Vivaldi's setting of the opera seria Farnace was premiered in Venice at the Teatro di San Angelo in 1727. The libretto was written by Antonio Maria Lucchini. Although Lucchini was not highly regarded as a librettist, his text was set several times by different composers and proved popular with Italian audiences. During the eighteenth century, the forms of the opera seria were constantly evolving, especially the da capo aria form. In this brilliant work virtuosic vocal writing dominates the orchestral textures, which are carefully orchestrated to support the dramatic contents of scenes and the emotional nuances of arias. The vocal lines are often thematically related to the musical material in the accompaniment, and frequently derived from the motives in an opening ritornello. Tremendous rhythmic vitality is felt throughout; Vivaldi writes here in the new Lombardic style, as it was called, with vigorous, uneven rhythms. Syncopated lines form contrasts with plain accompanimental rhythms, and triplets alternate with dotted rhythms. Changes in tempo, texture, and character of motives keep the music in constant motion. In the aria "Gelido in ogni vena," Vivaldi uses extreme dynamic contrasts to heighten the tension and express the text, while in the aria "Quell' usignolo" he imitates the calls of the nightingale with vivid chromaticisms. Vivaldi revised the score in 1738 for a new production in Ferrara. Almost all of the music was changed in some way; passages were rewritten, vocal parts altered, and new arias and scenes were added.

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