-of-that-stuff-on-the-information-highway-is-roadkill/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Families, doing everything for each other out of imagined obligation and always getting in each other's way, what a tangle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/families-doing-everything-for-each-other-out-of-imagined-obligation/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“The fucking world is running out of gas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-fucking-world-is-running-out-of-gas/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [The theme of old age doesn't seem to fascinate Hollywood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-theme-of-old-age-doesn-t-seem-to-fascinate-hollywood/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“The mind cannot fall asleep as long as it watches itself. Only when the mind moves unwatched and becomes absorbed in images that tug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-mind-cannot-fall-asleep-as-long-as-it-watches-itself-only-when/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“it was somehow wonderful of her to be, in every detail, herself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/it-was-somehow-wonderful-of-her-to-be-in-every-detail-herself/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [In fiction, imaginary people become realer to us than any named celebrity glimpsed in a series of rumored events, whose causes and subtler ramifications…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/in-fiction-imaginary-people-become-realer-to-us-than-any-named/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“Her hair had been going gray as long as he could remember; she bundled it behind in a bun held with hairpins that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/her-hair-had-been-going-gray-as-long-as-he-could-remember-she-bundled/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Possession diminishes perception of value, immediately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/possession-diminishes-perception-of-value-immediately/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I can't bear to finish things, beyond a certain point they get heavy. There's something so dead about a finished painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-can-t-bear-to-finish-things-beyond-a-certain-point-they-get-heavy/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“Some people find fall depressing, others hate spring. I've always been a spring person myself. All that growth, you can feel Nature groaning, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/some-people-find-fall-depressing-others-hate-spring-i-ve-always-been/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Explore all 592 John Updike quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) ## More Violins quotes > [“I don't need to sleep to play. I'm crazy anyway. Being crazier still could only help.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/i-don-t-need-to-sleep-to-play-i-m-crazy-anyway-being-crazier-still/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [We are so not breaking out the violins and pity partying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/we-are-so-not-breaking-out-the-violins-and-pity-partying/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [I could spit dust I'm so mad. He wants to put violins on my new session. I'll die before I'll go all the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patsy-cline/i-could-spit-dust-i-m-so-mad-he-wants-to-put-violins-on-my-new/) [Patsy Cline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patsy-cline/) > [I am privileged to be at the right end of violins: not the end holding it but to listen to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-moore/i-am-privileged-to-be-at-the-right-end-of-violins-not-the-end-holding/) [Roger Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-moore/) > [“He is about to hand the earphone to Jutta when—clear and unblemished, about halfway down the coil—he hears the quick, drastic strikes of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-doerr/he-is-about-to-hand-the-earphone-to-jutta-when-clear-and-unblemished/) [Anthony Doerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-doerr/) > [We are like violins. We can be used as doorstops, or we can make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-sher/we-are-like-violins-we-can-be-used-as-doorstops-or-we-can-make-music/) [Barbara Sher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-sher/) > [Sex and violence was never really my cup of tea; I was always more into sax and violins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wim-wenders/sex-and-violence-was-never-really-my-cup-of-tea-i-was-always-more/) [Wim Wenders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wim-wenders/) > [“There were sharp little blows in the music, and waves of quick, fine notes that burst and rolled like the thin, clear ringing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/there-were-sharp-little-blows-in-the-music-and-waves-of-quick-fine/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [I know schools don't have money for everything, but I wish they could all have a couple of violins for kids to try; a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-coren-mitchell/i-know-schools-don-t-have-money-for-everything-but-i-wish-they-could/) [Victoria Coren Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-coren-mitchell/) > [I love the tone of old, non-amplified, real acoustic fiddles, and Wood Violins are the closest thing I have found to that sound. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martie-maguire/i-love-the-tone-of-old-non-amplified-real-acoustic-fiddles-and-wood/) [Martie Maguire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martie-maguire/) > [I hate being manipulated by song. Don't tell me what I should be feeling. I don't want cellos or violins to be telling me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-farmiga/i-hate-being-manipulated-by-song-don-t-tell-me-what-i-should-be/) [Vera Farmiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-farmiga/) > [One cannot inherit a talent for the violin - there are no violins in nature. 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Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/) > [“The music washed over Shane as he stepped into a dimly lit space.  Thick rugs covered the floor, and stacks of written music were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-ripley/the-music-washed-over-shane-as-he-stepped-into-a-dimly-lit-space/) [Ron Ripley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-ripley/) > [“A thousand violins cloy very rapidly without percussion.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/a-thousand-violins-cloy-very-rapidly-without-percussion/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) [Browse all 34 Violins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violins/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Evening Concert, Sainte-Chapelle\" The celebrated windows flamed with light directly pouring north across the Seine; we rustled into place. Then violins vaunting Vivaldi's strident strength, then Brahms, seemed to suck with their passionate sweetness, bit by bit, the vigor from the red, the blazing blue, so that the listening eye saw suddenly the thick black lines, in shapes of shield and cross and strut and brace, that held the holy glowing fantasy together. 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