The Instrumentalist

Anna Maria is the novel’s protagonist. She is a complex, round character who evolves as the narrative progresses. She is initially characterized by the fraught circumstances surrounding her birth and her status as one of Venice’s many unwanted children. Growing up in an orphanage without parents causes her emotional pain as she ages, and the beginning scenes of the novel set the stage for the longing she will later feel to have a family and her speculation about what it might have been like to have Vivaldi as a father.

Anna Maria is a gifted musician whose talent emerges early in her childhood. She experiences synesthesia, which allows her to see colors as she plays music. That ability lets her play with greater passion and intensity than many of her fellow students. Her synesthesia is a “gift” from her mother, who also has the condition and leaves her daughter with the parting wish that she accomplish great things in her life. Anna Maria does achieve everything that her mother wished for her, and music becomes her greatest passion.