UNIVERSI1Y OF TASMANIA

Department of History

THE TWENTY-FOUR CAPRICES

OF
NICCOLO PAGANINI
their significance for the history of violin playing
and the music of the Romantic era

Submitted in fulfilment of the

requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy

Philippe Borer
March 1995

This thesis contains no material which has

been accepted for the award of any degree
or diploma in any university and, to the
best of my knowledge, it contains no
material previously published or written
by another person, except where due
reference is made in the text of the thesis.

This thesis may be made available for loan

and limited copying in accordance with the

Copyrigh: Ael 1968.

{.l

-b0,-er'
11

The Twenty-Four Caprices of Niccoli) Paganini

their significance for the history of violin playing and the music of the Romantic era

Abstract

.This project attempts to describe and elucidate the compositional and instrumental
character of the 24 Caprices of Niccolo Paganini and their far-reaching influence
on violin playing and on musical creativity up to the present time. There is also the wider
inspirational value which can be traced in literature, poetry, and fine arts.
The first Chapter aims to place the 24 Caprices in their historical perspective. The
reception accorded to the work by prominent musicians of the time (in particular Chopin,
Liszt and Schumann) whose attention was drawn to the concept of virtuosity as an
essential parameter in musical composition, is emphasised and examined.

Chapter II investigates the unique significance of the dedication "alii Artisti" which
suggests a Romantic manifesto some ten years before Hugo's prefaces to Cromwell and
to the Eastern Lyrics.

Chapter III investigates Paganini's instrumental and musical background. It has often
been claimed that Paganini was self-taught. However, evidence of his all-important early
training in violin and composition makes him the true heir of the old Italian masters,
representing at the same time a vital milestone for subsequent development of
instrumental and compositional techniques. Paganini can thus be seen as representing a
link between the classico-romantic and modem attitudes to instrumental writing reaching
well into the twentieth century.
In Chapter IV, some aspects of Paganini's compositional and performing styles are
examined. A striking interpretative concept (the "suonare parlante") is discussed.
Special consideration is given to instrumental techniques which are not employed in the
Caprices. Their absence suggests that the Caprices represent a perhaps intentionally
restrained statement of Paganini's violinistic knowledge.

Chapter V traces the origins of the violin Caprice and its development as a musical
genre.

The Appendices include an analysis of selected Caprices, a diplomatic transcript of

Caprices 1-4, a facsimile of the manuscript, as well as supporting documents such as

Feuilletsd'album and scales written by Paganini.

ttl

TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGEN
iii
vi
vii

Abstract
Abbreviations
PREFACE
CHAPTER I: THE 24 CAPRICES IN THEIR HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
Virtuosity & music
Artiste or charlatan?
Origin of the Caprices
Metternich's violin
Milan 1820: publication of the Caprices
Vienna 1828: first concerts outside Italy
Paganini and Thalberg
Paganini and Chopin
Paganini and Schumann
Paganini and Liszt
Genealogical table

1
2
5
8
10
12
14
15
17
23
28
34

CHAPTER II: "ALLI ARTIST!"

Interpretations and implications of an historic dedication
The courtier
An early Romantic Manifesto
'Suona bene ma non sorprende"
The violation of expectations: a departure from Classical ideals
Albi Rosenthal's 'intriguing copy' of the Caprices

35
35
38
43
49
50
52

CHAPTER III: THE STUDENT

Biographical landmarks, early training and influences
Paganini's teachers
The siege of Genoa
The final revision
School versus Tradition

71
73
80
93
97
98

CHAPTER IV: PAGANINI AND "THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE VIOLIN'

The suonare par/ante
Harmonics
Chromaticism
Chordal playing
Tempo fluctuation
Fingering
The e/ettricismo

101
105
111
11 a
124
131
134
147

CHAPTER V: ORIGINS & DEVELOPMENT OF THE VIOLIN CAPRICE

The keyboard Caprice from Frescobaldi to Bach
The violin Caprice
Caprice or Etude?
The violin Caprice after Paganini
Collections of violin Caprices
Miscellaneous Caprices from. Frescobaldi to Schnittke

149
150
153
15
161
16 a
170

IV

APPENDIX A: SAMPLE ANALYSES

Caprice 1
Caprice 2
Caprice 3
Caprice 4
Caprice 9
Caprice 18
APPENDIX B: THE MANUSCRIPT
Reproduction of the facsimile

172
181
186

191
198

203
208
211

APPENDIX C: THE DIPLOMATIC TRANSCRIPT

Front cover
Title page I (Opera I: rna)
Caprice 1
Caprice
Caprice
Caprice
Critical

171

233
234
235
236
238

2
3
4
commentary

240
242
244

APPENDIX D: ALBUM LEAVES & SCALES

Capriccio per Violino Solo (to M. Dietrichstein)
Con forte espressione... (to J.-P. Dantan)
Scala di Paganini
Segreto comunicato e raccomandato...

246
247
249
250

APPENDIX E: TWO CONVERSATIONS WITH J.M. SCHOTTKY

252

251

253

Biographical sketch
Paganini's secret

261

SELECT BIBUOGRAPHY
Manuscripts
Printed scores
Books and articles

264
266
271

Abbreviations. fingering & notation.

B.N.

Bibliotheque Nationale (Paris)

Bib!. Cas.

Biblioteca Casanatense (Rome)

dip!. tr.

diplomatic transcript!

ed.

edited

[M.S.]

these initials followed by Arabic numerals referto the thematic catalogue of

the works of Paganini compiled by Maria Rosa Moretti and Anna Sorrento

ms.

manuscript
Paganini Epistolario. These initials are followed, whennecessary, by
an arabic numeral referring to Edward Neill's chronological classification

tr.

transcript

tr!.

translation

>

indicates relation pupil !Q teacher, for example: Getniniani (>Corelli)

the trebleclef in mirrorimage indicates the scordatura-

Violinfingering: .
o
openstring, or left handpizzicato
I
index finger (not the thumb as in keyboard fingering)
2
tniddle finger
3
ring finger
little finger
4
p
thumb (p standsfor le pouce as used by Francceur, Leclairand others)
+
thumb, or lefthandpizzicato
The systemof pitch identification used in this dissertation is as follows:
.l1.

2:

S'

t.
e'

e"

lll

lll i

Pitch registers:
Violoncello
Viola
Violin

C-G-d-a
c - g - d'- a'
g - d'- a'- e"

1Translationinto typography of all the details of the original.

2In this method of notation, the violin is treated as a transposing instrument, the music being
notated accordingto the tuning of the instrument. not according to real pitch.

VI

Preface
In offering the present monograph, I am very much aware that practically all aspects of

Paganini's life and work have been explored, discussed, and critically considered over the
last 150 years by a number of performing artists and musicologists whose knowledge and
artistic status are far above my own. It seems to me however that a creative genius represents
an inexhaustible source of study and an opportunity to make continuing attempts to reach a
higher degree of understanding - which can, of course, meet only with incomplete success. My
fascination with Paganini links with my own educational background and my work as a
performer. I also feel the need to consider striking musical phenomena in a wider context of
related art and literature. This perhaps, to some extent, both explains and justifies my
attempt to investigate the importance of the 24 Caprices which reaches far beyond the
confines of their instrumental or compositional significance. I should like this study to be
seen, and perhaps accepted, not as a definite statement of personal importance, but rather as
an offering which may awake interest and lead to further research. It gives me pleasure to
acknowledge the enormous help I have received from my academic supervisors and counsellors
without whose guidance and support I would have been unable to undertake this task. In the
first place I wish to thank my teacher Dr. Jan Sedivka, the eminent violinist and pedagogue,
who has provided me with guidance for a number of years. In the historical aspects of the
work, my vital source of help has been Prof. Rod M. Thomson who enabled me to organise the
raw material and present it in a cohesive form. It is impossible to enumerate the many friends
and colleagues who have generously assisted me in my research. Of the contemporary writers
and musicologists, I wish to mention particularly Prof. Alma Brughera Capaldo, the founder
and director of the Instituto di Studi Paganiniani of Genoa, as well as Prof. Edward Neill,
whose work on Paganini has acquired the status of a classic. Thanks are also due to a number
of Australian and overseas correspondents who have provided me with precious information:

Dr. M. C. Barabino (Genoa), Prof. R. Boss (Neuchatel), Prof. L. Breton (Lausanne), Dr. W.
Donolato (Rolle), Prof. F. Gulli (Bloomington), Mr. Igor Kortchnoi (Geneva), Dr. P. MosettiCasaretto (Genoa), Mrs L. Oxley (Hobart), Prof. M. Rostal (Berne), Mr. Bruno Borer and Mrs.
Adriana Borer (Auvernier), Mr. L. Stocchino (Rome), Mr. J. Werro (Berne), Mr. Laurie Zambon
_ (Cremorne). I wish to thank the following librarians for their understanding help: Dr K.W.
Geck (Sachsische Landesbibliothek, Dresden), Mrs. B. Kamber (Bibliotheque Universitaire,
Lausanne), Mr. Locatelli (Bibliotheque de la Ville de Neuchatel), Mr. M. Penesco
(Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris), Dr. Sommariva, (Biblioteca del Conservatorio Niccolo
Paganini, Genoa), Mrs. A.-M. Toroncelli (Biblioteca Casanatense, Rome), Mrs. A. Zecca
Laterza

(Biblioteca

del

Conservatorio "G.

Verdi",

Milan),

Mrs

A.

Zinsli

(Konservatoriumsbibliothek, Berne). I am also grateful to Prof. Tadeusz Wronski (Warsaw)

for kindly sending a copy of his edition of the 24 Caprices.

p.x.

vii

Borer, History dept., 11th March 1995

CHAPTER I

NICCOLO PAGANINI
Op.1
TWENTY-FOUR CAPRICES FOR VIOLIN SOLO

Dedicated to the Artists

"These perennial companions to the violinist, together with the 6 Sonatas and Partitas of 1.5.
Bach, form the foundation of the violinist's manual, both Old and New Testament",

Yehudi Menuhin writes in his preface to the facsimile edition of the

manuscript of Paganini's 24 Caprices. 1
This "New Testament of the Violinist" was first published in 1820, creating a
sensation in musical circles. With the Caprices, Paganini's contribution to the
repertoire can now be seen as one of unchallengeable importance, both
violinistically and musically. The Caprices stimulated creative exploration in
violin playing by extending the limits of the instrument and encouraged the
elaboration of new pedagogical approaches. They still exert their influence on
the instruction of violinists of all countries.

There is no conservatorium

student who has not become acquainted, at least didactically, with this
fundamental work (even when dully defined as "required repertoire"). In
Poland and some other countries, the Caprices have made their appearance in
the syllabus of secondary schools and are increasingly often played by violin
students under fourteen years of age. 2
1Facsimile of the autograph manuscript of Paganini's 24 Caprices, ed. by Federico
Mompellio, Milano, Ricordi, 1974, p.5.
2See Tadeusz Wronski's preface to his edition of the 24 Caprices, Krak6w: Polskie
Wydawnictwo Muzyczne, 1977,p.3.

Thanks to many recent performances and recordings, the listener too has
become familiar with the Caprices, enjoying these products of a remarkable
period in the evolution of Italian music above all for their musical content.
However, questions about their origins and history still remain, not to
mention the enigma of their extraordinary inspirational powers exerted on
composers up to the present time. There is also an influence which can be
traced in literature, poetry and fine arts (Heine, Goethe, Stendhal, Ugo Foscolo,
Ludwig Peter Lyser, Eugene Delacroix, Theophila Gautier, Franz Grillparzer,
Felix Ziem, Louise de Vilrnorin, Frantisek Tichy, etc.).

A long-standing

controversy about the Caprices and Paganini's music in general also needs
clarification.

While Paganini's contribution to the development of

instrumental technique is acknowledged una voce, his true worth as a

musician (as opposed to a technical "wizard") and his real stature as a
composer have often been questioned.

This applies particularly to the

Caprices which are not infrequently looked upon simply as studies of

advanced technique, indispensable for the highest development of the
mechanism, but devoid of "real musical content". This attitude, interestingly
enough, is essentially that of violinists and violin teachers. Thus, each Caprice
is seen as possessing specific therapeutic virtues and is selected for study as a
cure for certain technical deficiencies or in order to develop one aspect of the
mechanism or the other. The twenty-four Caprices, each in itself a particular
technical discipline, constitute undoubtedly a masterly practical lesson of
instrumental playing. But this would not suffice to explain their uncommon
inspirational potential and the tremendous creative impetus they have given and still give - to violinists and composers (notably Robert Schumann, Franz
Liszt, Hector Berlioz, Frederic Chopin, Johannes Brahms, Sergei
Rachmaninoff, Ferruccio Busoni, George Rochberg), all of whom considered
them as masterpieces.
Virtuosity and Music
The very concept of virtuosity is central to this controversy.

The true nature

of this particular manifestation of musical expression, which obviously plays a

key role in Paganini's works, is regrettably often misunderstood. As Franz

Liszt wrote:
"VirtuoSity, far from being a monstrous excrescence, is an indispensable element of musical
.. ,,3
composition.

Virtuosity is seen here as one of the parameters of musical composition,

standing on equal terms with other co-ordinates such as harmony, melody,
counterpoint, timbre, and structures such as variation, fugue, all of them
having in tum characterised various periods in musical history. There are
principles ruling each of these parameters which have been determined and
developed by great composers through the ages. One could say that Paganini
contributed to the definition of the laws of virtuosity.

By exploring the

extreme possibilities of the violin he not only extended the limits of the
instrument, but, as Claudio Casini points out, he opened up a new dimension
in musical language. 4 Paganini's compositions are founded on one precise
structural criterion: the exploitation of the instrumental resources of the
violin.

One could say that everything in his flamboyant compositions is

subordinated to this criterion; but melody, rhythm, harmony, ideas and form,
are all vivified by a breathtaking technical brilliance and by an unconstrained
poetical and lyrical inventiveness.
A lesson to be learned from the history of music is not to use the words
"invented" or "discovered" too readily.
unpublished work L'apport de Pag-anini

Anne Penesco, in her still

la technique du violon S has

convincingly demonstrated that most aspects of violin technique developed by

Paganini existed before his time. However, he systematically exploited and
extended the use of elements which had appeared only in a limited, sporadic
way.

In doing so, he pioneered new avenues for the development of

instrumental virtuosity and, with his admirably structured and coherent set of
3"La virtuosite, loin d'etre une excroissance monstrueuse, est un element indispensable a la
composition musicale" Liszt, Franz, Gesammelte Schriften. Leipzig: Breitkopf & Hartel
1881-1910, vol. N (1855-59).
4"Paganini ha impresso un'evoluzione allinguaggio musicale 0, se si preferisce, ha creato
in esso una dimensione nueva" Casini, Claudie, raganini. Milan: Electa 1982, p.63
5penesco, Anne. I:apport de Paganini a 1a technique du vielen. Maitrise de musicologie,
University of Paris N, 1974.

twenty-four Caprices, he made a significant contribution to the evolution of

musical cornposition.P The Caprices can be compared to several great
collections of compositions where one co-ordinate of the musical language
assumes "archetypal" functions. A famous example is Das Wohltemperierte
Klavjer of j.S. Bach which is entirely founded on the application of the laws of
harmony and counterpoint and explores the interaction of these two forces,
the vertical with the horizontal. The concertos of Antonio Vivaldi constitute
another example:

in II Cjmento dell' Armonia con l' Invenzione, the

confrontation between harmony and melodic invention - as the title

proclaims - is at the origin of the Venetian priest's remarkable musical
discoveries. In works such as Das Wohltemperjerte Klavier or II Cimento
dell' Armonia con rInvenzione, the composers chose to select one or a few
aspects of musical language and succeeded in integrating the totality of their
expression. Something similar happened with Paganini and his twenty-four
Caprices.

There, one dimension of musical language, virtuosity, is

systematically explored: the musical ideas, their syntactic and structural

treatment, everything is, as it were, submitted to its laws.

As a result, the

work, far from giving the impression of a one-sided perspective, reveals the
power of suggestion of the virtuoso gesture and, beyond it, or maybe at the
very origin of it, a pure form of poetical insight, One could say by analogy that
Paganini's approach was similar to that of painters who select a specific quality
on which the general logic of their work will depend (e.g. colour for
impressionists, geometry for cubists, etc...). Paganini's brilliant intuition about
a fundamental aspect of musical composition, and the clarity and coherence
with which he formulated it in his twenty-four Caprices, had profound
repercussions in the conception of instrumental playing and repertoire in the
Romantic era.

The attention of the musical world was drawn to the

significance of virtuosity as an element in Art.

60 ne could perhaps say that technique - instrumental as well as compositional - is the

means which enables the musician to deliver his message. Virtuosity could be thus defined
as the adequation of a great message and the perfection of its expression. In an homage to
Paganini, Paul Valery wrote that: "Le virtuose est celui qui, par excellence, donne vie et
presence reelle tl ce qui n'etait qu'une ecriture lioree tl l'ignorance, tl la maladresse, tl
!'insuffisante comprehension de qui que ce soit. Le virtuose incarne l'oeuure." (Esqyisse d'un
Eloge de la Yirl!!QsM Nice, 1940, p.5).

Artiste Qr Charlatan?
In Paganini's posthumous celebrity, three elements have played - and are still

playing - a role: the legend, the glamour of an exceptional destiny, the artistic
event. The first two have often tyrannised the third. Paganini's extraordinary
technique, his charismatic personality, to say nothing of the commercial
success of his concert tours, cast a shadow on the deeper, more lasting aspects

oi his work:
"As for no other musician [Sergio Martinotti writes], any critical discourse on Paganini should
move away from his singular personal life, sift out a large corpus of more or less bad literature,
pass many fictionalised episodes through the sieve...in order to arrive at his secret signature as
a composer and to understand his art',7 [trl. PXBI

8
The creation of the Istituto di Studi Paganiniani in 1972 has given fresh
stimulus to biographers and musicologists and, with the publication Qf the
CatalQgQ TematicQ delle Musiche di NiccQlo Paganini 9, a fair evaluation oi
Paganini's contribution to the field of musical composition is now possible,
Next to the masterworks such as the 24 Caprices [M.5.25], the Three String
Ouartets [M.S.20J, the Concerto in E flat MajQr[M.5.21] that place Paganini
among the innovators of the early nineteenth century in Italian music, there
is also the "utility" music he wrote and performed in large quantities to satisfy
the demands of the public at large.

It consists mostly of pieces in mezzo

carattere style ("pots-pourris", variations on a single string, etc.) where the

violin emulates, as it were, and even surpasses, the prowess of a coloratura
singer. Often based on themes taken from the operatic repertoire of the time,
7"Come per nessun altro rnusicista, ogni discorso critico su Paganini dovra muoversi dalla
sua vita singolare, vagliare tanta piu 0 meno cattiva letteratura, tanto dettaglio romanzato
...per raggiungere la sua cifra di compositore, la sua arte." Martinotti, Sergio, Ottocento
Strumentale Italiano, Bologna, Forni, 1972, p.276.
Bnte Institute of Paganinian Studies (Instituto di Studi Paganiniani) was founded in Genoa
on June 22, 1972. Founding members: Dr Alma Brughera Capaldo, Dr. Pietro Berri, Federico
M. Boero, Mario Cifatte, Gino Contilli, Luigi Cortese, Enrico Costa, Dr. Edward Neill, Prof.
Salvatore Pintacuda (Conservatorium of Palermo), Dr. Carlo Marcello Rietmann. Director:
Prof. Dr. Alma Brughera Capaldo.
9Catalogo Tematico delle Musiche dj Niccolo PaganiDi.compiled by Maria Rosa Moretti
and Anna Sorrento, Genoa, Comune di Genova, 1982. This publication constitutes the most
complete classification of Paganini's compositions to date. The works are arranged in
chronological order in groups entitled: LDatable works, II. Undatable works, Ill.Sketches,
IV. Lost works, V.Works of dubious origin, VI. Works erroneously attributed. All the works
classified under I and II are distinguished by catalogue numbers preceded by the initials M.s.
(for Moretti and Sorrento), which will be mentioned in further references.

these compositions received an enthusiastic reception by the Italian public,

but, taken out of their historical/musical context, they may have offered a
pretext to those who tried to minimise Paganini's stature as a composer. There
is also a large corpus of chamber music works, in which the guitar has a
significant presence (solo pieces, duets, trios and quartets). Last but not least,
there are the works that one may define as "experimental": short preludes,
Caprices, or exercises often written on the spur of the moment for students,
friends or admirers. Among these pieces - in which special instrumental and
compositional techniques are employed - one could mention the Sonata a
Violino e Viola [M.S.108], the Capriccio a Ouattro Corde dedicated to Maurice
Dietrichstein [M.S. 54], the Sei Prelil~for 2 violins and cello, the Scala per
pianoforte dedicated to Clara Wieck, ~e Preludio per Violino dated Leipzig 16
October 1829, and the Scala obliqua e contraria per Chitarra dated Prague 4
January 1829. The many facets of Paganini's output reflect a very rich artistic
personality which does not readily submit to definition. There have been and
there still are many different - and often conflicting - interpretations of his
contribution. The composer and music critic Francois Joseph Fetis accused
Paganini of being a "charlatan", an impostor who wrote unplayable music.
He later changed his mind and called him the greatest of living violinists.I''
For Robert Schumann, the sixth Caprice alone was "sufficient in itself to
assure Paganini's position as one of the first Italian composers.r U Louis
Spohr, who found in Paganini's compositions "a strange mixture of
consummate genius, childishness and lack of taste", was alternately "charmed
and repelled" by his style of playing.l 2 Heinrich Heine, more perhaps than
any literary and music critic of his time, was preoccupied by the problem of
virtuosity in relation to both musical and poetical expression. In a most
interesting passage of Lutetia. he wrote that he had "never heard anyone play
better but also, at times, play worse than Paganini."13 Hector Berlioz, the
10" ...Mr Felis. qui, en vertu des principes infaillibles de l'ecole a laquelle il appartient,
avait accuse Paganini de charlatanisme, vient, loujours en verlu des memes principes, de Ie
proclamer un grand violonisle" 1mbert de Laphaleque, G. Notice sur Ie celebre vjo!jnjsle
Nicolo Paganjni, Paris E.GuyOI,1830, p.61.
n"Die Nummer halte ich iibrigens fur besonders schon und zart und sie allein fur
hinreichend, Paganini eine erste Stelle unter den neueren ilalienischen Komponisten zu
sichem." Schumann, Robert. Gesammelte Scltriften fiber Musik pud Musiker Berlin:
Wegweiser Verlag, 1922, p.165.
12Sp ohr, Louis. Letter to W. Speyer, June 5, 1830 (quoted by de Courcy, vol. I, p.392).
13"Ich habe niemand besser, aber auch zuzeiten niemand schlechter spielen genort als
Paganini..." Heine, Heinrich. Siimtlicbe Scbrif\en, Munich: Carl Hanser Verlag, 1979,

'f

author of the Traite d'Instrumentation, maintained that:

"It would take a book to enumerate all the new effeets that Paganini has found in his works, the

ingenious devices, the grand and noble forms, the orchestral combinations never, before him,
employed or dreamed of... His harmony is always clear and of extraordinary sonority" 14
[trl.PXBl
Yet, quite the opposite view is held by the musicologist Leon Plantiga who
patronizingly describes Paganini concertos as being "decidedly pedestrian in
harmony

and

instrumentation".15

A recent article in

La Nazione was

dedicated to the memory of the great Italian violinist Gioconda di Vito 16 who
died last October in Rome.

For her, Paganini was not an interpreter but a

"Interprete? Paganini non fu un interprete. Fu un creatore come tutti

i grandissimi".l7 Gioconda de Vito was introduced to the Caprices by her
creator:

teacher Remy Principe who required all his advanced students to study and
master them.

In Paganini, Principe wrote, the technique of the violin has

reached its highest point. 18 His students were reminded that the word
technique came from the Greek

TixYT)

which signifies art.

To understand

Paganini musical message, Federico Mompellio writes, one should first

concentrate on the study of the Caprices, which were dedicated to the "Artists":
"In Paganini, one now wants to find the authentic figure of the musician. In such research,
the Caprices could be of safe reference value in reaching meditated conclusions. With such
work, the author is already well worthy of appearing in the musical Pamassus..."19

vol.V, p. 437 (Lutelia).

14"nfaudrait ecrire un volume pour indiquer tout ce que Paganini a trouve dans ses oeuvres
d'effets nouveaux, de precedes Ingenieux, de formesnobleset grandioses, de combinaisons
d'orchestre qu'on ne soupconnait meme pas avant lui. Sa rnelodie est la grande melodie
italienne, mais fremissant d'une ardeur plus passionee en general que cellequ'on trouve dans
les plus belles pages des compositeursdramatiques de son pays. Sonharmonie est toujours
claire et d'une sonorite extraordinaire." Berlioz, Hector. Les Soirees de l'Orchestre, as

quoted by P. Berri, Paganinj la yjta e Ie opere. Milan: Bompiani, 1982, p.46.

15Plantinga, Leon. Romantic Music. New-York: W.w.Norton, 1984, p. 177.
16De Vito, Gioconda. (1907- October 1994) (e-Principe).
17Persone Luigi "Si e spenta aRoma Gioconda de Vito" (Obituary) in: La Nazione of 19
October, 1994.
18"La teenica vio!inistica tocca con Paganini Ie massime possibilita . Tullo quello che e
stato fatto dopo nulla aggiunge di nuovo in fallo di tecnica pura". Principe, Remy. n YioUno.
Manuale dj cultura e didattica yiolonistjca. Milan: Curci, pp.185-186.
19Mompellio, Federico (editor). Facsimile of the manuscript of Paganini's 24 Caprices.
Milan:Ricordi, 1974, introduction.

Qrigin of the Caprices

There is still a good deal of confusion regarding the exact date of composition
of the Caprices and many hypotheses have been formulated. The fact that
Paganini's correspondence does not contain any mention of the Caprices until
1836 adds to the mystery which surrounds their origin. It might be opportune
to remember here Karol Lipinski's statement concerning the Caprices. The
Polish violinist, who met with Paganini in Piacenza in 1818, told Schumann
that the Caprices were originally written as gifts for friends. He said that later,
when Giovanni Ricordi requested them for publication, Paganini
reconstructed them from memory "in a great hurry and frenzy".l However,
such an assumption has been defined as improbable by several musicologists,
including Edward Neill. Among the reasons invoked, is the fact that Lipinski,
when writing his recollections of Paganini, confused places, dates and facts. 2
Besides, there is no trace left of any copy of the Caprices prior to the
manuscript handed in to Giovanni Ricordi (still in the possession of the
Ricordi Publishing House, Milan).

Another reason is given by Edward Neill,

in the general introduction to his Urtext edition of the Caprices. The Genoabased musicologist convincingly points out that the study. of the manuscript
owned by Ricordi irresistibly suggests an integrated collection linked "by a
remarkable thread of continuity" rather than a grouping of pieces written in
different places and at different times.3 However, there could well be a grain
of truth in Lipinski's statement, and the hypothesis that Paganini could have
specifically designated friends and fellow-violinists as dedicatees of one or
1$ee: Schumann, Robert, Gesammelte Schriften jiber Musik und Musiker. Berlin: Wegweiser
Verlag, 1922, p.l64 , note . See also infra, pp. 57-58. From a letter that Paganini wrote to
L.G. Germi (1st July 1818) it appears that Lipinski often played with him (in particular the
quartets with guitar). .Lipinski may well have had the opportunity to glance through
Paganini's music and manuscripts : "Un certo Lipinski polacca, professore di tnolino, venne

dalla Polonia in Italia espressamente per sentirmi; mi ritroviJ a Piacenza e stava quasi sempre
can me, adorandomi. La stesso ha eseguiti il Quartetto di Carreg, della Raggi, e di Germi
perfettissimamente bene; ora se ne ritorna in Polonia per studiare qualche anna suI mio genere e
dice di non volere sentire nessun allro prcfessore di tale strumento." (PE 19) "A certain
Lipinski, a Pole, professor of the violin, came to Italy from Poland expressly to hear me ...He
met with me in Piacenza and hardly ever left my side; he adores me. He played the Carrega,
the Raggi, and the Germi Quartets extremely well ...Now he is returning to Poland to study my
method and he says he never wants to hear another professor of this instrument:' [trl.PXBI
2Neill, Edward. Conversations with Ph. Borer, Genoa, May 1989.
3Paganini, Niccolo, Caprice; op.l. ed. by Edward Neill and Salvatore Accardo, MIlan:
Ricordi, 1988, pp. ill and VIT.

another of his Caprices cannot be entirely discarded.s The only certitude

concerning the date of composition of the Caprices is the terminus ad quem:
upon receipt of the manuscript, Signor Tomaso, an employee of the firm
Ricordi, entered the date of 24 November 1817 (the inscription appears on the
bottom left-hand comer of the title-page and reads:

sr Tomaso, Ii 24 9bre

1817). As for the terminus a quo, different dates have been suggested, but all

remain speculative. The earliest date proposed originates from Paganini's

declaration to Lichtenthal that, upon his return to Genoa in 1796, "he
composed difficult music and worked continuously at difficult problems of his
own invention.f

The slightly later date of 1799-1800 is suggested by

I.M.Yampolski, who attributes Paganini's initial inspiration to his discovery of

Locatelli's music at the library of Marquis Di Negro, and to the concomitant
influence of the "heroic and rebellious spirit of the Risorgimento period"."
In 1799, life in Genoa had become precarious. As a consequence of the British

blockade, the arrival of grain was uncertain and irregular, bringing the threat
of famine and epidemic. The situation prompted the Paganini family to move
to San Biagio in the Polcevera Valley (San Quirico) where they had a country
property. This stay may have provided Paganini with the calm needed to
write important compositions. According to Yampolski, the young violinist
also made furtive trips to Genoa at night, where
"he studied till dawn the works of Corelli, Vivaldi, Tartini, Locatelli and other masters of the
ancient Italian School in the library of the palazzo of his protector, Marquis Di Negro".7
[trl. I. Kortchnoi]

While retaining the idea that the Caprices could have been sketched during
the stay at Romairone, the biographer Claudio Casini is inclined to think that
4see Chapter II: Rosenthal's "intriguing" copy of the Caprices.
5Autobiography, AMZ, May 1830, NOZO, p. 325.
6Mostras, Konstantin G. 24 Kaprisa dla skripk; solo N Paganini, Moscow: Gosudarstvennoe
Muzikal'noe Izdatel'stvo 1959, preface by I.M. Yampolski, p. 5.
7'TIo H04aM. TatlKoM OT orne, llaraHl-IHH npogapaaca 9 feHYIO. 3TH onacasre noe3.QKH B

paar-ap soeaxsrx
HM

.lletlcTBHA.Kor.n;a era MOrJ1H npWHSlTb aa SpaJKeCKoroJta3yTQHXa,

coaepmanxcs

co CMeJlOCTbIO Kap6oHapH.sl. 3,l1eCb. B naaauuo era nOKpOBHTeJlSl MapKH3a. lIH Herpo, B

eorarcn MY3blKaJIbHOff 6w6JlMOTeKe, llaraHHHH vacro npOCU'fmSaJI..Qo paccae-ra Haft

npOH3SelleHHRMItl KOpeJlJu.1.. BHBa.JIbllH. Taprnaa, JIoKaTeJtJlJ.1.. H npyr-ax MaCTepOB crapoa

Mostras, Konstantin, op.cit., p.8 (I.M. Yampolski's

preface). Yarnpolski's arresting hypothesis is examined in Chapter 3.

>tTaJlbSlHCKO'l CKp>tn>tQHo'l mxoasr."

they must have been written over a considerable period of time. s Another
hypothesis is that Paganini worked on a final version of the Caprices after
leaving the court of Lucca, sometime between 1812 and 1817. The prospect of a
potential income from royalties may have prompted him to elaborate existing
material into an organic, publishable collection. There is also Edward Neill's
suggestion that the Caprices probably followed the Three String Quartets [M.S.
20) dated 1815, and were, therefore probably written around 1816.9 Be that as
it may, Paganini's decision to publish the Caprices was, to a significant extent, a

strategic one: he had long been planning a great tour of Europe and intended
the Caprices to be his musical visiting card. Acting as his own impresario and an able one - he wanted the publication to coincide with his debut
abroad.l"
Mettemich's violin
Paganini saw a real possibility of putting his plan into effect during a stay in
Rome,where he had been invited to play at two official functions given in
honour of the Austrian Emperor (Teatro Tordinone, 20 April and 4 May 1819).
The day before the first performance, obviously pleased by the fee offered, he
wrote to Germi:
"Tomorrow evening this government will give a function in honour of His Majesty at the
Tordidone (or Apollo's) Theatre. There will be illumination a giomo and a concert of Paganini.
1 shall give another concert in a fortnight. The fee for these concerts has already been fixed at
2500 Scudi Colonnati which 1 shall remit to Chevalier Carli of Milano, so that he can add them
to the 22.000 Milanese liras he holds already." 11 [ttl. PXB]

Prince Kaunitz von Rittenberg, Austrian ambassador to the Holy See, was very
impressed by Paganini's performance and immediately engaged him to play at
8Casini, Claudio, PaganjnL Milan: Electa, 1982, p.62.
9"...collocabile intorno al 1816". Paganini, Niccolo. Capricej op,l. ed. by Edward Neill and
Salvatore Accardo, Milan: Ricordi, 1988, p. III.
IThis might account for the difference between the date of receipt by Ricordi and the actual
date of publication which seems to have been "manipulated" by Paganini.
lI"Domani sera questo Governo dara un trattenimento a S.M. nel Teatro Tordinone 0 d'Appolo
con illuminazione a giorno e un'Accademia di Paganini: una seconda ne devo dare nella seconda
settimana entrante. n prodotto di queste Accademie e gia fissato in Scudi Colonnati 2500,i
quali rirnettero al Cav. Carli di Milano, perche li aggiunga aile 22 mila lire milanesi che
tiene[...J" (PE 38).

10

a private reception, this time in honour of both the Emperor and Metternich.
A first-hand description of this soiree, written by August Kestner, has escaped
the attention of Paganini's biographers. It suggests that, one year before the
publication of the Caprices, the 37 years old violinist was still comparatively
little known:
"By virtue of this experience, I am trying to illustrate the emotional state that affected me
when I first heard the violinist Paganini, a stirring of emotions the like of which I have never
experienced before or after in my life. It was in 1819 in Rome at a soiree given by Prince Kaunitz
in honour of the Emperor Franz. The violinist, who was later the object of admiration, appeared
here as a hitherto unknown newcomer. His name was only mentioned as a talent that had
recently appeared. He began with a violin concerto by Rode in C (or D) minor."12 [tr!.PXB]

Metternich, suffering from a passing indisposition, did not attend the

reception, but his daughter, Countess Esterhazy, gave such an enthusiastic
description of Paganini's performance that the next morning, notwithstanding
his condition, Metternich sent for Paganini. The Maestro soon arrived, but
without his instrument, making it clear that he was responding to a flattering
invitation, not to a summons to perform. However, feeling immediately at
ease with the great diplomat and succumbing to Princess Esterhazy's charm
and gracious compliments, he spontaneously seized Metternich's violin and
played for his hosts. Metternich's enthusiasm knew no bounds. He invited
Paganini to join an informal gathering of members of the Emperor's
entourage the same evening, and was insistent that he go abroad and play in
Vienna.l-' Seeing now the opportunity to embark on a concert tour with the
12"Durch diese Erfahrung erlautere ich die Gemiithsverfassung, in die ich gerieth, a1s ich zurn
ersten Male den Violinspieler Paganini harte, eine Gemiithsaufregung, deren Aehnliches ich
weder vorher, noch nachher in meinem Leben erfahren habe. Es war im Jahre 1819 in Rom beim
Fiirsten Kaunitz in einer Soiree, dem Kaiser Franz zu Ehren. Der in spaterer Zeit bewunderte
Violinspieler trat hier als ein noch unbekannter Ankommling auf; nur als ein so eben
erschienenes Talent wurde sein Name genannt. Er begann mit einem Violin-Concert von Rohde
[sic] aus dem c (oder d) Moll [...] "Kestner, August, Romische Studien. Berlin: Verlag der
Deckerschen Geheimen Ober-Hofbuchdruckerei,1850, p. 34. Kestner, councillor of the Hannover
legation, and vice-president of the Archeological Society in Rome and art researcher, attended
several of Paganini's concerts. An entire chapter of his Romjsche Studjen is devoted to
Paganini. Observations of extraordinary interest are found on pp. 46-47 and will be examined in
due course. (Kestner's father and mother -J.G.c. Kestner and Charlotte Buff - were the models
for Albert and Lotte in Goethe's Werther).
13 See: "Autobiografia di Paganini" in: AlllUlnacco Musicale, Storico e Umoristico, Milan:
Tito Ricordi, 1853.

11

advantage of prestigious recommendations, Paganini promised Metternich

that he would give the Viennese the privilege of his first concerts outside Italy.
Several Italian commentators have disapproved of Paganini's promise,
interpreting it as "a mark of subservience to the conquistadors and spoilers of
his country".14

However, Geraldine de Courcy shrewdly remarks that

Paganini, with his modest family background "was first of all a plebeian and
had none of the aristocrat's fierce pride before the conqueror".15 Paganini
may be accused of calculating self-interest, but one can safely assume that his
musical preoccupations had precedence over the political. The complexity of
the two men's personalities must also be taken into account: Metternich, the
powerful statesman, was also an able violinist who often played at soirees with
Vienna's best musicians.I? There is no doubt that between Metternich and
Paganini there existed a genuine sharing of interest and a mutual esteem
which transcended personal or political considerations.

Milan. 1820: publication of the Caprices

The publication of the first edition of the Caprices by Giovanni Ricordi 17 in
1820 created a sensation. The success was immediate and copies spread rapidly
from Milan throughout Europe. 18 Contemporary virtuosos were stimulated

to emulation, trying to find the key to these musical enigmas. Many (and not
just the lesser ones) capitulated, with the excuse that Paganini had written
140e Conrey, Geraldine. Paganini the Geooese, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1957,
vol.I, p.194.
15'1b'd
1 .
16At the Congress of Vienna, Mettemich conducted the orchestra in concertos and symphonies,
and successfully held his part in a string quartet.
17Ricordi, Giovanni (1785-1853), Italian music publisher. Trained as a violinist, he was for
some time leader of the orchestra of the Fiando Theatre in Milan. Around 1804 he started a
copisteria beneath the portico of the Palazzo della Ragione. In 1807, he spent several months
in Leipzig studying the techniques of Breitkopf & Hartel and, after returning to Milan, on 16
January 1808, he formed a publishing partnership with the engraver and music seller Felice
Festa. Their first, and probably only joint publication, was a duet from Farinelli's Calliroe.
The partnership was terminated on 26 June 1808,and about the same time Ricordi took a shop at
4068 Contrada di Pescaria Vecchia, from which address his plate number 1 ( Antonio Nava's 1&
Ouattro Stagionj) was issued: the firm RICORDI was founded. The firm's earliest editions
were printed from engraved plates, and this remained the normal practice until the 1870's,
when chromolithographic and offset processes were introduced.
18They soon became available in Norway where the eleven year old Ole Bull obtained a copy
of them.

12

unplayable music. In Paris, Habeneck attempted to play them but finally laid
down his bow. 19 Even Baillot was frightened: the great violinist is said to
have exclaimed: "Omnes uulnerani, ultimus necai!" Others saw, beyond the
technical challenge, new musical horizons to explore, and their artistic
pursuits were given a fresh impulse. All things considered, the publication
had fulfilled its purpose. In addition to the dithyrambic concert reports by
travellers and foreign correspondents in Italy, there were now lively
discussions about the 24 Caprices.

Europe was ready to hear the Italian

virtuoso. But illness struck, upsetting Paganini's plans. Professor Borda-",

one of Italy's foremost physicians, suspected syphilis and applied a treatment
which was then classical. But the mercury and the opium prescribed in dosi
micidiali21 (Paganini's words) had a disastrous effect on him:
"Fortunate is he who can depart for the other world without depending upon doctors. 1 am alive
by pure miracle. An American doctor has saved me. He says that Borda has tried the mercury
and the five bleedings just to find out what was causing my cough. Now, 1 am asking if tests of
this sort should be made just as an experiment as if 1 were Simply a body sold to him...
Eventually, he gave me opium in large quantities and though this relieved my cough a little, 1
found myself deprived of all my faculties...22 [trl. PXBl

For a long period, Paganini had to suspend all concert activities and eight years
were to pass before he could consider carrying out his old project. In the
meantime, the novelty of the- Caprices, far from having waned, had
increasingly aroused the interest of musicians in Europe, and his concert
appearances abroad were awaited with ever-increasing impatience.
19See: Felis, F.J., Biographical Notice of Nicola Paganini , London: Schott, 1852, p.79.
20Siro Borda (1761-1825), Professor of medicine at the University of Pavia. Used bleedings for
diagnostic purposes as did all the followers of the theory of the counterstimulants whose motto
proclaimed: ex juvantibus et nocentibus, 'from what helps and what harms' (details kindly
given by Dr D. Thiebaud of Lausanne).
21"in murderous doses"
22"Fortunato a chi vien dato di partire per l'altro mondo senza dipendere dai medici. 10 sono
vivo per un vero miracolo. Un medico americano rni ha salvato. Borda, al suo dire, tento la cura
mercuriale , quanto li cinque emissioni di sangue, me Ie ha ordinate per indagare la causa della
tosse. Ora dirnando se per sola indagine si debba fare tali prove, come a un corpo a lui
venduto...In ultimo rni dava dell'oppio in quantita: e questo assopendo alquanto la tosse, rni
trovai privo di tutte Ie facolta.,." (PE 68)

13

Vienna 1828: first cQncerts Qutside Italy

It was in Vienna, to keep the promise made to Metternich, that Paganini, aged

46, inaugurated his grand European tour, There he gave a total of 14 concerts,

assisted by an orchestra of the first order (conducted by Hildenbrand,

Schuppanzigh and Fradl). Vienna's best-known violinists congregated for the
opening concert: Benesch, Bohm, Jansa, Mayseder, Slavik, Saint-Lubin, Panny,
Ernst, all anxious to form an estimate of what the author Qf the Caprices was
really capable of.

Also present were Franz Grillparzer, who drew inspiratiQn,

for Qne of his most astonishing pQems;23 Franz Schubert who, in the Adagio,
"heard the singing Qf an angel";24 the Duke of Reichstadt, accompanied by his
tutor, Maurice Dietrichstein. 25 The success was colossal: the Emperor
bestowed on Paganini the honorary title of Chamber Virtuoso, the city of
Vienna presented him with the medal of S.Salvator (in recompense for a
. charity concert he gave for the benefit of St Mark's Almshouses) as well as a
silver medal especially created in his honour, with the motto "Perituris sonis

non peritura gloria".26 This medal, engraved by Joseph Lang, is of particular

interest because Paganini's "transitional" bow and Guarneri del Gesu violin
are represented on one of its sides. In addition to the great concerts with
orchestra, Paganini played at the reception given on the occasion of
Metternich's 55th birthday. It is quite significant that the impact of his playing
was not in any way lessened in that sort of context.

Adverse acoustic

conditions, absence of accompaniment (orchestra or piano) etc., did not

seemed to affect him in any way. On the contrary, it was in intimate circles
that the magnetism of his artistic personality and playing seem to have
produced its most powerful effect, especially on young musicians (notably
Thalberg, Chopin and Liszt).
23Du wiirst ein Morder nicht? Selbstmorder du! Was offnest du des Busens sichres Haus. Und
stiiftt sie aus, die unverhiillte Seele / Und stellst sie hin, den Gaffern eine Lust? Fiihrst mit dem
Dolch nach ihr und triffst; Und weinst und klagst darob / Und ziihlst mit Triinen ihre blui'gen
Tropfen? Drauf hohnst du sie und dich / Aufjubelnd laut in gellendem Geliichter. Du nicht ein
Morder? Freoler du am [chi Des eignen Leibs, der eignen Seele Morder; Und auch der meine doch ich weich'dir aus! Grillparzer, Franz. PAGAN1NL Adagio und Rondo auf der G-Saite
[1828], in: Gedichte und Erzahlungen. Wien: Rudolf M. Rohrer Verlag, 1948, p.120.
24See: O.E.Deutsch (editor) Schubert. Die Erinnerungen seiner Freunde Leipzig, 1957, p.158.
25Dietrichstein helped Paganini in the organisation of the concerts (See Chapter 4).
26"With sounds doomed 10 perish. imperishable glory"

14

The impact of Paganini's playing

1. Vienna 1828: Paganini and Thalberg
The 16 year old Sigismond Thalberg (Liszt's future rival) not only attended
Mettemich's birthday party on May 15, but his name figured next to Paganini's
on the musical program prepared by Marie Antoinette Leykam, the 55 year old
Prince's young wife:
"She had prepared several surprises, though they were not all equally successful. First came a
short concert, Paganini playing for the first time at a private party. Everyone was extremely
eager to see this strange figure and hear his demonic playing at close quarters...Before he
appeared, Maurice Dietrichstein led a blond young man to the pianoforte, but just as he began to
play, refreshments were passed round which distracted the attention of the company. Suddenly
Dietrichstein called out angrily: 'Stop playing! Nobody is listening to you!' And it took a great
deal of coaxing before the young man could be persuaded to resume the interrupted sonata. This
embryo virtuoso was ...Thalberg! Paganini then followed with Le Streghe..,',l [trl. de Courcy]

The familiar apostrophe "Stop playing! Nobody is listening to you!" is better

understood if one knows that Thalberg was in fact Dietrichstein's (illegitimate)
son. 2 Sigismond Thalberg, who was born at the Paquis near Geneva on 8
January 1812, had studied composition with Sechter in Vienna and piano with
Hummel. His encounter with Paganini had profound repercussions on his
development as a virtuoso pianist. He was particularly impressed by the way
Paganini created the illusion of several instruments.
arpeggios in the Caprice Nel
on the young pianist.

COT

In particular, the

pii: non mi sento exerted a real fascination

He committed himself to the task of adapting this

procedure for the piano and perfected a technique which made him famous:
he had the idea of bringing out the melody with the thumbs, in the middle
register, and surrounding it with sweeping arpeggios, thus creating the
illusion of three hands. He employed this technique with extraordinary effect
in his Priere de MoYse:
1Andlaw, Franz Freiherr von. Moin Tagebuch, Frankfurt, 1862. Quoted by de Conrey, in her
own English translation (op. cit., vall, p. 273-74).
2It is supposed that Thalberg's mother was the Baroness von Weltzar, a pianist.
Dietrichstein made arrangements with a certain Joseph Thalberg from Frankfurt who
temporarily assumed the paternity. But as soon as circumstances became favourable, he took his
son back with him to Vienna.

15

Andante
1

Z5

(ca. byP.X.B.)

This piece won universal acclaim and even Berlioz, who otherwise showed
little interest in piano, admired it without reservation. Franz Liszt saw in
Thalberg a dangerous rival and did not spare him attacks and criticisms. But,
commenting on the Priere de MOIse - and tracing the origin of its inspiration he said:
"Thalberg is the only man who plays the violin on the piano."3

This penetrating remark was an indirect allusion to Paganini's influence

which can be traced in other works, such as the God save the King, and the
Caprices op.15/19. There is also his late treatise L'Art du Chant applique au
Piano. an attempt at applying the principles of bel canto to piano playing, with
special consideration given to prosody and articulation. The concept of the

"suonare par/ante" is discussed. The far-reaching influence of Paganini can

be felt in the present-day Neapolitan school of piano playing of which
Thalberg, who settled in Posilippo in 1858, is considered the founder.s This
can be verified by establishing the following teacher-pupil "genealogical trees":
Yincenze Vitale (c-Sigismondc Cesi >Beniamino Cesi >Sigismond Thalberg)
was, in tum, the teacher of Michele Campanella, Bruno Canino and Riccardo
Muti. 5 The musical ascendency of Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli can also be
traced back to Thalberg (e-Anfossi >Martucci >Cesi >Thalberg).6
3Quoted by Walker, Alan (ed.), Franz us.t The Man & his Musk. London: Barrie & Jenkins,
1976, p. 56.
4See: Vitale, Vincenze. "Sigismondo Thalberg a Posilippo" in: Nuova Rivista di Musica
Italiana, vol.VI, (1972),p.s03.
5Vincenzo Vitale also studied with Florestano Rossomandi (>Beniamino Cesi
>SigismondThalberg).
6Data kindly confirmed by MO L. Stocchino, Rome.

16

2. Warsaw, 1829: Paganini and Chopin

Paganini went to Warsaw to give one or two concerts, and eventually stayed to
give ten. He had been invited there to perform at the festivities held on the
occasion of Nicholas I's coronation as King of Poland. Most of these concerts
took place at the National Theatre with Karol Lipinski leading the orchestra.
Paganini also played at the royal palace for the Czar, after the coronation
ceremony at the cathedral (24 May 1829). The Emperor of all the Russias
presented him with a diamond ring and invited him to play in St.Petersburg.
The concerts held at the National Theatre were distinguished by the presence
of Frederic Chopin in the audience, The impressions made upon the young
pianist were deep and lasting; to the end of his life Chopin spoke with
enthusiasm of Paganini's playing in Warsaw, which he described as "absolute

perfecnon.l As a token of admiration, he wrote a set of variations for piano

solo entitled Souvenir de Paganinj

II

;2

,,-....

II noderato

"

ff

..
:;i
~

i
~.

.,,-,

F Chopin (Souvonir d. Paganini)

(od.by P

IL

~.

1.1.

~.

1.1.1

...

t.

X.B)

IL

- ..
1.10

Inspired by Paganini's famous variations on the "Camaval de Venise", the

Souvenir de Paganjni is written over an ostinato bass in 6/8 quavers, and
continues throughout in the same mood, with an elaborate and brilliant
writing for the right hand. The atmosphere is that of a real Gondoliera.r
1"La perfection mime" (Correspondence, 1830) [Letter to his parents]
2Written in 1829, just after Paganini's concerts, it was not published till 1872 (in the
supplement of the journal "WARSAW ECHO MUSYCHNE")
3 Theophile Gautier, like Chopin, was inspired by Paganini's treatment of the theme. Here
is a passage of his poem variations sur Ie Camaya! de venise :" Paganini Ie fantastique / Un
soir, comme avec un crochet / A ramasse Ie theme antique / Du bout de son divin archei."
(t:maux et Camees)

17

Although very seldom performed, it is one of Chopin's most poetical early

compositions.

It finds an echo in later works like the Berceuse. the 13th

Prelude and, indeed, the famous Barcarolle op.60, in which the same rhythm
is employed in a most evocative way:4

P Chopin (Berceuse op 57)

An d an t e

~~

~ ~

~! $~$
Il JI

i:

L...I..

t ..

P Chopin (Barcarolle op 60)

eOJlltJlih
X~

u Allegretto

Ifcl4:1:1

'"

..

p-

tJ
"T'1

:gr"'T"'l

..

.. ~ E~

r"'T"'l

..l

(ed.'bY'PXB)

It has often been said that the Etudes op.10, like the Souvenir de Paganini.

were written under the immediate influence of Paganini's playing. There is

no doubt today that several of these studies were already composed in 1829.
But there is also evidence to suggest that Chopin knew the Caprices (which
were available from the library of the Warsaw Conservatoire) well before
Paganini's visit to Poland.

[ozeph Elsner, Chopin's teacher at the

Conservatoire, was - as paradoxical as it may seem - a violinist, not a pianist. S

Being a friend of Ferdinando Paer (Paganini composition's teacher)6 and a
declared admirer of his School, Elsner. kept well informed of Italy's latest
4The characteristic rhythm of the barcarolle which so appealed to Chopin appears in three
of Paganini's Caprices ( 2, 7, and IS).
SKsawery J6zef [ozeph Elsner (1769-1854), in tum first violin in Brno, and then conductor at
Lw6w, (Lenberg) before becoming director of the Opera and subsequently of the Conservatoire,
in Warsaw. Wrote twenty-three operas, masses symphonies, etc...
6Ferdinando Paer (1771-1839) was, before Rossini's advent, one of the leading representatives
of the Italian operatic school, "an admirable craftsman with a pronounced lyrical gift". As a
teacher of counterpoint and composition, he had a number of successful students (notably Liszt
and Paganini).

18

musical events, and there is little doubt that he would have discussed the
merits of Paganini's 24 Caprices with his students.

Chopin's early

acquaintance with Paganini's compositional style may well explain his

extraordinary receptivity to the live performances, which were, in the words of
Camille Bourniquel, "l'etincelle aux poudres", There is also the fact that
Elsner, in his capacity as Director of the Warsaw Conservatorium, organised a
personal meeting with Paganini for some of his most promising students
(including the violin prodigy Apollinaire de Kontzki and Frederic Chopin)
and one can safely assume that instrumental and compositional matters were
at the centre of the debate?

Be that as it may, Chopin's 24 Etudes were to

become the Magna Carta of Romantic piano technique just as Paganini's b.1
Caprices had become the "New Testament of violinists".

One can find here a

truly striking parallel: the same highly individual approach to instrumental

playing, the same way of "exorcising difficulty by difficulty itself' and, above
all, the shared aspiration to a fusion of bravura technique and poetic
expression. In his incisive and well-documented book on Chopin, Camille
Boumiquel outlines Paganini's influence:
"It is always difficult to talk of the 'novelty' of a work, and to know how the public of the time

'heard' it.
Beethoven's last sonatas opened a breach in traditional technique; but with
Beethoven it was still 'the orchestra at the piano, rather than a new virtuosity'. The necessary
rupture was, in fact, caused by a young Polish pianist who emerged fully armed from Minerva's
head.
Paganini's concerts in Warsaw had set the first spark to the powder. For Chopin,
Paganini was not a kind of a meteoric Kreisler as conceived in the imagination of Hoffmann, but
a genius completely identified with his instrument. What Paganini had been for the violin,
Chopin was to become for the piano, Whoever speaks of magic, speaks the right formula ;
Paganini is, then, the key to this transcendent universe. His virtuosity seems to make light of
difficulties and exaggerated concern for style; it is the conquest of a new dimension - space. It is .
claimed that the first Etudes were written as a result of this shock. They are, indeed, a miracle
of precocity, but even more the passion of the apprentice who wants to know how far he can
go.',a [ttl. PXBj

7Paganini carefully noted in his Libra Rosso: "M. Chopin, giovine pianista".
SCamille Bourniquel, Chopin. Paris: Editions du Seuil, 1957, pp.162-163: "Il est toujours
difficile de parler de la "nouveaute" d'une ceuvre, et de savoir comment cel1e-ci a ete "entendue"
par 105 contemporains. Les demieres sonates de Beethoven ouvrent une breche dans la technique
traditionelle; mais Beethoven c'est encore "l'orchestre au piano, plutot qu'une virtuosite
nouvelle" (L. Aguettant). Ce necessaire eclatement sera done I'ceuvre du jeune pianiste polonais
sorti tout anne de la tete de Minerve. Les concerts de Paganini 11 Varsovie ont ete l'etincelle aux

19

Much would be gained from a comparative analysis of the Caprices and the
Etudes. However, it must be made clear that Chopin did not take the Caprices
as models in the narrow sense of the term. The idea of imitation was alien to
Chopin's independent mind and T.S. Eliot's suggestion that influence
"introduces one to oneself" seems to perfectly illustrate the case.? It would be
difficult, for example, to isolate individual aspects of Chopin's playing that
could be directly attributed to Paganini's influence. In this, Chopin differed
from Thalberg, Schumann and Liszt, who attempted to reproduce (at times
almost literally) the effects that Paganini was achieving on his violin. The
impact of the Caprices, in Chopin's case, was of a wider inspirational order.
They were a liberating influence, not a constraining model.

Chopin

considered the standard books of exercises by Czerny and Cramer to be

outdated: what he had in mind was a sort of fusion of bravura technique and
poetic expression which would not sacrifice formal clarity. Paganini offered
him evidence of the feasibility of such a project and gave him confidence in
his own powers. He learned from the Caprices that freedom of expression was
perfectly compatible with formal perfection and unity. Virtuosity was the very
tool he needed to accommodate all his musical ideas within a short "discourse
space". He soon found how to integrate his own striking pianistic innovations
within the concise, well-defined structure of an Etude;lO While retaining a
high degree of formal finish, Chopin's music possesses all the freedom of
Romantic music.
poudres. Chopin ne retiendra pas l'image meteorique d'une sorte de Kreisler ne de l'imagination
d'Hoffmann, mais celle d'un genie totalement identifie avec son instrument. Chopin sera pour Ie
piano ce que Paganini a ete pour Ie violon. Qui dit magie, dit formule: Paganini est done la clef
de cet univers transcendant. Chez lui la virtuosite semble se moquer de la difficulte et de
l'hyperbole du style, elle est conquete de l'espace, dimension nouvelle. On veut que les
premieres Etudes aient ete composees sous le choc ainsi eprouve. Miracle de la precocite, mais
plus encore passion de l'apprenti qui veut savoir jusqu'ou va Ie possible."
9Eliot, T.5. To criticize the critic, London: Faber & Faber and Valerie Eliot,1965, p. 22.
("...that intense excitement and sense of enlargement and liberation which comes from a
discovery which is also a discovery of oneself: but that is an experience which can only happen
once.")
lOtike the Caprices, many of the Chopin Etudes are based on the song form (A-B-A) with the
middle section containing a development of the principal section. As in the Caprices ( and as in
his own later Preludes), a single idea is carried through to the end, and all its potentialities are
explored.

20

The "Italianism" of Chopin

"This great Slav, Italian by education...", Maurice Ravel wrote of Chopin. This
definition raises the question of the sources of Chopin's cultural and musical
affinities. What can explain the extraordinary receptivity of the Polish pianist
to Paganini's compositions? What was the role of Italian music in Chopin's
early musical training? It is a fact that the influence of Italy had always been
noticeable in the domain of the arts in Poland-J and that, in the 1820's, Italian
opera was very much in vogue in Warsaw. His natural inclination for Italian
music was strongly encouraged by his teacher [ozef Elsner, a fervent admirer of
Paer and his operatic School.

Elsner had been awaiting with impatience the arrival of Paganini (Paer's
illustrious pupil) and did everything to make him feel at home. A warm
friendship ensued and Paganini showed his gratitude by writing the Suonata
Varsavia for violin and orchestra, a set of variations on a mazurka theme by
Elsner himse1f: 12

~
(ThtllU by J. Elslltr)

The Introduction comprises two original melodic episodes, the second of

which has been defined as "of compelling, priceless, almost Chopinian
lyricism":13
N. Paganini (9.Jonata Varsava)

.~

11The Jagellon and Saxon kings called in many artists and architects from Italy.
12 From the opera Krol Lokietek czyli Wisliczanki [King Lokietek, or the women of Wislica]

(1818).
13"d'una struggente, impagabile cantabilita quasi chopiniana." A. Cantu / D. Prefumo,1&
Opere dj Pagaojnj, Genoa, SAGEP, 1982, p.174.

21

As already mentioned, Elsner arranged for Chopin and a few other students to
meet with Paganini at the Conservatoire. Two years later, when Chopin went
to Paris, he immediately made contact with Paer and Rossini who welcomed
him on the grounds of Elsner's recommendation and Paganini's appreciation,
and he soon became an habitue of the Theiitre des Italiens.

Later in life, on

his return from Majorca, Chopin stayed briefly in Genoa (1839).14

Reminiscences of the Paganini concerts came back and his interest in Italian
traditional music was renewed.

Two forms particularly attracted him - the

South Italian tarantella and the Venetian barcarola. Two important works
resulted, the Tarantella in Ab, Op.43 and the Barcarolle in F#,op.60, in which
the suggestive rhythm of the early Souvenir de Paganinj reappears with a
touch of nostalgia:

P. Chopin (B arcarolle op. 60)

Allegretto

bars 45

14He also spent some weeks in Marseilles. Paganini, very ill, was at about the same time
travelling from Marseilles to Genoa (September 1839). It is possible that the two great artists
had then an opportunity to meet for the last time.

22

3. Frankfurt 1830, Paganini and Schumann

On Easter Sunday 1830, Schumann, at that time a law-student at Heidelberg

University, went to Frankfurt to hear Paganini. He had long looked forward
to attending a concert of the artist who was

50

highly regarded by his piano

teacher, Friedrich Wieck.! The year before (October 1829), Wieck,

accompanied by his 10 year old daughter Clara, had visited Paganini in Leipzig:
"I had to play my Polonaise in E flat on an old piano with black keys that some student had left
behind [Clara Wieck wrote]. Paganini was immensely pleased, father telling him meanwhile
that I have a bent for music because I have feeling. sensitivity. He at once gave us permission to
attend all his rehearsals, which we did.,,2 [trl. de Courey]

Paganini became fond of young Clara and wrote in her autograph book a
chromatic scale for piano harmonised in contrary motion, which she kept and
valued till the end of her life:3

II

Al merito singotare di madamigella Clara

Wieck
Oil
1

l~ ..
ldipl1:lc.

"

""!'XBl

..

"

~"

114-

.Q.

N.Paganini
..:3~

I"

[Sachsische LandesbibliothekDresden, Mus. Schul 223]

Friedrich Wieck's impression was that "no singer had ever moved him
deeply as an Adagio played by Paganini",

50

Schumann therefore arrived in

Frankfurt with understandably high expectations. However he was

1Friedrich Wieck (1785-1873), noted professor of the piano. His daughter Clara (future wife
of Schumann) became one of the greatest pianist of her time.
2 Quoted in de Courcy, op.cit.Vol.I, p.357, from the Journal of Clara Wieck-Schumann,
Zwickau, Schumann Museum (de Courcy's English translation).
3 She said later that it was for her "a souvenir of the greatest artist who had ever been in
Leipzig". Clara Schumann's album containing Paganini's scale is now in the possession of the
Sachsissche Landesbibliothek Dresden. See infra, Chapter IV. (3. Chromaticism and 4.
Chordal playing).

23

overwhelmed by surprise and emotion. After the concert, he noted in his

diary:
"Easter Sunday! In the evening Paganini; was it not ecstatic? Under his hands the driest
exercises flame up like Pythian pronouncements!"

Schumann diplomatically announced to his mother that he had decided to

abandon his law studies. As a direct outcome of the Frankfurt concert, he set
to the task of adapting some of the Paganini Caprices for the piano. He saw in
them so many gems ("so vie! Demanthaltiges") that he decided to transcribe
several of them "in order to preserve them, to set them and make them
shine".4 In a first set (6 Studien pach Capricen von Pa,ganini op.3), he closely
adhered to Paganini's text, concentrating on the task of fitting these violin
solos into the idiom of the keyboard. The preface to that opus, practically a
piano method in itself, contains a theory of fingering as well as a definition of
the Caprice which sheds light on the importance accorded to this genre by
Romantic composers:
"To no other type of musical compositions are poetic liberties as beautifully suited as to the
Caprice.

But ii, beyond the lightness and the humour which should characterise it, profundity

and depth of study also appear, then this is really true mastery.'5 [ttl. PXBJ

The second set (6 Concert-Hiiden nach Capricen yon Paganini op.IO), while
still an attempt to translate Paganini's music from one instrumental medium
to another, goes a step further:
"...In an earlier publication of a book of studies after Paganini, I copied -perhaps only to its
detriment" the original almost note for note, and merely filled in the harmony. But in the
present case, I broke loose from the pedantry of the literal translation and wanted to give the
4Schumann, Robert .Gesammelte 5chriften iiber Musik und Musiker, Berlin: Volksverband der
Biicherfreunde, Wegweiser Verlag, 1922,p. 164.
5"Keiner andem Gattung musikalischer Satze stehen poetische Fretheiten so schon als der
Caprice. Ist aber hinter der Leichtigkeit und dem Humor, wekhe sie charakterisieren sollen,
auch Griindlichkeit und tieferes Studium sichtbar, so ist das wah! die echte
Meisterschaft."Schumann, Robert, 6 Studien nach Capricen yon Paganin; op,3 (1832), ed. by E.
von Sauer, Frankfurt: C.F,Peters, p. 3,

24

impression of an original composition for the piano which, without sacrificing the underlying
poetic idea, would allow one to forget its violinistic origin. It must be understood that to achieve
this I was obliged sometimes to alter, entirely eliminate, or add - particularly in regard to
harmony and form; but this was always done with the consideration demanded by so powerful
and honored a spirit."6 [trl.PXBJ

To exemplify this process of assimilation and re-creation, the opening bars of

op.l0 N 2 (after Paganini's 6th Caprice) and of op.lO N 4 (after Paganini's 4th
Caprice) will suffice:
bo]~Lmo

R.Schumenn (op.l O,N22)

ce.nte.bile

naest so

"""'.......1a N24

Paganini's Caprices remained Schumann's companions throughout his life.

Their performance and transcription by other artists always aroused his
interest, and, shortly before his death, he provided the original violin part
with a piano accompaniment for the practical use of concert violinists."
6"Anders aber, als bei der Herausgabe eines friiheren Heftes von 5tudien nach Paganini wo ich
das Original, vielleicht zu dessen Nachteil, ziernlich Note um Note kopierte und harmonisch
ausbaute, machte ich mich diesmal von der Pedanterie einer wortlich treuen Uebertragung los
und mochte, daB die vorliegende den Eindruck einer selbstandigen Klavierkomposition gabe,
welche den Violinursprung vergessen lasse, ohne daB dadurch das Werk an poetischer Idee
eingebiitzt habe. DaB ich, dieses zu erlangen, namentlich in Hinsicht der Harmonie und Form,
vieles anders stellen, ganz weglassen oder hinzutun muBte versteht sich ebenso, wie daB es stets
mit der Vorsicht geschah, die ein so machtiger verehrter Geist gebietet." Schumann, Robert,
Gesamroelte 5chriften jiber Musjk und Musiker. p. 164.

25

One can observe that certain developments in Romantic piano technique have
their origin in Paganini's op.L

For example, Schumann, followed by

Mendelssohn, Liszt and others, made frequent use of the reciprocating

arpeggios found in Caprice 1:

~ 1,~.I'1//1

.~~

:,
l

~~~~~
I
I
-1 .. _

.. -1

-1 .. _

.. -I

lu

-1 .... -1

!
Ii

U i "ace

J., 63

R. Schumann (Etudes Symphoniques)

~~
.l
.
l~. i?J;&f: W
~
l

"Fulgens sequar"
A striking reference to Paganini is found in Carnaval Qp.9. 8 Here the
violinist appears as one of the "characters" of the piece, together with
Florestan and Eusebius.? Chiarina (for Clara Wieck), Estrella (for Ernestine)
and Chopin:
7This piano accompaniment was published by Peters (Leipzig, 1941)with the addition of an
excellent Urtext edition of the original violin part by Georg Schunemann.
8Completed in 1835, and dedicated to Karol Lipinski.
9Fictitious members of the Davidsbund, a friendly and musical association invented by
Schumann. The Davidsbiindler set out to combat the musical "Philistines", hence the title of
the finale of the Carnayal.

26

.R. Schuma~n (Carne'yel op.9)

>
The intensity of this lightning musical portrait calls to mind the sharp
contours of etchings by Goya (Los Caprichos). Here, Schumann has captured a
characteristic feature of Paganini's style. The density of the texture in presto
semiquavers is enhanced and dynamised by the persistent syncopation. This
can perhaps be seen in relation to the modern linguistic concept of intense

latching. 10 The last bars are charged with symbolic overtones. The ominous
reiteration of the F minor chord, followed by the luminous emergence of y7 of
VII in harmonics is of magical effect :

This rare use of harmonics in piano literature requires a pedal technique sui

generis.

Of great interest is the instruction rnessa di voce for the final

chord. This is part of a whole series of effects that Schumann experimented

with after hearing Paganini.

lOThe maximisation of the exploitation of discourse space.

27

4. Paris, 1831: Paganini and Liszt

Paganini could hardly have chosen a better time for his first appearance in
Paris. He had long postponed this trip, not only on account of the atmosphere
highly charged with revolution in France, but also because he was
apprehensive of the Parisian public. He well knew from Spohr and other
colleagues that "it was always a hazardous undertaking for a foreign artist to
make a public appearance in Paris since the Parisians were possessed with the
notion that they had the finest violinists in the world."! However, when he
arrived in the capital in February 1831, the circumstances proved propitious
both artistically and politically. Just one year before, Victor Hugo and the
young Romantics had won the bataille d'Hernani (25 February 1830), and
since the July Revolution and the installation of Louis Philippe, there was a
feeling of liberty and of excitement in the air. The roi-citoyen was busy
organising his regime along egalitarian lines and the young Romantics were
ready "to glorify anyone who, in attitude, audacity, or achievements,
personified their ideals".2

Another favourable circumstance derived from

the recent privatisation of the Opera. Previously operated under direct control
of the King, the Paris Opera had just been let out as a commercial concession to
the entrepreneur Louis Veron. 3 Facing unexpected difficulties of concert
bookings, Veron saw in Paganini's arrival the ideal solution to his problems
and immediately engaged the Maestro for ten concerts (9, 13, 20, 23, 27 March
and 1, 3, 8, 15, 24 Aprill.s
A Romantic constellation

.On 9 March 1831, the orchestra, conducted by Habeneck, opened the program
with Beethoven's Egmont Overture. 5 For this "Soiree des Gourmets" (as
advertised in the Paris journals), an extraordinary parterre of celebrities had
15pohr, Louis. Selbstbjographje. Cassel, 1860, vol.Il, p.127.
2De Courcy, Geraldine, op.cit.vol.Il, p .4.
.
3Until he accepted Louis Philippe's invitation to run the Opera for a period of six years "Ii
ses risques et perils", Veron had been chief editor of the progressive literary journal La Revue
de Paris, opening its columns to the young Romantics.
4Dates kindly confirmed by archives of the Opera de Paris.
5an Paganini's special request, a work by Beethoven had to be played at each concert.

28

assembled in the auditorium of the Paris Opera, awaiting Paganini's entrance.

Among those known to have been present one can mention: Eugene
Delacroix, Victor Hugo, Charles Nodier, Theophila Gautier, Jules [anin,
Alphonse Karr, Alfred de Musset, Alfred de Vigny, George Sand Chabillee en
homme"), Emile de Girardin, Ludwig Boerne, Charles de Beriot, Maria
Malibran, Rossini, Dionysio Aguado, Castil-Blaze, Sainte-Beuve, Troupenas,
Honore de Balzac, Pierre Baillot, Gaetano Donizetti, Auber, Cherubini, Pacini,
Halevy, and Liszt.6
Franz Liszt, aged 20, was at a crucial point of his life. After a love affair with
his pupil Caroline de Saint-Cricq, he had suffered a nervous breakdown and
was seriously considering giving up his musical career to enter a religious
order, spending hours in discussion with the religious philosopher, the Abbe
de Lamennais. Paganini's performance seemed to cure him of his depression.
Not only did he recommence practising intensively but, like Schumann one
year before, he set about transcribing several of Paganini's Caprices. Alan
Walker writes that "during the years 1831-38, he literally lived with these
pteces''.? Consideration must also be given to the fact that Liszt knew
Paganini's music through the published edition of the Caprices well before
1831 and therefore had been well prepared to receive Paganini's performance.
Carl

Czerny." his former piano teacher in Vienna, had spoken

enthusiastically about Paganini's playing, and Ferdinando Paer, his

composition teacher in Paris from 1823 had drawn his attention to the
Caprices, the first French edition of which had been published by Richault
around 1824 9

Musically, Paer certainly constitutes a vital link between

Paganini and Liszt.

Both - some twenty-seven years apart - had studied

&me reception accorded to Paganini's performance by the public, and the rapturous
enthusiasm of the critics are described in: Neill, Edward, Paganjni il Cavaliere Filarmonico,
Genoa: De Ferrari, 1990, pp. 215-218,
7Walker, Alan. Franz Liszt

The Man & his Music London' Barrie & Jenkins, 1976, p. 47.

8Czemy, Carl (1791-1857) (>Beethoven). Austrian pianist and pedagogue. A series of

brilliant students passed through his hands, including Franz Liszt. In 1828, after hearing
Paganini in Vienna Czemy wrote his Grandes variatiQns brjJJantes on a theme by Paganini
which he dedicated to the great violinist [BN Vm12 G 940].
9Paganini, Niccolo, 24 Caprjces QU Etudes pour Je ViolQn dedi!!s aux Artistes. ed, by Henry
Auteur, Paris' Richault, c.1824.

29

composition with him and therefore shared the same traditional, solid
training in theory and counterpoint.

This may in part explain Liszt's

remarkable receptivity to Paganini's ideas. Liszt seems to have assimilated

Paganini's influence more rapidly and more easily than any other, including
Berlioz's, Chopin's and Wagner's. However, it took him several years of work
to achieve what he considered to be publishable results. Initiated in 1831, the
transcription of the Caprices occupied Liszt until 1851, date of the publication
of the final version entitled Grandes Etudes de Paganini transcrites pour le
piano et dediees

a Clara

Schumann.I''

The three successive versions of

Caprice 1 offer a good example of this self-imposed task of musical translation.

The evolution of Liszt's views about the same piece is of great interest. Here is
Paganini original text:

~
..

..

And here is Liszt's first transcription:

Andan1e q1J.a3i 8lle~re}'D.

(13t version, 1636)

ct. by},X,B,& A-I>C.

10Alfred Cortot, in his edition of the Paganini Etudes (Paris: Salabert, 1949), provides the
following details: " ...Liszt specifie forrnellement que seule la version de ces etudes parue en 1851
sous le titre de Grandes Etudes de Paganjni traoscrites pour Ie piano doit etre consideree comme
valable et munie de son approbation; celte restriction mettant implicitement en cause la
collection des Etudes d'execution transcendante d'apres Paganini - dites egalement Grand es
Etudes de brayoure esquissees des 1832et gravees en 1840- et, 11 fortiori, l'etonnante Grande
Fantaisje d; Brayura sur la clocbetle de PaganjnL redigee en 1831 sous le coup de la foudroyante
impression determinee par les concerts parisiens du violoniste-magicien et dont les exemplaires
devenus rarissimes, portent la date de 1834."

30

The second version, generally considered unplayable, illustrates Liszt's

juvenile ambition to "push back the frontiers of the unbelievable", "reculer

les limites de l'incroyable", as, according to a Parisian critic, Paganini had

done:

(2nd
I! II

..

version, 1838)
-

II

i=

III

;;

..

';;
ir~' ~,I::

i ..

~~ ... i1-" , ::a:~-.....

.. . . .. . .
In the re-exposition in E minor, Liszt plays his trump card: the left hand
introduces in counterpoint a quotation of Paganini's 24th Caprice:

leggiero

In the third (and final) version Liszt, returning to Paganini's original text, not
only reproduced it practically note for note, but also adopted the violin
notation on one stave:

31

"Viriuosiie transcendante"

Liszt attended several of Paganini's concerts between 1831-33, and,

interestingly enough, with ever increasing enthusiasm. He also met Paganini
in private circles on at least two occasions and had the opportunity to observe
his playing at close quarters.U The commonly held belief that he had heard
Paganini only on one occasion seems to be invalid. The often quoted letter
Liszt wrote to Pierre Wolff of Geneva is dated 2 May 1832 and refers to the
charity concert that Paganini gave at the Opera for the benefit of the victims of
cholera on 22 April 1832, thus almost one year after he heard him for the first
time: 12
"For the whole fortnight my mind and fingers have been working like two damned souls; Homer,
the Bible, Plato, Locke, Byron, Hugo, Lamartine, Chateaubriand, Beethoven, Bach, Hummel,
Mozart, Weber are all around me. I study them, meditate on them, devour them with fury;
what is more, I practise four to five hours of exercises (thirds, sixths, octaves, tremolo, repeated
notes, cadences, etc...) Ah! so long as I don't go mad, you will find an artist in me! Yes, an artist
such as you ask for, such as we need today, "And I too am a painter! exclaimed Michelangelo
the first time he saw a masterpiece, Though insignificant and poor, your friend has not ceased to
repeat the words of the great man ever since Paganini's last concert."13 [trl. PXBJ

When he wrote this letter, Liszt was working on the first version of his
11At a soiree given by the music publisher Troupenas and also in the salons of the Baron de
Rothschild (see: Neill, Edward, op. cit., p. 216; and Revue Musicale de Suisse Romande, N2,
June 1993, p.81).
12It has been have erroneously suggested that this letter referred to the concert of 9 March 1831.
13" Void quinze jours que mon esprit et mes doigts travaillent comme deux damnes: Homere, la
Bible, Platon, Locke, Byron, Hugo, Lamartine, Chateaubriand, Beethoven, Bach, Hummel,
Mozart, Weber sont tous a l'entour de moi, Je les etudie, les medite, les devore avec fureur; de
plus, je travaille quatre a cinq heures d'exercices (tierces, sixtes, octaves, tremolos, notes
repetees, cadences, etc.) Ah! Pourvu que je ne devienne pas fou, tu retrouveras un artiste en moi.
Oui, un artiste tel que tu les demandes, tel qu'il en faut aujourd'hui. Et moi aussi je suis
peintre, s'ecria Michel-Ange la premiere fois qu'il vit un chef-d'eeuvre.; Quoique petit et
pauvre. ton ami ne cesse de repeter les paroles du grand homme depuis la derniere representation
de Paganini. " La Mara (editor), Franz Li,zts Briefe, Leipzig, 1893-1905, vol. I, p.7, Letter to
Pierre WoUf of 2 May, 1832.

32

Paganini Studies which he entitled Etudes d'Execution Transcendante d'apres

Paganini.

"Transcendental virtuosity" was the expression he forged to define

the new world of musical invention and freedom which Paganini's violin had
revealed to him.

Trans-scendere, i.e, go beyond, surmount or pass through.

As Jeffrey Pulver writes:

"Liszt was under no illusions as to the provenance of Paganini's facile perfection....And that
he realized how literally the soul had to pass through the fires of purgatory before it
conquered the difficulties that beset its passage, is shown in the words he wrote to a friend:
'What a man! what a violin, what an artist! Heavens! What suffering and misery, what
tortures in those four strings!'.J4

After the Etudes d'Execution Transcendante of Liszt, a steady stream of

compositions, directly or indirectly influenced by Paganini, was produced.
This movement, initiated by Thalberg, Chopin, Schumann and Liszt, can be
traced through Felix Mendelssohn, Clara Wieck, Hector Berlioz, Henri
Vieuxtemps, Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst, Johannes Brahms, Claude Debussy,
Ferruccio Busoni, Maurice Ravel, Francis Poulenc, Darius Milhaud, Karol
Szymanowski, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Arnold Schoenberg, to contemporary
composers such as Witold Lutoslawski, Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Manuel
Rosenthal, Vaclav Kucera, George Rochberg, Luigi Dallapiccola, Salvatore
Sciarrino, and Alfred Schnittke.

All have drawn inspiration from the

Caprices, bearing witness to the "gem-like qualities" recognised by Schumann.

Each of them, in his or her own way, has contributed to perpetuate Paganini's
artistic legacy.

14Pulver,Jeffrey, Paganjnj, the Romantic Virtuoso New-York: Da Capo Press, 1970, p. 216,
Pulver's quotation is also taken from the letter to Pierre Wolff of 2 May 1832 ("Quel homme,
quel violcn, quel artiste! Dieu, que de souffrances, de rnisere, de tortures dans ces quatre
cordes!"], See Chapter 4, p.ll8.

33

GenealQgy
1733: Locatelli, I' Arte del Yiolino

1820: Paganini, 24 Capricc; per Violino dedicati alIi Artisti

1829: Chopin, Souvenir de Paganjoj
1831: Hummel, Souvenirs de Paganini
1833: Schumann. Studieo Djr das Pianoforte nach Capricen yon Paganini.op.3

1833: Chopin, 12 ttudes. op.10

1835: Schumann, 6 Concert-Eruden compan;rt nach Capricen von Paganini. op.10
1838: Liszt, first version of the Grandes Etudes de Paganini
1838: Mendelssohn, sketch of the Violin Concerto. op.64
1840: Berlioz, Romeo et Juliette (dedicated to Paganini)
1841: Liszt, etudes d'ExecutioD TraDscendante d'apres Paganjni

1846: Vieuxtemps, Hommage a Paganini. op.s

1851: Schumann, Piano accompaniment to the Caprices
1851: Liszt, Grandes Etudes de Paganjnj traoscrites pour Ie piano
1854: Ernst, The "Erlking", Grand Caprice gp.26. (a la rnemoire de Schubert et Paganini)
1862: Brahms, Paganjnj-Varjalionen. op.35
1865: Ernst, 6 PglJWhgnicStudies
1909: Busoni, Intrgduzjgne e Capriccig [in the fascicle An die Jugend] (cap.ll&15)
1910: Liapounow, 12 Etudes d'Executign Transcendaole pgur Ie piang. op.ll
1918: Szymanowski, Three Paganinj Caprjces (violin and piano)
1924: Ravel, Tzigane
1925: Ysaye, Paganini Yarialigns
1927: Milhaud, Trois Caprices de Paganjni traites en duos CODcertants

1935: Castelouovo-Tedesco, Caprjccig djabglicg (Omaggio a Paganini)

1940: Rachmaninoff, Rhapsgdie sur un theme de PaganinLop.43 (piano et orchestra)
1941: Lutoslawski.wariaqe na temat Paganinjegg .(two pianos)
1942: Dallapiccola, Sgnatina cangnica su Cappcci di Paganinj (piano)
1942: Casella, Pagan;njana (for orchestra)
1947:
1954:
1970:
1974:

Blacher, Variatigns pgur Orchestre [on the theme of the 24th Caprice]
Milstein, Paganjnjana (Violin)
Rochberg, Caprice Variatigns (violin)
Berio, Seqyenza yrn (violin)

1976: Sciarrino, 6 Capricei per Yigling (violin)

1978: Gasser, Paganinj-Yariatignen (piano)
1980: Pietro Grossi, a computer version of the 24 Caprices
1982: Vaclav Kucera, Capriccia prg hgysJe a kytary (hommage i\ Paganini)
1983: Schnittke, A Paganini per violino solo

34

CHAPTER II
"ALLI ARTISTI"

INTERPRETATIONS AND IMPLICATIONS OF AN HISTORIC

DEDICATION

The title page of the autograph manuscript of the Caprices handed in to the
Milanese publisher Giovanni Ricordi around 1817 bears the following
inscriptions:

No. 24 Capricci per Violino

di
Niccoli'! Paganini
Dedicati alli Artisti

The dedication "to the Artists" which also appears on the front cover of the
1
first Ricordi edition was in itself an innovation. While certain works may
in the past have been dedicated to a fellow-composer or a friend, the usual
practice was to dedicate compositions to noblemen or noble ladies, to
aristocratic patrons, to Dukes, Princes, Kings, or Emperors. Earlier in his his
career, Paganini too had complied with this usage - although perhaps less
effusively than his predecessors - and had dedicated a few pieces to Elise
Baciocchi and to her imperial brother (e.g. the Napoleon Sonata for the G
string).2
1This dedication is regrettably missing in many modern editions of the Caprices. However,
the front cover of Dounis's edition (London, the Strad, 1949) bears the inscription, in
English:"Twenty-four Caprices for Volin solo dedicated to the Artists", whereas E. Neill, in
the introduction of his Urlexl -edition (Milan, Ricordi,1988) not only mentions and comments
on the dedication, but also inserts a photostat of the title page of Paganini's manuscript.
2[M.S. 5] Written for Napoleon's birthday (25 August 1807)

35

AlIi Artisii" marks the emergence of the artist as an independent, significant

member of society. Such a dedication would probably have been inconceivable

before 1800 in Italy and at the time of the publication of the Caprices it still
appeared provocative.v

Titlepage of the 1820 Ricordi edition

[Milan Conservatorium Library A,26./19.46]

Paganini's perception of the role of the artist was lucid, that is both idealistic
and pragmatic. With the benefit of hindsight, it appears that he contributed,
perhaps more than any other performing composer of his time, to the
elevation of the status of the "artisia",
Aristocratic patronage was
progressively disappearing and the artists alluded to in the dedication
belonged to a new class of musicians: free-lance soloists who derived their
livelihoods from playing their own music before paying audiences in concert
halls of ever-increasing dimensions. Beethoven had entertained very high
and romantic views about the mission of the musician as a free artist - a kind
of Promethean figure in society. However, for the majority, the reality was
not so exalting. In fact, the concept of the independent musician, of the free
artist, had been born out of necessity, since a secure, financially tenable
position under the old patronage system had become a rarely available option.
Now that livelihood depended more and more upon public success, artistic
freedom was endangered by the constraints of public demand. While the
demands of the new public were different from those made before on the
church or court-musician, they did not prove less restrictive than the
patronage of any prince. The "liberated composer" was confronted with a new
dilernna: for whom was he going to write his music? For himself and an
enlightened circle of connoisseurs? For posterity? Or for the public whose
approval meant - if not artistic - at least financial independence? Paganini's
350mething similar happened in literature with Diderol's famous novel and its -at that
time - rather provocative title: Jacqyes Ie Fataliste (et son maitre). published in France in 1796.

36

unrestricted answer reveals commitment to his art coupled with a fine

psychological understanding of his listeners' need. For the public at large,
which was "clamouring for something new and surprising",4 he wrote
works in mezzo carattere styleS (variations with orchestra, "pots-pourris",
variations on a single string, etc.), providing to a supreme degree technical
innovation, dazzling feats of virtuosity and brilliance. Another body of work,
the most important quantitatively and by far the least known, was in the form
of quartets, trios duets, chamber music with guitar, i.e. music for friends,
students and amateurs, to be played en [amille. It is a very engaging side of
Paganini's personality that he would frequently join in private circles with
non-professional musicians for the sheer enjoyment of playing. And not
simply his own music, for he had a marked predilection for the works of
Mozart and Beethoven. However, as Henry Raynor perceptively remarks,
" ...he had to keep his devotion to Beethoven's concerto and chamber music out of sight, for such
music would not have given him any occasion for the pyrotechnics his audience expected.,,6

To his colleagues, the professional musicians or Artisti, he dedicated the 24

Caprices, confronting them with a doubly challenging proposition: high
instrumental virtuosity had become a necessity to achieve public success, but,
it could and should also be a tool for greater artistic achievements. The
expression "Alii Artisti" was employed not only in contrast to "AIle
Amairici" (to the Amateurs)? While the term "Artisii" implied the
conventional distinction between amateurs and professionals, it did not mean
that the dedication addressed all the professional musicians. The"Artists" of
the Caprices were those among composers and performers who were willing
to go further into the arcanum of art. Alfred Cortot once very pointedly
illustrated the issue saying that the Paganini Caprices, like the Chopin 'Etudes
or Liszt's Transcendental Studies "are inaccessible to the musician without
virtuosity as they are to the virtuoso without musicianship.vs
4paganini's words. See Schottky, lulius.Paganjni's Leben uod Trejben. Vaduz: Sandig
Reprint, 1974, p.275
SMusica di mezzo carattere: music the style of which is part-serious part-comic. The term
finds its origin in operatic parlance but is also applied to instrumental music, especially for
works influenced by the operatic style.
6Raynor, Henry. A Social Hjstoey of Music. New-York: Schocken Books, 1972, p. 354.
7The quartets with guitar op.4 and Op. 5 which were published the same year as the
Caprices bear the dedication" Alle Amairici",
SBoss, Roger (e-Cortot), Conyersations with P B . St-Blaise, [une 1994.

37

The Courtier
It may be remembered here that Paganini had experienced the life of a court

musician.

For almost seven years he had been at the service of Princess Elise

Baciocchi, (sister of Napoleon I), Duchess of Piombino and Lucca.

In 1805,

Paganini had been appointed to her court at Lucca, first as a member of the
orchestra (2nd desk), later as a quartet leader and teacher of Prince Felix
Baciocchi 9. The relationship between the young violinist and his patrons
(Princess Elise and her husband) seems to have been much less formal than
was usual at other European courts of comparative size and importance.
Unlike Liszt, he never became embittered by the social prejudices of the day,
and in his youth he readily accepted being
"un musicien aux gagesdes grands seigneurs, patroniseet salariepar eux 11 I' ega!
d'un jongleur"10

His personality certainly protected Paganini from "the insolence of the

great".l1

However, many years later, he admitted that he had to suffer

"many a vexation" while he was in Elise's service l 2. This was 'probably in

relation to the curtailment of certain of his liberties at court. There were

numerous occasions when he had to "ask permission". For example, to give a
private ball at the house of his friends, the Bucchianeris, he had to apply six
weeks in advance)3 Moreover, his duties at court did not always fulfil his
artistic aspirations. Music to order, ("Gebrauchsmusik" or utility music as it
is called), was performed once, and then put away and forgotten. The quality
and style of such music depended often as much on the patron as on the
composer.

Two documents are worthy of mention here, for they constitute

9Felix [Pasquale] Baciocchi came from an old Genoese family. Napoleon made him change
his Christian name, apparently because "Pasquale", in the language of Italian comic opera,
had a negative connotation.
lLiszt's phrase (quoted by G. de Courcy, op. cit., vol. I, p.19).
11 Paganini liked to say:"I grandi non temo, gli umili non sdegno. ", and often wrote this motto
as a accompanying note to musical autographs and portraits.
12Harrys, George, Paganini in seinen redseligen Stunden ;n geseUschaftliscben ZirkeJn und
seinen Konzerten Brunswick, F. Vieweg, 1830.
13$ee: G. de Courcy, op.cit., vol.I, p.107.

38

not only a valuable - and colourful - account of the life at court, but also offer a
better understanding of the kind and extent of Paganini's professional duties at
that time. The first of them is in Paganini's own words:
"1 had to conduct every time the royal family went to the opera, play three times a week at
court, and every fortnight give a big concert at the formal soirees, but Princess Elise did not
always attend or else did not remain all through the concert, because my music placed too great a
strain on her nerves. However, another charming lady who was attracted to me -or at least so it
seemed- never missed them, while 1 had admired her for a long time. Our interest in each other
gradually increased, but had to be concealed, which only intensified it. One day 1promised her
a surprise at the next concert - a little musical prank having reference to our relations. At the
same time 1 announced to the court an amusing novelty entitled "Scena Amorosa". Everyone was
very curious till I finally appeared with my violin, from which I had removed the two inner
strings, leaving only the E and the G strings. The first string represented the girl, the second the
man, and I then began a sort of dialogue depicting little quarrels and reconciliations between my
two lovers. The strings first scolded, then sighed, moaned, joked, expressed delight, and finally
ecstasy. It concluded with a reconciliation and the lovers performed a pas de deux, closing with
a brilliant coda ... The "Scena Amorosa" received great applause. The lady for whom it was
intended rewarded me with the most friendly glances; as for the Princess, she was extremely
gracious, overwhelming me with compliments and at last saying: "Since you have already
performed something so beautiful on two strings, couldn't you let us hear something on one
string?" I at once consented, the idea appealing to my fancy, and since the Emperor's birthday
occurred a few weeks later [25 August 1807),1 wrote the Napoleon Sonata for the G string, which
I then played before the assembled court with such applause that a Cimarosa cantata that
immediately followed was thrown completely into the shade and made no impression
whatsoever..14 [tr!. de Courey]
14"Ich,begann er, spielte zu Lucca, wo ich jedesmal die Oper zu dirigiren hatte, wenn die
regierende Pamilie das Theater besuchte, jede Woche dreirnal bei Hofe, und veranstaltete aile
vierzehn Tage bei den feierlichen Zirkeln ebeefalls ein groBes Concert, wobei aber die
regierende Piirstin Elisa Bacciochi, Prinzess von Lucca und Piombino, Napoleon's geliebteste
Schwester, nicht jedesmal erschien oder bis an den SchluB ausharrte, wei! die Flageolet-Tone
meiner Violine ihre Nerven zu sehr erschutterten, Dagegen aber fehlte niemals eine andere
liebeswiirdige Dame (er nannte sie), die sich, so wiihnte ich wenigstens, zu mir hingezogen
fuhlte, wahrend ich sie schon Hingstbewunderte. Unsere gegenseitige Neigung befestigte sich
allmalig irnmer mehr, mullte aber verborgen gehalten werden, wodurch sie an Innigkeit und
Interessanten Beziehungen zunahm. Eines Tages versprach ich ihr: sie am nachsten Concerttage durch einen musikalischen Scherz zu uberraschen, der auf unser Verhaltnis Bezug haben
solle; zugleich kiindigte ich bei Hofe eine komische Neuigkeit an, der ich den Titel
"Liebesscene"gab. Man war auf die sonde-bare Erscheinung sehr gespannt, bis ich endlich mit
meiner Violine erschien, der ich die beiden mittlem Saiten genommen hatte, so dall nur E nd G
geblieben waren. Die erste Saite liell ich das Madchen, die zweite den Mann reprasennren, und
begann nun eine Art Dialog vorzutragen, worin leiehte Streit- und Versohnungsscenen eines
Liebespaares angedeutet werden sollten. Die Saiten mullten bald grollen, bald seufzen, sie
mullten lispeln, stohnen, scherzen, sich freuen und endlich jubein. Zuletzt ist die Versohnung
wieder geschlossen und die Neuvereinten fiihren ein Pas dedeux auf, was mit einer brillanten
Coda schliellt. Diese musikalische Scene fand groBen Beifall; die Dame, der das Ganze
eigentlich gegolten, belohnte mich mit den freunschaftlichsten Blicken; die Fiirstin aber war

39

In 1809, the young Jacques Boucher de Perthes 15was on duty in the French

customs office in Leghorn, from where he wrote to his father:

"Prince Baciocchi is an enthusiastic amateur of the vioiin.

We play quartets together. A

Genoese by the name of Paganini plays first violin in the quartets and also plays the
guitar ... "16

At the end of the same year, Paganini is again alluded to in Boucher de

Perthes's correspondence:
Letter to the Chamberlain [Florence], December 25, 1809.

"Yes, I declare before heaven and

hell that lowe my obesity to the royal dinners that we had with the Prince and to the bad
quartets that followed, for one does not preclude the other, and one can be the pearl of men and
even the pearl of princes - as the maestro di cappella Paganini says - and have the pearl of
chefs without being the pearl of vio1inists... Paganini is also a royal highness in his way and, if
he would only cut up fewer capers and renounce the role of grand clown of the vio1inists, he
would be the grand duke, even the emperor, and could exclaim like another virtuoso: 'I'd rather
be the emperor of the vioiin than the vioiin of the emperor!' Do you know why this chap
pleased me so much right from the start? Was it because of his violin, his guitar, his esprit, his
originality? Not at all! It is because he is so thin! His being so dreadfully skinny consoled me
and when I carefully took him all in, I seemed to be almost corpulent. Further, when he plays
and draws that enormous volume of tone from his instrument, I have to ask myself whether it's
him or his instrument I'm hearing; I'm inclined to think it's him. Certainly he's the drier of the
two and when he comes anywhere near the fire I'm always afraid that he'll catch on fire, for
please take note, his very members crackle! Therefore, always have a pail of water handy. My
compliments to you, to him, and to all the quartet."17 [trl. de Courey]
voll Huld, iiberschiittete mich mit Lob spriichen und meinte endlich: "Da Sie bereits auf zwei
Saiten so etwas Schones leisteten, ware es Ihnen denn nicht moglich, uns auf Einer etwas horen
zu lassen?" Ich sagte augenblicklich zu, der Gedanke regte meine Phantasie an, und da einige
Wochen darauf des Kaisers Namenstag einfiel, schrieb ich eine Sonate: "Napoleon" bezeichnet
fiir die G-Saite, welche ich dann vor dem versammelten Hofe mit solchen Applause spielte,
daB eine an demselben Abend unmittelbar darauf gegebene Cantate von Cimarosa dadurch
geschlagen wurde und keinen Effekt hervorbringen wollte." Schottky,Julius Max. Paganini's
Leben und Trejben als Klinstler und als Menscb,Prague: J.C. Calve, 1830,pp. 365-367,quoted by G. de
Courcy in her own English translation, op. cit., vol. I, pp. 99-100.
15Jacques Boucher de Perthes (1788-1868), French economist and archeologist, known as "the
father of the prehistory of man".
16G. de Courcy op.cit., vol I, p. 107-108
17"0ui, je le declare II la face du del et de la terre, c'est II vous prindpalement que je dois rna
graisse, par sulte des royaux dejeuners que nous faisons avec Ie prince, voire meme Ies mauvais
quatuor qui les suivaient, car I'un n'empeche pas I'autre, et I'on peut etre la perle des hommes et
meme des princes, comme dit it maestro di cappella Paganini, et avoir la perle des cuisiniers,
sans etre Ia perle des violons...Paganini est aussi une aitesse dans son genre; et quand il voudra
faire moins de charges et renoncer II I'honneur d'etre Ie grand paillasse des violons, il en sera Ie

40

Paganini certainly felt more and more constrained in his artistic pursuits as
well as in his personal life: in 1812, he decided to free himself from his duties
at court and to become an independent artist.

Much has been written about

the incident which led to his rupture with Elise18. Was the Grand Duchess
"growing too old to attract him on sentimental grounds", as certain

biographers insinuate?19
him a safe asylum?20

Was her court becoming too unstable to afford

His longing for freedom and artistic fulfilment is

probably the answer: "Libertas optima rerum" as he frequently quoted... Now,

as a freelance musician he felt that he had full liberty to write and to perform
music according to his own artistic criteria (e.g. the twenty-four Caprices).

At

the court of Lucca, considerations other than purely artistic ones might have
influenced the elaboration of some of his compositions.

In the Caprices, there

would be no place for complacency or compromise: "Alii Artisti" reveals his

ambition to present his fellow musicians (the Artists) with a work of genuine
musical significance and artistic integrity. As Robert Schumann remarked:
"With this charmingly brief dedication, Paganini probably wanted to say: I am accessible only
to artists." 21

grand-due, voire meme l'empereur, et il pourra s'ecrier conune certain virtuose: j'aime mieux
etre l'empereur des violons que Ie violon de rempereur! Savez-vous pourquoi ce garcon-la rn'a
plu tout d'abord? Est-ce par son violon, sa guitare, son esprit, son originalite-s- Non, c'est par sa
maigreur. En Ie voyant si admirablement etique, son aspect me consolait, et quand je l'avais bien
considers, je me trouvais presque gras. Aussi quand il joue et tire de son instrument cet immense
volume de son, je suis a me demander si c'est lui au son violon qui resanne? [e croirais assez que
c'est lui, certainement, il est Ie plus sec des deux, et rna peur, quand il s'approche du feu, est de Ie
voir voler en eclats, car alors, remarquez-Ie bien, ses membres craquent. Tenez done toujours un
sceau d'eau a portee, Mes compliments a vall', a lui, a tout Ie quatuor,' Jacques Boucher de
Perthes, Sous djx Rpjs, Paris: Jung Treuttel, 1863, vol.I, P: 583-584.; quoted by G. de Courcy in her
own English translation, op. cit., vol, I, p. 108.
18For the details of his "insubordination", see Fetis, p.37-38
19See: Bargellini, Sante. "Paganini and the Princess", in: The Musical Quarterly XX/4
(October 1934), pp.40B-418.
2 In 1812, things were not going too well for Elise's brother. Napoleon's seizure of Oldenburg
caused Alexander to put his army on alert; in June, the French army crossed the Niemen; in
September Borodino was fought; then came the flames of Moscow and the retreat that began too
late: "Mon mauuais genie m'apparut et m'annon,a rna fin, que i'ai trouvee il l'ile d'Elbe.....
21"Paganini wollte dies wahl auch mit seiner schon kurzen Dedikation "agli Artisti..
ausdrucken, d.h. nur fur Kunstler bin ich zuganghch". Schumann, Robert. Gesammelte
Scbr;ften libe< Musil< und Musiker, Berlin: Wegweiser Verlag, 1922,p. 254.

41

L' CEuvre-Manifeste
,

There have been through the ages a number of musical manifestos in the
form of written declarations by composers who felt the need to justify their
music or their views on musical philosophy. One could mention for example
L'Essai sur l'Origine des Langues of Rousseau (1760), in which the author
defends the idea that song existed before the language of words; Gluck's
Preface to Alceste (1767), a eulogy of simplicity in music; Hanslick's Vom
Musikalisch-Schonen (1854); Pratella's Manifesto dei Musicisti Futuristi
(1910); Marinetti's

A bas Ie tango et Parsifal (1914), a pamphlet directed against

Wagner and his opera Parsifal (defined as "une fabrique cooperative de

tristesse et de desespoir")l; the Manifeste de la Jeune France (1936), in which

Messiaen, Daniel-Lesur, [olivet and Baudrier declare that they will follow in
Berlioz's steps; Schonberg's Satires (1925); Charles Ives's prolix Essay before a
Sonata (1947); Boulez's provocative Schonberg is dead (1952); Texier's
Manifeste de musique architecturale (1977). However, of much more lasting
significance and impact than these texts are the works that the French
musicologist Daniele Pistone has called CEuvres-manifestes such as the Eroica
Symphony. the Rite of Spring. Pelleas. and indeed the 24 Caprices. These are
works of grand and novel inspiration, which need no preface or appendix, no
further declaration or justification than their sheer musical content and power
of evocation. The CEuvres-manifestes, an ideal manifestation of art, have
capacity not only to express ideas, emotions, to captivate the senses, but also to
address the imagination, astonish, take the listener by surprise. "L'art a une
fonction de rupture" says film-maker Emma Politti. 2 This is la valeur
contestataire de l'art alluded to by Daniele Pistone in her hopeful - if aporetic conclusion of her brilliant Dossier Manifestes et Musique en France:
"If the questioning, indeed challenging value of art, this futuristic instrument, and if the
spontaneous force of affirmation of music had sheltered it forever from restheticising
theoretical supports?"3 {trl.PXB J

1 "a co-operative factory of sadness and despair"

2politti, Emma, Interview on Espace 2, Geneva: Radio Suisse Romande, June 1994. ["Cart a
une fonction de rupture - intellectuelle, geographique, politique..."].
3"Et si la valeur contestataire de l'art, cet instrument futurible, et si la force d'affirmation
spontanee de la musique I'avait mise definitivement 11 I'abri des appuis theoriques
esthetisantsz'Pistone, Daniele. "Manifeste et Musique en France", in: Revue Internationale de
Musique Francaise, N20,June 1986,p.39.

42

An early Romantic Manifesto

But no genuinely creative artist would wish to have the last word: the
dedication alii Artisti was an invitation to share compositional and
violinistic discoveries and to further explore a new musical dimension. Their
enthusiastic reception by leading figures of musical Romanticism shows that
the Caprices pioneered novel artistic and compositional approaches.

Their

strong creative impact on composers is a major point of interest for the present
study. The Caprices may have had a paralysing effect on some violinists who
considered them "unplayable", but certainly not on creative artists, On the
contrary, they gave tremendous stimulus to many Romantic composers whose
interest was aroused by the technical challenge and the prospective application
of virtuosity as a compositional tool not per se but rather as a means to
achieve greater freedom of invention and artistic expression.

It is precisely

because of the unique inspirational quality and liberating implications of the

24 Caprices that Russian musicologist Israil M. Yampolski sees in Paganini one
of the initiators of the Romantic movement in music:
"Created at the dawn of the 19th century, the Caprices marked the beginning of a new trend in
instrumental music and performance. Later, Victor Hugo, in a similar way, set the eesthetical
principles of Romanticism in literature by his famous foreword to the Cromwell drama.',4 [trl.
I. Kortchnof

Other authors have linked the names of Victor Hugo and Paganini: one could
mention for example Georges de Saint-Foix who compares the effect of
4 "3Tl-IM npOlOse.neHweM, C03.llaHHbIM xa sape

HOBoro

XIX aexa, naratUIHH nOJlO)f(HJlI1a.1UJlO

pOMaHTH4ecKoMy HanpaBJleHJ.uo B HHcTpYMeHTaJlbHO~ My3blKe H loiCnOJlHTeJ1bCTBe,

nonoeao TOMY, KaK

noaznree rlOro CBOHM

ecrernuecxae npHHUHnbJ

3HaMeHHTblM npellHCJJOBHeM K ,llpaMe 'XpOMseJrb", yTBep.aHJ1

JlHTepaTypHoro pOMaHTH3Ma."

["Etim proizvedeniem, sozdannim na zare novogo XIX veka,

Paganini polosi! nachalo romanticheskomy napravleniu v instrumental'noi muzike i

ispolnitel'stve, podobno tomu, kak pozdnee Gugo svoim znamenitim predisloviem k drame
"Kromvel", utverdi! eststecheskie prinsipi literatumogo romantizma."] Mostras, Konstantin G.
24 Kaprisa dla skripki solo N. PaganinL Moscow: Gosudarstvennoe Muzikal'noe Izdatel'stvo
1959, p.3 (I.M. Yampolski's preface). I am indebted to Mr Igor Kortchnoi of Geneva for his
translation of the preface and to Dr Michai! Negnevitsky of Hobart for kindly proof-reading
the final version.

43

Paganini's concerts with that of the first performance of Hernani:

"We are rather surprised that the historians of this Romanticism, always so rich and so
difficult to place, haven't thought to include Paganini amongst its most authentic
representatives. We shall not hesitate to compare the concerts given by the astounding artist at
the height of the cholera epidemic of 1832 (which the best known leunes Frances could not fail
to have attended, and to have proclaimed a miracle) to something which very closely resembles
the premiere of Hernani. S[tr!. PXB & L.O.]
H

Both parallels are thought-provoking.

Of special interest is Yampolski's

proposition that the Caprices - with their dedication "AIli Artisti"constituted a sort of early manifesto of musical Romanticism. There is also
the implication that ideas developed later by Victor Hugo in the Preface de
Cromwell (1827) and in the Preface des Orientales (1829) were in some way
already embodied in Paganini's music. The problem is of challenging
importance because it raises the issue of the possibility of rendering in words
the intellectual and emotional implications of music (syneesthesia).

Here, an

answer can only be speculative since Paganini never attempted any written
justification of his work. The laconic inscription "Alli Artisti" only implicitly
signals his perception of his role as a musician and the novelty of his artistic
approach. Be that as it may, several passages of the Preface des Orientales in
which Hugo Vigorously defends freedom in Art are congenial with Paganini's
philosophy:
"The poet is free. Let's put ourselves in his shoes and let's see. The author insists upon these
\

ideas, however obvious they may seem, because a number of Arisiarques still do not admit them
as such. He himself, however small a place he holds in contemporary literature, has been the
victim of the critics' misjudgement. It often happened that instead of simply telling him: 'Your
book is bad', he has been told: 'Why did you write this book? Don't you see that the theme is
horrible, grotesque, absurd (whatever!) and that the topic oversteps the limits of art? That's
not pretty, that's not gracious. Why don't you treat subjects which please us and appeal to us?
5 "...Nous nous etonnons volontiers que les historiens de ce romantisme, toujours si riche et si
dificile 11 situer, n'aient pas songe 11 faire figurer Paganini parmi ses plus authentiques
representants. Nous n'hesiterons pas 11 comparer les concerts donnes par I'etonnant artiste, en
pleine epidemie du cholera de 1832;oil les Jeunes Frances les plus en vue n'ont pu manquer
. d'assister et de crier au miracle, 11 quelque chose qui ressemble furieusement 11 la premiere
d'Hernani.;" Georges de Saint-Foix, preface to: Paganini 11 Marseille 1837-1839. by Berenger de
Mirarnon Fitz-james, Marseille: it la Librairie Fueri, 1841, p.6.

44

What strange caprices you've got there! etc.ietc.

To which he has always firmly replied: that

these caprices were his caprices, that he did not know of what the limits of Art consist, that he
did not know the precise geography of the intellectual world, that he had not yet seen the road
maps of art, with the frontiers of the possible and of the impossible drawn in red and blue; that,
in the end, he had done it because he simply did it:'6

[trl. PXBl

. A little later, Hugo gives a definition of the poet which is an apt description of
Paganini:
..... the poet, man of fantasy and of caprice, but also of conviction and probity:'7

The subversive element in Paganini's compositional style

and instrumental playing
In rendering previous constraints impotent, the creative artist is engaged in

what can be seen as a subversive role. Paganini's redefinition of violin

technique, his trespassing beyond conventional limits (those dictated by the
Schools, not by the tradition) led him to redefine the laws of instrumental
virtuosity (in the words of Franz Liszt, transcendent virtuosity). In his first
years of study, Paganini had shown some reluctance to follow instructions and
rules Ii la lettre. He had a compelling need to work out things in his own way
and he must have proved a thorn in the side of his teacher, Giacomo Costa:
6"Lepoete est libre, Mettons-nous ason point de vue, et voyons, L'auteur insiste sur ces idees, si
evidentes qu'elles paraissent, parce qu'un certain nombre d'Aristarques n'en est pas encore ales
admettre pour telles. Lui-zneme, si peu de place qu'il tienne dans la Iitterature contemporaine, il
a ete plus d'une fois I'objet de ces meprises de la critique. Il est advenu souvent qu'au lieu de lui
dire simplement : Votre livre est mauvais, on lui a dit: Pourquoi avez-vous fait ce livre?
Pourquoi ce sujet? Ne voyez-vous pas que l'idee premiere est horrible, grotesque, absurde
(n'irnportel), et que Ie sujet chevauche hors des limites de I'art? Cela n'est pas [oli, cela n'est pas
gracieux. Pourquoi ne point traiter des sujets qui nous plaisent et nous agreent? les etranges
caprices que vous avez la! etc., etc. Aquoi il a toujours fermement repondu: que ces caprices
etaient ses caprices; qu'iJ ne savait pas en quoi etaient faites les limites de l'art, .que de
geographie precise du monde intellectuel il n'en connnaissait point, qu'il n'avait point encore vu
de cartes routiere de l'art, avec les frontieres du possible et de l'irnpossible, tracees en rouge et en
bleu ; qu'enfin iJ avait fait cela, parce qu'll avait fait cela..."] es Orientales. Paris: Hetzel, 1829,
preface, p.2.
7.....Ie poete, homme de fantaisie et de caprice, mais aussi de conviction et de probite''
(ibid.p.6).

45

" 1 think back with pleasure on the painstaking interest of good Costa [Paganini told Schottky],
to whom, however 1 was no great delight since his principles often seemed unnatural to me, and 1
showed no inclination to adopt his bowing".8 [trl. PXBj

His independent and exploring spirit compelled him to constantly experiment

in the area of instrumental technique:
"I was enthusiastic about my instrument and studied it constantly in order to discover new and
hitherto unprecedented positions which would give a sonority that would astound people.?

There is undoubtedly an element of the provocative in Paganini's approach,

in his desire to astonish, to bewilder. his listeners.

As a performer and

consummate showman, he seems to have developed special techniques deliberately calculated strategies - to induce temporary suspension of
judgement, and to maximise the receptiveness of his audience to his music.
The profound silence he obtained (even in crowded halls) was legendary and
made a great impression on music critics who often mentioned it:
"They listened so intently that the necessary beating of their hearts disturbed and angered
them."lO

It is striking that the more illustrious his listeners, the more enthralled they

seemed to become. They sometimes seemed to be lost in astonishment, with

their rational faculties temporarily suspended. In the cases of Schumann and
Liszt already mentioned, the effect was akin to some kind of mystic revelation.
The eighty-year old Goethe, after having heard Paganini in Weimar (October
8 "...Mit Vergniigen errinere ich mich an die Sorgfalt des guten Costa, dem ich jedoch insofern
kein sonderliches Vergniigen machen mochte, als mir seine Gesetze nicht selten widernatiirlich
erschienen, und ich keine Lust bezeigte, seine Bogenfiihrung zu der meinigen zu machen.":
Schottky, op.cit., p. 253.
g"Ero entusiasta dello strumento e studiavo senza posa... per scoprire posizioni del tutto nuove
e no mai vedute, che dessero senorita da far stupire la gente" ibid. P: 250.
10Ludwig Boerne, the Francfort correspondent in Paris, writing about Paganini's concert at the
Opera de Paris, on 9 March 1831. Boerne, a former physician, was regarded as the ideological
leader of the movement known as "Junge Deutschland". His Letters from Paris are important
contemporary documents.

46

30, 1829) was extremely troubled, and it took him some time before he could
"arrive at an intelligent estimate of all these wonders":
"Now I too have heard Paganini...As regards what is generally called enjoyment - and which in
my case always hovers between sensuality and reason - I lack a basis for this column-like
eruption of flames and clouds. I only heard something meteoric and then could not account for it
further.',l1 [trl. PXB J

Paganini's extraordinariness both as a man and as a performer was noted also

by Mary Shelley:
"Paganini threw me into hysterics. I delight in him more than I can express - his wild ethereal
figure, rapt look - and the sounds he draws from his instrument are all superhuman"12

Wilhelm Speyer 13 , who had been a pupil of Baillot in Paris, attended

Paganini's first concerts in Germany:
"And now to give you my impressions of Paganini, I heard him first at rehearsal, then in several
concerts, and last of all in a private company where he played Beethoven's F Major sonata with
a lady. Although I was keyed up to the very highest expectations, the first impression in the
rehearsal was that I had never heard anything like that in my life. Frey, from Mannheim, who
sat alongside me swam in a sea of tears. The mysterious dusk of the stage, the remarkable
personality of this man, the unusual enthusiasm of the orchestra, which broke every minute in a
stormy flourish of trumpets, all these things may very well have heightened the sensitivity of
the nerves. But the main thing - his playing, his interpretation, even his musical tricks, the
astounding ease and perfection with which he performed the difficulties (incomprehensible
especially to a violinist) aroused the greatest admiration. The cantabile passages and the
Adagio he sings in a melancholy, deeply moving and albeit eloquent way such as I have never
heard from any instrumentalist - about as I heard Crescentini sing fifteen years ago in
paris.',14[trl.G. de Courcy]
l1"Paganini hab ich denn auch gehtirt...Mir fehlt zu dem, was man Genuss nennt und was bei mir
immer zwischen Sinnlichkeit und Verstand schwebt, eine Basis zu dieser Flarnmen und
Woikensaule... ich horte nur etwas Meteorisches und wusste mir weiter keine Rechenschaft zu
geben."Goethe, Letter to Zeiter. 9 November 1829, Goethes Briefwechsel mit ZeIter, Leipzig,
1924, p.41S.
12Shelley, Mary. I etter to Mrs Gisborne (quoted by de Courcy, op.cit..vol.Il, p.55)
13Speyer, Wilhelm, (1790-1878) (e-Baillot), violinist and composer.
14Speyer, Wilhelm, Letter to Louis Spohr. September 17, 1829 (quoted by De Courcy in her
English trl. , op.cit., vol.I, 350-351).

47

And Honore de Balzac:

"...The Napoleon of the genre ...What is the secret of artistic creation? What might have been
the trajectory of the force which animates this puny, sickly man? And this strength, where did
it come from? The most extraordinary miracle that surprises me at the present time is the one
that Paganini knows how to perform. Don't believe that it is a matter of bowing, of fingering, or
the fantastic sounds he draws from his violin...There is without doubt something mysterious in
this man.."15 [trl, PXBj

Paganini's extraordinary hold on the imagination of his listeners extended to

the members of the orchestra who not infrequently stopped playing in
amazement and grouped themselves on the stage to watch the Maestro's solo
performance:
"I saw him play only once, at his first concert at the former Paris Grand Opera. The whole
orchestra, composed of great artists, led by the illustrious Habeneck, were so dumbfounded,
astounded by what they heard, that, one by one, they all stopped playing for a moment: silence
from the orchestra and all the faces raised in genuine admiration. Paganini looked a them, and
such triumph imprinted on his lips an unforgettablesmile."16 [trl, PXBj

In many pictorial representations of Paganini with an orchestra, one can verify

that he is the only, one who is performing. The other musicians, completely
oblivious of their orchestral duties, are watching him with an expression of
incredulous amazement.l"
15 "...Le Napoleon du genre... Le secret de la creation artistique, quel est-il? Quelle trajectoire
artistique a pu suivre, par exemple, la force qui anime cet homme malingre? Et cette force, d'ou
lui vient-elle? Le miracle le plus extraordinaire qui me surprenne en ce moment, c'est celui que
Paganini sait operer, Ne croyez pas qu'il s'agisse de son archet, de son doigte, des sons
fantastiques qu'il tire de son violon... n y a sans doute quelque chose de rnysterieux dans cet
homme.l'Baizac, Honore de, Correspondence, Letter to S.H.Berthoud, 18 March 1831.
16"Je ne l'ai vu jouer qu'une fois a son premier concert a l'ancien grand-Opera de Paris. Tout
l'orchestre, compose de grands artistes diriges par l'illustre Habeneck, fut tellement abasourdi,
stupefait de ce qu'il entendait, que tous, et successiuemeni cesserent pendant un moment de
l'accompagner: silence de I'orchestre, et toutes leurs figures en l'air en veritable admiration.
Paganini baissa le regard sur eux, et pareil triomphe imprima sur ses levres un sourire
inoubliable. Pirondi, Pirus, Letter to Alberto Bachmann, Marseille, 30 April 1905, reproduced in:
Bachmann Alberto, "Nicoll> Paganini", BlIlletin Fran,ais de la S.I.M., p. 23.
17A well-known exemple is the sketch executed by D. Maclise at a performance in the King's
Theatre at the Haymarket, London, June 1831.

48

"5 Ilona bene, rna non sorprende"

("He plays well, but does not astonish")
/

When a report reached Paganini in Genoa in January 1816 that CharlesPhilippe Lafont was to give two concerts in Milan, he rushed off to Lombardy,
anxious to hear his famous colleague. Lafont,18 Paganini's senior by one year,
was a pure product of the French School, trained at the Paris Conservatoire
under Rodolphe Kreutzer and Pierre Rode. He had been chamber virtuoso of
the Czar at St Petersbourg, Violon du Roi in the Chapel of Louis XVIII,
(distinctions carrying certainly more prestige than a position at the provincial
court of Lucca), and, at that time, could claim wider recognition than his
Italian colleague whose career had not yet extended beyond Italy, It was
essential for Paganini, who was planning a concert tour of Europe, to form an
estimate of Lafont's playing: he was aware that his Italian style, with the
addition of all his personal ingredients, differed considerably from that of the
then prevalent Paris School, and was anxious to hear one of its best exponents
before going abroad. Paganini wrote to his friend Germi immediately after
Lafont's first concert in Milan. Here is the laconic report:
"...Yesterday evening we had a concert at the Scala by Monsieur Lafont. This worthy professor
has found no indication that anyone wishes to hear him again. He plays well, but does not
astonish."19

[trl. PXBl

"Sllona bene, rna non sorprende": i.e, as far as violin playing is concerned,
Lafont's performance was irreproachable ("he plays well"). But Paganini
implicitly admits a personal advantage over Lafont in the form of a better
understanding of the listeners' psychology. Lafont's failure to captivate the
audience originates in the predictable character of his pure, classical style ("he
does not astonish").
18Charles-Philippe Lafont (1781-1839) (xBerthaume, Kreutzer and Rode).
19"...Ieri sera abbiamo avuto al Teatro della Scala un'Accademia di Monsieur Lafont. Questa
bravo professore non ha incontrato alsegno di volerlo risentire, Suona bene, rnanon
soprende..."Paganini, Niccoli>, Letter to GermL Milan, 3 February 1816 [PE 41,

49

The violation of expectations: a departure from Classical ideals

For Gudrun Weidmann, the Sondershausen-based German musicologist, the
quest for the disconcerting, the unexpected (das Unerwartete) - the deliberate
violation of expectations - is a characteristic attitude in Romantic art in
general, and in Romantic virtuosism in particular, which resolutely departs
from earlier Classical ideals:
"Whereas Classicism, with its pronounced philosophy of beauty, loves only the moderation of
the form, the balance of forces, Romanticism rejects this very evenness and seeks to amaze and
shock through the unexpected."ZO [trL PXBj

The Romantic virtuoso was possessed by the urge to create a dramatic effect,
but the public too was "clamouring for innovation and brilliance", and wanted
to see the artist as possessing extraordinary faculties (the artist as a "Romantic
hero"). Paganini, better perhaps than any of his contemporaries perceived this
evolution:
"Paganini understood the psyche of his contemporaries who wanted to see in the artist also an
extraordinary human being. Only the irrational could captivate them. Consequently it was not
so much the work of art itself which interested the Romantics as the creative process which it
revealed. The reason he believed in improvisation was because it most closely reflected his
ideal of creation born out of the moment. Thus, the virtuoso, embodied par excellence by
Paganini, is the typical representative of Romanticism." 21

[trl. PXBI

20"...Liebt die Klassik mit ihrer ausgspragten Philosophie des Schonen nur die maBvolle Form,
das Gleichgewicht der Krafte, so verneint die Romantik geradezu dieses

Eb~nmass

und sucht

durch das Unerwartete zu verbliiffen und zu erschrecken..."Weidmann, Gudrun. Die

Violintechnik Pagarunis, PhD diss.Humbcldt-Universitat, Berlin, 1951, P: 2.
21"Paganini kannte die Psyche seiner Zeitgenossen, die im Ktinstler auch den
aussergewohnliche Menschen sehen wollten. Das Irrationale nur vermochte sie zu fesseIn.
Daher interessierte den Romantiker weniger das Kunstwerk selbst, als der schopferische
Vorgang, der sich in diesem offenbart. Darum glaubte er an die Improvisation, wei1sie seinem
Ideal des aus dem Augenblick geborenen Schaffens am niichsten kam. So ist gerade der Virtuose,
den Paganini par excellence verkorpert, der typische Vertreter der Romantik. .." (ibidem).

50

In this perspective, virtuosity can be seen as the ability of instantaneously

giving form to the creative impulse. Paganini's improvisatory style fascinated

his listeners because he gave them the impression that the original creative
process was unfolding before their eyes and ears:
"the performance did not follow, but rather instantly translated the spirit of creation as a
result of his immediate yet thoughtful self-identification withthe music. This was one of the
strongest - and perhaps mostawe-inspiring - aspirations in Romantic art.,,22 [trl. PXBJ
Such an extempore translation of the poetic idea into a coherent piece of
music requires from the composer a considerable musical and technical
knowledge, and, from the performer, a high degree of instrumental skill and
preparation which is commonly called "Virtuosity".

In defining ( or re-

defining) the laws of virtuosity and in illustrating their application, Paganini

provided the "Artists" with a tool which would facilitate the access to artistic
freedom. His brilliant formulation found an enthusiastic response among the
young romantic musicians and the Caprices became a sort of text-book of
virtuosity for the rest of the 19th Century.

An impassioned striving for

freedom marked the social, political and artistic movements of the time.
Beyond their divergences, the French revolutionaries, the Risorgimento
heroes and the young Romantics shared the ideal of Liberie.

Paganini's

fundamental intuition about virtuosity - an aspect of musical language

particularly suited to convey the ideas of liberty and emancipation of the self proved premonitory:
"Virtuosity [Susan Bernstein writes] is both a product and a property of the nineteenth century ...
and the virtuoso - a figure reminiscent of the rhapsode, the sophist and the actor - is yet
historically specific within a 19th century musical context".23

22"In lui insomma la esecuzione non seguiva, bensi traduceva istantaneamente 10 spirito della
creazione, secondo un'immedesimarsi immediato eppure riflessivo che fu una delle piu avvertite
e forse temute aspirazioni dell'arte romantica." Martinotti, Sergio. QUocento Strumentale
Italiano, Bologna: Forni, 1972, p. 276.
23Bernstein. Susan. Virtuosity of the Nineteenth- Century: Music and Language in Heine Liszt
and Baudelaire, PhD diss. The John Hopkins University,1994, P: XIV.

51

Albi RQsenthal's "intriguing CQpy" of the Caprices

A very intriguing CQPy of Ricordi's first edition of the Caprices must be
mentioned as an important piece of information in relation to both the
dedication "Alli Artisti" and KarQI Lipinski's statement that the Caprices were
originally written for friends. This copy, in the possession of the London
antiquarian Albi Rosenthal was shown at the Convegno Internazionale
Niccolo Paganini e il suo tempo held in 1982 at Genoa.

In his highly

interesting communication to the Paganini Congress, Mr Rosenthal described

in detail the particularities of this copy.! at the head of each caprice, a name
is written in brown ink in a hand contemporary with Paganini. Here is the list

of the Caprices with their respective dedicatees. according to Mr Rosenthal's

reading:
Nl: Vieuxtemps. NOZ: Austri. N3: Sivori. N4: Ole Bull. NS: Ernst. N"6: Lipinski. N"7: Liszt.
NB: Alard. N9: Herrmann. NlO: Haumann. N l1:Thalberg. N12:Dhuler. Nl3: Lafont.
N"14: Rode. N"15: Spohr. N"16: Kreutzer. N17: Artot. N"l8: Bohrer. N"19: Romberg. NOZO:
Bignami, NOZl:Bazzini. N"22: Alliani. NOZ3. ?, N" 24: Nicoli! Paganini, sepolto pur troppo.

In addition, the title page bears the inscription "Proprieta di Niccolb

Paganini" (property of Niccolo Paganini) and, on the inside of the origlnal

paper cover, there is a list of musicians prefaced with the words "A Parigi
l'inverno" (In Paris, in winter) which suggests that Paganini annotated his

copy some time between 1832 and 1840. Assuming that the inscriptions are
really in Paganini's hand, one may presume that he was preparing a new
edition of the work, possibly for one of the Parisian music publisher he knew,
i.e, Pacini or Troupenas.

However, a close examination of the list of the

dedicatees could provide a reliable reference tool when trying to reach

conclusions. Little is known about Austri [Caprice 2], Herrmann [Caprice 9]
Dhuler [Caprice13], and there is also the problem of Caprice 24 with its
enigmatic self-dedication Otherwise, it appears that all the dedicatees were
dose acquaintances Qr had connections with Paganini and, as Mr Rosenthal
pointed out, this applies particularly - and most significantly - to the lesser
known, such as Alliani, Bignami and Bohrer.
lRosenthal, Albi, "An intriguing copy of Paganini's Capricci" in: NicolO Paganini e
.lflnI2Q, Genoa: Citta di Genova, 1982, pp. 235-246.

52

n suo

Luigi Alliani (Caprice 22], was a violinist and conductor at Vicenza, There was
a bond of friendship between Alliani and Paganini who corresponded from
1828 until Paganini's final illness. The Paganini Epistolario contains three
letters addressed to Alliani (PE 113, 222, 338), each of them bearing witness to
their mutual esteem and affection.
Carlo Bignami (1808-18-18) [Caprice 20] had the distinction of being considered
by Paganini one of Italy's best violinists and to be chosen by him to lead the
Parma orchestra.

The Paganini Epistolario includes five letters addressed to

Bignami (PE 239, 244, 246, 250, 339).

Antoine Bohrer (1783-1852) [Caprice.18] was born in Hanover and studied in
Paris with Rodolphe Kreutzer. Among his compositions for the violin are 1ll
Caprices ou Etudes published by Schlesinger in Berlin (c. 1820):
noderalo >

------------,

,~ ...

A. Bohrer (Caprice 6)
----:"'\

fpOUSStZ

Bohrer was introduced to Paganini by Hector Berlioz, who admired him as a

fine interpreter of Beethoven's quartets:
"A. Bohrer is one of those men who strike me as best able to understand such of Beethoven's
works as are commonly reputed eccentric and unintelligible ...One evening, in one of those
superhuman adagios where Beethoven's genius soars upwards, immense and solitary as the
colossal bird of the snowy heights of Chimborazo, Bohrer's violin, whilst singing the'
sublime melody, seemed animated by epic inspiration; his tone acquired a twofold power of
expression and broke forth in accents unknown even to himself; inspiration shone out on the
countenance of the virtuoso. We held our breath with swelling hearts when Antoine,
suddenly stopping short. laid down his fiery bow, and rushed into an adjoining room.
Madame Bohrer followed anxiously, but Max said, still smiling: It is nothing; he could not
contain himself. We wil\ leave him for a little to get calm and the begin again. We must
excuse,him.

Excuse him! Beloved anistl,,2

[ttl. R&EHolmes.1884]

2.. A. Bohrer est l'un des hommes qui m'ont paro Ie mieux comprendre et sentir celles des
oeuvres de Beethoven reputees excentriques et inintelligibles....Un soir, dans un de ces adagios

53

Franz Liszt (1811-1886) [Caprice 7] and Sigismond Thalberg (1812-1871) [Caprice

11] were the two greatest piano virtuosos of the time. Details of their close
personal artistic relationship with Paganini are given in Chapter 1.
Henri Vieuxtemps

(1820~1881)

[Caprice 1.] studied under Charles de Beriot at

the Brussels Conservatorium and developed rapidly into a virtuoso of the

highest rank. In 1833, aged thirteen, he started a tour of Europe. The first
concerts of an enormous series took place in Germany where he met Carl
Cuhr. Louis Spohr, Bernhard Molique and other prominent German
violinists of the time. In Dresden, Schumann welcomed him in an article of
his Neue Zeitschrift, hailing him as a genius:
"...If one speaks of Vieuxtemps, one might also think of Paganini .. On hearing Paganini for
the first time, I expected him to begin with a tone such as had never been heard before. But
how thin and small was the tone with which he commenced! Then, little by little, he began to
throw his magnetic chains into the audience; they oscillated above and around. Then the
links gradually became stronger and more intricate; even the audience seemed to contract.
He tightened the chains until the audience was gradually fused into a single entity - one with
the master himself, all counterbalancing each other with sympathetic influence. Other
magicians, other spells. What fascinated in Vieuxtemps's case were not isolated gems which
we could grasp; neither was it that gradual contraction as in Paganini's case ...From the first
to the last tone we stood, taken by surprise, as if in a magic circle, the beginning and end of
which were hidden from us."3 [ttl. PXBj
surhumains, ou Ie genie de Beethoven plane immmense et solitaire COmIDe l'oiseau colossal des
cimes neigeuses du Cimboraco, Ie violon de Bohrer, en chantantla rnelodie sublime, semblait
anime du souffle epique; sa voix redoublait de force expressive, eclatait en accents 11 lui-meme
inconnus: l'inspiration rayonnait sur le viage du virtuose; nous retenions notre haleine, nos
coeurs se gonflaient, quand A. Bohrer s'arretant tout 11 coup, deposa son bnilant archet et s'enfuit
dans la chambre voisine. Mme Bohrer inquiete, l'y suivit, et Max, toujours souriant, nous dit:
'Ce n'est rien, il n'a pu se contenir; laissons-le se calmer un peu et nous recommencerons. II faut
lui pardonner!' Lui pardonner ...cher artiste!"Berlioz, Hector, Memoires Ed. by P. Citron,
Paris. Flammarion, 1991. p.338.
3"Wenn man von Vieuxtemps spricht, kann man wohl an Paganini denkeri, Als ich diesen
zuerst horen sollte, meinte ich, er wiirde mit einem nie dagewesenen Ton anfangen. Dann begann
er und so dunn, so klein! Wie er nun locker, kaum sichtbar seine Magnetketten in die Massen
warf, so schwankten diese heriiber und hiniiber. Nun wurden die Ringe wunderbarer,
verschlungener; die Menschen drangten sich Enger; nun schnurte er immer fester an, bis sie nach
und nach wie zu einem einzigen zusarnmenschmolzen, dem Meister sich gleichwiegend
gegeniiberzusteUen, als eines vom andern von ihm zu empfangen. Andere Kunstzauberer haben

54

It was in London, in the spring of 1,834, that Vieuxtemps heard and met

Paganini (27 April). The encounter was significantly coincidental: Paganini

was then playing the viola in public for the first time in his career.t He had
just finished writing his SQnata per la Gran Viola [M.S.70]:

the date of 27

April 1834 which appears on the orchestral parts shQWS that they were copied
out the very day of the concert.f To hear the viola as a solo instrument and,
besides, played by Paganini in person, was a revelation to the young
Vieuxtemps. The special affection he had for the viola dates from that time.
Among the works he subsequently wrote for this intrument one must
mention the

(op.30) and, of course, the wonderful, moving Capriccio (n

9 of the posth. op.):

H.vi.eux1emps (Capriccio pour Al1D seul)

Lento, con aolta

3

~""'"
"

.r _

~..

. . ro,

2 .........,j=

Henri Vieuxtemps was by far the youngest of all dedicatees listed in Albi
Rosenthal's copy and it appears that Paganini had not met him prior to the
London concert of 27 april 1834. One may therefore conclude that the
Rosenthal copy was annotated after this date.

Among the other young

dedicatees are Alexandre Artot (1815-1845) [Caprice 17], Delphin Alard (18151888) [Caprice 8] and Antonio Bazzini (1818-1897) [Caprice 2], all of them
promising talents of the time. Paganini had always taken a keen interest in his
young colleagues, dispensing much praise and encouragement. It is therefore
not surprising to find their names next to those of such established celebrities
as Kreutzer, SpQhr and RQde. 6
andere Formeln. Bei Vieuxtemps find es nicht die eiru:elnen Schonheiten, die wir festhalten
konnten, noch ist es jenes allmahliche Verengen, wie bei Paganini...Wir stehen hier unvermutet
vom ersten bis zum letzten Ton wie in einem Zauberkreis, der um uns gezogen, ohne dall wir
Anfang und Ende linden konnten" Schumann, Robert, GesamroeJteSchriften tiber Musik und
Musiker. Berlin: Wegweiser Verlag, 1922, pp. 63-64.

~e Times. 28 April 1834 : "Last night, Signor Paganini introduced a performance on the
viola, which was the first lime he played this instrument in public:'
5Moretti, Maria R./ Sorrento Anna. Calalogo Tematico delle Musiche dl Niccolb Paganini,
Genoa: Comune di Genova, 1982, p.216.

55

In 1796-97, Rodolphe Kreutzer (1766-1831) [Caprice 16] was touring Italy and it

is during a brief stay in Genoa that he met the fifteen year old Paganini who
amazed him by his extaordinary sight-reading powers."

Kreutzer had

published his 40 Etudes 8 just the year before (1796), and it is likely that he
would have discussed their interpretation with the young Italian violinist
who, perhaps, knew them already, since Marquis Di Negro, his Genoese
Maecenas, had one of Italy's most extensive private music libraries.
Whether Paganini ever made the personal acquaintance of Jacques Pierre Rode
(1744-1830) [caprice 14] is not known. However, from a letter he wrote to
Germi one may infer that he had the opportunity to hear the French virtuoso:
"My opinion is that Rode is attempting to make a contribution to Italy, being a very
acquisitive man who can never have enough money. In the waiting-room of Paradise one
cannot play better than he does; he may not know much about variety, but just hear him and
you'll be amazed".9 [ttl. PXBJ

Paganini played Rode's concertos - with some additions and embellishments

of his own - until comparatively late in his career. In the first years of his
activity as a touring violinist, he had relied on a repertoire of concertos by
Rode, Kreutzer and Viotti and his own grand concertos for violin and
orchestra took long years of reflection and maturation. He had a special liking
for one of the Rode's concertos, which he often played in the opening of his
programmes.W As regards Rode's famous 24 Caprices en forme d'Etudes (first
published in 1813) it is not sure that Paganini knew them before having his
own 24 Capricci published by Ricordi in 1820. Nevertheless, the fact that he
had access to Rode's concertos (with all the accompanying orchestral material
implied) suggests that he would have no special difficulty in obtaining a copy
of the 24 Caprices en forme d'Etudes.
6since Rosenthal's copy was probably annotated after April 1834, the dedications to
Kreutzer (+1831) and to Jacques Pierre Rode (+1830) were made posthumously.
7Tibaldi-Chiesa, Maria, Paganjni. la vita e l'QPera. Milan: Garzanti, 1940, p.24
Su,e modern editions of Kreutzer's Etudes comprise 42 instead of the 40 original studies,
N"13 and 24 were added by a French reviser in the 1850s,
9"...10 sono d'opinione che Rode tenti di dare una contribuzione all'Italia, essendo uomo molto
interessato, e mai sazio della fortuna. Nell'anticamera del Paradiso non si puo suonare meglio
di lui; forse non conoscera troppo il regno della varieta: ma sentilo e stupirai.;' Letter to
~ 27 oct. 1820 (PE 49),
10Probably the concerto in D minor (see Kestner, A. R6mjsehe Studjen. Berlin: Verlag der
Deckersehen Gehelmen Ober-Hofbuehdruckerei,1850, pp. 34 and 42.

56

Karol Joseph Lipinski (1790-1861) [Caprice 6] studied the elements of violin

playing with his father but otherwise was self-taught. In his tenth year, he felt
attracted by the sonority of the 'cello which he began to practise with such
assiduity that he was soon able to play some of Romberg's concertos.

He felt

that the study of the 'cello not only strengthened the fingers of his left hand
but also helped him to acquire breadth and power of tone on the violin. In
1810 he became the leader of the Orchestra at Lw6w (Lenberg). In 1817 he went
to Italy chiefly with the hope of hearing Paganini. After vainly wandering
from one place to another he finally found him in Piacenza in the spring of
1818.11 He had arrived there just in time for a concert:
"...the public cheered and shouted in frenzied ectasies over the brilliant fireworks of that
violin-sorcerer; when, however, Paganini had finished an adagio in that wonderful singing
style, entirely his own, Lipinski was the only person who applauded. This attracted the
attention of those around him, and when he told them of the long journey he had undertaken to
hear Paganini, they took him straightway and introduced him to the Maestro".12

Paganini soon recognised the talent of his young admirer. He played chamber
music with him daily and even performed with him in concert on 17th April
1818.13 Almost five months had elapsed since the manuscript of the Caprices
had been handed to Ricordi's engraver Signor Tomaso (24 November 1817).
Paganini, still preoccupied by problems pertaining to the publication, discussed
the matter with Lipinski, who later reported the conversation to Schumann:
"...One has to know how the Caprices were written and how speedily the process of publication
took place in order to excuse quite a few things in the original: According to Mr Lipinski they
were written at different times and places, and given by Paganini to his friends in manuscript
form as gifts. When later the publisher Ricordi requested to publish the entire collection,
Paganini is said to have hastily written them down from memory."14
11 PE 19: "Un certo Lipinski polacca, prcfessore di violino, uenne dol/a Polonia in Italia
espressamenie per seniirmi; mi ritrovb a Piacenza e stava quasi sempre can me, adorandomi."
"A certain Lipinski, a Pole, professor of the violin, carne to Italy from Poland expressly to hear
me...He met with me in Piacenza and hardly ever left my side; he worshipped me:'
12Straeten, E. van der, op. cit. p.379.

13 The text of the original concert bill is reproduced in: Neill, Edward. II Cavaliere
Filarmonico, Genoa: De Ferrari, 1990, p.99
14"Man muss wissen, auf welche Weise die Emden entstanden, und wie schnell sie zurn Druck
befordet wurden, urn manches Im Original zu Entschuldigen. Herr Lipinski erzahlte daB sie in
verschiedenen Zeiten und Orten geschrieben und von P. an seine Freunde im Manuskrite

57

The phrases "in order to excuse quite a few things in the original" and "how
speedily the process of publication took place" deserve special comment. The
manuscript handed to Ricordi, although showing remarkable compositional
fluency, reveals a degree of haste.

Besides, it contains errors which also

appeared in the printed version, faithfully copied by Ricordi's engraver who

added some of his own as well. These mistakes subsequently crept into the
first German edition (Leipzig:Breitkopf & Hartel, 1823) and the first French
edition (Paris:Richault,1826). They have proliferated even in some modem
editions. In others, some have been corrected, while others were added...The
reason given by Alberto Cantu is that Paganini did not read proofs for the first
edition.l 5 It is therefore quite understandable that he would later have
thought of preparing a new, expurgated edition of the work.
On his homeward journey, Lipinski went to Trieste where he visited
(presumably on Paganini's suggestion) -the ninety years old Dr Massarana, a
surviving pupil of Tartini .16 Massarana did not like Lipinski's rendition of
one of Tartini's sonatas and asked him to read carefully the poem written
under the music, explaining that Tartini always tried to embody a poetical idea
in his interpretations, thereby infusing his playing with a twofold power of
expression (the "suonare parlante").17

In 1828 - eleven years after the

Piacenza episode - Lipinski and Paganini met again, this time in Warsaw,
during the festivities held on the occasion of Czar Nicholas' coronation as
King of Poland (see Chapter 1).
verschenkt worden waren. Als spater der Verleger, Herr Ricordi, P. zu einer Herausgabe der
Sammlung aulgegordet, habe dieser sie eilig und aus dem Gedachtnis aulgeschrieben usw.
Schumann, Robert, op.cit., p.l64 , note ...)
15Canru, Alberto. Preface to the de Barbierl/Cantu/Herttrich edition of the Caprices,
Munich:Henie Verlag, 1990, p. ix.
16Costantino Massarana (sometimes spelt Mazzorana or Mazzurana), a student of Tartini in
Padua and a Doctor otLaw. For more details see: Dounias, Minos. Die Yiolinkonzerle Giuseppe
Tarljnjs. ZUrich: Moseler Verlag Wolfenbtittel, 1966, pp. 90 and 200,. See also Blom, Eric.
Article "Lipinski" in The Groye's, 5th edition, London:Macmillan, 1954, vol.V, p.25l.
17Dounias, Minos. Die ViolinkoDzerte Giuseppe Tartinis 315 Ausdruck einer

Ktinstlerpersiinlichkeit und einer Kulturepoche. ZUrich: Miiseler Verlag Wolfenbtittel, 1966,

pp.91-96.

58

Theodor Haumann (1808-1878) [Caprice 10] had violin lessons from Joseph
Francois Snel in Brussels, but was destined for the career of a lawyer. 18 After
two years at the University of Louvain, he abandoned his law studies and
went to Paris against the will of his parents (1827). There, he played with
varying success in a number of concerts. He possessed a big powerful tone and
an exuberant artistic temperament but was handicapped by a lack of systematic
musical and instrumental training. He decided to return to University where
he obtained the degree of Doctor of Law in 1830, but his love for the violin
surfaced again.

He underwent a two-year course of intensive training,

practising up to ten hours a day and, when he made a new appearance in Paris
in the winter of 1832, he was rewarded with far greater success.

During 1833,

he met with Paganini who took a friendly interest in him. Haumann played
as a soloist at the memorable concert given by Berlioz on 22 December 1833.19

It was on that occasion that Paganini, who had come primarily to encourage
his "protege", heard the Symphonie fantastique.

After the concert, he went

backstage to congratulate the composer. Here is Berlioz's account:

"...Lastly, my happiness was crowned when the public had all gone, and a man stopped me in
the passage - a man with longhair, piercing eyes, a strange and haggard face - a genius, a Titan
among the giants, whomI had never seenbefore, and at first sightof whomI was deeply moved;
this man pressed my hand, and overwhelmed me with burning eulogies that set both my heart
and brain on fire. It was Paganini (22nd December, 1833)."20 [trl. R&E Holmes]
Contemporary reports about Haumann's playing do not seem to have been
consistently favourable. In spite of an excellent technique, he apparently had a
strong inclination to mannerism and, according to Edmund van der Straeten,
he took all movements too slowly because he had noticed that "his power of
tone and breadth of style constituted the chief attraction".21

Heinrich Heine

18rhe mainsource of biographical data onHaumann is: Straeten, Edmund van der. Iill:
History of the Violin (2vol.) New-York: Da Capo Press, 1968, vol. Il, p.368,
19See: de Courcy, G. op.cit. vol.Il, p.138 and Newman, Ernest (editor). Memoirs ofHector
!kl:l.illZ. New-york:Dover, 1966, p.201, footnote 1.
20" Entin pour cornble debonheur, un homme, quandlepublic fut sorti, un homme a la longue
chevelure, a l'oeil percant, a la figure etrange et ravagee, un possede du genie, un colosse panni
les geants, quejen'avais jamais vu, et dontIepremier aspect me troubla profondernent,
m'attenditseul dans la salle, m'arreta au passage pour me serrer la main, m'accabla d'e.Ioges
brulants qui m'incendierent le coeur et la tete; c'etai: Paganini!! (22 decernbre 1833)," Berlioz,
Hector. op.cit., p,264.

59

was particularly vitriolic in his criticism of Haumann, ranking him as the

prototype of the "empty virtuoso", a mere caricature of violinists like Paganini
or Ernst:
"Heumann, the 50n of the Brussels pirate publisher, conducts on his violin the business of his

father.

What he plays is nothing but a duplicate of the best violinists, with occasional

embelJishments of the text by way of superfluous notes of his own and some addition of brilliant
typographical errors:'22 [trl. PXBj

Haumann, unlike most of the virtuosos of the time, was not a performing
composer. He only played the music of others. Heine's impression was that
in his role as an interpreter, rather than effacing himself in speaking the
language of another, Haumann tended to digress from the composer's
intention by adding "embellishments" and other brilliant flourishes of his
own which were irrelevant to the original text. In Heine's literary metaphor,
the interpreter is seen as performing the many roles of a typescript, editor,
printer and publisher all at once. His severity towards Haumann perhaps
stemmed from a personal susceptibility to over-editing and transgression of
copyrights.
The German school of violin playing owes much to the influence of Louis
Spohr (1784-1859) [Caprice 15].

An outstanding violinist in his youth, he

consciously modelled his playing on the style of Jacques Pierre Rode whom he
heard for the first time in Brunswick in 1803. Eventually tired of the life of a
touring virtuoso, he preferred to devote his energies to composition and
teaching. As a pedagogue, his philosophy became the very antithesis of that of
the then prevalent French school (and probably of his own as a former
virtuoso).

Now, his bowing followed different principles from those of the

French and Italian masters (he was preoccupied with Paganini's success and
did what he could to demonstrate the superiority of his personal, more
21Straeten, Edmund van der. op.cit. 1'.138.
22"Haumann, der Sohn des Brusseler Nachdruckers, treibt auf der Violine das Metier des
Vaters: was er geigt, sind reinliche Nachdriicke der vorzuglichsten Geiger, die Texte hie und
da verbramt mit iiberfliissigen Originalnoten und verrnehrt mit brillanten
Druckfehlern.t'Heine, Heinrich, SiimtJiche Schrjf\en, Munich: Carl Hanser verlag, 1979,
"01.\1, PI'. 360.

60

"serious" approach). Nothing was done to excite applause: "flying staccato,

springbow, spiccato, sautille, etc., he condemned as trivial effects, and played
all quick passages with detached bows",23 His style was noble and dignified,
the tone broad, and all trace of sentimentality severely eliminated. Through
his active influence, German violinists were encouraged to favour earnestness
in artistic effort and to avoid "empty" brilliance. 24

Paganini and Spohr met

for the first time in Venice in 1816 and on a number of occasions in

subsequent years.

Although their personal and artistic relationships have

been copiously documented elsewhere, the following passage from Spohr's

autobiography is worth mentioning:
"In June 1830 Paganini came to Cassel and gave two concerts in the theatre, which I heard with
great interest. His left hand, and his constantly pure intonation were to me astonishing, But in
his compositions and his execution I found a strange mixture of the highly genial and childishly
tasteless, by which one felt alternately charmed and disappointed, so that the impression left
as a whole was, after frequent hearing, by no means satisfactory to me.

As his visit took place

just on Whitsunday, I took him the next day to WhilhelmshOhe, where he dined with me, and
was very lively, indeed somewhat extravagantly so.',25

In spite of Spohr's somewhat lofty attitude, Paganini had a sincere admiration

for his German colleague, both as a violinist and as a composer and often
expressed it publicly or in his letters. 26 It is therefore not surprising to find
his name among the dedicatees of A. Rosenthal's copy.
Emesto Camillo Sivori (1815-1894) [Caprice 3] received his first formal musical
education from Giacomo Costa, a worthy representative of the Classical school
of violin playing who operated at Genoa. 27 In 1823, Paganini, himself a
former pupil of Costa, took the boy under his personal care and gave him
systematic instruction for a period of about sixth months.

Sivori rapidly

23Straeten, Edmund van der. op.cit., vol.Il, p.98.

24The short biographical note on Spohr first appeared in: Borer, Ph. Aspects of European
Influences on Australian Yiolin Playing & Ieaching, p, 30.
25Louis Spohr's Autobiography. translated from the German, London: Longman, Roberts, &
Green, 1868, vol.II. (p. n mg).
26See: PE 85, 146, 310.
27Moretti, Maria R./ Sorrento Anna. Cat"logo Tematico deBe Musiche dj NiccolI> Paganini,
Genoa: Comune di Genova, 1982,p.150 and Straeten, Edmund van der, op.cit. p.352.

61

acquired a phenomenal technique which he combined with a limpid, silvery

tone, and perfect intonation. Whether Paganini really developed a course of
study for the violin differing from that used by other schools is a highly
controversial question.

In his conversations with Max Julius Schottky

(Prague, Dec. 1828), he insisted that he had worked out such a plan and
claimed that he used it in part when he instructed Sivori. Schottky writes that
Paganini repeatedly assured him that, with his method, a young man could be
fully trained in three years to a degree of proficiency usually attained after ten
years of study.

Although several violinists benefited directly from Paganini's

example and advice (Lipinski, Ernst, Bull, Bazzini, Ciandelli and Agostino
Robbio - who, incidentally, migrated to Australia 28), he had only two pupils
who received their higher schooling from him: Catterina Calcagno who had a
brilliant but ephemeral career, and Camillo Sivori. From the conversations
that David Laurie had with Sivori, it appears that Paganini was very strict and
that he insisted that his pupil would practise daily scales, but nothing really
substantial is revealed about his pedagogical methods. 29 There is no doubt,
however, that Paganini, who took a genuine and almost fatherly interest in
his young student, was a dedicated teacher. During the comparatively short
period of instruction, he wrote for Sivori an impressive number of works
which the boy had to play before an audience (what we now call "performance
practice"). The guitar part was played by Paganini himself and distinguished
Genoese artists, willing to encourage the apprentice virtuoso, were the other
members of the ad hoc chamber ensemble. Among the pieces dedicated to
Sivori are 6 Quartets for violin, guitar, viola and 'cello [N.S of op.perd.], 12
Cantabili e Valtz for violin and guitar [M.s. 45 and N.6 of op.perd.], a Sonata
con variazioni [N.8 of op.perd.], and a Concertino [NA of op.perd.].30
According to Edmund van der Straeten, Sivori preserved the manuscripts of
these pieces "as his most precious treasures".31 Unfortunately, they are now
280rchard, W.A. Music in Australia, Melbourne: Georgian House, 1952, pp.53, 137-38
29Laurie, David Reminiscences of a Fiddle pealer. London, 1924, p. 60 seq.
30op.p. stands for opere perdute (lost works) and the corresponding numbers refer to section IV
of theCatalogo Tematico delle Musjche eli Niccol" Paganini (p.330-341)
31Straeten, Edmund vander. op.cit. (E.van derStraeten hadmade personal acquaintance
with Sivori therefore his biographical note, although it contains inexactitudes, is worth
special attention).

62

all lost, with the exception of the Cantabile e Valtz in E major. The manuscript
of this piece,32 which bears the dedication "al Bravo Ragazzino Sig. Camillo

Sivori da Nicola Paganini" is of special interest because the violin part is

carefully fingered and annotated in Paganini's hand. Here is a diplomatic
transcript of the first bars:

uaSI

Rd

N. Paganini, Cantabile e Va1tz [M.S.451

agIO~~

M
i
_
~bl,e
IifIA't! 3

___ --

--4_

~!ft=f'--2~y~
1 (.

__5
2 ;--~.

~
-..

...---

4 .

~.
::::=-

(P <1q,amn1
. .S.or191na
. . If'lngenngs
. )

The Epistolario shows that Paganini was anxious to have the latest news of
his pupil. 33 During his final illness, he asked Sivori to come and play for him
(autumn 1840) and subsequently bequeathed to him one of his most precious
violins (the copy of his own Guarneri made by Vuillaume).

In a letter to

Vincenzo degli Antoni,34 Paganini wrote that Sivori was the only one who
could truly call himself his pupil. Among the few who, in tum, received
instruction from Sivori, are Henri Marteau (1874-1930)35 and Zino
Francescatti's father. The compositions of Camillo Sivori are now largely
forgotten. However, a new edition of the twelve Etudes-Caprices op.25 would
complement the standard works of advanced technique. Of special interest are
N4 (preparation to Paganini's ninth Caprice), Nag (a very beautiful and lively
Italian saltarello) and N 12 (a challenging and rare piece for the study of
unison):
32Now in possession of Biblioteca Casanatense in Rome (call n mus.ms, Cas. 5622 and M.S. 45
of the Catalogo tematico).
33ff.. 72, 74, 85, 88, 111, 136, 144,189, 368, etc.
34 This letter, dated 2 March 1828, which has notbeen reproduced in the Paganjni
Epistolario. is presently in the possession of Mr. Jean Werro of Berne (Switzerland).
35Dates kindly confirmed by Mr. Hartmut Lindemann ofSydney (>Schroeder).

63

8U6--....,

C.Sivori, ~tude-C8price N!4

v
v

(ed.by PXB)

C.Sivori, ~tude-Caprice N!9

~
,,1'$

l< talon

...

-""'

r-~

=I

(ed.by PXB)

==

C. Sivori ttude-Caprice N!12

,

(bar33-40) )

rr>;

rr-. rr>.

rr-;

r>. r'\.---.,

r'\.---.,

r>.

(ed.by PXB)

64

Charles Philippe Lafont (1781-1839) [Caprice 13] studied under Berthaume,

Kreutzer and Rode. Considered one of the finest representatives of the Paris
school of violin playing, he had also a fine singing voice and appeared on a
number of occasions at the Theatre Feydeau as a singer of French ballads. In
1808 he succeeded his teacher Rode as solo violinist to the Czar at St
Petersbourg and in 1815 he was named Vi%n du Roi in the chapel of Louis
XVIII.

In 1816 he went to Italy and gave concerts at La Scala, Milan, where

Paganini heard him for the first time (see supra). Lafont suggested that they
should play together and on March 16 of the same year, the two violinists gave
a joint concert, also at La Scala. The event, which gave rise to a famous
controversy, was extensively commented upon by the music critics of the time,
by Paganini and Lafont themselves and by their respective biographera-" The
real cause of the rivalry between the two men, however, was neither of an
artistic nor of a professional order. The acerbic remarks which appear in
Paganini's letters apropos Madame Lafont are symptomatic of an existing
malaise in that Paganini, who did not easily indulge in tactless criticism,
would otherwise never have descended to gossip:
Paganini to Germi, February 25,1816
"Lafont played the second time at a concert of a pianist at La Scala; but there were not even
three hundred people. However, he pleased more that second time. It is well known in Milan

that his wife is one [of the courtesans J at the Palais Royal in Paris 37 and that she has
received there one hundred sequins from the one and twenty from another."38 Itrl. PXBJ
Paganini to Germi, Leipzig 16 October 1829
"...They write me from Paris that Mr Lafont, upon learning that I am about to arrive there, is
leaving to spend the winter in Russia. To which I retorted that I would readily forgo the
pleasure of seeing him for his own good, knowing how well they recompense virtue over

there..."39[trl. PXBj
36see Schottky, Julius Max. PagaDiDi's J .eben lind Trejben als Kiinstler und als Mensch, p.300
and Straeten, Edmund van der. op.cit., p.291.
37The court "red light district".
38"Lafont ha suonato per la seconda volta ad un'Accademia eli un Pianofortista alla Scala;
rna non v'erano trecento uelitori; piacque perc piu la seconda volta. E notorio a Milano che la
moglie eli questa fosse una del Palazzo Reale a Parigi, e che abbia ricevuto qua da uno cento
zecchini, e da un a1tro venti..." (PE 5).
39"...Da Parigi rni dicono che Mr Lafont nel sentire che sto per cola giungere, se ne va passare
I'invemo in Russia; al che risposi che sacrificheri'J i1 piacere di vederlo per il suo meglio,
conoscendo quanta cola si sa prerniare la virtU..." (PE 143)

65

On a strictly artistic level, however, the relationship between the two men
became more and more characterised by mutual esteem, Paganini finding
Lafont "unquestionably a very distinguished artist",40 and, conversely, Lafont
trying to progresssively incorporate into his own playing the virtuoso
techniques he had observed in his Italian colleague.s!

Paganini survived

Lafont by a few months, his fellow violinist, rival, and friend having met with
death in a carriage accident while on tour, on August 9, 1839.
Ole Borneman Bull (1810-1880) studied under Lundholm (c-Baillot) at Bergen,
but gained most of his violinistic knowledge through observation and
experience. At Osterey. where his parents had a country property, he became
acquainted with the tradition of the Hardanger violin. 42 From a peasant
Hardanger virtuoso, the young Ole Bull borrowed a long and heavy bow
which, being very flexibly haired, gave his tone a silky yet rich and deep
quality. The comparatively low tension of the hair also facilitated his chord
playing. At about the same time, he managed to secure a copy of Paganini's 24
Caprices (the distribution of which appears to have been remarkably rapid for
the time). Armed with his Hardanger bow, the young violinist probably gave
an interesting early rendition of the richly polyphonic Caprice 4, the dedicatee
of which he was to become. In 1829, Ole Bull had a brief and not entirely
satisfactory course of study in Cassel with Louis Spohr. It was not until he
went to Paris that his powers as a performer fully developed. The avowed
motive of his trip to the French capital was to hear Paganini and it indeed
constituted the turning-point in his life. He attended as many of Paganini's
concerts as he could, made the personal acquaintance of the master, and
immersed himself in the study of advanced virtuoso techniques. An example
of the music he wrote at the time is the Fantaisie et Variations de Bravoure

sur un theme de Bellini. He is reported to have played the second variation

"tutte Ie corde ienuie" that is, without arpeggiating the chords:
40Schottky,

op.cit.,

p.300.

41Bachmann, Alberto Abraham. An Encyclopedia of theViolin, p.372.

42The Hardanger violin (Hardingfele) is a folk violin indigenous to South central Norway.
It has four underlying metal sympathetic strings (generally tuned to D, E, F#, A) and the
conventional strings (generally tuned to A, D, A, E) are also of metal. The bridge is nearly flat,
thus facilitating polyphonic playing. The most famous Hardanger violin player was Torgeir
Augundson, known as MflUargten (the Miller Boy). He gave concerts together with Ole Bull.

66

Ole Bull, op.3

~~

y:

#
.

.!fi

pp

With his facility in multiple stopping and his ability to sustain three and even
four parts simultaneously, Ole Bull was ideally equipped to interpret
Paganini's fourth Caprice:
N. Pagani ni, Caprice 4 (bars 59- 68)

,,--...,

~.

Ole Bull's testimonies and writings about Paganini are documents of great
value to the scholar.

In

the following passage the Caprices are, interestingly

enough, referred to as "Studies":

'No one can thoroughly understand Paganini without an educated appreciation of melody and
the art of giving life and expression to it. Without a knowledge of the Italian art of singing, it is
impossible to properly appreciate his playing. Contemporary with Pasta, Pizzaroni, Rubini and
Malibran, Paganini rivalled them, singing on his violin melodies, many of which had been sung
by these artists, and astonishing even them more than the public.

In fact, his style was so

original, and the means by which he produced his stirring effects was so varied and so
unexpected, his music so filled with ever new episodes of startling beauty or original quaintness,
that the violinists of the day stood confounded. Half the conceited virtuosos would not
condescend to study the mysteries of the violin and the soul of the melody, tone and expression,

67

but called all they could not comprehend and themselves execute "tricks" and "playing for the
multitude". Nothing has been produced equalling his twenty-four "Studies" either in beauty,
originality or difficulty of performance:,43

The great virtuoso, composer and transcriber Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst (18141865) [Caprice 5] was born in Raussnitz (Moravia).

He studied in Vienna with

Bohm and Mayseder and in Paris with Ch. de Beriot. As a performer on the
violin and the viola, he had an extraordinary technique and a warm, colourful
tone. He was a great admirer of Paganini, even going so far as to follow him
from place to place to observe his technique. He eventually became friendly
with his eminent Italian colleague, and so nearly approached his virtuosity
that Paganini once half-jokingly remarked: "II faut se mefier de vous!"44
Joseph Joachim related to Andreas Moser that he once asked Ernst why he had
rented a room in Marseilles next to Paganini's although he had heard him
often play in public.

Ernst answered that he was anxious to hear him

practising. "Yet I did not really succeed", Ernst said "He did play quite a lot,
though mostly mezza voce, and often with a mute... the most he did
sometimes was to play one of his Caprices, which he liked to give as encores."
"Did he play perfectly?" asked Joachim. "Without a blemish!" Ernst replied,
"and still far more astonishingly than in concert." Ernst added that when
occasionally a passage did not quite succeed to Paganini's satisfaction, the
second time it came off like a pistolshot ("wie aus der Pistole geschossen'') and
that he was able to accomplish this by an iron will and an extremely flexible,
stretchy and responsive hand whose fingers struck the strings like clappers
("Finger wie Kloppel auf die Saiten schlugen").45
43Crosby, Dr A.B. The Art of Holding the Violin & Bow as exemplified by Qle Bull. pp.37-38
(Iotnngs by Ole Bull on violin and violinists)
44 Straeten, E. van der, The History of the Violin New-York: DaCapo, 1968, vol.Il, p.1l4.
4S"Joachim: 'Sage rrur, verehrter Freund, was bezwecktest du eigentlich damil, dich s.Z. neben
Paganini einzumieten? Du bast ibn doch oft genug Offentlich geh6rt?' Emst.'Das schon,
wenigstens 20 Male; aber mir lag daran, ibn beim Dben zu belauschen. Ich karn jedoch nicht auf
meine Rechnung: er geigte zwar ziemlich viel, wenn auch fast immer mezza voce, oft auch mit
dem Dampfer: indessen bereitete er sich stets nur auf die jeweiligen Stucke vot, die auf dem
Programm des nachsten Konzertes standen, hiichstens dall er hie und da eine seiner Kaprizen
vornahrn, die er geme als Zugaben spielte.' Joachim: 'Kriegte er die denn einwandsfrei heraus?'
Ernst: ' Aber ohne Tade!! Freilich zu Hause noch weit verbliiffender als auf dem Podium. Er mull
in seiner Jugend enorm fleiJlig gewesen sein; denn wenn ibm auch hier und da eine Passage nicht
ganz nach Wunsch gelang, bei der Wiederkehr kam sie wie aus der Pistole geschossen heraus,

68

Heinrich Heine, evoking the question of artistry and instrumental virtuosity

drew a fascinating parallel between Ernst and Paganini:
"When it comes to violinists, virtuosity is not entirely the result of mechanical finger dexterity
and sheer technique, as it is with pianists. The violin is an instrument which has aimost human
caprices - it is, as it were, attuned to the mood of the player in a sympathetic rapport: the
slightest discomfort, the tiniest inner imbalance, a whiff of sentiment, elicits an immediate
resonance, and this could well come from the fact that the violin, so closely pressed against the
chest, can perceive our heartbeat. However, this is the case only of artists who truly have a
heart that beats, who have anything resembling a soul. The more sober, the more detached the
violinist, the more consistently reliable will be his performance, and he can count on the
obedience of his fiddle, any time, anywhere. But this greatly overrated assurance is only the
result of spiritual limitation and the greatest masters were often dependent on influences from
within and without. I have never heard anyone play better, and for that matter, worse than
Paganini and I can say the same of Ernst.

Ernst, who is perhaps the greatest of present-day

violinists, resembles Paganini in his frailty as in his genius.'046 [trl, PXBI

For Heine, the virtuosity of Paganini and Ernst is brought in line with depth of
expression rather than with finger dexterity. The heart and the music beat
time together, as in Susan Bernstein "ideal figure of adequation".47 The artist
and the instrument become one. It was true virtuosity that enabled both
Paganini and Ernst to transcend the materiality of their instrument and, in the
words of Geminiani "to give Meaning and Expression to Wood and Wire".48

Dazu verhalf ihrn einerseits seine eiserne Willenskraft, andererseits eine wenn auch nicht
groBe, so doch auBerst geschmeidige, biegsarne und streckfahige Hand, deren Finger wie Kloppel
auf die Saiten schlugen.' Moser, Andreas, Geschichte des Yiolinspiels. Berlin 1923, p. 429.
46"Bei den Violinisten ist iiberhaupt die Virtuositat nicht ganz und gar Resultat rnechanischer
Fingerfertigkeit und bloBer Technik, wie bei den Pianisten, Die Violine ist ein Instrument,
welches fast menschliche Launen hat und mit der Stirnrnung des Spielers sozusagen in einem
sympathetischen Rapport steht: das geringste MiBbehagen, die leiseste Gemiilserschtittung, ein
Gefiihlshauch, findet hier einen unmittelbaren Widerhall, und das komrnt wohl daher, well die
Violine so ganz nahe an unsere Brust gerdriickt, auch unser Herzklopfen vemirnmt. Dies ist
jedoch nur bei Kunstlern der Fall, die wirkllch ein Herz in der Brust tragen, welches klopft, die
iiberhaupt eine Seele haben. [e niichtemer und herzloser der Violinspieler, desto gIeichforrniger
wird immer seine Exekution sein, und er kann auf der Gehorsarnkeit seiner Fiedel rechnen, zu
jeder Stunde, an jedem Orte. Aber diese gepriesene Sicherheit ist doch nur das Ergebnis einer
geistigen Beschrankteit, Heine, Heinrich. Samtliche Schrilten. Munich: Carl Hanser Verlag,
1979, vol.V, pp. 436-437 (Lutetia).
47Bernstein, Susan. Virtuosity of the Nineteenth- Century: Music and Language in Heine. Liszt
and Baydelaire. PhD diss. The John Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, 1991, p.170.
48Gerniniani, Francesco, The Art of Playing on the Violin. London, 1751, p.8.

69

Ernst's compositions include six Polyphonic Studies. some of which even

exceed the technical requirements of Paganini's Caprrces.s? It appears
significant, in relation to Albi Rosenthal's copy of the Caprices, that Ernst
dedicated each of them to violinist colleagues (Laub, Sainton, Joachim,
Hellmesberger. Vieuxtemps and Bazzini). Mr Rosenthal suggests that the idea
may have originated with Paganini. The crowning piece of Ernst's art of
violin playing is his transcription for solo violin of Schubert's Der ErlkOnig,
which he entitled Grand Caprice op,26. This work, dedicated "to the Poets Schubert and Paganini", is one of the most striking demonstrations of the
polyphonic resources of the violin ever written, but it is generally considered
unplayable: 50

II Presto
"

DeI EIlkiinig

J= 152

(S.ll.1I1trtl

rW~

tl

,
II

H W EII\:lt(Grand Caprice op 26)

,:

,.

.~.

(tUyPXB) ~ "-

r.- .r.- .~r-'

.- -- ... - ru...J

One may perhaps question the legitimacy of this transcription out of respect
for the original, but as an unaccompanied piece of violin music, and as a study,
it is without parallel in the literature for superiority of dramatic expression.

Since it marks a climax in the evolution of the genre of the Caprice, it will
later receive special attention.

49Ernst, Heinrich Wilhelm, Seehs mehrstimmjge Etjjden (1865)

5OSee: Borer, Ph. Aspects of European lntlyences on Australian Violin Playing & Teachjo::. pp.144-171
(Appendix C),

70

CHAPTER III

THE STUDENT

Preamble
It has often been suggested that Paganini, who appeared "like a meteor from

the sky"! in the world of music, was self-taught. This claim, however, is
invalidated by the evidence of his all-important early training in music theory
and composition with Ghiretti and Paer.

The fact that he acquired a

knowledge of the tradition of the bel canto directly from Marchesi and
Crescentini further substantiates the postulate that he was the true heir of the
old masters. Close links with the great Italian tradition also appear in his
training as a violinist which was distinguished by a constant study of the
works of Marini, Martini, Rossi, Stradella, Torelli, Corelli, Galuppi, Scarlatti,
Balduino, Giardini, Tartini, Geminiani, Locatelli (whose Arte del Violino was
the catalyst for his own 24 Caprices), Nardini, [omelli, Lolli, Pugnani, Ghiretti,
Giornovichi, Vietti, and others. 2 Paganini's technique, it is true, was not
the result of the long and intensive exposure to a curriculum of a
conservatorium, and, in many respects, ran counter to scholastic precepts and
canons. A free, non-conformist spirit, Paganini certainly needed to work out
certain problems in his own way, and he appears to have developed many
aspects of his fabulous technique through independent experimenting and
thinking. Paganini, who had received his first instruction in violin from his
father, made such rapid and startling progress that it became difficult to find an
adequate teacher for him, not only in Genoa, but also in the rest of Italy. For
several reasons, Italy was not the best place for advanced studies in violin
playing any more. In fact, towards the end of the eighteenth century, the
IVan der Straeten's words. See his interesting article on the Italian school in: op.cit.vol, II,
p,341,
2See: Schottky, J, M" op.cit., p.275; Nunamaker, Norman Kirt. The virtuoso concerto before
Faganini: the concertos of] oW. Gjornoyichj and WQldemar, Indiana University, 1968, P: 215.

71

Italian school had fallen into a state of decline. Most of the great masters
associated with Italy's "golden age" of the violin had died: Corelli in 1713,
Vivaldi in 1743, Veracini in 1750, Geminiani in 1764, Somis in 1763, Locatelli
in 1764, Tartini in 1770, and with him his famous "School of the Nations" in

Padua.

The diminishing influence of the Church had led to the deterioration

of its system of musical life and to the decline of the social importance of the
musicians. Moreover, the I~ narrow policies applied in music schools and
conservatoires proved detrimental to instrumentalists. Due to the exclusive

penchant for opera in Italy, the emphasis was placed chiefly on the
cultivation of native singing talent. Many violinists, and not necessarily the
lesser ones, were forced to seek employment outside of Italy. Signs of this
impending crisis were already apparent in the mid-eighteenth century. As
early as 1750, Tartini was writing letters of recommendation to foreign
employers such as Prince Lobkowitz in Wien and Frederic the Great in
Potsdam on behalf of some of his best students who could not secure a
position in Italy.3

Giovanni Battista Vietti, generally considered the last

great representative of the old Italian school, left his native country in 1780
and settled in Paris in 1782, the year of Paganini's birth. With Vietti, the
European centre of violin schooling was transferred from Padua to Paris, and
France, so to speak, took over the Italian inheritance. One can safely assume
that Paganini's father would have sent his son to Viotti rather than to Rolla,
had the former been teaching in Italy. Rolla, although an excellent performer
and expert orchestral leader, had not studied with great masters such as
Tartini, Nardini, or Pugnani.

It is to his credit that he refused to give lessons

to Paganini and sent him to Ferdinando Paer, a musician in the wider sense,
and a true heir of the great tradition.

Thus, Paganini was given the

opportunity to fully develop as a musician, that is not only as a great

performer on the violin, but also as a master in the craft of composition.

3See: Dounias, Minos, pje Vjolinkonzerte Giuseppe Tartinis. ZUrich: Moseler Verlag
WolfenbUttel, 1966, p. 200.

72

Bio~aphical

landmarks. early training and influences

Niccolo Paganini was born in Genoa on October 27, 1782. His parents and elder
brother Carlo lived in a modest appartment on the seventh storey of the Casa
di Picassino located at 1359 Vico delle Fosse di Colle (later re-named 38 Passo

di Gattamora), not far from the house of Christopher Columbus in the Vico
Dritto Ponticello. 4 Antonio, the father, worked on the docks in the Porto
Franco (the duty free port) as a ligabalIe, that is a cargo handler who packed
bales for shipment on merchant vessels.

He was a musical enthusiast who

played the mandolin and the violin, and also bought and sold musical
instruments.

During the British blockade of the port of Genoa which went

into effect at the end of 1794, he had to rely on this activity as a means of
livelihood and was listed as a teneur d'amandolines in the Napoleonic
census of 1798.5

From 1787, Antonio Paganini gave his son musical

instruction. The first instrument the five year old child learned to play was a
mandolin which, according to a description given in the catalogue of the
Wilhelm Heyer Museum of Cologne, was of the Neapolitan type, that is tuned
to G, D, A, and E, like a violin.f This shows real pedagogical insight on the
part of Paganini's father, for when the child made the transition to the violin
two years later, the boy was already familiar with the "geography" of the
fingerboard and his left hand had been strengthened by hours of practice on an
instrument which requires considerable finger pressure on the strings to
produce a clear tone. Instrumental ability depends to a large extent on sensory
memory. Gifted children often possess a memory coding system that appears
to convert sound into mental images of vertical or horizontal lengths or

4rn the place of Paganini's house, unfortunately demolished, a memorial stone has been
erected. A declaration of protest against the enforced demolition of this historical edifice is
preceded by the inscription "Male nonfare paura nonavere", one of Paganini's mottos.
5Codignola, Arturo. PaganiDi jnliroo, Genoa: Municipio di Genova, 1935, p. 25.
6"Neapolitanische Mandoline aus der Mitte des 18. Jahrhunderts; auf der unteren Zarge ist
eine wappeniihnliche Brandmarke erkennbar. Der Korpus des einfaches Instrumentes ist aus
elf abwechselnd angeordneten Spanen von hellem und dunklem Zedernholz zusammengesetzt.
In dem Schalloch befindet sich eine vertiefte Roselle, die von einer in schwarzem Kitt
eingelassenen Ahomeinlage umsaumt wird. Das Griffbrett tragt acht Messingbiinde; sechs
weitere holzerne Biinde sind auf die Decke aufgesetzt. Cesamtlange 52 em, Korpuslange 26 em,
Breite 14,5em. Das unscheinbare Instrument ist von hohem historischen Wert, da es aus dem
Nachlall Nicolo Paganinis stammt; Paganinl soli es als Kind bei Konzerten in Genua benutzt
haben" (Katalog des Musikhistorischen Museums von WIlhelm Heyer, 1912, vol.Il, N649).

73

spans. The fretted fingerboard of the mandolin which allows the player to
conceptualise, as it were, the distances between notes, induced the young
Paganini to develop what is called a visual-kinesthetic memory - a repertoire
of lengths and spaces corresponding to intervallic formation?
A description given by Carl Guhr suggests that Paganini guided his bow with
great economy of movement. Furthermore, the way he held his bow as well
as the position of his arm were quite idiosyncratic:

/'

'

"The right arm is kept close to the body, and is hardly ever moved. Only the wrist, which is
strongly bent, possesses great mobility; it moves with ease and guides the elastic motions of the
bow with admirable dexterity. It is only in chords which are vigorously struck with the lower
part of the bow near the heel, that he lifts his elbow and forearm slightly, moving them away
from his body." 8ftrl. PXB I

In mandolin playing, a plectrum is used to set the strings in vibration.

According to the Italian traditional method, this requires a strongly bent, albeit
very loose and mobile wrist, and perfect stillness of the arm. This also may
have influenced Paganini's violin technique. Several contemporary paintings,
drawings and sketches show Paganini in what seems to be a favourite pose, i.e.
the bow lightly held between the thumb, index, and middle fingers, as if in the
act of writing or in holding the plectrum of a mandolin (in Italian, penna,
which signifies pen):

Sketch by R Hamerton
King's Theatre, London, 1831 (detail)
7See: Hendrickson, Lyndall. "A Longitudinal Study of Precocity in Music", in: Giftedness, a
continuing worldwide challenge. New-York, Trillium Press, 1985,pp. 194-95 and Borer, Ph.,
Aspects of European Influences.., p.83.
8Guhr, Carl, L'art de jouer du violon de Paganini, 4, p.4."Lebras droit est applique au corps
et ne se meut presque jamais; Ie poignet seul, fortement flechi, jouit chez Paganini d'une grande
mobilite, il 50 meut avec aisance, et dirige avec une prestesse admirable 105 mouvemens
elastiques de l'archet. Seulement dans 105 accords qu'on allaque vigoureusement avec la partie
inferieure de l'archet, pres de la hausse, il eleve un peu Ie coude etl'avant bras, en les eloignant
du corps."

74

Sketch by D. Maclise
London, 1831 (detail)

Two works written by Paganini for the mandolin, the Serenata [M.S.16]9 and
the MinuettQ per \'Amandorlino [M.5.106])10, are still in existence. The latter,
written in the key of E major, is of a bright, sunny character and speaks in the
idiom of Italian popular music.

The concluding E major chord - a

mandolinist's version of the famous "Geminiani" chord - has the same

arrangement as the one at the head of the Caprices:

}"fi17uettoper/'Am417dor/i170

N. Paqanini [M.S. 106]

r!1

_.,:~
l5L

y r :11
(dip1.transcript)

'!for mandolin and guitar.

IOFor mandolin solo. The manuscript is in the possession of the Accademia Filarmonica of
Bologn(j

75

During the year 1789, Antonio Paganini presented his son aged seven with a
little violin and soon realised that the boy had a talent of the first magnitude.
He resolved that study and perseverance should develop it. The child made
rapid progress, but the extreme severity which characterised his early training
contributed to undermine his rather fragile constitution.

Here is Paganini's

own version of the story, as he related it during his conversations with Julius
Max Schottky in Prague in 1828:
"...My father Antonio was a not very well-to-do tradesman and was by no means without
musical talent, which, however, was in no way comparable to his love of music. He soon
recognized my natural talent and I have him to thank for teaching me the rudiments of the art.
His principal passion kept him at home a great deal, trying by certain calculations and
combinations to figure out lottery numbers from which he hoped to reap considerable gain. He
therefore pondered over the matter a great deal and would not let me leave him, so that I had
the violin in my hand from mom till night. It would be hard to conceive of a stricter father. If
he didn't think I was industrious enough, he compelled me to redouble my efforts by making me
go without food so that I had to endure a great deal physically and my health began to give
way. I really didn't require such harsh stimulus because I was enthusiastic about my instrument
and studied it unceasingly in order to discover new and hitherto unsuspected effects that would
astound people. Even then in the circle of my intimate acquaintances it was generally believed
that I would create a great stir, and they were all the more convinced of it owing to a dream of
my very pious mother Teresa (nee Bocciardo). Through her lively imagination, she fancied
that her guardian angel appeared to her in her sleep and she asked that her son might be a
great violinist. A sign of acquiescence indicated (she dreamed) that her wish would be granted
and now more importance was attributed to my good mother's dream than it warranted. This
commendation, which was like music to my ears, heightened my enthusiasm and spurred me to
new efforts. Even before I was eight years old, I wrote a sonata under the supervision of my
father, but it is no longer in existence, having been tom up like numerous other experimental
works of the same kind. My fame in Genoa spread more and more. Nearly every week I played
three times in church and at various social affairs, and I often saw my estimable countryman,
Francesco Gnecco, who had some influence on my musical training. In my ninth year I soon had
an opportunity of playing in public in a big theatre. Marchesi, known throughout Europe as one
of the leading male sopranos (with few peers as regards the compass of his voice and
interpretative gifts), had arrived in Genoa. This Marchesi, who was then associated with the
excellent singer, La Bertinotti, asked my father to allow me to play at his benefit, in return for
which he would sing at mine, which I was planning to give shortly. Both took .place, I played
my own variations on the Carmagnoie and Marchesi seemed to be thoroughly pleased with my
performance. My father now decided that he could teach me nothing more and therefore
placed me in the hands of Genoa's leading violinist, Costa."l1[tr1. de Courey.]
11 Schottky, J. M. , op.cit., p.246-251; quoted by de Courcy, G., op.cit. vol.Il, p.368-369, in her
English translation. A transcript of the original text in German has been included in the
Appendices). Between the two existing versions of Paganini's autobiography (Lichtenthal and
Schottky), there are a few discrepancies in the dates and the sequence of events. The date of
birth is incorrect in the two versions (February 1784instead of October 1782). This has been
expertly commented upon by Geraldine de Courcy (op. cit., vol. I, p.39 and vol.Il, p. 348-49) and
by Edward Neill (ll Cavaliere ArmonicQ, p.12)

76

For all his severity, Paganini's father was also a remarkable man, giving his
son instruction in mandolin, violin, composition, and, presumably, in all the
other subjects of general education.

By the time he decided that "he could

teach him nothing more", the child had written and performed works such as
the Carmagnola

con

Variazioni [M.S.l], which already shows an

extraordinarily advanced violinistic expertise. 12 The Carmagnole was a
"chanson" of the Revolution and was adopted by the [acobins at the time of
the imprisonment of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.

The Revolutionists

began the song with the words "Madame Veto avait promis" 13 and ended
with the famous refrain "Dansons la Carmagnole, vive Ie son du canon". It
became identified with revolutionary festivities and was sung and danced
around the "tree of liberty".

The first impact of the French Revolution on

Northern Italy was felt well before the Napoleonic invasion of May 1796, and
the revolutionary songs were rapidly introduced in Ltguria.l" The Genoese
people who were in sympathy with the ideals of the French Revolution and
engaged in open polemic against the local oligarchy, soon adopted the

Carmagnole, which was spontaneously sung in the theatres at the end of

certain performances. The revolutionary overtones of Paganini's variations
presumably contributed as much to the enthusiasm of the public as did their
musical content and brilliant execution. The choice of the theme may well
have been influenced by his father's [acobin sympathies. Musically as well as
stylistically, the Carmagnola con Variazioni reveals a surprising maturity.
After a very skilfully staged introduction - a solemn orchestral tutti echoed by
a singing, almost Mozartian solo and a cadenza - the violin enunciates the
popular theme verbatim:

12Due to the lack of consistency in Paganini's declarations to Lichtenthal and Schottky, the
composition of Carmagnola con Variazioni cannot be dated with absolute precision.
B. Mrs Veto [Marie Antoinette's nickname] had promised us.."
HGenoa, distrustful of Sardinia and aware of the importance of her ties with France, had
declared herself neutral in 1792.

77

The fourteen subsequent variations are in a brilliant, virtuoso style.

The

musical discourse, notwithstanding the complex figurations and other

arduous violinistic excursions, always keeps a close relation with the theme
which can be superimposed on each variation to great effect, and one can
imagine the Genoese public joining in the performance, giving, as it were,
choral support to the young violinist.

The same compositional principle

underlies works like the the Carnevale di Venezia [M.S.59), the Variazioni sui
Barucaba [MS.71], and, indeed, the Caprice N24. In all these works, the
variations present an extraordinary diversity of effects, moods and colours, yet
the inner structure of the theme is respected and preserved throughout. It
becomes therefore possible to counterpoint any variations with the theme and
even to superimpose two or in certain cases several variations. This has been
illustrated by Franz Liszt and Alberto Bachmann:

.
ri~ . .
.
I'

oil

F. Liszt, Pagani ni Etude N26

~ ~ll'

:> AowtW".N1IM"-'
~

~:

~.

.
=-

~.

..

. .
.

pp
---';:---,

~~-l'

ri~'
F-.

. .
.

=-~

~:

---

U!

..

-,

NPagani ni , Caprice 24

~ ~

. .

..-

t:

r.:'
Io.~~'

;..

:>

. .

If. !t-

(1852)

j--

(arr. & ed. by Alberto Bachmann)

.:>

--.....

U!

Other characteristic aspects of Paganini's music are evidenced in the

Carmagnola con Varjazionj such as the great difficulty of execution, the strong,
clear, conclusive harmonic basis, the continuous dialogue of timbres, the
utilisation of the "coloristic" potential of the violin (ponticello playing and
imitation of the spinet in variation 4), the G string episodes (variation 5), the
passages in simple and double harmonics (variations 5, 7, 12, 13), all

78

constitutive elements of what Edward Neill has defined as una tecnica

costruttiva - a "constructive" technique: 15
~nOlacon Veriezioni

N. Psgsnini [M.S.!l

~~~~.~
P
.
Ysr.2

II

II

Y8 r 4 Spin..tta -------------------------------------------------------------

punta

i/:'"

....

:;;: .-,::; :.- li

PCpontlcello)
IY

.~::;

corda ----------------------------------------------------------------

..
tJ

'-"

~..

'. G.:. ~~: ;

.. . .: .-.

-~Jjtf
Var.13
Flagioletto

15paganini, Niccoli). Variazioni sulla Carmagnola. ed, by Salvatore Accardo, Genoa: Istituto
eli Studi Paganiniani, 1980, p.3 (introduction).

79

Paganini's teachers
Paganini unequivocally stated that his father had been his first teacher ("...1
have to thank him for teaching me the rudiments of the art"). This influence,

volens nolens, extended far beyond the first years of study since he appears to
have been under close paternal supervision as late as 1801, when he and his
brother Carlo (to whom paternal authority had been temporarily delegated)
went to Lucca for the festival of the Holy Cross.V' It was not until 1805 that,
aged 23, he really freed himself from parental tutelage (in the same year he was
appointed to the court of Napoleon's sister at Lucca).17

Paganini, who

retained a deep attachment to his mother, had been in a chronic state of

conflict with his father since his adolescence. Notwithstanding this tension,
the influence of Antonio Paganini on his son's musical interests and
development appears to have been quite significant and might even be
reflected in certain ideas contained in the Caprices (which were, incidentally,
submitted for publication in November of 1817, a few months after Antonio's
death).

Several biographers, invoking the authority of Gervasoni, or perhaps

faithfully borrowing from each other, write that a certain Cervetto or Servetto
had given early violin lessons to Paganini. 18 As Maria Tibaldi Chiesa points
out, Paganini never mentioned this name in his reminiscences or in his

correspondence.If Neither did he allude to any violin teacher other than his
father prior to the six month course of study he had with Giacomo Costa.
Given that there is virtually no substance to Gervasoni's isolated claim about
16A festival dedicated to the veneration of the Volto Santo, a cedarwood crucifix allegedly
carved by Nicodemus which was transported in the Middle Ages from theHolyLand to
Tuscany and kept in the Cathedral of Lucca. The privilege of performing at the Cathedral was
a honour coveted by thebest artists in thecountry and a competition washeldjust before the
festival to select the candidates. In 1801, Paganini wonselection and played at the solemn
pontifical Mass celebrated by Archbishop Filippo Sardi, on 14September 1801 (Details of
Paganini's performance arefound in: Zibaldone lucchese, ms. 93, pp. 507-508, State Archives of
Lucca).
17See supra,Chapter 1.
18Gervasoni, Carlo. Nuoya teolia di musjca ricayata dall'Qdierna pratica ossia metodo sicu[o
e facile per ben apprendere 13 musica a cui si fauna precedere yade DQti.zje storicO=IDusicali.

Parma: Stamperia Blanchon,18l2,vol. I, p. 214.

19Tibaldi-Chiesa, Maria. Faganini la vita e l'opera Milan: Garzanti, 1940, p.8. footnote

80

1.

Servetto (or Cervetto, or Corvette, as he is alternatively described),20 it would

therefore seem more enlightening to reflect upon Antonio Paganini's musical
background on which there is, so far, little information available.
lmmediately after his father, Paganini includes Francesco Gnecco in the list of
his mentors:
"...My fame in Genoa spread more and more. Nearly every week I played three times in church
and at various social affaIrs; and I often saw my estimable countryman, Francesco Gnecco, who
had some influence on my musical traIning."21

Francesco Gnecco (1769-1810) is stated to have studied with Cimarosa (e-Piccini)

and F.L. Mariani at Savona. He was a very versatile musician who played a
number of stringed and wind instruments, wrote trios, quartets, and not less
than twenty-four operas. The best known, La prova di un'opera seria (1805),
enjoyed considerable popularity.

It is a parody of an opera rehearsal with a

most effective and comic backstage plot which runs concurrently to the action
itself.

A lesson in instrumentation, a chorus riddled with false notes, a

soprano who has problems with her pronunciation, and also with the tenor:
Gnecco was a master of the mezzo carattere style,22 that is a highly engaging
combination of the serious and the humorous, which strongly appealed to the
Italian public. Paganini perceptively understood what Gnecco had to offer and
wrote most of his works intended for the public at large in mezzo carattere
style. The Carmagnola con Variazioni (which he perhaps submitted to Gnecco
for advice) is an early, characteristic example of this compositional approach.
The third name mentioned in the autobiographical sketch belongs to one of
the most famous singers of the time:
"...Marchesi. known throughout Europe as one of the leading male sopranos (with few peers as
regards the compass of his voice and interpretative gifts), had arrived in Genoa. This Marchesi,
who was then associated with the excellent singer, La Bertinotti, asked my father to allow me
to play at his benefit, in return for which he would sing at mine, which I was planning to give
20His given name seems no less problematic than the spelling of his surname (alternatively
Giovanni, Antonio, or even Antonio Maria). Fetis spells "Servello", but does not give a first
name (op. cit., p.2)
21Schottky,

J.

M. , op.cit., ibid.

22Mllsica di mezzo carattere: music, the style of which hovers between the serious and the
comic. In operatic parlance, the term mezzo carattere is applied to a character part-serious,
part-comic, as for example Susanna in Mozart's EigarQ.

81

shortly. Both took place. I played my own variations on the Carmagnoie and Marchesi seemed
to be thoroughly pleased with my performance.',23 [trl. deCourcy]

Together with Matteo Babini, Gasparo Pacchierotti and Girolamo Crescentini,

the great euirat o Luigi

Marchesi (1755-1829) was one of the last

representatives of the old tradition:

"The art of bel canto was created in the year 1680 by Pistocchi; and its progress was hastened
immeasurably by Pistocchi's pupil Bernacchi, The peak of perfection was attained in 1778,
under the aegis of Pacchiarotti;24 but since that date, the race of male sopranos has died out,
and the art has degenerated After the epoch of Babini, Pacchiarotti, Marchesi, Crescentini
and their contemporaries, the art of singing degenerated to such a degree of impoverishment
that today nothing is left of all its former glory save the cold and literal technique of rendering
an exact and inanimate note... Such, in the year of grace 1823, is the highest accomplishment to
which a singer's ambition may pretend... The glories of spontaneous inspiration have been
banished for ever from an art whose loveliest achievements have so often depended upon the
individual interpreter and his genius for improvisation...In days gone by, the great singers,
Babini, Marchesi, Pacchiarotti, etc. used to compose their own ornamentation whenever the
musical context required an exceptionally high level of complexity; but in normal circumstances,
they were concerned with extempore invention... The whole art of adorning the melody (i

vezzi melodici del canto, as Pacchiarotti used to call it, when I met him in Padua in 1816)
belonged by right to the performer... There is no composer on earth, suppose him to be as
ingenious as you will, whose score can convey with precision these and similar infinitely minute
nuances which form the secret of Crescentini's unique perfection...',25 ltrl. RoN.Cae]

Paganini was a great admirer of this type of singing and spoke highly of Matteo
Babini, Gasparo Pacchierotti, Giovanni Battista Velluti and Girolamo
Crescentini (whom he befriended).26

He acquired such an intimate

knowledge of the art of bel canto that, even though he himself did not possess
a voice, he was able to impart his insight to singers. When he began his
23Geraldine de COUICy writes that it is improbable that Marchesi would have sung at
Paganini's benefit (op.cit, p.40), and Edward Neill suggests that Paganini presented his
biographers "with a material reflecting a reality pro domo sua" 1JI CayaHere Armonico,
p.12). While no proof can be given that Paganini's statement is inegct,
-..... it may be that
Schottky, when writing the final version of the autobiography had mistaken Marchesi for
Crescentini (with whom Paganini was closely acquainted).
24Alternatively spelt Pacchiarotti or Pacchierotti. Stendhal opts for the former version
while Paganini rather uses the latter.
25Stendha!. Life of Rossjni, trans!. from French by Richard N. Coe, London, Calder, 1956,
p.326-27 and 344 (the emphasis is Stendhal's).
26See PE 19, 22, 26, 32, 63,185.

82

liaison with Antonia Bianchi, at the time a modest and apparently not too
brilliant supernumerary chorister in a Venetian theater, he gave her special
instruction "so that she could sing at <:on<:erts"27 and, in a very short time, she
developed into an accomplished soprano whose maestria was recognised by
many music critics, notably in Vienna. 28

In relation to Stendhal's statement

about the degeneration of the art of singing, it is quite revealing that Paganini
also felt that the tradition was not being sustained.

After hearing Angela

Catalani, a soprano of the younger generation, he wrote to his friend Germi:

"The Catalani would have more soul if she had been trained by such celebrated masters as
Crescentini, Pacchierotti, Babini and our celebrated Serra...l've been yawning a lot. Her strong
and agile voice constitutes the most beautiful instrument; but she lacks a sense of rhythm and a
musical philosophy.'29[tt\. PXB]

A spiritual heir of the Marchesis, Babinis, Pacchierottis and Crescentinis,

Paganini embodied in his playing the teachings of the Italian tradition. The
way he imparted the inflexions of the human voice to his intrument (which
so impressed Friedrich Wieck, Felix Mendelssohn, Ole Bull and other experts)
originated in his study of bel canto:
"No one can thoroughly understand Paganini without an educated appreciation of melody and
the art of giving life and expression to it [wrote Ole Bull]. Without a knowledge of the Italian
art of singing, it is impossible to properly appreciate his playing. Contemporary with Pasta,
Pizzaroni, Rubini and Malibran, Paganini rivalled them, singing on his violin melodies, many of
whlch had been sung by these artists, and astonishing even them more than the public.
Paganini especially excelled in giving life to the simplest melodies, in giving to hls tone the
quality of the human voice."30

27p aganini's letter to C. Carli; quoted by G. de Courcy, op. cit., vol.I, p.l64.
28See: Allgemeine Thea\erzejtung. Vienna, April 5, 1828 (review of the concert of 29 March
held at the Redo"tensaal).
29Milano 18 Giunio 1823

"La Catalani avrebbe piu anima se Ia fosse stata formata da de' celebri maestri, come un
Crescentini, un PacchJerotti, un Babini ed un Serra nostro celebre...lo sbadigliai moltissimo. La
sua voce forte ed agile forma iI piu bello strumento; rna le manca la misura e 1afilosofia
musicale." (PE 63) (Quite Significant is the fact that both Stendhal's statement and
Paganini's letter bear the date of 1823)
30 Bull, Sara. OJe Bull a Memoir. p.24-25 (Violin notes by Ole Bull).

83

Giacomo Costa. the first "official" teacher

""My father now decided that he could teach me nothing more and therefore placed me in the
hands of Genoa's leading violinist. Costa, who in six months gave me thirty lessons. I think back
with pleasure on the painstaking interest of good old Costa to whom, however, I was no great
delight since his principles often seemed unnatural to me, and I showed no inclination to adopt
his bowing."31 [trl. deCourcy]

Paganini had spent the early, most vital phase of his apprenticeship under the
iron rule of his father's supervision, gaining occasional friendly advice from
the composer Gnecco and others, but away from the current methods and
dogmatic rules prevalent at music institutions of the time. Antonio
Paganini's remarkable insight was to recognise that, as far as the basics of
violin technique were concerned (posture, violin and bow hold, etc.), his son
would not really benefit from outside influence. It was partly on Gnecco's
suggestion that the inevitable step to send the child to an official teacher was
taken. Costa's proposition that his potential student should play a solo in
church every Sunday made it easier for Antonio to accept the change.

In later

life, Paganini declared that he had greatly benefited from the rigour of this
weekly "performance practice" which demanded the constant study of new
works. The repertoire of the music played in the churches of Genoa at that
time included the works of composers such as Corelli, Vivaldi, Porpora, Rossi,
Stradella, Nardini, Scarlatti, Padre Martini, Galuppi, Pergolesi, Piccini,
Durante, Somis, Cimarosa, ]omelli, and Mozart.32
Giacomo Costa, Paganini's first "official" teacher, was born in Genoa around

1760 (Geraldine de Courcy gives the date of 1761, while Carlo Marcello
Rietmannand Edward Neill retain that of 1762).33 His early life and musical
background are not documented but there are reasons to believe that he had
received instruction from Filippo Manfredi some time between 1772 and
1777. 34 At the time he gave lessons to Paganini, Costa held the position of
31Schottky, J. M. , op.cit., ibid.
32Calcagno, Daniele. Conversation with Ph. Borer. Genoa, October 1992.
33See: de Courcy, G. op. cit., vol.I, p.29 .Rietmann, eM. n VioUno e Genoya. p.44 and Neill,
E. II Cavaliere Armonico. p.ll.
34Manfredi, a disciple of Nardini in Leghorn, also taught the Genoese Giovanni Battista
Serra and Giuseppe Romaggi. He is considered to have been instrumental in the establishment
of the Genoese school of violin playing.

84

maestro di capella at the San Lorenzo Cathedral and was considered Genoa's
leading violinist and teacher,35 Besides organising for his student to play
regularly at the Cathedral and in other churches of Genoa (the Oratorio San

Filippo Neri and the Chiesa di Nostra Signora delle Vigne), Costa must also
be credited with having introduced Paganini to the concerto repertoire of
Pleyel, Vietti, Rode and Kreutzer. However, the teacher/student relationship
was not without problems: Paganini held strongly individual views on the
matters of bowing and fingering which he was not willing to discard in
exchange for Costa's sound, but unnecessarily rigid principles. To increase the
tensions, Paganini, after hearing the violinist Durand, was stimulated to
experiment with special techniques and to explore areas which were beyond
Costa's field of expertise.
Auguste Frederic Durand (or August Fryderyk Duranowski) was born in
Warsaw in 1770. He was the son of a French emigre employed at the court of
Prince Oginski as a musician. In 1789, Durand became a pupil of Vietti, who
found him to possess a great talent and an exceptional ability to master
technical difficulties. In 1794-95 he toured Germany and Italy. Paganini, who
heard him at that time,36 later confessed to F.-J. Felis that the Polish virtuoso
had been the inspiration for a number of his own virtuosic effects. Durand
was at the height of his Italian career when Bonaparte marched into the city of
Milan (15 May 1796). He decided to volunteer for the French army and,
joining Dombrowski's Polish Legion, he became aide-de-camp of General
Menou. Implicated in a murder case, he was imprisoned in Milan in 1798.37
Released by the General himself, Durand resigned from the army and returned
to the violin. In later years he settled in Strasbourg as leader of the Theatre
Orchestra. Durand's compositions include a Concerto in A major (op.S) and
the demanding Six Etudes (op.IS).

A late meeting between Paganini and

Durand took place in London, in 1831. In his Recollections of Paganini

(London, 1886), Felix Weiss relates that, as Paganini was ushered into
Durand's lodgings, he called out in French: "OU est mon vieil ami, celui qui

m'a fait tel que je suis!.,"

35Among Costa's violin students were Gnecco, Giovanni Serra, Paganini (6 months) and Nicola
De Giovanni,
36Paganini seems to have heard Durand on several occasions; see: Schottky, J. M. , op.cit.,

p.369.
. 37See: PE 126 and Pagaruru's letter to the Revue Musicale of April 21, 1831.

85

CQmpQsitiQn studies at Parma

After six months of lessons with Giacomo Costa, it was decided to seek expert
advice outside Genoa:
"...My father finally decided to send me to the excellent composer, Rolla. and we went to Parma.
Since Rolla was ill in bed, his wife showed us into a vestibule where I found a violin and the
Maestro's latest concerto lying on a table. It needed but a sign from my father for me to lake up
the violin and play the composition off at sight. The ill composer was immediately interested
and asked who was playing in this way; he couldn't believe it was only a little boy. However,
when he had convinced himself that this was so, he exclaimed: "1 also can teach you nothing.
For goodness' sake, go to Paer! Here you'd only be wasting your time.'038 ltTL de Courcy]

Alessandro Rolla (1757-1841) (c-Renzi and Conti) was one of Italy's leading
violinists. His reaction to Paganini's playing reveals that the young musician
was already a master of his instrument.

Rolla was particularly impressed by

the intelligence and maturity of Paganini's "impromptu" interpretation of his

concerto - technically brilliant and stylistically irreproachable. Acknowledging
that Paganini did not need any violin lessons, he advised him to take
advantage of his stay in Parma and study composition with Paer:
"...Paer, who was then director of the Conservatorium in Parma, received me very kindly and
referred me to his own teacher, the old but very experienced Neapolitan conductor Ghirelti, who
now took me systematically in hand and for six months gave me three lessons a week in
counterpoint. Under his directionI composed, as an exercise, twenty-four fugues for four hands.
without any instrument, just with ink, pen, and paper. 1 made great progress because 1 myself was
interested."39

(ttl. de Courcy]

There is unfortunately no trace left of the 24 Fugues written "just with ink,
pen, and paper", nor does any fugue appear in the Catalogo tematico, if we
exclude the three-voice canons belonging to the Quartets op.5 [M.s. 31 and 331.
Yet there exists a first-hand description of Paganini playing a fugue for
unaccompanied viQlin.40 From his statement regarding his studies at Parma,
38Schottky,
39 op.cit.

J. M. , op.cit., ibid.

4O"Paganini parlait encore, lorsque'il commence une fugue travaillee sur les quatre cordes,
depuis les chevilles jusqu'au chevalet, et de telle sorte que ron croyait voir et entendre une

86

it appears that Paganini completed within ten months a program that would
normally require several semesters of Conservatorium coursework.
first months devoted

After the

to the study of counterpoint with Gasparo

Ghiretti,41paganini was taken in hand by Ferdinando Paer:

"...Paer soon became interested. He grew very fond of me and absolutelyinsisted that I come to
him twice a day to work with him. After about four months he told me to write a duetio, which

he then looked over, saying with a pleased smile that he could find in it no violations of pure
form. Shortly after this he left for Vienna to write an opera. We parted for along time. Yet later
I always returned with delight to this great master and am happy to call myself his grateful
pupil:,42

Ferdinanda Paer (1771-1839) was a native of Parma, where he studied under

Francesco Fortunati (e-Padre Martini) and Gasparo Ghiretti.

Until Rossini's

advent, he was one of the leading representatives of the Italian operatic school,
in de Courcy's words, "an admirable craftsman with a genuine lyrical gift".
He was also an experienced and sought-after composition teacher.

In 1807, he

left Parma and settled in Paris as Napoleon's maitre de chapelle (he wrote the
Bridal March for the imperial wedding of 2 April 1810).

In 1823, Paer became

Liszt's private composition tutor. There is therefore a significant artistic link

between Paganini and Liszt. As regards the craft of composition, they shared
the same solid traditional type of training.

Both were heirs of the great Italian

tradition through their common teacher Ferdinando Paer (>Fortunati>Padre

Martini >Perti >Franceschini >Corsi).

infinite de perles tomber dans un plateau d'argent. La rapidite de l'execution etait telle que

personne de nous n'en avait entendu de semblable, et que notre intelligence etait a peine assez
vaste pour contenir l'admiration qui nous dominait, II yavait surtout (chose extremement rare)
un charme de melodieinexprimable dans ces difficultes vraiment insurmontables pour tout autre
que Paganini,et une harmonie dont Ie souvenir ne s'effacera jamais chez moi..." Le Bienvenu Du
Busc, Gustave "Paganini", in: Bulletin de l'Academie ebroidenne, Louviers, 1837. (Text
reproduced in the Revue Musicale de Suisse Romande, vo1.46, N,[uin 1993, p.107-109)
41Gasparo Ghiretti (1747-1797). Information about Ghiretti's teachers is lacking. He became
professor of violin and 'cello at the Conservatorio della Pieta dei Turchini in his native city of
Neaples and was subsequentlyappointed to the ducal orchestra in Parmain 1774. His
numerous students included Ferdinanda Paer, the violoncellist Alfonso Savj, and also,for a
period of six months,Paganini, He wrote several books ofsonatas, caprices and churchmusic.
42Schottky, J. M. , op.cit., ibid.

87

The last assignment

When he took Paganini under his wing, Paer knew that the allotted time was
limited since he had an engagement to fulfil in Vienna.

The regime of two

daily sessions is a fair gauge of his interest in his talented student as well as of
Paganini's receptivity, After four months of intense study, Paganini had to
submit, as a final assignment, a duetto. Not a symphony, or a concerto; not
even a sonata. Simply a piece of modest dimensions in the form of a musical
dialogue, a cultivated, artistic conversazione.
message to Paganini:

Such was Paer's farewell

a lesson in simplicity and musical philosophy.

According to Lauro Malusi, the three Duettl Concertanti for violin and
violoncello [M.s. 107] belong to the Parma period. 43 One of them may be the
duet to written for Paer, perhaps the duet N2 in G minor, a short but

remarkable work, with dense counterpoint, extremely changeable in harmony,

alternately eloquent, impassioned and sparkling in its melodic designs.
opening statement has echoes of Beethoven:
Du etto II
I! R11legro

..-

dolce

L...J

-.

The

NPaganini [M ,S, 107]

~.

...

b-

II

. . . . . t,

Return to Genoa
After parting with Ferdinando Paer, the young musician, always accompanied
by his father, proceeded through northern Italy, giving a series of concerts
before returning home, towards the end of 1796:
"My father's excessive severity now seemed more oppressive than ever as my talent developed
and my knowledge increased. I should have liked to break away from him so that I might travel
alone; but my harsh mentor never left my side and accompanied me through most of the towns in
northern Italy, especially Milan, Bologna, Florence, Pisa, Leghorn, etc., where [ gave concerts
and received great applause. I was then about fourteen years old and took great pleasure in my
work except for the strict supervision of my father, who finally returned to Genoa with me.,,44

43p aganini , Niccolo. Ire Duetti Concertanti, ed by Piero Raffaelli and Lauro Malusi, Padua:
Zanibon, 1982, p. 2,

44Schottky,

J.

M. , op.cit., ibid,

88

The concert tour was shortened probably as a consequence of the political

turmoil. The Italian campaign had been launched on March 20, 1796, and, on
15 May, "General Bonaparte marched into the city of Milan at the head of the

youthful army which had just crossed the Bridge of Lodi, and taught the world
that, after the lapse of so many centuries, Csesar and Alexander had found a
successor at last ..."45

The military situation growing steadily more acute,

northern Italy was no longer an ideal place for artistic voyages and concert
tours. 46

Upon his return to Genoa, Paganini occupied himself with

composition, putting into practice the teachings of Ghiretti and Paer and, more
lucratively, he "played at private affairs", thus helping his family financially in
a time of hardship:
"...From Panna I returned to Genoa, where for a long time I played the dilettante rather than
the virtuoso. I played a good deal, but for the most part at private affairs. On the other hand I
busied myself quite industriously with composition and also wrote a great deal for the
guitar.'47

He also made frequent visits to the private library of his Genoese protector, the
Marquis Di Negro, deepening his knowledge of the repertoire of classical
Italian music and widening his horizons in ancient Greek and Italian
literature and poetry. Furthermore, he seems to have taken a special interest
in treatises on ancient Greek music.

The house of Gian Carlo di Negro (1769-

1857), an enthusiastic patron of the arts, was open to musicians, writers and

poets and later became a rendezvous of some of the most eminent minds of
Europe including Francesco Gianni, Vincenzo Monti, Alessandro Manzoni,
Antonio Canova, Francesco Guerazzi, Cesare Cantu, Massimo d'Azeglio,
Giovanni Berchet, Charles Dickens, Honore de Balzac, Byron, Stendhal, Mme
de Stael, and Colonel Montgomery.48 It was there that Paganini was
introduced to Rodolphe Kreutzer, possibly in December of 1796. On that
45.. Le 15 Mai 1796, Ie General Bonaparte fit son entree dans Milan a la tete de cette jeune
armee qui venait de passer Ie pont de Lam, et d'apprendre au monde qu'apres tant de siecles
Cesar et Alexandre avaient un successeur." Stendhal, La Chartreuse de Paune, chapter I, l.
46See supra, p. concerning A. F. Durand's interrupted career.
47Schottky, J. M. r op.cit., ibid.
48puncuh, Dina. "La cultura genovese in eta Pagaruruana" in: NicolO Paganjnj e j! suo te!JWo.
Genoa: OWl eli Genova, 1982,p.41-61.

89

occasion, the young violinist, on Di Negro's instigation, took an opportunity

to show off his phenomenal sight-reading ability, giving a masterful rendition
of a newly written and very difficult piece that the French master had
composed for his concert tour. 49
Rodolphe Kreutzer (1766-1831) had been professor at the Paris Conservatoire
since its foundation in 1795, and the first edition of his famous 40 Etudes had
recently been published (1796).

It would therefore not be surprising to find

that the discussion between the French master and his young Italian colleague
revolved around the subject of writing violin studies.

At that time, the

composition of a set of Etudes, Caprices, Studies (or "Matinees" as Gavinies

entitled his own collection), was considered an important asset in the
curriculum vitae of a professional violinist.

A significant personal

contribution to the teaching repertoire was then a condition sine qua non to
gain access to a professorship, and the publication of a work such as the iil
Etudes constituted both a potential source of income in royalties and a
professional visiting-card.
An enQ'clopredia of pre-Paganinian violin playing

Stressing their fundamental importance in the acquisition of a solid technical

basis, Carl Flesch described the 40 Etudes of Kreutzer as "an encyclopaedia of
pre-Paganinian violin playing."So It is quite significant that these Etudes,
which appeared initially in 1796, were one of the first publications issued by
the newly founded' Conservatoire de Musique - an institution created in the
whirl of agitation and changes that characterised the Revolutionary period
(1795).

The violin Etudes, such as those conceived by Kreutzer for the

Conservatoire, had an avowed didactic purpose and were devised to meet with
the new requirements of efficiency in the instruction of professional orchestral
players. Systematic, methodical, logical in their approach, they were "a typical
product of French rationalism".S1

They had a tremendous impact on the

49Tibaldi-Chiesa, Maria. PaganiDi. la vita e l'opera. Milan: Garzanti, 1940, p.24.

50.....eine Enzyklopedie des Vor-Paganinischen Ceigenspiels." (Kreutzer. Rodolphe. ~
Eluden fUr Violine. ed. by Carl Flesch. ZUrich: Hug& Co, 19S3, introduction).
51"Die Etude, die im Hinblick auf die methodische Seite ein typisches Produkt des
franzosischen Rationalismus ist, hat die didaktische Systematik zur Voraussetzung"

90

Discere fidibus
As with many of Paganini's early works, it is very difficult to give an exact date

of composition for the Caprices, or to trace their first performance.

No

manuscript, sketch or tentative draft other than the fair copy handed to
Ricordi's engraver in November 1817 has survived to bear witness to their
genesis. However, from his declaration to Peter Lichtenthal that, after his
return to Genoa, "he composed difficult music, studying continually difficult

passages of his own invention, so as to master them",53 one may legitimately

infer that he was occupied with his project of writing virtuoso violin studies.
According to a well-established tradition, Locatelli's L'Arte del Violino was
one of the sources of inspiration for the Caprices.S

Fetis reports that when

this work fell into Paganini's hands, "he perceived from the first glance a
whole new world of ideas and feats which had not had the success they
deserved, because of their excessive difficulty and perhaps because, when
Locatelli published his work, the time had not yet come to depart from
classical canons."55 The music of Locatelli ignited the zeal and creativity of
the young artist who sometimes practised until total physical exhaustion:
"...he was heard trying the same passage in a thousand different ways during ten or twelve
hours, and was completely overwhelmed by fatigue at the end of the day. It is this
unparalleled perseverance which allowed him to overcome difficulties which were considered
insurmountable by contemporary artists, when he published a sample in a book of studies:,56ctrl.
PXBj

53"...Ritomato in patria, compose music. difficile, facendo continuo studio dei passi ardui da
lui inventati, onde rendersene padrone..." AutobiQg;rafia dj Njccolb Paganini (verbatim
transcript by Peter Lichtenthal) quoted in: Neill, Edward. n Cavaliere Arroonico. p.294.
54Locatelli's J:Arte del YiolinQ is a set of 12 violin concertos with 24 Caprices ad libitum. It
was first published by Le Cene in Amsterdam in 1733. The work is sometimes referred to as L'
Arte di nuova modulazione or Caprices Enigmaiioues, from the titles given in subsequent
abriged editions comprising only the Caprices.
55"...des Ie premier coup d'oeil il y apercut un monde nouveau d'idees et de faits, qui n'avaient
point eu dans la nouveaute Ie succes merite, a cause de leur excessive difficulte, et peut-etre
aussi parce que le moment n'etait pas encore venu, a l'epoque au Locatelli publia son ouvrage,
pour sortir des formes classiques." Felis, F.J. "Paganini" in: Biographie Universelle, vol VI,
1875, pALS [Petis based his assertions on conversations he had with Paganini in Paris in 1831].
56"...Quelquefois on Ie voyait essayer de mille manieres differentes Ie meme trait pendant dix
ou douze heures, et rester a la fin de la journee dans l'accablement de la fatigue. C'est par cette
perseverance sans exemple qu'i1 parvint a se jouer de difficultes qui furent considerees cornme
insu.rrnontables par les artistes contemporains, lorsqu'il en publia un specimen dans un cahier
d'etudee." Felis, F.]., ibid,

92

The siege Qf GenQa

Israil Markovitch Yampolski describes the years 1798-1800 as the most

important in the artistic development of Paganini. According to the Russian
musicologist, it was during this period highly charged with revolution that
"he formed his views and his musical genius" and began to write the Caprices:
"To wholly appreciate this work, understand its musical content, representing the heroical and
rebellious spirit of the Risorgimento, one must know the social conditions of that time and what
concepts have influenced its creator."57 [trl. I.Kortchnoi'J

The arrival of the Napoleonic troups had changed the course of history in
Italy. One could say that the Settecento prematurely ended as the Revolution
reached the Peninsula. Having been subjected to the Austrian rule, the people
readily welcomed the new ideas of liberation and unification. A description of
the sudden and profound change in social consciousness is given by Stendhal
in the opening chapter of La Chartreuse de Parme:

.f!,r c\...v

-,

"A Whole nation became aware, on 15 May 1796, that everything they had been 'respected until
then was quite ridiculous and on occasion even hateful. The departure of the last Austrian
regiment marked the collapse of old ideas: to risk one's life became fashionable. To love one's
country with real passion and to strive for heroic actions was now seen as a necessary condition to
gain access to happiness after these centuries of bland feelings and hypocrisy. The possessive
despotism of Charles V and Philippe II had plunged the people into darkness; they toppled the
statues of these tyrants and, suddenly, found themselves flooded with light."58 [trl. PXBI

57''HeJlb3S1

oueaars nOJlHOCTbfO aro cot(l-lHeHMe.

nOHllTb.llD KOHl. ..a era My:JblKaJlbHOe

co.aep}l(aHl.fe, B KOTOpoM HameJl BbJpa)KeHWe repoauecsva, 6yHTapcKHH .llyx 3nOXH

"PUCop)l~HMeHTo"

He 3HaSi B KaKHX 06rqecTBeHHbIX YCJlOBHSlX H nozr BJlSlHJ.ieM KaKHX H,ZleA aHQ

Mostras, Konstantin G. 24 Kaprisa dla skripki solo N. Paganini. Moscow:

Gosudarstvennoe Muzikal'noe Izdatel'stvo 1959, p.5 (I.M. Yampolski's preface)
58"Un peuple tout entier s'apercut, Ie 15 mai 1796,que tout ce qu'il avait respecte jusque -Iii
etait souverainement ridicule et quelquefois odieux. Le depart du dernier regiment de
I'Autriche marqua la chute des idees anciennes: exposer sa vie devint iI la mode; on vit que pour
etre heureux apres tant de siecles de sensations affadissantes, il fallait aimer la patrie d'un
amour reel et chercher les actions heroiques. On etait plonge dans une nuit profonde par la
continuation du despotisme [aloux de Charles Quint et de Philippe II; on renversa leurs statues,
et tout iI coup l'on se trouva inonde de lumiere.' Stendhal. I a Chartreuse de Parole, chapter I
(Milan en 1796).
6.,JlO C0311aHO.-

93

In June of 1797, Bonaparte put an end to the old Genoese Republic.

The

venerable Serenissima Repubblica di Genova was transformed into a new

"equalitarian" Ligurian Republic under a French protectorate.

The old

aristocratic rule was abolished and the Genoese had to adopt a democratic form
of goverment on the pattern of the French. With the continuing blockade of
the port, the ongoing military operations and general unrest, the conditions of
life in Genoa rapidly deteriorated.

Maritime trade was brought to a standstill

and the dockers, such as Paganini's father, had to find other means of
livelihood. 59 French and Austrian forces fought important battles at Novi
and Tortona, practically at the doors of Genoa.
became more and more precarious.

The situation in the city

Due to the uncertain, erratic arrivals of

grain, a rationing center was organised. In July of 1799, a national guard was
formed and all males aged seventeen and over became eligible for military
duty. Antonio Paganini, who had recently inherited a country property at San
Biagio in the Polcevera Valley, decided to move his family out of Genoa, thus
saving his two sons from possible conscription. The decision proved quite
sensible for by September the city was declared to be in a state of siege. On 29
December the Free Port was closed and, for months, the besieged city heroically
resisted the Austrians with the help of General Andre Massena who had taken
command of the defense forces.
"...While Paganini, by this time almost eighteen years of age, relentlessly practised his violin
in Val Pocevera, supplies of food were becoming short at Genoa and people suffered indescribable
torrnents...Horserneat, cats and dogs became a luxury and finally worms and bats were placed on
the ghastly menu.

Corpses were piled high in the streets and for the living the conditions

became daily more atrodous..."60[trl, PXBI

59See supra.
6O"Mentre Paganini orma! quasi diciotenne studiava il violino con rabbioso accanimento in
Val Pocevera, a Genova i viveri venivano a mancare e la popolazione subiva torrnenti
inenarrabili; si raziono il pane, si risparrniavano Ie bueche delle patate; la carne di cavallo, i
gatti e i cani divennero roba di lusso, sulla mense comparvero perfino i vermi e i pipistrelli.
Nelle strade, i cadaveri si ammassavano in macabri mucchi, e per i vivi, Ie condizioni
divenivano ogni giomo piu atroci ..: Tibaldi-Chiesa, Maria. Paganjnj la vita e l'opera,
Milan: Garzanti, 19.w, p.29.

94

formation of the violinists of the Paris School and this was reflected in the
precision, flexibility, and unprecedented cohesion achieved by the string
section of the Orchestre du Conservatoire. 52 Their inherent, rich musical
qualities, however, were marred by a streak of scholastic rigidity and
formalism, as well as by their all too ostentatious instructional purpose.

It

must be observed that a rather aporetic proposition is brought about by the

original title which reads: 40 Etudes ou Caprices pour Ie Violon. This
hesitation suggests a form of compromise between the austerity of serious
"technical" study and the lighter, more engaging nature of a Caprice.

In

Kreutzer, characteristically, Etude comes before Caprice, whereas Jacques

Pierre Rode, another member of the famous professorial "triumvirat" at the

Conservatoire de Musique (Baillot-Kreutzer-Rode), chose to entitle his own

violin studies Caprices en forme d'Etudes. Rode placed the stress on the
musical aspect but still cast his work in the mould of scholastic Etudes to meet
the institutional requirements of the Conservatoire.
The influence of both Kreutzer and Rode on Paganini's musical development
must not be overlooked. He studied and played most of their works and
indeed relied on a repertoire based on their concertos during the first part of
his career as a touring virtuoso.

In his own compositions, however, and

particularly in the 24 Caprices, he avoided following in the steps of these

masters, convinced that a new chapter in violin playing had to be written that
would express the ideals of his time.

It was not in Paganini's character to

descend to compromise in artistic and other matters, nor did he have to meet
with a publication deadline since he was not attached to any institution.
From 1797, the probable date of their inception, to November 1817, when they
were handed to Ricordi's engraver, the Caprices were Paganini's constant
artistic preoccupation. These seemingly spontaneous masterpieces of
invention mask a reality distinguished by twenty years of study and
maturation.
Themelis, Dimitris. "Violintechnik und Methodik in der Violinetiide urn 1800" in: Violinspiel
und Vjolinmusjk in Gesch;chte und Gegeowart. Vienna: Universal Edition, 1975, p.123.
52"...Die Schule von Baillot, Rode und Kreutzer liefert ihnen die Geiger, und es ist eine
Freude zu sehen, wenn die jungen Leute so in Masse auf's Orchester kommen, und alle nun
anfangen mit demselben Bogen, derselben Art, derselben Rube und demselben Feuer..:'
(Mendelssohn's letter to Zeiter).

91

Caught in a maelstrom of foreign conflicts, Genoa was experiencing one of the

most harrowing sieges in history. Never-ending shelling by the forces of
General Hohenzollern, famine and epidemics took their toll of human lives:
over

~O,OOO

people died from hunger, typhus, or suicide. A few biographers

have accredited the well-established but undocumented tradition according to

which Paganini, furtively leaving San Biagio at night, went to Genoa to visit
his friends and to continue his studies at the library of Gian Carlo Di Negro:
"In 1799, Paganiru, together with his family, retired to the suburb of Polcevera, a short distance

from Genoa...During his residence there, he devoted himself to the study of music, composition,
and the violin ... He made frequent trips to Di Negro's library where he was able to study the
music of all the masters of the preceding centuries.,,61
"At night, without telling his father, Paganini was going to Genoa. These trips were very
dangerous, because he could be taken for an enemy spy,

Anyway, he was doing it with the

audacity of a carbonaro, There he studied till dawn the works of Carelli, Vivaldi, Tartini,
Locatelli and other masters of the ancient Italian School of violin playing in the palazzo of his
protector, the Marquis Di Negro.',62 [trl. I.Kortchnofs]

"Romairone", the country house owned by the Paganinis in the Polcevera

Valley, still exists. It is situated in the territory of San Biagio, a village about 12
kilometers away from Genoa. The walk to the city through the hills, at night,
is rather adventurous, but feasible. Paganini's determination was strengthened
by the prospect of visiting those of his friends who had remained in the
besieged city. It is perhaps at that time that he made the acquaintance of the
poet-patriot Ugo Poscolo, who was taking an active part in the resistance,
"haranguing the soldiers, lifting up the spirits of the political refugees,
61Sheppard, Leslie/Herbert Axelrod. Paganjni. Neptune City (NI): Paganiniana
Publications, 1979, p.574.
62...uo HOl.laM. TattKoM 01 orue, UaraHl1.HH npotiapanca B reHYIO. 3TH onacasie noe311KU B

paarap acexxsrx tteAcTBHA,KOftta era

MOrJl" npHHSlTb 3a Bpa)KeCKoroJt33YT1.H{Ka.

HM co CMeJtOCTbJO xap60HapH5I. 3,lleCb. B

nanauuo era

nOKpOBIfTeJlSl MapKH3a llH Herpo, B

60rarOH MY3bJKaJIbHOff 6u6J1HOTeKe, TIaramSHl-I 4acTO npOCli)KI-IBa/1,zlO

npOH3Be.lleHIUIMH KOpeIlJIU. BUSaJIb,ltH. TapTHHH, JloKaTeJlJlH, H

HTa.'bSlHCKOA CKpHnHqHOA mKOJlbl."

ccaepmanacs

paccae-ra Ha,zl

ztpyrnx

MaCTepOB CTapOH

Mostras, K. G. op.cit., p.B (I.M. Yampolski's preface).

95

encouraging the citizens."63 Yampolski has stressed the importance of

Foscolo's influence on Paganini:
"Young Paganini was very impressed by Ugo Poscolo's Last Letters of [acopo Ortis, the novel
that all young Italians read at that time6 4 The poet has evoked the illusions, hopes, love,
despair and sorrow of the Italian youth of that time in the person of a passionate young man
driven to suicide by his touching love and patriotic despair. Later, it was written that

'listening to Paganini playing was like reading one of Iacopo Ortis's letters' ...',65

Between Paganini and Foscolo there undoubtedly existed a strong similarity of

character and thought. They both had an acute perception of the emerging
Romantic sensitiveness and were united by their longing for artistic freedom.
They shared an interest in ancient Greek Iiterature 66 and one could say, to use
Antonino Sole's expression, that, by education as well as by temperament, they
stood "[ra rimpianio dell'aniico e coscienza del moderno", Freely translated,
this means that "they had a nostalgic passion for the classical tradition coupled
with a sharp consciousness of modernity."67
63"ll ventunenne Ugo Foscolo con calda parola e fremente animo aringava i soldati, spronava i
rifugiati politici, incorava i cittadini. Con temeraria baldanza egli sfidava Ia fucileria
nemica, cavalcando, dice iI suo biografo De Donne, 'come un Centauro', ineurante del pericolo.'
Tibaldi-Chiesa, Maria, ibid.
64Copies of the Last lellers of JacQPo Ortis were available from 1798 in Italy. The novel owes
much to Goethe's Werther. Foscolo wrote that the main purpose of his work was "to usher the
reader into the soul of a person committing suicide" ("...far penetrare i lettori nell'anima d'un
suicida ..."), The theme of the suicide appears in Paganini's Adagio of the First Concerto.
65Mostras, Konstantin G. op.cit., ibid.
66A late conversation between Foscolo and Paganini (c.1822) was recorded by the writer
Alessandro Amati:"Paganini and 1were on the terrace; Ugo was unwilling to remain where
Monti was playing the experienced gallant, and joined us. The rage on his countenance
vanished when he saw Paganini. He shook him by the hand and said, 'I went to your concert
last night; you are a god, and Homer hovered before my eyes when 1 heard you play. The first
magnificent movement of your concerto seemed to portray the landing of the Greeks before Troy;
the Adagio in its nobility was a colloquy between Briseis and Achilles; but when shall 1 hear
the despair, the lamentations over the hearse of Patroclus? -'As soon as Achilles-Paganini
finds a Patroclus among the violinists' replied Paganini". (see: Schottky, op. cit., p. 327).
67Sole, Antonino. 5tudi e testi di Lelleratura italiana N 17 Neaples: Federico & Ardi, 1990

96

The final revision

For Sergio Martinotti and Claudio Casini, the stay at "Romairone" in the
Polcevera Valley provided Paganini with the calm and the solitude needed to
meditate on his accumulated knowledge and to pass in review all the
repertoire of Italian violin music. 68 He commited himself to this task of
revision perhaps on Paer's suggestion and also in memory of Gasparo Ghiretti
who had died in Parma during 1797. Be that as it may, he would not have
been able to carry out this "final revision" without having access to music
scores and books, hence his adventurous visits to the music library of Gian
Carlo Di Negro. This additional period of study was dictated by the political
and military circumstances. Professional activity was suspended and there was
no question of performing. 69 Having escaped conscription in the national
guard, Paganini took advantage of the situation to deepen his knowledge and
practise intensively.70

Such was Paganini's last year as a student: an

extraordinary experience of isolation interrupted by clandestine excursions to

the besieged city, conjoined with deep study of ancient music, constant
research of "new and hitherto unsuspected effects":
"The years 1799-1800 marked a turning-point in Paganini's physical and spiritual evolution.',71
"These stormy years marked a great change in the artisticbiography of Paganini. In this period
he formed his views, his musical genius."72

68 .....non si pub asserire che non sia stata esperita, in una stagione privata ed oscura - magari
negli anni dell'asseclio e del blocco cIi Genova a fine Setteeento - tutta la cumulata sapienza

della precedente tradizione italiana." (Martinotti, Sergio. Ottocento Strumentale ItaHano

p.27i);.....Un corpus cosi omogeneo...costituisce Ia somma cIi un'esperienza, noata all'epoca in
cui il giovane Nicolo meclitava nella campagna cIi Romairone, dopo l'anno trascorso a Parma."
Casini, Claudio, Paganini. Milan: Electa, 1982, p.62.
69paganini resumed regularpublicappearances in December of 1800 at Modena. The two
concerts he gave there (5 and 21 December) marked the start of his professional life.
70 The privileged situation of the young violinist "practising his violin in Val Polcevera"
and away from the uproar of the Austrian artillery, is not without similarities with that of
the young Chopinin Stuttgart, learning of the seizureof Warsawby the Russians and writing
the "Revolutionary" study as an expression of griefand revolt.
71..... gli anni 1799-1800 segnarono nell'evoluzione fisica come quella spirituale cIi Paganini
una tappa importantissima." Tibaldi Chiesa, Maria, op. cit., p.28.

n-

3TH 6ypHbie rO)l;bl HBWJlHCb Ba)l(HblM nepe.10MHblM

TBop4eCKoA 6HorpaHH IIaraHHHH. HMeHHO

ror-na

nepaczicu

MHpOB033peHHe, CopMHpOBaJlCSI MY3blKaJlbHbni reHHtI."

97

CJlO}l(HJlOCb ere

Mostras, K. G. op.cit., p.5.

SchQQI versus Tradition

"...Paganini's formation is not so much tied to schools or lessons as to his
tremendous capacity of assimilation", writes Sergio Martinotti?3

Free from

scholastic fetters, Paganini, with greater independence of thought and curiosity

than any of his contemporaries, went right to the sources of Italian violin
playing. If Paganini cannot be strictly speaking attached to a specific school of
violin playing, one may, however, consider his contribution as a culminating
manifestation of the great old Italian tradition, comparable to a fireworks
finale.7 4 His careful study of the works of the old masters, his exploring spirit
and exceptional musical intelligence allowed him to carry Qn to their logical
conclusion many ideas contained in the works Qf Marini, Farina, Stradella,
Corelli, Scarlatti, Vivaldi, Locatelli, Veracini I Tartini, Lolli, Ciornovichi and
Viotti.

He exploited and amplified existing techniques but also revived

forgotten ones, striving Ior the fusion of traditional material with his own
visionary concepts,

This "eblouissante synthese", as Anne Penesco has

defined it, found one of its finest expression in the 24 Caprices. An

examination oi the work substantiates Jacques Thibaud's postulate that, in
instrumental art, Paganini forms a double link between the classical, the
romantic and the modem style.75 While the virtuoso attempted to amaze his
listeners with his transcendent execution, the compQser did submit to the
demands of traditional forms, and often preferred structures which were
characterised by their clarity and simplicity.

This has often resulted in

Paganini's being misconstrued as a pseudo-romantic.Z'' The formal clarity

n"La fonnazione di Paganini non

e legata a scuole 0 Iezioru, quanto all'enorme facolta

assimilativa.... Martinotti, Sergio. Ollocento Strumentale Italiano p.278.

74Breton, Luc, Conversations with Ph. Borer. Vaux-sur -Morges, August 1994 , and Ph. B.,
Aspects of European Influences on Australian Violin Playing & Teaching p.36-37.
75 "...Paganini est, dans l'a7t instrumental, une double liaison entre le style classique-Tomantique et le style
moderne. Ii a done devance d'un Sleele l'eeriture violonistique actuelle, et je reste persuade que ses inoentiane,

ses trouvailles, ses heureuses creations ant influmce les possibilites techniques de toute l'orchestration."
[...In instrumental art, Paganini forms a double link between the classical-romantic and the
modern style. His genius was seconded by incredible virtuosity, which anticipated all the
musical art of the future. He was a century ahead of contemporary writers of violin music. I am
convinced that his inventions, his discoveries, his felicitous creations, have influenced the
technical possibilities of universal orchestration...] Thibaud, Jacques, preface to Renee de
Saussine's Paganini Ie Magicien. Paris: Gallimard, 1938.

98

which is demonstrated in the concertos, the variations and indeed even in the
Caprices points to a clear and logical approach which is not typical of
Romanticism. But the link with tradition does not in the least detract from
Paganini's originality as a composer. On the contrary, his ability to effortlessly
incorporate the totality of his expression and to develop highly complex
material within a strict mould with "no violation of pure form", provides
evidence of his independence of thought and striking compositional
powers.Z? In response to those critics who claim that Paganini was not capable
of giving distinctive creative shape to his works, it may be argued that the
need simply did not arise. The availability of traditional structures which
were capable of accomodating his expression obviated the need for new ones.
Schumann, in a 1832 article, described Caprice 4 as being "filled with
romanticism".78 A detailed analysis of the work not only confirms but
substantiates this impression. In the Caprices, Paganini seems to literally spell
out the musical vocabulary of the Romantics: abundant use of diminished
sevenths, minor ninths, augmented seconds, Italian and German sixths
(augmented IVth degree), expressive use of the Neapolitan (flattened lInd
degree), abrupt modulations to distant keys -sometimes by way of enharmonic
change - tonal ambiguity, marking of unaccented sub-divisions of the beat in
the most rapid tempo, sudden changes of mood (often switching between
rapid effervescence and melting tenderness), lightning progressions,
successions of thirds and sixths in unexpected keys, full utilisation of timbral
range, new sonorities, highly chromatic sequences and of course, systematic
exploration of that favourite dimension, virtuosity.

All these elements, in

high density under a single bow and four fingers (in the case of Paganini
sometimes five ... )79 were soon adopted and employed by other musicians 76See, among others: -Lang, Paul Henry. Mus;c in Western Ciyilization. p.802 ["Among the
notable pseudo-romanticists let us mention two typical cases, Paganini and Onslow."]-Casini,
Claudio, Paganjni , Milan: Ejecta, 1982, p.47 ["bench" egli non avesse consapevoimente nulla a
che fare col romanticisrno."] -Einstein, Alfred, Music in the Romantic Era. p.203 ["But even if he
himself was anything but a Romantic, he impressed the Romantics strongly as being a Romantic
personality...].
77Several Caprices follow the strict ABA or ABA' schema (13,15,17,18,20,22,23; 3,5,6 and 11)
78"Oer ganze Satz ist voll Romantik .: Schumann, Robert. ~ p. 165.
79Contemporary testimonies relate that Paganini invariably employed his thumb as an aid in
the execution of certain multiple-chords or for the execution of certain shifting pasages. The
characteristic ..thumb in the palm position" described by Felis (op.crt.p. 74) is clearly

99

especially pianists - to exploit the expressive potential of their instrument. But

some conservative musicians denigrated the Caprices, alleging that they were
"against the nature of the instrument" (Spohr) or simply "unplayablev.P?
With the benefit of hindsight, their adoption by Schumann, Liszt, Brahms,
and well into the twentieth century by Busoni, Szymanowsky, Ravel,
Milhaud, Rachmaninoff, Lutoslawski, Dallapiccola, Blacher, Rochberg,
Schnittke, etc., offers convincing evidence that they actually contained
pioneering material which enriched the musical language.

In the more

immediate nineteenth century context, they found a response in the emerging'

sensitiveness of the Romantic era.

depicted by Delacroix in his famous portrait of the vio1inist (see infra, Chapter 4).
80The allegation of unplayability seems inseparable from new creative approaches in
instumental music and, as R. Kolisch points out, is the most dangerous weapon brandished
against a composer: "Die westliche Musik hat sich ihr expressives Neuland gegen den
heftigsten Widerstand der Fachleute erobern mussen. fur mildestes Urteil gegen neue
Geigenmusil<. war, sie sei schlecht fur die Geige geschrieben. Die gefahrlichste Waife aber
gegen den Fortschritt war und ist das Urteil der "Unspielbarkeit" Fast alle bedeutenden
Stucke der Geigenliteratur waren mit diesem Stigma behaftet." Kolisch Rudolf. "Religion der
Streicher" in YioUnspiel und Yjolinmusik jn Geschichte nod Gegenwart. Wien: Universal

Edition, 1975, p.179.

100

CHAPTER IV

PAGAt'ilNI AND THE "PHILOSOPHY OF THE VIOLIN"

Aspects of a musical language

"According to my established custom of calling on Paganini every day, I went to his

apartments in the Regent's Quadrant today, and found him seated on that species of throne
to which artists are in the habit of exalting their sitters. He was preparing to sit for his
bust. His back being turned towards the door, he did not perceive my entrance, till Dr
Billing had accosted me by name, when Paganini requestedme to be seated and said with a
smile, 'Dated le nuove', 'Give us the news'. I related to him all the news of his success
which had been written in the papers of the day. I explained to him how they had spoken
of the truth of his intonation, of the rapidity of his thirds, sixths and octaves, and of the
brilliancy of those difficult beauties, his double harmonics. 'And', he interposed with a.
triumphant smile, as if to anticipate what they ought to have been most eloquent upon,
'della filosofia del violino l' (of the philosophy of the violin)." I
Paganini frequently made the point that there was a "philosophy of the
violin". In his letters to his friend Luigi Guglielmo Germi, one can find
recurring allusions to "scientific and philosophical music", "musical
philosophy", "musical language", and, most interestingly, to the "suonare
parlante" ("the playing that speaks").2 In the same vein are his statement

that "poetry and music are sisters",3 his frequent quotations from Homer,
Dante and Petrarca,4 and his views on musical composition:
1Maclise, Daniel. "Paganini" in The Court Journal, London, Dec. 1832,quoted by Me Gee,
Andrew, The Strad, London, vol. 101,N"1202 (June 1990), p. 467. Daniel Maclise, a London
painter and engraver of note, drew several pictures of Paganini performing at the King
Theatre in 1831. At the time of Maclise's visit, Paganini was sitting for the modelling session
of the bust executed by the sculptor Benedetto Pistrucci (1784-1855).
2"...la musica scientifica e filosofica " (IT 28), "...Ia misura a la filosofia musicale..."
(PE 63). "...il mio linguaggio musicale "(E.E. 148), "... Ii daro un'idea del suonare
parltmte," (IT 148).

3See: Tibaldi-Chiesa, Maria. Paganini ta vita e l'opera. Milan: Garzanti, 1940,

frontispiece.
4 See: Schottky, op. cit., Walluf: Sandig- Reprint, 1974, pp. 213 and 284 (N.B.The page
numbers of the origina11830 edition and of the 1974 Sandig Reprint edition are slightly
different). See also E.E 188 and 219.

101

"Composing is not so easy for me as you think. My greal rule is 'Varreta e Uruta in arte'
and that is very hard 10 reconcile..."5 [III. PXBj

"Varietii e Llnita in arte" summons up reminiscences of Plato (unity within

multiplicity), although some commentators (including Geraldine de Courcy)
have suggested that Paganini was quoting verbatim from Anton Reicha's
Komposition-Lehre. 6 If this were true, his famous motto "bisogna forte

sentire per far sentire" could just as easily have been borrowed from Carl
Philipp

Emanuel

Bach's "a musician cannot move others unless he

himself is moved".7 However, these ideas existed well before Reicha or

Bach. They derived from the classical Greek theories on music as passed on
by Boethius and Cassiodorus. There are indications that Paganini, who
learned the principles of composition from teachers attached to the old
Italian tradition, further deepened his knowledge by studying textbooks on
ancient Greek music.f Another source may well have been 5t Augustine's

De musica. a treatise much concerned with the ars poeiica, which,

according to early tradition, was inseparable from music. Be that as it may, it
was through serious study and patient research that Paganini arrived at his
philosophy of the violin:
"One can only thoroughly acquire one science. I have devoted my entire life 10 my violin and
to the theory of music...,,9 [trl. PXBJ

5"Mir geht das Componlren keineswegs so leicht von Slatten, ais Mancher glaube)' dfufte.
Mein groBes Geselz heiJJI Varieta e Unita in Arte und dies ist schwer zu vereiningen.'
Schottky. op. cit., pp. 274-275 (Sandig Reprint).
6See: de Courcy, Geraldine, op.cit., vol.I, p. 485 and Reicha, Anton, Komposjtion-Lehre,
Vienna, 1818, vol.IV, p.485. Reicha's treatise was published in 1818, one year after Paganini
had handed in the manuscript of the Caprices to the Milanese publisher Ricordi.
7"Indem ein Musikus nicht anders riihren kann, er sey dann selbst geruhrt,' Bach, Carl
Philipp Emanuel. Versuch tiber die wahre Art das Clavier zu Spielen, erster Theil. Berlin:
the Author, 1753. RLeipzig 1957.

8 fl:64
9"Man kann nur eine Wissenschafl griindlich erlemen. Meine game Lebenzeit habe ich
meiner Geige und der Theorie der Musik gewidmet..." Harrys, Georg. Paganinj in seinen
Rejse~agen uod Zimmer. Brunswick: Vieweg, 1830, p.lS.

102

"It was his deep knowledge and understanding of all questions pertaining to

violin playing which brought Paganini imperishable fame", writes [utta

Sttiber.1 According to this German researcher, Paganini pursued the study
of the violin not merely as a practical manual craft, but as a subject of
rational investigation. He conducted his research with true Pythagorean
scholarship, i.e. exploring systematically the physical and acoustic properties
of the vibrating string.l '
"My secret, if I can call it such, should give the violinists a better insight into the nature of
the instrument than has been the case sofar. It appears far richer than it is commonly
supposed. lowe that discovery not to chance, but to serious study:12 [trl. PXBJ

Paganini at times explored areas beyond what could be defined as

"legitimate" violin playing.

However, in many cases, his experiments

found a striking practical application in his music.l 3 As with all original
1O"s waren gerade seine tiefgreifenden Kenntnisse aller Fragen, die mit der Geige
zusammenhingen die Paganini den unverganglichen Rulun einbrachten". Stuber, Jutta. I2il:
Intonation des Geigers. Bonn: Verlag fur systematische Musikwissenschaft, 1989, p.170.
llpaganini often referred to his favourite violin (a Guamerius del Gesu made in 1742) as "Le
Canon", an allusion to the "Pythagorean canon" or monochord, an instrument said to have

been recommended by Pythagoras, on his deathbed, as the "musical investigator, the

criterion of truth": ("&0 ,(al nu9ayopav aal Ti)V EVTE'fi9iV d:rrat..}..QyT1v

TTOl.OlJJ,lEVOV

jJDvoxop6iCEtv TO'S' ETaipol.~ 1Tapal.VEUal. OTlhOVVTa ~'S' T-nV aKpOTllTQ Tl1v EV ~OVal.K"ij

VOTlTWS lJ.(i}"~ov ot' apl.aJ.l~V

il

aio611Tw$' 01.' clKoils- dvaAT)1TTEoV." "Hence they say that

Pythagoras, taking his departure from here, advised his companions to play the monochord,
making clear that sublimity in music must be apprehended mentally by numbers rather than
perceptibly through hearing." Aristides Quintilianus.De Muska 3.2.6, ed. by R.P.
Winnington-Ingram, Leipzig: B.G. Teubneri, P: 97 [trl. P. Davis]
12"Mein GeheimniB, wenn ich es so nennen darf, diirfte den Violinspielem die Wege
andeuten, um die Natur des Instrumentes besser zu ergrunden, als es bisher geschehen ist. und
welches wei! reicher zeigt, als man gewohnach annimmt. Nicht dem Zufalle, sondem,
emstem Studium verdanke ich diese Entdeckung", Schottky, op. cit., p.282 (Sandig Reprint).
13Paganini is reported to have played magnificently upon his violin with an ordinary reed
(or rush) in a concert made at Verona in 1817. The impression made on the public and in
particular on the composer Valdabrini who had challenged him to playa new and very
difficult concerto, was understandably considerable. The violin maker Ed. Heron-Allen
(Violin-Making. London 1885, p.86-87) reported the observation of J.M. Fleming that bows
wilholLl hair, such as that used by Paganini at Verona, were familiar to ancient Greeks as
well as to Romans. The misconception that Greeks and Romans did not have bow instruments

103

thinkers, Paganini offers evidence of a capacity not only to acquire, absorb,

and assimilate knowledge, but also to use that knowledge as a point of
departure, a necessary stepping stone to discovery.

Whilst repectful of

earlier achievements, he was relentless in his consideration of what might

be possible. In the present chapter, some aspects of Paganini's compositional
and performing styles will be examined, with special consideration given to
instrumental techniques which are not employed in the Caprices.

It is

hoped that this might contribute to a clearer understanding of Paganini's

global artistic approach. However, this is in no sense intended to be an
exhaustive list of Paganini's formidable musical vocabulary for, as Hector
Berlioz observed:
"It would take a volume to enumerate all the new effects that Paganini has found in his

works, the ingenious devices, the grand and noble forms, the orchestral combinations never
before him employed or dreamed of...,,14

Furthermore, before attempting the delicate task of examining "single stones

of the great mosaic of masterpieces",15 I should like to observe that, in
Paganini, the most arduous technical problems never seem to be
superimposed on the overall musical structure, but rather seem to arise
naturally as an integral part of the whole, using the resources of an
instrument "far richer than it is commonly assumed" (Paganini's words).

seems to have arisen partly from the fact that the word 'plectrum' was used as a generic term
to describe a medium other than fingers or nails to set a string into vibration.
14Berlioz, Hector, Les Soirees de l'Orchestre. (original French version in Chapter I, p. 7),
ISSevcik's phrase (Concert Studjes op, 1721, Bmo: Pazdirek, 1929, preface).

104

1. The suonare parlante

Paganini to Germi, August 30, 1830
... Che ne dici di tutto questa? E malta difficile di trovare una donna che ami quanta Elena! E
vero che quando sentono il mio languaggio musicale, l'oscillazione delle mie note Ie fa tulle
piangere; rna io non sono piu giovane, ne sana piu bello; anzi sana diventato brutlissimo.

Pensaci e dimmi come la pensi. Essa ragiona come scrive; la sua favella, la sua voce

insinuante. Conosce la geografia come io il violino. Prima ch'io mi dimentichi, salutami

teneramente mia madre, e continua sempre ecc. ecc. Intorno a quel coglione di mio fratello,
salutamelo pure, ecc. ecc. come sopre e nel modo che eredi. Come tratti il violino? Quando ci
rivedremo ti darb un'idea del suonare parlante. Che fa il Dellepiane? E guarito? Srivimi a
Francofort. Addio. Paganini.1 6

"When I see you again", writes Paganini to Luigi Guglielmo Germi, "I shall
give you an idea of the playing that speaks."

In instrumental music,

"parlante"17, "parlando"18 or "quasi par l an do"

are

performance

directions accommodating greater freedom in rendering than the much

more frequent can t an do or cantabile:

While in vocal music such

indications simply mean that the voice should approximate speech, the
instrumental parlante offers greater interpretative challenge. It implies a
certain quality of tempo fluctuation or rubato as well as a special prosodic
inflexion which is indicated by the articulation sign

placed over single

notes, or by a slur together with staccato dots over a group of notes:

-'-

b.18-23

16''Whatdo you say to all that? It is very diffieultto find a woman as lovingas Elena. It is true that
when they hear the language ofmy music, theoscillationof my notes makes them all weep; but I am not
young any more,no longer handsome. On thecontrary, I'vegrown very ugly. Think it over and tell me
what you really think. She reasons like she writes; her speech,her voice aresuggestive. She knows

geography likeI know the violin. Before I forget, greetmy mother tenderly forme and alwayskeepon etc.
etc. As regards that fool of a brother of mine, greet him too etc. etc. as above in the way you believe. How

are you treating the violin? Whenwe see eachother again,I shall give you an idea of the playing that
speaks. What is Dellepiane doing? Has he recovered? Write to me at Frankfurt. Addie. Paganini."
(PE148) [trl. PXBJ

17parlante (it. speaking, present participle of parlare)

18parlando (it. speaking, gerund of parlare)

105

In a few instances, the indication parlante or parlando has been used for an

entire movement.

Thus, Beethoven's 6th Bagatelle op.33, is headed

Allegretto quasi andante, can una certa espressione parlante. Similarly, the
indication basso parlante appears at the beginning of the second of
Schumann's Abegg Variations.

Sometimes, the composer provides a

literary text in addition to the articulation marks.

In Liszt's Dante-

Symphony, passages from the Divine Comedy are quoted to provide a clue
to the underlying musical intention:

'8
liiit
~--~
!!!-

Ne3

.--

3un mag - gior

-..

do

- 10

- re
~

che

~~~
=

ri - cor (b.311-318)

While poetic texts complementing (and perhaps illustrating) the music

abound in Tartini's manuscripts, they were not included in the printed
editions. There, the composer cryptically transcribed verses from Metastasio
and Tasso for his own personal use.l?

Tartini's concept of the suonare

parlante was to transfer, as it were, a poetical idea in his interpretations,

thereby infusing his playing with a twofold power/an extra layer / of
expression. 20 Here are the opening bars of the second movement of the
56th Concerto with the motto "Bagna le piume in Lete, a placido placido

sanna, e me le spargi in volta, e me Ie spargi in sen":

G. Tartini (Violin Concerto N! 56)

Grave

AIClU ~
L-"9:C>-

HI.

Bagna Ie

piwne in

C>- )_

(dipl. tl'lJlS.ript)

Le1e ...

19Tartinis cryptograms have been deciphered for the first lime by the violinist and music
researcher Minos Dounias (>Kuhlenkampf) in 1935.
20See chapter II, Albi Rosenthal's "intriguing copy" of the Caprices.

106

Tartini's views were shared by Corelli's disciple, Francesco Geminiani, who

recommended the reading of a great literary work as a means to achieve a
truly inspired musical performance:
"...Emotions are indeed most easily excited when accompany'd with Words; I would besides
advise, as well the Composer as the Performer, who is ambitious to inspire his Audience, to be
first inspired himself; which he cannot fail to be if he chuses a Work of Genius, if he makes
himself thoroughly acquainted with all its Beauties; and if while his Imagination is warm
and glowing he pours the same exalted Spirit into his own performance.',21

A correlation between words and music, much in the sense of Tartini and
Geminiani, appears in Paganini's works based on operatic themes:

[Dal

tuo stona - to

so - glio

5i - gnor ti vol - gi a

N. Pegeni ni (I Pelpiti)

Rndant i no

[Dt tan - ti

no - ;]

pal - pi - ti

Di

tan-to

po

no

Similarly, the second movement of the Concerto Nlo known as the "Prison
Scene", was inspired by a dramatic scene recited by Giuseppe De Marini. 22
From a prison cell, the great actor implored Providence to put an end to his
suffering by relieving him of the burden of life:
"Paganini had retired to bed, still overwhelmed by the emotions [the great actor had roused];
he could not sleep, and despairing of finding rest, he rose and found on his violin expressions
which allowed hIm to pour out the burning intensity of his feeling,,23 [trI.PXBJ:

21Geminiani, Francesco. The Art of Playing: on the Violin London, 1751; facsimile edition
byD.Boyden, London: o.ur, Music Opt., 1952,p.8
22De Marini, Giuseppe (1772-1829). Famous Italian actor who achIeved great success both
in dramatic and in comic roles.
23"Paganini se mit au lit encore sous Ie coup des emotions qu'Il venait d'eprouver; illui fut impossible de
se livrerau sommeil: desesperant de goater le repas, Use leve et trouvesur son vioion des expressions qui

lui servent a epanchertoutecettesensibilite qui lui brulaitsonarne...", Imber! de Laphaleque, G.

Notice sur Ie celebre yioJjniste Nicolo Paganini Paris E.Guyot,1830, p.27

107

8010 ..:-~

N.Paganini (1st Concerto, 2nd rnvt.)

~....-

24

The dramatic climax of the piece is reached in the concluding bars. Of great
interest is the indication tremolando, i.e. a trembling of the voice as when
overwhelmed by emotion (not a bow tremolo):

:> 3& CON

cresco

4& CON

con passione

",P

=:==-

rall..nt ... tr..molando

(dipl.tr .of ms.Cas.5560, b. 58-60)

Far more than an occasional effect, the par/ante was a striking, ever-present
characteristic of Paganini's interpretative style. The uncommon power of
suggestion of his playing and the articulatory quality of his expression were
frequently acknowledged by listeners as well as by music critics:
Rahel Varnhagen von Ense to her husband, March 7, 1829
"I heard Paganini on Wednesday...He really doesn't play the violin .. he does not have the
tone (or tones) of Rode, of Durand, of Haack, of Giornovichi - he actually talks; he
whimpers, imitates a thunderstorm, the stillness of night, birds that descend from heaven but
do not soar towards heaven .. in short this is poetry. In the prayer from Rossini's Moise, he
plays the different voices as they enter one after the other and then all together 1 swear to
you that again and again 1 was forced to repeat the words of the harpist -"Wer nie sein Brot
mit Triinen ajl..25 - to shudder, to weep. It was the very embodiment of the poem ..26[,<1.

de

Courcy]

24paganini's special notation with the treble clef in mirror image indicates that the written
notes do not correspond to the real pitch (in the 1st CODcerto. the violin must be tuned to F-B
flat-E flat and A flat).
2S"He, who has never lasted tears with his bread" (Goethe's Lied des Harfners) [my note].
26Quoted by G. de Courcy, op. cit., vol.I, p.316. Rahel Varnhagen nee Levin (1771-1833) an
significant and influential figure in Berlin literary circles, she presided over a famous
literary salon which became the meeting place of the young Romantics. Her husband was the
poet and writer Carl August Varnhagen.

108

Even Heinrich Friedrich Rellstab-", the leading Berlin music critic of the
time, a man of experience and high standing in the world of music, departed
from his usual moderation and severity:
"...The audience was in a state of exaltation the like of which I have seldom witnessed in a
theater, and never in a concert hall ...He spoke, he wept, he sang!

I have never seen the

Berliners in such a state! And this was the effect of a simple melody,,28 [ttl. de CourcyJ

Attentive to problems of enunciation and prosody, Paganini was highly

critical of singers who did not pronounce clearly.29 In the ideal figure of
adequation, the two aspects of song (the power of words to move the listener
and the more mysterious power of the harmony of the tones) are equally
present. Paganini developed special instrumental techniques (e.g.
combination of timbres, extra-musical sounds, employment of the unison)
to imitate the human voice to the very accents of speech. 30 He was even
credited with the ability to convey the sound of words and names with his
bow. This has been reported by several biographers including Lilian Day:
"To accomplish the impossible was becoming a habit with Paganini, who was gaining a
reputation as an apostle of the spectacular. He took an impish delight in amazing his friends
and confounding his enemies. The breaking of strings in full view of the audience was the
least of his artifices. One night at the close of a concert in Genoa he said 'Buona sera' so
unmistakably on the strings that the whole audience replied, 'Buona sera,.,,31

This Was no doubt achieved through a skilful manipulation of timbre, pitch

and articulation, involving advanced bow and left-hand techniques. 32 One
27Rellstab, Friedrich Heinrich (1799-1860), critic at the Vossische Zeitung.

28Vossische Zeitung, Berlin, (March 1829), quoted by G. de Courcy, op.cit., vol.I, p.317-318.
29pE 4, PE 63.
3"00 ne se figure pas combien il a augrnente et perfectionne les precedes techniques pour se rapprocher de la

voix humaine.. On sait, par exemple. que pour parvenir aone expression de douleur, on prend simultanement la

meme note sur deux carde differentes (l'unisson); jusqu'ici ce n'avait etc qu'une indication isolee, qu'un accent
transitoire; Paganini, avec des sons de cette nature, est parvenu afonner des phrases entieres de chant. dont
l'effet, tant it est deux, penetrant et pathetiques, rappelle ces belles voix de femmes dans lesquelles on dit qu'il y

a des larmes" Imbert de Laphaleque, G. Notice sur Ie q,l"bre vjolinjste Nicolo Paganjni. Paris E.
Guyot,1830, p,17.
31Lillian Day, p. 106.
32An approximation of the phenomenon of voice production and specifically of speech on

109

can find an interesting parallel in literature (especially poetry) where

attempts were often made to imitate the production of music by proper
arrangement of rhythm, stress, timbre, and pitch}3

Outstanding among

these attempts is the first stanza of Paul Verlaine's Chanson d'automne.

which imitates the violin:
Les sanglots longs/ Des violons / De L'automne / Blessentmon coeur I D'une langueur
I Monotone. 34

string instruments could be approached in the following manner. One could first arrange the
vowel sounds into a spectrum. In a second stage, through systematic exploration of the
different tone colours available on the violin, one would come up with a range of timbres
which could then be re- arranged into the reference spectrum as closely as possible.
Consonants would be treated in a similar way, but through experimentation with articulation
as opposed to timbres (DH). See also: Chailley. Jacques, "Experiences de Correlation entre
Musique et Parole", Bulletin du GAM, N" 19, April 1966.
33See: Scher, Steven Paul. verbal Music in German !.iteralure. New Haven & London, 1968,
p.l-S.
34Micha, Alexandre (editor) Verlajne et les poetes Symbolistes, Paris: Librairie Larousse,
1943, p.1S.

110

2. Harmonics

Pre-Paganinian practices
Although natural and artificial harmonics 35 were known long before
Paganini, their acceptance into the violinists' technical vocabulary was slow
to materialise. Some instructions concerning their employment were given
by L'Abbe le fils in his Principes du violon of 1761,36and, in 1791, Francesco
Galeazzi devoted a chapter to the subject in the first volume of his
monumental Elementi Teorico-Pratici di Musica. 37 His detailed and
painstaking exposition is a fair gauge of the knowledge of the time. As
regards artificial harmonics, Galeazzi's system of notation resembles that of

L'Abbe Ie fils, but without the advantage of the rhomboidal note. He uses a
round white note for the stopping finger (or "artificial nut") and a black one
for the finger(s) resting on the nodal point(s):38

el
..

eI

[Mus.Cas.421]

F. Geleezzi (Elementi...vol.l, fig.IX)

b

<diPltnM;.:;ptbtjPXB)

One of Galeazzi's most interesting examples comprises double harmonics in

two different combinations (two artificial, or one natural and the other
artificial). However, since he apparently did not know of the possibility of
using rhomboidal notes, he had some problems with the notation of double
35rn violinplaying, an artificial harmonic is the sound produced by pressing (shortening)
the string with the lower finger and, at the same time, lightly touching the vibrating part of
the string with another. The stopping finger defines the fundamental note while the other,
placed at an exactly determined distance (aliquot division), create the "harmonic" effect.
Thedivisions of thestring commonly used are1/3, 1/4, and 1/5.
36pp. 72-73, "Des sons harmoniques"
37Galeazzi, Francesco. Elementi Thorico Praticj dj Musica con un saggio sopr. l'arte di
suonare j! VioUoo (2 vo!.) Roma: Stamperia Pilucchi Cracas, 1791 and 1796. [Mus. Cas. 421422]

38However, Galeazzi whitenotes are round, as the ordinary ones, which is a source of
ambiguity. L'Abbe Iefils, with his squarenotes, and later authors with rhomboids, found an
elegant solution to this particular notation problem.

111

harmonics and had to complement his musical example with an

explanatory note 39 :

Paganini's expertise in the field went far beyond that of any of his
predecessors, including Galeazzi. Not only did he extend existing techniques
to the limit of their potential, but he also employed some for which there is
no earlier record. Among these innovations one can mention:
- artificial harmonics in double stopping involving all four fingers
simultaneously (Galeazzi employed at the most three at a time)
- the combination of harmonics and ordinary stopped notes
- trills in harmonics
- other harmonic phenomena such as secondary harmonics, pseudoharmonic effects, etc.
In his compositions, Paganini never gave any details concerning the

manner of execution, merely writing "Armonici" or "Flagioletto" over the

corresponding passage. The choice of the fingering was left entirely to the
discretion of the performer.

However there survives a scale in double

harmonics fully explicated and carefully fingered which/that Paganini sent

as a present to his friend and lawyer Luigi Guglielmo Germi:40
39"(5.5) Quest' esempio enel suo genere singolarissimo, e vi vorra qualche industria per interpretarlo,
ed eseguirlo; per ajutare perc il curiosa, diremo, che quantunque nelle scale gia date per le note artifiziali,
abbiamo segnate in note bianche Ie dita fuse, e questepoi non si segnano nelle compostzioni; le note
dunque, che segnate trovansi in quest'ultimo esempio, sono le sole Armoniche e perc si sottintendonoIe
dita fisse; da cia si vede che sana effetivamente quasi tutte corde dappie: 5i avverta aneora che Iedette
corde doppie, non sono sempre tuttee due artifiziali, rna spesso una e naturale, e l'altra artifiziale. Vi
sano due forzature di quarto dito alla quarta, ed ottavabattuta della secondaparte. Con queste
cognizioni sara piu facile allo studioso il comprendere quest'esempio." (op.cit., p. 176-77).
4Opaganini, Niccolo. Segreto cOIDunicato e raccowandato da Paganini al suo caro amieo L.G.
~.

Photostat 998, suppl. to Maia Bang collection, Library 01 Congress, Music Division

(Location 01 original manuscript unknown).

112

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2da Coma -------------------,

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4

~ .

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i~

.g$

~.~

$",

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re

4ta Coma------------ J

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~-~

i=t':

3i
3

[dipl. tr. by PXB]

4

.l!~.~..-~I~~~~~~~I~~~~~~
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1111111
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301 18.

1
1
1
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301 18.
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4

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~

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2da Coma----------------------------J

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1

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111
110re12
re
.
31
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d
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Of extraordinary interest is the last bar, for which Paganini provides the
following comment:
"As for the four not very obedient harmonics marked
some degree of pressure but they are not necessary.vs!
2212

'-" Y'---'

sol fa
4

mi
4 3

, one must rest the finger with

do

["I. PXBJ

"'::~V:42
110

relre

This is a truly remarkable example which implies the rare - indeed unique combination of natural, artificial, and what I shall call secondary harmonics,
41"Li poco ubbidienri quattro Armonici qui scpra fatti
soppressione rna non sono necessarj." (ibid.).

113

deesi appoglare i1 dito con qualche grade di

i.e, harmonics such as the "not very obedient" ones described by Paganini.

They have been variously labelled "pseudo harmonics" (Targonski),42

"secondary artificial harmonics" (Garbuzov)43 and "sticking harmonics"
(Paynton).44 As stated by Paganini, slightly more pressure must be applied
on the string than is necessary with ordinary harmonics. In his Principles of
Violin Fingering of 1967, Israil Markovitch Yampolski gave an example of
their application in rapid diatonic succession, as an alternative solution to
traditional fingerings:

~
(Fi nele)'---__ -- -

.---

(b.14-15)

__--J

~ (aj,~Aii;ut

'u'")

'\

(The Principles_of Violin Fingering. p.l 09)

_-----..

The emergence of a new genre of music treatise, the Flageolett-Schulen, or

special methods devoted to the study of harmonics, bore testimony to the
tremendous impact of Paganini's novel and imaginative use of harmonics.
The best known was Carl Cuhr's Ueber Paganinis Kunst. die Violine zu
spjelen. an ambitious, well-documented (although not exhaustive) survey
of harmonic effects as used by Paganini. The great value of this work is that
it constitutes a first-hand source of information.

Cuhr's informative

account derived from direct observation.tf The same can be said of the
treatise of Niccolo De Giovanni, a pupil of the late Giacomo Costa, who also
benefited from Paganini's personal advice. De Giovanni's unpublished
work 46 (presumably written for his own students), contains several
42Targonski, Ivan B. The HarmQnics QfString Instruments, Moscow, 1936, pp.24-25
43Garbuzov, Nikolai A. ibid., p.5 (introduction)
44paynton, Leonard R. CQntrabass HarmQnic PQtential PhD diss. University of California,
1988, Ch. II.
45See supra survey of pertinentliteralure
46De Giovanni Niccolo, Metodo teoricQ-praticQ per ben fare SlI( iDling gli Armonici
semplici. trillati e dQPQY. Genoa, c.1830 [IDS. in the possession of the Conservatorio Niccolo
Paganini of Genoa]

114

examples which come directly from Paganini. Of special interest is the

notation of the trill in harmonics:

.J:,~V"4
J
N. De Giovanni (Metono-pratiCO)

~F

l~l

lijf

(p.3)

Here is Paganini's method of playing tenths without finger extension:

-:rarlCO )
:: :: ~
= ==

d tt~lC
N. De G'tovanrn. (M et ~o

2
II

II

1
II

I.

lme N01e Ne.tuI8li ..

tJ

.1

tJ

g4
SeS1e de. farsi Armonici

'" 4

g4 g3

'Effetto

(p. 9)

1I

(diplIr. b PXB)

As observed by Petis, Speyer, Kestner and others, Paganini did not use
harmonics only for isolated effects. They were an integral part of his
musical language and he constantly introduced them in his own music as
well as in that of other composers to create variety of tone colour:
Wilhelm Speyer to Ludwig Spohr, 17 September 1829
"The performance of the Beethoven Sonata op.24 was extremely interesting. Just to tell you
the most memorable part of it: Imaglne! After the repetition of the first section of the rondo,
he played the theme in artificial harmonics!,,47 [trl. PXBJ

As regards Paganini's 24 Caprices, there exist firmly rooted performing

traditions (i.e. the addition of harmonics in the Caprice 9) which may well
go back to people who heard Paganini play. In the light of Speyer's
observation concerning the special treatment of the Rondo theme in
Beethoven Spring Sonata, the inclusion of harmonics in the Caprices would
seem to be a legitimate interpretative option.
47"H6chst interessant war der Vortrag der Beethovenschen Sonate op.24. Urn Ihnen das
Wunderlichste davon zu erzahlen, so vemehmen Sie dall er nach der Wiederholung des ersten
Teils des Rondos das Thema in Flageolett-Oktav-Doppelgriffen horen liess!" Speyer,
Edward, Wilhelm Speyer der ! jederkomponisl, Munich, 1925, p 103.

115

The "marine trumpet" effect

It is well-known that the range of natural harmonics available on the violin

is more limited than on larger' string instruments such as the 'cello, the
double-bass and, indeed, the marine trumpet. In fact, even on the more
responsive fourth string, the violin range does not extend much beyond the
6th partial. Now, in the Napoleon Sonata for the G string, Paganini ascends
right to partial 12:

----

.>

(b. 5-6 of Final~)

--

.sft

(dipl. lr. by PXB)

In an article published in the first edition of the Grove's Dictionary of Music

& Musicians, Edward

J, Payne provided evidence that Paganini had found a

method to increase the responsiveness of the string in playing harmonics:

"Paganini's extraordinary effects in harmonics on a single string were in fact produced by
temporarily converting his violin to a small marine trumpet,

As is well known, that clever

player placed his single fourth string on the treble side of the bridge screwing it up to a very
high pitch, and leaving the bass foot of the bridge comparatively loose. He thus produced a
powerful reedy tone, and obtained unlimited command over the harmonics: 4 8

The technique of the trumpet marine, a bowed instrument equipped with a

vibrating bridge, primarily involved harmonics,

When properly adjusted,

the bridge produced a brassy tone not unlike that of a muted trumpet, but
with enormous carrying power,

On such an instrument, experienced

players could produce all the pitches of the harmonic series through to the
16th partial. The same principle can be applied to the violin,49 We know
that during his stay at Lucca, Paganini studied and played other stringed
48payne, Edward, article "trumpet marine" in: Grove's Dictiooary of Music and Musicjans.

London, 1890, vol.IV, p.175.

49 See: Giraud, Manuela. "Les Apprentis Sorciers" in: Le Nouvelliste et Feuille d'Avis du
Valais, Sian, 13 July 1993, p.3.

116

instruments besides the violin, and that he taught the 'cello and even the
double bass. 50 It was at that time that, having perfected his technique of
monocordo playing, he wrote his Napoleon Sonata which he played on the
occasion of the Emperor's birthday (25 August 1807). He passed on his
knowlege, and therewith the skill, to his pupil Camillo Sivori who is
reported to have employed the"marine trumpet" method for the
performance of the Prayer of Moses.51

50See de Courcy, Geraldine, op.cit., vol.I. p. 71.

51- "Dans la Priere de Moise, la plus celebre, Paganini montait le Sol tl colt! de la

chantereile, au lieu de la corde de La, imite en cela par son eleve, Camillo Sivori." ["In the
famous Prayer of Moses. Paganini moved the G string next to the E, in the place of the A. This
was copied by his pupil, Camillo Sivori"] de Saussine, Renee, Paganini Ie Magicien. Ceneve:
Le Milieu du Mende, 1950,p.l79.
- "Cette fameuse quatrierne corde, Paganini, quelquefois, notamment pour Ies variations sur la
priere de Moise, la montait tl cOte de la chanterelle, au lieu de la corde de La. Suivant
l'exemple de son maitre, l'eminent violoniste Camillo Sivori, employait Ie meme 'true' pour
jouer ces variations." Prod'hornme, J.-G., Paganini. Paris: H. Laurens, 1927, p. 40.

117

3. Chromaticism
The full import of Liszt's famous letter to Pierre Wolff (already quoted in
Chapter I, p.31) only appears in the light of its allied musical illustrations.
Here is the relevant excerpt.l
"...And I too am a painter! exclaimed Michelangelo the first time he saw a masterpiece.
Though insignificant and poor, your friend keeps on repeating the words of the great man ever
since Paganini's last concert. Rene, what a man, what a violinist, what an artist!

Heavens!

What suffering and misery, what tortures in those four strings!" Look! Here are some of his
passages:

(Liszt to Wolff, ex.t)

(Liszt to Wolff, ox.3)

Sua - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ,

~
lLa Mara (ed.) Franz Liszls Briefe. Leipzig, 1893-1905, vol.I, p.7. (autograph letter
formerly in the possession of Mr Calmana-Levy, Paris) The musical examples were
reproduced in: Bachmann, Alberto, "Nicolo Paganini", Bulletin Francais de la S.I.M, p.5.

118

(Lisz\ \0 'Wolff, ex.5)

Consecutive diminished sevenths (ex.I): four-part chordal progression with

one or more voices forming a chromatic scale (ex.2); descending chromatic
scale in. broken sixths (ex.3); prestissimo triplets swirling down
chromatically (ex.4); interlocked whole scales formed by a succession of
diminished sevenths in reciprocating arpeggios (ex.5).2 All this was
adopted by Liszt and appeared in his works, as Federico Mompellio
observed, "amplified and magnified through the possibilities of the
keyboard".3 Liszt's appreciation of the far-reaching implications of these
complicated and seemingly barren formulas is evident in some of his late
compositions, where temporary suspension of tonal direction is achieved
through the abundant use of diminished sevenths chords in chromatic
succession. One could say that Paganini's chromaticism was, in almost a
literal sense, a "science of colours".
Michelangelo's
revealing.

Liszt's elated reference to

"e ancb'io sana pittore!" was, in this respect, quite

Music critics too, in an attempt at capturing in words the effect

of Paganini's music, often found parallels in pictorial art:

2

(analysis of ex. 5)

3"...tutto quanto insomma ritroveremo nella produzione lisztiana ampliato e

magnificato attraverso Ie possibilita della tastiera." (Conestabile, Gian Carlo, Yim
dj Nicco!" Paganjnj. ed. by F.Mompellio, Milan: Dante Alighieri, 1936,p.76-77,
footnote 1).

119

"...In the second part 'on the G string only', he blended. as it were. voices and tones in much

the same way as Raphael and Michelangelo fused light and colour on the canvas.

It is

impossible to express the surprise, the joy, the ecstasy with which the spectators in the most
profound silence, drank in his harmonies...All things considered, Paganini is a prodigy and
whether he is an angel or the devil, he is certainly the genius of music.,,4 [trl. PXBJ

For Paganini, scales, and in particular chromatic scales, were not merely a
form of exercise. On the contrary: he loved their gleaming effect and used
them in many of his works including his Caprices, his variations, his works
for guitar, and his concertos. Their sound obviously enchanted him, and in
several instances, he deliberately suspended the orchestral accompaniment
in order to emphasise their effect (e.g. in the Concerto Nl. 1st mvt., 1st solo,
bar 42). There exist several autograph documents, in the form of albumleaves, which bear witness to Paganini's preoccupation with the chromatic
scale. Here, for example, is a common, four-octave chromatic scale, entitled
simply - but Significantly - "Scala di Paganini":5

~l~
--------

SUlI

---

4" Egli nella seconda parte 'colla sola quarta corda' fuse, per cos! dire, Ie voci e i
tuoni come Rafaello e Michelangelo hanno fuso sulle tele la luce e i colon, Non e
possibile esprimere la sorpresa, la gioia, quella specie di estasi con cui nel piu
profondo silenzio, gli spettatori ne bevevano l'armonia...Paganini e insomma un

e certamente il genio dela musica.'

(Gazzetta
di Genova, 10 October 1814, quoted in:Neill, Edward, II Cavaliere armonico. p. 58).

prodigio e sia un angelo, sia un diavolo,

5The location of the manuscript is unknown. My transcript was is on the facsimile

published in the auction catalogue NLXXXVII ,Alltographen versteigerung, 19-20
February 1907, Leipzig: e.G. Boerner Buchantiquartat, p. 80.

120

~
-----

tJ

(dipl.lr. by PXB)

The next example is a diplomatic transcript of a remarkable document in

the Sachsische Landesbibliothek in Dresden. It is a chromatic scale for
piano, harmonised in contrary motion, that Paganini wrote in Clara
Wieck's album of autographs, as a gesture of affection and a mark of
admiration for her young talent.f

1I

tJ

:Jo1.

lI+

N. Pagani ni
--a. ~

"

"

~"

_4l-

:Jo1.

II..

II"

1."

L..

"
(dipl. tr , by PXB) [SCichsische LandesbibliQlhek Dresdenl

10a

.ts. <.Jtt: t829

lps1411

In the same vein are the Gamme chromatique et contraire (Paris 1837), the

Scala obliqua e contraDa per Chitarra (Prague 1829), and the astonishing
Largo con forte espression, e sempre crescendo, dedicated to the sculptor
Jean-Pierre Dantan (Paris 1837):
6paganini, Niccoli>. Stammbuchb!atl fUr Klayjer Leipzig, 16 October 1829,
autograph

InS.

lcall

N Sachsische Landesbibliol:hek Dresden, Mus. Schu. 223j.

121

(dip1. tr , by PXB)

Mc% P4ganfni,. Pm'gi. ii 2? lug/io f8J7

[Bjb1iothequ~ N.tion.l~ 'y(. 23, 18.]

~
d!
~~i
~:y
q~~
~ 99
3
1
3 ..
..... [Pr'9u~ , C~ske Hudby Mus~um )(dip 1. tr. by PXB) St '1\itroceria

7Album of the Prince Wielhorski.

8Manuscript rep. in: Gitarristische Vereinigung 13 (1912), p.4.

122

Largo. con forte espresslone, e sempre crescendo

__ N. Pagani ni

~
~tr.bY
PX8)

[Bibliothequ. National. Vm? 5371

9

These documents consolidate the suggestion that Paganini, the thinker and
philosopher of music, recognised the chromatic scale as an autonomous
entity, much in the same sense as the Abbe Vogler,10 for example, who
regarded it as a kind of "master scale" containing all the tonalities.U

9Album of the sculptor Dantan, p.1S, dated Paris, 21 July 1837.

lOThemusical lineage of the Abbe Vogler, Paganini and Uszt (and one could add
Rossini) goes back to the great eighteeth century music scholar Giambattista Martini
(padre Martini): Abbe Vogler (>Padre Martini and Vallotti);

Paganini (e-Paer

>Fortunati >Padre Martini); Liszl (e-Paer >Fortunati >Padre Martini); Rossini

(c-MatteixPadre Martini).
11 See: l)Watson, Robert. Viennese Harmon;e Theoey from Albrechtsberger to
Schenker and Schoenberg Ann Arbor: UMI 1985 (Rev. of 1981 thesis), p.12-18. 2)Fetis,
Francois Joseph. Traite cornpJet de 11) TheQrje et de: la Pratique de l'Harmonie. Paris,
Braudus et Cie, 187S, p.J83 seq. (ordre omnitonique).

123

4. Chordal Playing

Double sounds
Paganini's technique of "double sounds" included a wide variety of
intervals ranging from the unison (which he embellished with a double trill
as in Caprice 3) to the the twenty-ninth, i.e, a span of four octaves, as shown
in the Gamme chromatique et contraire:

Such intervals, which the largest hand could never embrace, he mastered,
according to Fetis, by means of a combination of ordinary sounds and
harmonics.! He had a special liking for this technique (known as "mixed
harmonics"), and used it not only for facility and intonation, but also for
variety of tone colour. Carl Guhr has given evidence that he employed
mixed harmonics in passages written modo ordinaria. Here are the
opening bars of the ninth variation of the Carnevale di Venezia:

And here is, according to Guhr, Paganini's manner of execution:

tW"'~

(Ueber Pagani ni 's Kunst...p.39, ex.Z)

Paganini rarely gave technical directions such as fingerings, bowings, etc. In

true Italian style, his reading of his own music, as well as of the music of
others was more "philosophical" than philological.

Thus, even such a

IFetis, Francois Joseph.Notice bioe-raphjque surNjccolQ Pagaoini, Paris: Schonenberger, t 851, p.44

124

simple and generally accepted term as "double stopping" should be used

with caution in reference to Paganini's playing.

The expression "double

sounds" would seem more appropriate to describe such intervals as thirds,

fifths, sixths, octaves, tenths, and others, which he played in many different
combinations of open strings, stopped notes, natural harmonics, artificial
harmonics, and secondary artificial harmonics.
Multiple sounds
Triple and quadruple sounds occur in great profusion in Paganini's
compositions.

More significant for the purpose of this investigation,

however, are examples such as the Largo. con forte e:>pressione e sempre
crescendo where he extends the notion of chordal playing to the stacking of
up to twelve notes:

~
~

l l
~~.,

# ~--....

J1~":!!:! ~:

... ~

~ N. Paganin;
~

I:

'"

[Biblioth~qu~ National~ Vm? 537]

This idea was taken up by Eugene Ysaye in his 6 Sonates pour Violon Seul of
1927:

125

Sostenuto playing Qn four and five strings

There exist several short compositions in the form of "album leaves" which
Paganini dedicated to various personalities of the time including Clara
Wieck,2 the sculptor Jean-Pierre Dantan.v the Baroness d'Eskeles, the
senator Ciovanni Treccani degli Alfieri, the Prince WielhQrski,4 Onorio de

Vito, Alfred de Beauchesne, Carl Czerny, Dr Archibald Billing, Ferdinand

Baake, and Eduard Eliason (the leader of the London Philharmonic), These

musical souvenirs, apart from their historical and biographical value, cast
light Qn SQme of Paganini's technical and musical preoccupations,

Of

considerable interest is the CapricciQ per Violino SQIQ [M.s. 54] which
Paganini wrote in Vienna for Maurice Dietrichstein.f On that occasion,
Paganini took up the challenge of writing a four-voice chorale for the violin,
which he notated in "open-score" - each stave representing a string of the
violin:
N. Pugunini (Cupriccio per Violino Solo)
,11 II Andante

II

II

II

...

f;L .. ~

cr>.

~,I

~~
l

--

;t-.ty

.
~

.I

... '-(diPl.;. by PXB) 6

2Cbmmatic Scale for piano hwnoojsed in contrary IDotioo (see supra); Preludjo per ViO!iDQ (see infra)
3Largo con fooe espcession, e sempre crescendo, (see supra)
4 Gamme chromatjque el cootraire, (see supra)

5Dietrichstein. Maurice (Count) (1775-1864). Remembered chiefly as General Mack's aide-de-camp,

and as the lUtor of Napoleon's son (1815-1831), Dietrichstein was also a talented musician and composer,
and the father of Sigismond Thalberg (see Chapter I). A pivotal figure in Viennese cultural circles. he
was known as the "music Count". His generosity towards young artists was legendary and he kept his
house open to poets and musicians. Among his frequent guests were MUller, Beethoven and Schubert
(who dedicated Per ErlkQni~ to him). Pietrichstein helped Paganini with the organisation of the Vienna
concerts of 1828. As a mark of gratitude, Paganini contributed to Dietrichstein's famous collection of

autographs with the CapriccioperVioUno Solo.

126

This is, to my knowledge, the only example of notation on four staves in the
whole solo violin literature. However, in the baroque era, it was common
practice to write violin music on two staves, especially when the
composition involved scordatura:
H. von Biber (Mysteries ofthe Rosery)

(The Crucifixion)

PXB)

P. Nerdini (senete tnigmetique)

Largo

+tJ

"
(ed, by PXB)

"

Paganini, followed by Ernst, also employed the notation on two staves:

Allegro moHo

......

~.

erco

. ..

Paganini, Duo Me rveill e

c--. .

. .

L....= L.....l

- - L.....l

,:, :,:,

pizzo
tJ

f...

6 The manuscript autograph of the Capriccjo per Vjolino Solo is in the possession of the

fJ

Osterreichische Nationalbibliothek in Vienna (call n' Biblioteca Palatina Yindobonensis, HS 18718).

The themeis similarto that of Schubert's Trauerwalzer:
F Schubert, op. 9 (D 365)
Trauervalz er 5
4
3

It!

~w

jl
\5

:;; w:;; w::;;

...

I
14

J
3

"It

127

JI .
I

LJ

...

J
I

...

...

(.OV P.X.B.)

HW. Ernst (Grand Caprice op.26)

As shown in the above examples, it was primarily out of concern for clarity
and facility of reading that the notation on two staves was adopted,
especially in the case of complex polyphonic passages. This, however, is not
true of the Capriccio per Violino Solo, which, written as it is on four staves,
is virtually impossible to sight-read.

Paganini's "scoring" seems to respond

more to philosophical considerations than to practical needs. Furthermore,

it seems to present an insurmountable problem of execution:

sostenuto

playing on four strings is not possible with an ordinary bow, especially if one
intends to respect the indications dolce and piano.

Even the high-arched

Schroeder bow (or "Vega-Bach-Bogen") does not give satisfactory results on

four strings (although it allows legato playing on three). The Capriccio per
Violino Solo requires the adoption of a method of bowing completely
different from the ordinary one. This special technique was clarified by
Paganini himself on the front page of the manuscript of the still
unpublished Sonata a Violino e Viola:
"Da suonarsi col erine delI'arco Sopra Ie Corde / e l'asta, ossia arco sutlo al Violino come:

7"To be played with the hair of the bow above the strings I and the stick, or bow, beneath the violin,
thus [....J" (copy of the title page kindly sent by Dr Maria Rosa Moretti, Conservatorio N. Paganini,
Genoa). See also Borer, Philippe, "Foglio d'Alburn", in: Quaderni dell'lstituto di Studi Paganiniani,

Genoa: Civieo lstituto di Studi Paganiniani, N 7, October 1993, pp. 37-41.

128

Like the Capriccio per Violino Solo. the Sonata a Violino e Viola requires
the simultaneous sounding of all four strings:
N. Pegeni ni (senete e Violi no e Viole)

II

r--

~ :!!

Violi n

tJ

Viole

..

[elY1CO

~
:!!

..I

..

.r . .r

:!!

..I

..t

Ist1lulo dl MUSlca N. Paganml, Genoval

The method of bowing described by Paganini enables the violinist to play on

four strings without arpeggiation. It thus becomes possible to sustain chords
and to play them in succession, legato and pianissimo, as instructed by the
composer. The smooth passage of the slackened bowhair across the strings
produces a sweet, albeit penetrating sonority reminiscent of the
harmonium.f Another of Paganini's "album leaves" must be mentioned

with reference to the technique of sostenuto playing of chords. .It is a short

four bar prelude for violin which Clara Wieck pasted in her album of
autographs:

---1.

-........... ,....--

N. Pegeni ni (Prel udio per Violi no)

"" "....-<.

k -........

1:

r--.....

(dipl. tr. by PXB)

lipsiali 16:011/ 1&"l
The following words, written in Clara's hand, appear under the music:
" This is a passage which nobody can play the way I do, said Paganini, when he presented me
with this album leaf':"

The notation of the Preludio per Violino. with its dotted minims and legato
phrasing indications, calls for the employment of the "all strings" bowing
8-nus technique was also used by Alexandre Boucherand Pierre Baillot (See: Baillot,Pierre. VAn du
Violon. nove!!e methode, Paris, 1834. pp.227-8)
9It was on the same occasion that Paganini wrote the chromatic scale harrnonised in contrary motion
(16 October 1828, see supra)

129

method.

However, the presence of a low C begs the question" how was

Paganini able to play sustained chords containing five notes? It is possible,

of course, that he used a five stringed instrument such as Michel
Woldemar's vtolori-alto.U' Yet, the remark "this is a passage which
nobody can play the way I do" leaves an unanswered question. Moreover,
the unequivocal indication per VioUno at the head of the short prelude
strongly suggests that it was intended for a normal violin. Now, it is at least
plausible that the low C emanated not from the violin itself - Paganini
having perhaps adopted the technique employed by Girolamo Frescobaldi in
his 10th Caprtce.U

fi~~<"-*'
iJ~'

.Jr.:1J...f.'

~~~~
e

=,.

\'. t/

c/w~-.. .:

t /~ ~trf"/~_
~
rSiichsischo landosnibJiotllok Dresdon]

Paganini's flourish is followed by Clara's remark:

l~is instrument was the equivalent of a violin with an added C string, which would give it the range
of both the violin and the viola. The violon-alto was perfected by Michel Woldemar who took up the
idea from his master Lolli. Later versions of this five stringed instrument were devised by Hermann
Ritter (the viola alta) and more recently by the Czech luthier Vladimir Pilar (the quinton).
lIprescobaldi. Girolamo. The First Book ofCapricci 1626, ed. by P. Pidoux, Kassel: Barenreiter, 1949,
pp. 42-47,Capriccio di obligo di cantare la quinta pane senza toccarla [Caprice with the obligation to
sing the fifth part without playing it]
12"DOJ ist eine Stelle, die mir Niemand nachspielen kann, sagte Paganini als er mir dies
Albumblatt schenkte." "[This is a passage which nobody can play the way I do. said Paganini,
when he presented me with this album leaf]" I am grateful to Dr Karl Wilhelm Geck of the Sachsische
Landesbibliothek Dresden for kindly helping me to decipher Clara Wieck's handwriting.

130

5. Tempo fluctuation

Contemporary reports invariably mentioned Paganini's rigorous timekeeping:

"...Even in the most difficult passages, he does not tamper with the meter.

Much in contrast to

most of the great instrumentalists who resort to the expedient of complacent time-keeping, never
does he push nor drag the tempo to facilitate the execution.

Faithful to the most rigorous

proportions, he never strays, and does nothing outside the value of the meter.

This law which

he observes intuitively, as it were, far from stifling his verve, gives it poise and fresh vitality.
The precision which he brings to the strict observance of the beat manifests itself in the quality
of his sound, which he renders as pure as gold."! [lTl.PXBJ

"...He possesses the greatest and most distinct execution in marking the unaccented
subdivisions of the beat, in the most rapid tempo withoutaltering the time:

II

:tr. by PXB from t829

.d.1 I

tn n'est point de passage si difficile dans lequel it transige avec la rnesure: bien different en ce point de
la plupart des grands instrumentistes, qui pensent sauver leur habileteen recourant al'expedient d'une
mesure complaisante, jamais il n'ouvre ni ne serre le mouvement pour faciliter l'execution, Fidele aux
proportions les plus rigoureuses, il ne s'en ecarte pas,et ne fait rien harsde la valeur du temps. Cette loi,
qu'il observe comme ason insu,loin d'etouffer sa verve, en regularise au contraire l'essor, en lui donnant une
vigueur nouvelle. Cette precision qu'il appotte dans la stricte observationde la mesure, on la retrouve dans
la qualite du son, qu'il rend purcomme I'or." Imbert de Laphaleque, G. Notice sur Ie celebre vjoionisle
N;colo Pagan;ni. Paris: Guyot, 1830. p.19.
2"Die groBte Fertigkeit und Deutlichkeitbesitzt er in dem Markirender schlechtenTakttheilchenim
schnellstenTempo. ohne Verriickung des Zeitmaases" Guhr, Karl. UeberPagaoinjs Kunst die Vjoline zu
spjelen ein Anhang zu jeder bis !etlt erscbjenenen Violinscbule oebst eiDer AbbandJung tiber das

FJageQJettspjel jn eiofacben uod PoppeJtOoen. Mainz: B. Schott's Sohnen.1829. p.9.

131

In view of Paganini's original and highly imaginative performing style, this

seemingly clockwork precision was a further element of surprise. In a letter to

Louis Spohr, Wilhelm Speyer related how Paganini varied the theme of the
Rondo of Beethoven's Spring Sonata, playing it the second time in artificial
harmonics-' Further in the same letter, he observed:
Wilhelm Speyer to Louis Spohr. September 17, 1829
"The theme of the Adagio [of the Spring Sonata] he began each time with the upbow, proof that
he does not follow the traditional usage. In spite of his many thirty-second and sixty-fourth
note embellishments, I have never in all my life heard anyone play so strictly in time!"4

[trl.

de Courcy]

The importance that Paganini attached to strict time-keeping is reflected in

tempo indications such as Largo can precisione (Sonata for violin and guitar.
op.Z, N6), or Adagio tenuta, can precisione (Quartet for violin. Viola. guitar
and 'cello N12), etc.

However, Paganini's precision probably had little to do

with mere mechanical regularity. In a most enlightening passage of his Traite

complet de rArt du Chant. Manuel Garcias gave evidence that Paganini was,
in fact, an expert in the kind of tempo fluctuation well known in the Italian
operatic tradition:
.....Two artists of a very different kind, Garcia (my father), and Paganini, excelled in the use of
the tempo rubato applied by phrase,

While the orchestra maintained the tempo regularly,

they, on their part, abandoned themselves to their inspiration to rejoin with the bass only at the
moment the harmony would change, or else at the very end of the phrase. But this means
requires before everything an exquisite feeling of the rhythm and an imperturbable poise. One
can scarcely use such a procedure except in passages where the harmony is stable, or slightly
varied... here is a use of this difficult means which is always favourable:
3See supra (2. Harmonics)
4 Speyer,Whilhelm, Letter to Louis Spohr.Offenbach, September17, 1829, quoted by G. de Courcy,
op.cit.vol.I, p.350 (the emphasis is mine).
5Garcia. Manuel Patricio Rodriguez (Manuel Garcia m(1805-1906). His father,Manuel GarciaI (>
Corri >Porpora). was one of the greatest tenors of all times, thoroughly groundedin the performance
traditions of the great Italian school. He passed on these traditions, including that of the tempo rubato, to
his son Manuel Garcia II. who becameone of the most significant teachersof singing in the Romanticera.
Manuel Garcia II's students includedhis two sisters Maria (La Malibran) and Pauline (Viardot),Jenny
Lind. MathildeMarchesi.and others.

132

A II.!

.. .

[M. Garcia II, Traite cDmplet de l'Art du Chant]

del vol-can
,,~

del

>

::>

la

>-

m; -

r>.

tempo rubato
3

Ii
mos

te

qual - che
,

,
*'-

Iro

Jft

men

G. Rossi ni (11 Berbiere)

go

lar

(ed. by PXB)

>

sin
I

'IT

,,6 [ttl. Paschke]

August Kestner, who otherwise could be highly critical of certain aspects of

Paganini's performing style, greatly admired his cantabile playing.

The

following observation also appears to make reference to a very perceptive use

of the tempo rubato:
..."This is one of the most beautiful things I have ever heard, lyrical, played, in long sustained

strokes of the bow, high in the fifth octave.. The highest degree of skill dominated his
performance insofar as the master recognised the bar as the basis - covered by the leisurely flow
of tones - without ever allowing its structure to come to the surface.',7 ltrl. PXBI

6Garcia, Manuel. Traire cDroplet de rAn du Chant. ed. and transl,by D.Paschke, New-York, Da Capo
Press. 1975. vol.II, p.77.
7"Dies war von den schonsten Sachen, die ich jeroalsgehort habe, gesangvoll, in langenBogenstrichen in
der funftenOktaveoben vorgetragen...Hier herrschte der hochsteGradvon gewandterErfahrungim Vortrag,
worin der Meisterden Takt, als die von dem gemachlichen Gangeder Tone bedeckte Grundlageanerkennt,
ohne seinerGliederung irgend ein Hervortreten zu erlauben." Kestner, August. Rorojsche StudieD, Berlin:
Verlag der Deckerschen Geheimen Ober-Hofbuchdruckerei, 1850, p. 41.

133

6. Fingering
..." 'His fingering [wrote Gottfried Weber1] which is sometimes unorthodox or, rather, is
independent of the laws of fingering, is the result of a deeply reasoned method, and is not a mere
caprice, a statement that he probably derived from his personal conversations with Paganini.
Fens' reaction was the same: 'his fingering bears no resemblance to that which is usually taught. He
will, at times, employ the one finger instead of another, but more often he uses one and the same
finger for several notes."2

Following Paganini's concerts in Frankfurt (Autumn 1829), the violinist and

conductor Carl Guhr wrote an essay for Gottfried Weber's magazine Cecilia,
giving a first account of Paganini's playing.

Further observation and study

resulted in the publication of Ueber Paganini's Kunst. die Violine zu spielen. ein
Anhang zu jeder bis jetzt erschienenen Violinschule nebst einer Abhandlung
tiber das Flageolettspiel in einfachen und Doppelt6nen,

Based on direct

observation (Guhr conducted the orchestra in most of the Frankfurt concerts) this
work constituted, and still constitutes, one of the most valuable sources of
information on certain aspects of Paganini's technique, including fingerings, A
remark on page 40 of the original 1829 edition confirms Fetis's statement
concerning the use of a single finger for several consecutive notes:
"Paganini plays very high descending scales with one and the same finger, as is shown in the
4th bar":

C, Guhr (Ueber Peganini's Kunst..., pAO, ex.s)

~
=PXBfr~ml:::~ ~
"3

[trI.PXBl

1Weber, Gottfried (1779-1839), theorist and composer.' From 1824, he edited the famous musical
periodical Cecilia published by Schott of Mainz. His study of the theory of music resulted in the
publication of the Versuch ejner geordneten Theorje (1821), Allgemejne Musjklehre (1822),
Ergebnisse clef bisherigen Forschungen tiber die Echthejt des Mozartscben Requiem etc. Weber asked

Carl Guhr to contribute to Cil?cilia with a technical analysis of Paganini's playing, and supported
him in his research. De Courcy doesn't give any bibliographical reference concerning this quotation,
but it can be safely assumed that it was taken from Weber's review of Guhr's Cil?ciliaarticle (see
infra, footnote 2).
2De Courcy, Geraldine, op. cit., vol. I, p.374.
3"Ganz hohe, heruntergehende Tonleitern spielt Paganini mit einem Finger, wie im 4ten Takt zu
ersehen ist: [...l"

134

The descending scale "with one and the same finger" calls to mind the ah-ah-ah of
the coloratura singer of which it was perhaps an imitation. In the Yariazioni suI
Barucaba [M.S. 71], one of the very few works to contain original fingerings.?
Paganini frequently indicates the same finger for two consecutive notes one
octave apart, probably to serve an expressive purpose - an analogy to the portando
la voce of singers: s

<AJ":~ f

[~s. Bib!. ~as. 56271

i~iP1.t~~ PXB;

~~,v".")

tren:oi.;;;~r. b~

.r

.~

'PXBJ'

lrns. Bib!. Cas. 56271

An interesting parallel is found in Chopin:

"In very expressive melodies, Chopin often employs the same finger several times consecutively
on different notes. By applying an identical pressure of the same finger to each key, and also by
dint of playing legato with a single finger, he obtained a very sustained sonority close to the

vocal declamation of the belcanto. ,,6!InWJ.PX1lJ

Guhr give some examples of fingered octaves and tenths:

~ to ~~
~

i:

C. Guhr (Ueber Pagani ni's Kunst..., p.43)

2
(tr. by PXB from 1829 edition)

"The only compositions to which Paganini appended fingerings are: alThe Cantabjle e Yalzer
written for his pupil Camillo Sivori blIhe Yariazjonj sui Barucaba dedicated to Germi. cj'The
arpeggio introduction of Caprice S dlThe Scala obli"ua e contraria per Chitarra (see supra).
5 The novelty of such fingerings was also stressed by N. De Giovanni in the opening paragraph of
his Metoda rearice Pratjco : "II metoda non aneora conosciuto in Italia, per quanta mi disse
Paganini, e quello di suonare, tanto ad una come a due corde, sempre coll'istesse dita"(p.l of rns.,
Biblioteca del Conservatorio N. Paganinl, Genoa).
6 "Dans les melodies Ires expressives, Chopin emploie souventle meme doigt plusieurs fois
d'affiJee sur differentes notes, obtenant par une pression identique du doigt sur chaque touche et par
l'effet de jouer legato avec un seul doigt, une sonorite tres soutenue, proche de la declamation vocale
du bel canto" Rousselin- Lacombe, Anne, "Piano et Pianistes" in: La MusiQue en France al'EpoQue
Romanlique. ed. by D. Pistone, Paris: Flammarion, 1991, p.142.

135

C. Guhr (Ueber Paganini's Kunst..., p.43)

The extreme flexibility of his fingers, wrist and other joints allowed him to stop,
apparently with great ease.f a span of three octaves:

~~

\,3~

~
f'"

I~=

C. Guhr (Ueber Pagani ni's Kunst..., p.4Z)

(tr: by PXB from 1829 edilion)

~
~

He executed other remarkable extensions which completely subvert the scholastic

concept of "positions":

C. Guhr (Ueber Paganini's Kunst ..., p.43)

(tr , by PXB from 1829 edilion)

1234321

C. Guhr (Ueber Pagenini's Kunst..., p.43)

(lr, by PXB from 1829 edilion)

70ne can find fingered unisons in Caprice 3:

~.

I P~."im 'Copri" "

N.

8"...mit grosser Leichtigkeit", writes Guhr (Ueber Paganin;'s Kunst.... 13, p,43),

136

The thumb
Curiously, Guhr made no special mention of Paganini's unconventional left
thumb technique, which so astonished other violinists and which caught the
attention of artists such as Sir Edward Landseer and Eugene Delacroix:
"Paganini placed the thumb of his left hand half-way along the neck of the violin and, by virtue of
the stretch of his hand, could play with equal facility in the three first positions without
shifting.'09 luI. PXBJ

"By dint of relentless practice, all his fingers had acquired a suppleness and aptitude difficult to
conceive. He even, if necessary, bent the thumb of his left hand right into his palm, when necessary
for certain shifting effects.'l0

[trl. PXBl

"His fingering is peculiar to himself. Often he places one finger on top of the other. More frequently
still he uses the same finger to play several notes...He seldom finishes his trills and unlike other
violinists often executes them with the little finger. Sometimes, he bends the thumb into the palm.
His suppleness is such that 1 seem to have seen him pass his thumb across the fingerboard to reach a

note on the E string,',ll Itrt. M. Laurie]

Petis's remark suggests that Paganini employed his thumb not only as an aid in

the execution of certain multiple-chords (the occasional G# or A on the fourth

string, as demanded by Francoeur, Leclair, Petri and others),12 but as a stopping
9"Paganini placait Je pouce de la main gauche au milieu du manche du violon et, grace a
l'extensibilite de la main, pouvait jouer indifferemment dans les trois premieres positions sans
demancher." Prod'homme, Jacques-Gabriel Paganini: une biographje Paris, H. Laurens, 1902/R
1927, p.46.
lO"Par l'effet d'un travail excessif, tous ses doigts avaient acquis une souplesse; une aptitude dont il
est impossible de se former une idee. Le pouce de la main gauche arrivait meme avolonte jusque sur
la paume de la main, lorsque cela etait necessaire pour certains effets du demanche." Fetis, FrancoisJoseph. Notice biographique sur Nicolo Paganini, Paris: Schonenberger, 1851, p.43.
11 Fetis, Francois-joseph, "Paganini" in: Bjograph;e Uoiverselle, quoted by 5aussine, Renee de,
Paganioi. transl. by M. Laurie, London: Hutchinson, 1953, p.176.
12See, for example Petri, J.S. Anleitung z\.lr praktischenMusik fUr neuangehende Sanger unci

lnstrumemalspjeler, Leipzig, 1767/R 1969, pt.Ill. p.409. The G# of the following bar, as advised by
Petri, "should be stopped with the tip of the thumb":
(Anlei\uog
~~~~~'~~J.s.
P.tri zur praktischen Musik... , p. 409)
~

+ +
(example quoted by Stowell, Robin, Violin Techniqye and Performance in the late 18th and early

19th Centuries. Cambridge: C.U.P., 1985, p.165.)

137

finger like the others. This ploy, which requires a great agility and suppleness of
the fingers and the wrist, was clearly depicted by Sir Edward Landseer,13 in his
famous sketches of Paganini:

Sketch by SirEdwin Landseer

(London, 1834, detail) 14
The characteristic "thumb in the palm position" mentioned by Fetis is shown in
the second sketch:

Sketch by SirEdwin Landseer

(London, 1834, detail) 15
Commenting on the above Landseer sketches, Dr. Jan Sedivkals recalls that Vasa
Prihoda (e-Marak), one of the great classical virtuosos of all time, used a very
similar position of the hand, often creating the impression that his palm was in
contact with the neck of the violin:
"This suggests that thumb and wrist provide an upward support to compensate for the downward
thrust of the fingers, thus offsetting any undue strain in the hand, and, possibly. in the shoulder
~egion.,,17

Similarly, both Nathan Milstein and Ruggiero Ricci have expressed the view that
the violin is supported more by the left hand than by the chin and shoulder. 18
13Landseer, Edward William (1802-1873), famous English artist and animal painter. His works
include the Monarch of the Glen and the lions of Trafalgar Square,London. He was painter to the
Queen Victoria. A virtuoso in his own right, he was able to draw with both hands simultaneously.
14Rep. in: The Strad, "Paganini memorial issue", June 1990, voLlOl, N"1202, p.460.
15A beautiful reproduction of this sketch can be found in: Neill, Edward, II Cavaliere Armooico.

plate 5.
16Sedivka, Jan (b. Slany. Czechoslovakia, 1917) (>Sevcik and Thibaud).
17Sedivka, Jan, Conversations with ph. Borer Hobart, February-March 1995.
18Ricci, Ruggiero, Conversations with Ph, Borer. Accademia G. Veneziano, Bisceglie, July 1985.

138

We owe to Eugene Delacroix, himself an amateur violinist and ardent concert

goer, an extraordinary Paganini jouant du violon (1832).1 9 The posture, the
manner of holding violin and bow, the expression of intense involvement, all
contribute to an evocative and dramatic picture. Delacroix's artistic credo was
that technique must be perfected until it never obtrudes on the final effect of
spontaneity. He was deeply impressed by Paganini's technique, developed from
endless hours of practice. As an artist as well as a violinist, he recognised the true
import of seemingly trivial details like the bend of the wrist or the positioning of
the thumb across the fingerboard (which he discussed in his Iournal):20

Eugene Delacroix,
Paganini jouant du vialan, 1832 (detail)

Eugene Delacroix,
Paganini jouant du vialon, 1832(detail of left hand)

With reference to the advanced thumb position alluded to by Prod'homme

("Paganini placait le pouce de la main gauche au milieu du manche"),
Mantovani's remark must also be mentioned:
"Paganini gave the impression that he always played in the third positionr-)
Paganini perhaps eluded the problem of shifting by throwing the hand back and
forth, resting the wrist against the violin and using it as a fulcrum.

This

technique seems to have been employed a great deal by Zino Francescatti (c-Sivori
>Paganini).
19Delacroix, Eugene. Paganjnj jouant du vjolon, oil on cardboard, 47/30 cm Paris, 1832 (Washington:
Phillips Collection).
20See: Delacroix, Eugene, Iournal d'Eugepe Delacroix (3 vcl.), ed. by Paul Flat and Rene Piot, Paris,
Plon-Nourrit,1893 (entry of January IS, 1856),
21Mantovani, Roberto (c-Maino). I e Secret de paganjnj methode des methodes de yio!oo Paris:
Hachette, c.1922, quoted by Salzedo, S.L, Pagapjnj's Secret at las!' London: Nicholson & Watson,
1946, p.26.

139

The following sketches attributed to R. Hamerton and P. Lyser may also give some
clues as to Paganini's left hand action:

Sketchby R. Hamenon
King'sTheatre, London, 1831 (detail)22

Sketch by R. Hamertcn
King'sTheatre, London, 1831 (detail)

Sketch attributed to P.A. Burmeister (Lyser)

Hamburg 183023

Sketch attributedto P,A. Burmeister(Lyser)

Hamburg 183024

22The Hamerton sketches appear in: Sheppard, Leslie/Herbert Axelrod, Paganjnt. Neptune City
(NJ): Paganiniana Publications, 1979, p,267 and p,508.
23Rep. in: Polnauer, Frederick. Sensa-Motor Study and its Application to Violin Playing. Urbana:
ASTA,1964,56. For attribution, see: de Courcy, Geraldine, op.clt.vol.I, pAOO.
24Rep. in: AIIllales de la Chirurgie de la Maill, VlI/4 (1988), p. 337 (copy of article kindly given by
Prof. A. Narakas, Lausanne).

140

H.W. Ernst, whose instrumental virtuosity is said to have been second only to
Paganini's, also seems to have favoured a rather unconventional left-hand grasp.
A cast of his hand in the act of playing provides an opportunity for comparison:

A castofH,W. Ernst's left hand

(Musee Massena, Nice)2S

It may be fitting to offer her a more extensive quotation from my discussions with

Dr. Sedivka, who shows a remarkable ability to translate problems of seemingly

forbidding complexity into accessible and often relatively simple solutions:
"...the employment of the left thumb in chordal playing, whatever the limits of its practical use,
shows that Paganini was not exclusively concerned with finding spectacular "tricks" but that he has
to be recognised as the true explorer of some as yet unknown instrumental possibilities. It may be
helpful to look at various aspects of the presented imagery, in search of significant common
denominators. We see, for instance, that, as far as the left hand is concerned, there was no question
of the traditional approach of putting the hand in a pre-conceived position (generally with the
thumb facing the first finger), before even considering the disposition of the touch-points on the
fingerboard. Thus, the function of the thumb is reactive, i.e. adjusting constantly to the finger
movements. This, after all, refers to all ordinary movements used in daily life. It is the awareness
of, and the focus on the intended aim, which determines the action of the hand. This leads to the
conclusion that Paganini had an uncanny understanding of the very fundamental, and ordinary
workings of the hand:,26

Paganini's fingerings and the 24 Caprices

After the publication of the first edition of the Caprices, Paganini was asked why
he had marked so few fingerings. 27 According to Maria Tibaldi Chiesa, his laconic
answer was: "Guardate a chi li ho dedicati!" ("See to whom I have dedicated
them").28 A similar reproach was made to Claude Debussy who provided the
following explanation in the preface to his Etudes:
25Coll. A. Ernst (Courtesy of Archives of the Palais Massena, Nice).
26Sedivka, Jan, Conversations with Ph, Borer, Hobart, March 1995.
27The few fingerings that appear in the manuscript (and faithfully reproduced in the first Ricordi
edition) are found in Caprice 1 (b.68), Caprice 2 (b.ll and 49), Caprice 5 (b.l), Caprice 6 (b.l),and
Caprice 24 (var.2 and 9). They are practically all related to the choice of string. The only
"technical" fingerings are those appended to the scales and arpeggios of Caprice 5.
28"A chi se ne Iagno, Paganini rispose: Guardate a chi Ii ho dedicari " TibaJdi-Chiesa, Maria,
Paganini. la vita e I'opera Milan: Garzanti, 1940, pAlO.

141

"Quite deliberately, the present Etudes do not contain any fingering; here is briefly the reason for it:
to impose a fingering cannot logically suit all hand shapes." Our old Mesters - I want to mention 'our'
admirable harpsichordists> never prescribed any fingering, trusting, no doubt, the ingeniousness of

their contemporaries, It would be unbecoming to question this in our modern virtuosos"29 ltrLPXB]

The idea of instrumental compositions "revised and fingered" by eminent

performers and teachers is a comparatively recent one. There, the fingerings (and
bowings) supplementing the original text are primarily prescribed as an aid for
technically difficult passages.

The practical value of such fingered editions,

according to Max Rostal has only a limited life span:

"Fingerings, as well as bowings, are generally a very personal matter, for which reason even good

editions have fallen into disrepute,,,30

A resourceful performer may even opt to change a preferred fingering, owing to

external factors (broken string, humidity, acoustic conditions, unevenly balanced
accompaniment. response of the audience, etc.:
"Violin fingerings are as personal as gestures and offer a range of choice and subtletiesalmost as
wide as the alternative moves on a chess board, and although in a given situation in either field
there seems only to be one best choice; nonetheless the analogy cannot be carried further for in
violin playingthe criteriaof appropriateness are many. varied and elusive, whereas in chess, there
is but one object - the swift defeat of the opponent.t-!
As already mentioned, the only pieces which Paganini carefully fingered were
intended for a didactic purpose. Those still in existence are: 1) The Cantabile e
Valtz dedicated to Camillo Sivori [M.S. 45J

2) The Variazioni suI Barucaba

dedicated to Luigi Guglielmo Germi [M.S, 71]. Most of the fingerings found in
these two compositions are related to tone colour and expression, not to facility of
execution. Here is a characteristic example:
29 '1ntentionellement, les presenres Eludes ne contiennent aucun doigte, en void brievement I.
raison: imposer un doigte ne peut logiquement s'adapter aux differentes conformations de la main.
Nos vieux Maitres, je veux nornmer 'nos' admirables clavecinistes, - n'indiquerent jamais de doigtes,
se confiant, sans doute, al'ingeniosite de leurs contemporains. Douter de celle des virtuoses modernes
serait rnalseant" Debussy, Claude, Douze Etudes, dedicated to the memory of F. Chopin, Paris:
Durand, 1915, Book I, preface.
3ORostal, Max. Gedanken zur Interpretation der Klavier4VioUn Sooaten von L. van Beethoven
Piper & Co.; Munich, 1984, foreword.
31~[enuhin, Yehudi. foreword to: Flesch, Carl. Violin Fingeeng its Theory and Practice London,
Barrie and Rockliff, 1960, p.vii,

142

[ms. Cas. 5622]

Fingerings. violin hold. and Paganini's "secret"

Certain pecularities of Paganini's physique, which were described by his physician
and friend Dr Francesco Bennati,32may in part account for his highly individual
approach to violin technique, notably in matters of fingerings and posture.
Bennati in particular stressed the extreme flexibility of the hands, wrist, and
shoulder. Another thing which greatly facilitated his playing, according to the
Italian physician, was that his left shoulder was "more than an inch higher than
the right."33 This observation leads to the question of the participation of the
shoulder in the act of holding the violin.

Paganini, who did not use any chin-

rest, shoulder-rest or pad, appears, according to contemporary sources, to have, on

occasions, actively supported his instrument with the upper part of his left
shoulder. Here is August Kestner's important statement:
"He steps in front of his music stand, taking possession of the place with a commanding countenance;

shortly before, servants had brought in his music. This heightening of his magnificence took place
after his return from afar, when he appeared in Rome for the second time. Before that, he himself
would carry his music His violin he brought in himself and placed it, as usual, against the left part
of his chest, but squeezed it with the upper part of the shoulder in a manner which nobody.had ever
seen before, while the fingers of his left hand moved up and down like the long legs of a spider and
threw on to the instrument little openings of passages with consummate dexterity, like thoughts
passing through the mind, and all this with the artificial, ostentatious posture of a regimental
drum-major. His opening piece was, as each time, the same concerto by Rode:3 4 [ttl. by PXBJ
32Bennati, Francesco (1788-1834), studied at the University of Padua. His scientific writings
include Du Mecanisme de 13 voix Hymajne pendant Ie Chant. He also collaborated with Savart and

Cagniard-Latour in specialised studies of the vocal chords.

33See: Bennati, Francesco. "Notice physiologique sur le celebre violoniste Niccolo Paganini" in:
Revue de Paris, XXVl/17 (May 1931), pp. 52-60. This article is a condensed version of a paper that
Bennati read before the French Academy of Sciences in March 1831 (Hjstojre physiolQgiqye et
pathologique de NicCQ1Q paganinD

34"Er trill vor sein Violinpult, mit einer Herrschermiene von dieser Stelle Besit.z nehmend.
Diener hatten kurz vorher seine Notenblatter hereingebracht. Dieser Zuwachs seiner
Magnificenz fand stall nach seiner Riickkehr aus der Ferne, aJs er zum zweiten Male in Rom
auftra!. Vorher trug er selbst seine Musikalien herein. Seine Vialine brachte er selbst mit, und
setzte sie, wie gewohnlich gegen die linke Seite der Brust, prejJte sie aber mit der Oberschulter
auf eine Art zusammen, wie es niemals [emand vorher gesehen hatte, wahrend die Finger seiner
linken Hand, wie die langen Beine einer Spinne, sich auf derselben umhertrieben, und kleine

143

The controversy generated by Paganini's technique, his method of fingering and

manner of holding the instrument, has given rise to a vast literature of specialised
articles, studies, sets of exercises, the avowed purpose of which is the elucidation
of his "secret". It may seem somewhat Procrustean to attempt at finding the key of
Paganini's artistic achievements in his method of fingering or in his playing
posture. However, it must be acknowledged that the "secret" has at least served
to encourage, and perhaps, in some cases, even to inspire inquiries that have
subsequently shed interesting light on the art of violin playing. This includes:
Anders, G.E ..

~icolo

Paganini. Sa vie. sa personne. et quelques mQts sur SQn secret,

Paris:Delaunay.l83 \.

Bromfield, Louis. "Paganini's secret exercise" in: Musical America XXXVI/5 (May 1922) p.5
Tlbaldi-Chlesa, ~Iaria. Paganini.la vita e ]'Qpem, Milan: Garzanti, 1940, p.451-470, "11 Segreto
di Paganini" (Chapter XXVI) [Tibaldi Chiesa mentions Aeschylus's 1Ta9<l pa9oS" 35 as one of Paganini's
mottos]
Copertini, Spartaco. "11 segreto di Paganini" in: Il Piccolo Parma, Panna, April 14, Note di
Critica e d'Arte 1920 [Tbe author compares Pagnini's approach withthe method ofO. Sevcik]
Dallas, Dorothy Brandt. "Paganini's Secret" in: The Etude 56 (December 1938), pp.830-31
[Brandt Dallas examines the concept of "resonant intonation"]
Day, Lilian. ~iccolo Paganini of GenQa, New-York: Macaulay, 1929, pp.300-302, "Paganini's
Secret" (Appendi:x C)
De Meis, Jacinthe. Les Secrets dll VjQ)on: maniere d'atteindre (sans jailer) line technique
fonnidable et de produire un son enchanteur. augmente de quelques intuitions sur la Mecanique
Transcendante de Paganjni, Paris 1922 [BN A 132] [de Meis givesan interesting version of thescalein
fmgered octaves:

11

zl

3 4

.01111
tr.byPXB)
1 1 1[Bibl'",thoquo Nationalo, A. 1321

Anfange von Passage...i, mit groGer Fertigkeit, besonders Staccato und Flageolet, wie durch den
Kopl ziehende e;"car""en, auf das Instrument hinwarlen; alles dies mit der gespreizt-pomphalten
Stellung eines Regiments-Tambours. Sein erstes Sliick war wie gesagt jedesmal dasselbe Concert
von Rohde [sic]."Kestr.er, Georg August. ROmjsche Studjen. Berlin: Verlag der Deckerschen
Geheimen Ober Hcibuchdruckerei,1850, p.46 (the italics are mine).
3S pathei rtUlthos. <:-.owle<:ige through suffering" (Aeschylus, Agamemnon 177).

144

Eberhardt, Goby. Mein Svstem des Qbens fur ViQline und Klavier auf psychophysiQIQgischer
Grundlage. Dresden: G. Kuhtmann, 1907. [Eberhardt's system is based on silent exercises: "Wiihrend ich
diese Zeilen las. tauchte erne Mitteilung in meinem Gedacatnisse auf.die mir emst Konzertmeister Eliassen, dec

intime Freund Paganinis, in Frankfurt a. M. machre. Er erwahnte unter anderem, daB Paganini nie horbar geubt
habe. Die wunderbare Elastizitat seiner linken Hand habe er sich nur durch stumme Griffe auf dec Violine
erhalten Ebenso wurde eine Begegnung, die ich vor vielen Jahren mit Sivoriin Baden-Baden harte, wieder in mir
lebendig

Als kh ihm einen Besucn machte, urn michals 'Kollege' zu erkennen zu gebco. traf ich Sivori gerade

beim Uben.

d.h. er ftihne stumme Griffe auf der Violine aus und zur Erklarung zeigte ermir seine sehr kleine Hand

und erzahlte dabei, daB er ohne diese Exerzitien die von Paganini stammten, nicht imstande sei, cine Dezime

zu spannen." (p.811
Eberbardt, Siegfried (>Dessau). Paganinis Geigenhaltung' die Entdeckung des Gesetzes
\irtuoser Sicherhei!. Berlin: A.Ftirsrner, 1921.
Flesch, Carl. (e-Grun, Sauzay and Marsick) "Apropos Paganini's Secret" in: The Strad L
(September 1939), pp.205-207.["...I donot hesitate to suggest, that ifwe admit the existence of a secret of
Paganini, which he thought responsible for the acquisition ofhis own technique and equally serviceable to others.
itcould only be found inthe practice and acquisition ofa perfect technique of fingered octaves." (p.206)]
Istel, Edgar. "The secret of Paganini's Technique" in: Musical Quarterly, XVIII (January
1930), pp.101-116

Jarosy, Albert. Die Grundlagen des viQlinistischen Fingersatzes. Paganjni's Lehre, Berlin:
Max Hesse, 1921 [Fingering based on the "natural" fall of the fingers is the "long sought solution"]
Klein, Joseph. (>Heennann). Paganinis Dbungsgehejmnis: Lehrgang des geistigen Dbens,
Leipzig: Steingraber 1934 [Klein. invoking the authority of C. Sivori, bases his system on silent exercises]
Kmoch, Vladimir. "Scordatura 'Secret' of Paganini", in: The Strad LXXVIII (June 1967),
pp.67-71
Kross, Emil. Dber das Studium der 24 Capricen und die Art und Weise. wie diese durch
Paganinjs Hand und Armstellung auch VQn kleineren Handen iiberwunden werden konnen,
Mainz: Schall. 1900. [English version as: The Study of Paganini's Twenty-four Caprices, tr. by
Gustav Saenger, New-York: Carl Fischer 1908. [Kross' theories derive from the observation of Sivori's
playing]
Lemarie, A. Secret de Paganini: sa manjere de travailler: mQyens avec lesQuels it est parvenu 11
executer ses prodigieuses difficultes, Paris: Schonenberger, 1872.
Lewin, R. "The Secret", in: The SrradLX (Sept. 1949), p.l37-140; (Oct.l949), p.169-174).

Losco, Ettore (c-Supino and Brengola). Paganini et sa techni@eou la pQsition violQnistigue de

Paganini, Nice: chez l'Auteur, 1991
Macmillan, F. "Paganini's Lost Secret Revealed at Last," in: Musical Courier LIVIl2
(December 1907), pp.16-17.

145

Mantero, Renzo. "Les mains de Marfan de Niccolo Paganini" in: Annales de Chirurgie de la
Main, 7, n04, 1988, pp.335-340.
-"Le mani iperabili di Nicolo Paganini" in: Quaderni deli'lstituto di Studi Paganiniani, N"5,
(October 1989), pp.57-66.
Mantovani, Roberto.c-Maino) Le Secret de Paganini. methode des methodes de violon, Paris:
Hachette,1922.
Marcelli, J.. Aux violonistes. Petit traite de violon pour Ie developpement rapide de la technique
et de 13 sonorite par I'application du secret de Paganini et I'art de travailler, Croix: chez I'Auteur,
1937.
Polnauer, Frederick. Senso-Motor Study and jts Application to Violin Playing, Urbana: ASTA,
1964. [Polnauer, invoking the authority of the Tasmanian speech teacher EM.Alexander, uses himself as the
subject of senso-motor studies related to violin playing and tries to reproduce Paganini's playing posture.

Bilateral bowing is found to be "the mostessential prerequisite in recreating Paganini's method of bowing".]

Salzedo, S.L.. Paganini's Secret at last, London: Nicholson and Watson, 1946

Yost, Gaylord. The Yost System. The Key to the Mastery of the Finger-Board, dedicated to the
memory of Nicolo Paganini, Boston: The Boston Music Co., 1934. [System based on the "Paganini
scales" i.e. scales with one and the same finger]
Zacharewitsch, Michael (>Sevcik). The Ladder to Paganinj's Profound Mastery, London:
Novello, 1952.

146

7. The elettricismo
"At my request, Paganini resolved to choose a motto, as an inscription to the portrait he had
given me. He reflected a long time upon this. He suggested several quotations from Dante and
Tasso, then finally, with a very pensive expression, he burst out with:

'Bisogna tortesentire per tar sentire!'

'One must feel strongly in order to make others feel'. This personal notion seemed to me
extremely suited to the artist.,,1 [trl. PXBJ

To regard music as a vehicle for personal emotion was a widely held attitude
amongst 19th century composers and performers. They sought to embody,
as it were, their own ideals and passions in their music and cultivated
highly personalised, "subjective" compositional and performing styles. It
has often been observed that this notion had roots in Carl Philipp Emanuel
Bach's Essay on the True Art of playing Keyboard Instruments, which
Beethoven regarded so highly. In his chapter on performance (Part I), Bach
sta ted that:
"A musician cannot move others unless he too is moved.

He must of necessity feel all the

affects he hopes to arouse in his audience, for the revealing of his own humor will stimulate a
like humor in the listener".2 (trl.

W. Mitchell)

Paganini's adherence to the philosophy of "expressive playing" was reflected

in his motto bisogna [orte.isentire per far sentire.

It is evident, in his

correspondence, that these ideas preoccupied him. To Douglas Loveday, for

example he writes about:
"...this faculty which allows the soul of the performer to pass right to the tip of his fingers,
in order to translate the emotions into sounds".3

(ttl. PXBJ

l"Paganini entschlof sich auf Olein Ersuchen als Unterschrift zu dem mir gewidmeten
Portrait, ein Motto zu wahlen, Lange sann er dariiber nach: mehrere Auspruche von Dante und
Tasso wurden von ihm verworfen, bis er endlich, mit nachdenkender Miene, in die Worte
ausbrach! 'Bisogna torte sentire per tar sentire!' 'Man muB selbst stark Hrhlen, urn Andere
fiihlen zu lassen! Diese, dem Kiinstler pers6nlich geh6rende Ansicht, schien rnir sehr passend
zu sein ..." Schottky, J. M., pp. 283-284 (Sandig-Reprint).
2 Bach, Carl Philipp Emanuel. Essay on the True Art of playing Keyboard Instruments, trl.
by W. Mitchell, London: Euienburg, 1949,p.152.
3"...cette faculte qui fait passer I'ame d'un executant au bout de ses doigts pour traduire en
sons les emotions." Paganini, Niccoli>, Letter to Douglas Loveday, Paris, 14 July 1838 (PE 306),

147

In two letters to Luigi Guglielmo Germi, he gave a clue as to the true nature
of this "faculty to translate the emotions into sounds", alluding to a sort of
burning current of energy which he called elettricismo (electricity):
"...The elettricismo I feel in dealing with the magic harmony does me terrible harm; but
being back home and near you for a time will prolong my lile.'4

I'd. PXBI

"..Not having played for six months, I can't express to you the anguish I feel at the prospect
of the difficulty of having to put myself again in the elettricismo necessary to make people
feel!...l am longing for a rest. I am weary and I detest travelling. But finding myself close to
London and having given my word, they would sue me if I didn't keep it. The law suit would
cost me a Jot according to the blessed laws of this world, so I have arranged to leave on
Tuesday, the 16th inst. When I read the sensitive article that you have been kind enough to
write about my Achille, I wept for joy, and my son, as touched as myself, shed many tears. He
is my consolation. When I am-overcome by my fierce coughing, this dear child wakes up, he
gives me succour, comforts me with inexpressible feeling, May Heaven take care of him, as
well as of you."S [trl.

PXBI

It is quite plausible that the intensity of his feelings was the source of the
projective energy which Paganini called elettricismo.

4.....L'elettricismo che provo neJ trattare la magica armenia mi nuoce orribilmente, rna

rimpatriando e stando vicino a te per del tempo, mi allunghera la vita." Paganini, Niccolo,
Letter to Luigi Guglielmo Germi. Manchester, 15 January 1832 (E.169).
s .."Essendo state sei mesi senza suonare, non posso esprimerti la pena che provo di vedere la
difficolta di rimettermi nell'elettricismo onde far sentireL.Non veda l'ora di riposarmi.
Sono annoiato e detesto iI viaggiare: rna trovandomi vicino a Londra e per parole data alia
quale mancando mi formerebbero un processo che mi costerebbe malta salaro stan te Ie bcnedette
leggi di queJ mondo, ho fissato di par tire per cola mar ted; sedici del correnre. Leggendo il
tenero articolo che ti sei degnato di scrivermi intorno al mio Achille, piansi di gioia. e mio
figlio sensibile al pari di me, verso non poche lagrime. EgJi e la mia consolazione. Quando mi
prende la fiera tosse, questa caro fanciullo si svsglia, mi soccorre, mi conferta con un sentirncnto
inesprimibile: il Cielo me 10 conservi unitamente ate..:' 1\,}. PXBJ Paganini, Niccolo, Letter to
Luigi Guglielmo Germi. PariS, 12 April 1833, (PE 189)

148

CHAPTER V

ORIGINS & DEVELOPMENT OFTHE VIOLIN CAPRICE

The term "Caprice" has never readily submitted to precise definition. It has
been used in different artistic contexts (musical, pictorial, poetic), and has
developed an association with extroversion, unpredictability and exemption
from the constraints of established formal rules. For Furetiere,
"Caprices are pieces of music, poetry or painting wherein the force of imagination has better
success than observation of the rules of art.',l

The term was used in instrumental as well as in vocal music before 1600.
One of the earliest references, according to Eric Schwandt, is found in 1561,
applied by Jacquet de Berchem to a set of madngals-. In the first half of the
17th century, especially with the works of Girolamo Frescobaldi, the Caprice
became more frequently associated with keyboard music. Along with the

ricercar, the fantasia and the canzone, the early 17th century keyboard
caprice was a piece of strongly contrapuntal character, even if according to
the aesthetics of the seconda pratiica, the rules of counterpoint could be
broken and, in certain instances, even ignored for the sake of expressiveness.
It implied a certain licence or "caprice" on the part of the composer who, for
one reason or another, did not find strict fugue suited to his or her
immediate purpose. In a Caprice, the musician could give free rein to what

J.e. Walther called "subiius, fortuitus, animus impetus", i.e. a sudden,

spontaneous inspiration.f
1Furetiere, A. Pictionnajre UnjyerseL The Hague, 1690 /R1970.
2Schwandt, Eric. "Capriccio", in: The New Groye Dictionary of Music & Musicians. 1994

edition, voL III, p.758.

3Walther, Johann Gottfried.

Musjcaliscbes I exicoD oder musicalische Bjbliothec Leipzig,

1732, entry "Capriccio".

149

The keyboard Caprice from Frescobaldi to Bach

In his Syntagma musicum of 1619, Michael Praetorius eloquently described

the Caprice as: "a phantasia subitanea in which one takes a subject (fuga),
but deserts it for another whenever it comes into one's mind to do so, One
can add, take away, digress, tum and direct the music as one wishes.
However, while one is not bound by the rules, one ought not go too much
out of the mode".4 This definition was to be adopted by all composers of
keyboard Caprices, including, in the twentieth century, Igor Stravinsky.P
In 1624, Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583-1643) (c-Luzzaschi) published an epoch-

making collection of twelve keyboard Caprices, entitled

n primo

libN di

Capriccio In the second edition of 1626, which also includes some Ricercari
and Canzoni, the composer gave the following instructions:
"In those passages which do not apparently conform to the usual rules of counterpoint, one

should .endeavour in the first place to discover the character of the passages, the tonal effect
intended by the composer, and the desired manner of performance. These compositions called

Capricci are not so simple In style as my Ricercari; but one must not judge their difficulty
until one has practised them well at the instrument, since only through practice will the
manner of performance reveal itself."6 [trl. P.Pidouxl

Frescobaldi's observation that the Capricci make greater demands upon the
instrumentalist than the Ricercari is quite significant. Whilst the Capricci
share some of the characteristics that are usually associated with the

Ricercari and the Canzoni, an essential identifying feature of this genre

appears to be the special challenge it presents to the performer.
4 Free paraphrase of : "Capriccio seu Phantasia subitanea: wenn eIner nach seinem eigenen
Plesier und gefallen eIne fugam... zu tactiren vor sich nimpt, darinnen aber nicht lange
irnmemoriret, sondern bald In eIne andere fugam, wie In den rechten fugen kein Text darunter
gelegt werden darff, so ist man auch nicht an die Worter gebunden, man mache viel oder
wenig. man digredire, addire, detrahire, kehre und wende es, wie man wolle: und kann In
einer solchen Fantasien und Capriccien seine Kunst und artificium ebensowohl sehen lassen:
sinterna1 er sich alles dessen, was In der Music toilerabile ist, mit Bindungen der
Discordanten, proportionibus etc. ohn einiges Bedenken gebrauchen darff; doch dass er den
Modum und die Ariam nicht gar zu sehr uberschreite, sondem In terminis bleibe.' Praetorius,
Michael. Svptagma rou<icuro. Wolfenbiittel1619, p.330.
SStrawinsky, Igor. Mein Leben. Munich: Paul List Verlag, 1958, p. 147, apropos of the
Capriccio for piano and orchestra.
6Frescobaldi, Girolamo, Organ and Keyboard works, Complete Edition, edited from the
original by Pierre Pidoux, Vol.II, The first Book of CapriccLRicercarL and Canzoni 1626.
Kassel: Barenreiter, Kassel. 1949, introduction.

150

Furthermore, several of Frescobaldi's Caprieci have a descriptive character

and bear evocative titles such as Caprice on the Cuckoo. Caprice on the
Flemish bass. Caprice with the obligation to sing the fifth part without
playing it. or Caprice on the Spagnaletta.

The two Caprieci entitled Ut Re

Mj Fa Sol La and La Sol Fa Mi Re Ut allude to the hexachordal system of

Guido d'Arezzo. Their importance in relation to the genre of the Caprice

and its subsequent development lies in the particular treatment of their
thematic elements.

According to Eric Schwandt, the "kaleidoscopic

transformations" of their subjects is a recognisable move towards the

variation form:?
~apriccio sopra La Sol Fa Mi Re Ut

~,

11 J J "I J J I

rll?'l

J JllJ J1 I L~

~~~~~~~~
(

~6

l~

,I

0"

~. 1J11

r I U r "I

I lIJ

1 1.
.J J

J I

I
I

~~~~~~~~
,

13

~~~~~~~~
_,f r

~~~~~~~~

(k. by PXB)

iSchwandt. Eric. op. cit.

151

With Johann Jakob Froberger (>Frescobaldi), Ferdinand Richter, GeorgFriedrich Handel, Domenico Scarlatti and Johann Sebastian Bach, the
keyboard Caprice throve well into the 18th century. Bach's Caprice on the
Departure of his Beloved Brotherf exemplifies the tendency towards a
form of romanticism latent in composers of all periods - often taking the
form of descriptive, "programmatic" writing:
:zaJO
I

'"

.si:JpR U Lon~ deUFJ.'ZIlW

~qFZmO
<:'"'T"".

- -

tJ

1st ein ellgemeines Lemento der Freunde

b6

b7

8
,

_LJ

....J

(dip 1. transcript by Ph.B)

S
4

J.S. Bech

All hier kommen die Freunde...

I

Fuge ell'imitezione delle cornette di Postiglione

il' 'j

~~
~

...

::......-

~ ~~

u:
r

~ ,-~

1=

-~

~-

During the eighteenth century, the keyboard Caprice gradually yielded its
precedence to other instrumental associations, particularly the violin
Caprice. However, it must be observed that with the accentuation of a neoclassical trend in the 20th century, the Caprice regained some of its early
meaning as a contrapuntal keyboard piece in the manner of a Ricercar (e.g.
Stravinsky's Capriccio for piano and orchestra).

Sritle as in autograph manuscript (1704). The piece was published by Peters Editions
Frankfurt N 208e as Capriccio sapra la lantananza del suo (ra\ella diletlissjma.

152

The Caprice, being by nature an expression of the whimsical, the changeable

and the unpredictable, quite understandably defies conclusive classification.
Thus, throughout the 17th century, the term Caprice was often used as a
generic title indicating the spirit of the music, but including of a number of
varied musical forms within the work. For example the Diyersi Capricci by
A. Mayone (1603) is a collection of canzoni, ricercari,

madrigal

arrangements, etc., but none of the separate pieces is named Capriccio.

Similarly, G. Trabacis Ricercati e altri varij Capricci (1615)

include

Toccatas, Ricercari, and Partitas, with a preliminary note urging the

interpreter to observe the spirit of the music. One can also find the word

Capriccio used as a dance title: 1. Roncalli's interesting Capricci armonici

sopra la (hitarra spagnuola (1692) include such dances as Allemanda,

Corrente, Gigua (sic), and Sarabanda. Similarly, Maurizio Cazzati's Varij

e diversi (apricd per camera e per chiesa (1669) is a book of instrumental
dances: Corrente, Giga, Galletio, and, interestingly enough, Capriccio.
Here the term Capriccio is used as a generic title as well as a label for an
individual piece of the collection.
The violin Caprice
The Caprice found in the violin a propitious medium for development.?
Yet, the contrapuntal aspect of the keyboard Caprice had to give precedence
to other compositional parameters, more suited to the nature of the
instrument. 10
The Brescian virtuoso Biagio Marini (c.1587-1663) is generally considered the
most significant of the early composers for the violin: he was successful in
developing - in his violin Caprices as well as in other pieces - a specific
idiom for his relatively new instrument. The title of his first published
9-rhere exists an interesting linguistic link between caprice and violin: F. Cavatore and C.
Angiolieri have mentioned capo riccio as a possible origin of the word capriccio, Capo,
(head); riccio (curly or scroll of a violin). Hence capo riccio (curly head), a metaphoric,
poetic name for the violin.
10nu,; does not mean that contrapuntal procedures are absent from violin caprices.
Nardini's Caprices N 8, 10, 15. 17, and 22 are actual fugues. as is Kreutzer N 40 (of the
original 40 etudes QU Caprices. Paganini's Caprice 2 is written in two-part counterpoint. The
contrapuntal treatment of Caprice 4 is also quite remarkable.

153

work is brief and suggestive: Affetti musicali (musical emotions), i.e. human
feelings expressed through the medium of the violin. In his op.8, Marini
included a Capriccio per sonar due violini a qyattro patti (1626). One year
later, Carlo Farina, a Mantuan violinist employed at the court of Dresden,
wrote his eccentric Capriccio stravagante in which the violin, accompanied
by three other string instruments, imitates the trumpet, the Spanish guitar,
the lyra, the organ tremolo, the fife, the drum, the sound of animals, the
mewing and fighting of cats, etc.ll Johann Walter's Hortulus CheJicus of
1688 comprises a section in passacaglia form with 50 variations entitled
"Capriccio". In 1689 the Bolognese Giovanni Battista Vitali 12 published a
fascinating treatise entitled Artifici musicali ne quali si contengono in
diverse maniere. contrapunti doppii. inventioni curiose. capritii (sic).,e
sona te. In this highly original opus, which reveals an interest in complex
and sometimes obscure questions of theory, Vitali experiments with
rhythm, tuning and intonation.

In 1705, [ean-Fery Rebel (1661-1747), a

disciple of Lully and a member of the 24 Violons du Roy, wrote a violin

Caprice with 53 variations on an ostinato bass. The piece, known as Le
Caprice retained much popularity during the first half of the century.

landmark in the history of the violin in general, and of the history of the
violin Caprice in particular, was reached in 1733 with the publication of
Locatelli's L'Arte del Violino.

Pietro Locatelli (1695-1764) was a disciple of

Corelli with whom he studied in Rome from an early age. He became one
of the foremost virtuosos of his time, travelling throughout Europe before
settling in Amsterdam, where he established regular public concerts. As a
performer on the violin, his double stopping was regarded as phenomenal.
11This piece, with its collegno, pizzicato, and other effects, reflects the inclination of the
baroque towards imitation and representation (R.Boss), A characteristic tendency in the
baroque era was to employ external images as a "representation" of inner emotions. In the
19th century. Paganini did much to revive certain techniques of the baroque era. His
Fandango iiPagnolo and other "farmyard imitations" won him considerable popular success
but, at the same lime brought down on him severe criticism from academic circles. This
somewhat controversial practice found an artistically more serious application in the 2i
Caprices. where his command over the full limbral range of the violin and his familiarity
with the violin's potential for tone colour enabled him to "orchestrate" his score for a single
violin (see Appendices. CAPRICE 9).
12Giovanni Battista Vitali (1632-92) (c-Maurizio Cazzati), father of Tomaso Vitali, the
controversial author of the famous Chacoone in G minor. edited by Ferdinand David for his
Hobe Schule.

154

He had, according to Charles Burney, "more hand, caprice and fancy, than
any violinist of his time"13.

His technical prowess earned him the

nickname of "II Terremoio" (the "Earthquake"):

Ro.-"Locatelli must surely allowed by all to be a Terremoto... Messieurs, quels coups d'Archet!
Que! Feu! Quelle vitesse!"14 [sic]

Locatelli's epoch-making L'Arte del Violino is a collection of 12 concertos

with 24 Caprices ad libitum. I5 Each of the "added" Caprices is a
meticulously composed, elaborate miniature work (if often of an
improvisatory character) adding to the structure of its allied concerto. The
indication "ad libitum" gives the interpreter freedom to include them or
not in his performance, but in any case, these Caprices do not stand in lieu
of cadenzas (as suggested by E. Schwandt, D. Themelis and others).1 6 The
fact that a spot for the traditional, improvised cadenza (1':'\) is always clearly
indicated by the composer - usually immediately after the Caprice - disposes
of the assumption that the Locatellian Caprice was conceived as a written
cadenza. I 7 Although a Caprice often suggests the extemporaneous,
spontaneous character of an improvisation, it must not be confused with a
cadenza which has quite specific functions within a concerto (or an opera
aria), and where carte blanche is given by the composer to his interpreter.
Similarly, the distinction between the term Capriccio (used as a generic
title) and the interpretative indication "a capriccio" (= on the whim of the
performer) is often misunderstood.

The instruction "a capriccio" (given

under the musical text) is related to tempo fluctuation, inviting the

performer to take rhythmic liberties. Whether the Caprices of Locatelli can
13Bumey, Charles. A General History of Music.... London: Payne & Son, 1789, vol. ill, p. 573.
14Letter of Thomas Dampi~r, 1741, quoted in: Calmeyer, John Hendrik. The!.ife Times and
WQrks Qf PielrQ AntQniQ J Qcalolli. PhD diss., University of North Caroline, 1969, p.18D-181.
15The title page of the 1733 "La Cene" edition reads: CARTE DEL VIOUNO / XII
CONCERTI / Cioe, Violino Solo, can XXIV Capricci ad libitum / [... J.
16See: -Schwandt, Eric, "Capriccio", in:The New Grove , Themelis, Dimitris,
"Violintechnik und Methodik in der Violineliide urn 1800", in: ViQlinspiel und VjQ!inmusik in
Geschichlo und Gegenwart, ed. by Vera Schwarz, Vienna: Universal Edition, 1975, p.126.
17See: Luee, Joan, The virtuosity and unique role of the caprices for solo yiolin in PietrQ

LQcateW's TArte del Violino". Ph. D. diss, University of Michigan, pp.97,184 and 187-229
(facsimile of La Cene edition).

155

also be considered as technical virtuoso studies is a question open to

discussion, but the fact that they have been published several times as a
separate set by eminent violin pedagogues provides ample support for their
didactic qualities.1 8 Extracted from their original context, they seem to gain
an independent life of their own and constitute very effective virtuoso
pieces.

Evidence of their early adoption as study material by eighteenth

century French violinists was given by Jean-Jacques Rousseau in the entry

"Caprice" of his Dictionnaire de Musique:

"A kind of free piece of music, in which the Author, without strictly following any subject,
gives free play to his genius and gives himself up totally to the fire of Composition. Le
Caprice of Rebel was highly regarded in his time. 19 Today, the Caprices of Locatelli
provide exercise for our Violinists.',20 [trl. PXBI

Among the violinists alluded to by Rousseau were Jean-Marie Leclair

(>Somis), who made the personal acquaintance of Locatelli in Amsterdam,
and Gabriel Guillemain (c-Somis), whose difficult Amusements ou Caprices
pour Vjolon Seul betray the influence of L'Arte del Violino.

[These two

master violinists shared a tragic fate, the former being murdered at his
Parisian residence, a victim of the intrigues of rivals, while the latter
committed suicide during a walk from Paris to Versailles in 1770, "stabbing
himself 14 times with a knife as he was approaching Chaville".]21

18 _J.-B. Cartier edited the fourth Capriceand included it in his I 'Art du YiolQn
(Pans.Decombe, 1738, p.324). - Choronincluded the 3rd and 4th caprices in his Prjncipes de
compQsitiQn des ecoles d'ltalie (Paris.Le Due, 1807, pp.330-331). - In the entry "Locatelli" Qf
his Bjographje unjyerseUe. Fetis refers to an Qp.9 by Locatelli bearing the name of Caprices
tnigmatiques, apparently an early French edition of the complete set of the Caprices (See
also Luce, Joan, op.cit, p.181). - An edition dedicated to "Les Manes de G.B. Viotti" (to the
memory of G.B. Viotti ) was published by Frey in Paris in 1824. - CostaUat (paris, 1905, ed. by
E. Nadaud) and Ricordi (Milan, 1920, ed. by Romeo Franzoni) also published the Capricesas
a separate set (a 25th caprice, taken from op.6is included in both the CostaUat and the
Ricordi editions).
19Jean-Fery Rebel (1661-1747) (>LuUy). Member of the 24 Vi%ns du Roy and royal
chamber composer. See supra.
20"Sorte de piecede Musique libre, dans laquelle l'Auteur sans s'assujettir a aucun sujet,
donne carriere a son genie & se livre a tout le feu de la Composition. LeCapricede Rebel
etait estime de son temps. Aujourd'hui les Caprices de Locatelli donnent de l'exercice a nos
Violons." Rousseau, Jean-Jacques, Dictionnajre de Musique. Paris, 1768.
21Straeten, E. van der, op. cit., vol. I, p. 240.

156

There is no doubt that, after their publication in 1733, the Caprices of

Locatelli did contribute to a widening of the scope of violin technique.
However, it was through their subsequent role as catalysts in the creative
process revealed in Paganini's own collection of 24 Caprices that they
acquired their true lettres de noblesse: the wide tessitura, frequent use of
double stops (often for imitative effect), reciprocating arpeggios, brisures,
unusual finger extensions, rapid jumps, complex arpeggiated figurations
with a fixed note (for pedal or drone effect) are all Locatellian techniques
which Paganini used "in naturally expanded and exalted expressive
contexts"22. According to I.M. Yampolski, Paganini handled the problems
posed by Locatelli with greater boldness than any of his predecessors and
completely integrated Locatelli's technical formulas within his own musical
perpective:
"Locatelli was the first to break the outdated canons and dogmas. In his "Capricci" he
transgressed the normal positioning of the fingers on the fingerboard, He used finger
stretching and big jumps as an organic method of violin playing. In this way, he stopped the
limited use of positions and so doing, he cleared the way for the development of virtuoso
techniques. Locatelli used in the most various ways wide fingers dispositions on the
fingerboard. Using anatomic and physiological finger particularities, he paid special
attention to the finger-stretching method consisting of putting aside the first finger and using
the highest positions (up to the seventeenth position)23 He also used the "ricochet" stroke
across the strings. Locatelli's "Capricci" gave an impetus to Paganini's creative imagination.
He saw the huge artistic potential in these seemingly dry technical formulas."24 [tr!. I.
Kortchnoi]

22Neill, Eward, general introduction of his UTtext edition of the Caprices, Milan: Ricordi,
1988, p. VII.
23Yampolski is probably alluding to Caprice 22, bar 32, the highest point of the collection,
culminating in the 17th position if played on the E string. If two strings are played in
alternation, the passage requires to ascend to 18th or even to 19th position, depending on the
fingering,
241IoKaTeJIJIH

nepBbl~ HapymHJ1

"Karrpnax" OH

OTCHsmHe KaHOHbl Ii ,a:orMbl. B CBOIoiX

npeaeJlbl eCTeCTBeHHoro pacnOJIO>KeHHSI

BblmeJl

naasuea aa rp"~e. npHMeHH/1 pacrsosxy naasuea

sa
H

CKaLiKH Ha 60JIbmHe pace T05lHIHl KaK opraHHLlecKHA npHM.cKplmH4H(t TeXHHKH. 3TWM OH CHSlJ1

OrpaH"4eHHOe liCnOJIb30BaHHe no:nnUil':i H TeM caMblM

BHpTyo3Hofi cKpHmitmoH

pacuacrwa nYTb

,l\JlSl Pi\3BH1'lUI

TeXHHKH.JIoKaTeAAH npHMeHA caMbl~ Pa3JUillHbIe Bl-iJtbl

pacnozrscena nansues xa rparpe,

pacmapeaaoro

YlIHTbIBa51 aHaToMo-H3HOJlOrHlIeCKwe oc06eHHOCTH CTpOeHI-[5I

naasues pyxa OH oco6oe BHHMaHHe lI~eJU1JI npaeuy paC5I)KKH. OCHOBaHHoMy aa OTBelleHHH

nepaoro na.asua. HcnOAb30aaHHKl caMblX BbICOKHX n03Hl..l.H~ (BnJlOTb,l:10 ceuaaznraroa), OH TaK:>Ke
npHMeHHJI B 6blCTpOM ,I:1BH:>KeHHH CKaliKH CMblllKa

"Kanpacsr" IlOKaTeJlJlH
rpoMallHble

,aaJI TO.llllO&

xyzioscecraeaasre

raopuecxoa

uepes ABe crpyxe; Y,/J,apHbl~ WTpWX "ricochet".

~aHTa3HW IIaraHHHH. nOH5IBmeMY KaKHe

B03MO:lKHCTH TaslTSI B 3THX. Ka.3aJIOCb 6bI

xa nepsua

B3rJISI,I:1, CyXHX

rexmorecxax opMyJlaX," Mostras, Konstantin G" op, cit., p.8 and 9 (LM.Yarnpolski's preface).

157

Caprice Qr Etude?
Invoking the authority of Tartini, and inferring from his use of the term

"capriccio" in the Regole per ben suonar il Yiolino, Maria Stolba refers to
Locatelli's caprices as "concert etudes", that is compositions whose prime
purpQse is public performance, but which also have some relevance as
studies. 25 An Etude, be it only an exercise, or a composition with both
pedagogical and musical intent, or even a concert piece (Etude de concert), is
as a rule, distinguished from other musical forms by the fact that it features
at least one consistently recurring problem of a physiological, mechanical or
musical nature designed to improve the performer's technical and
interpretative skills. 26 From Rousseau's statement in the DictiQnnaire de
Musique, it clearly appears that violin Caprices such as those of Locatelli, for
example, were used as study material ("Les Caprices de Locatelli donnent de
l'exercice

a nQS

ViQIQns"). During the post-Locatellian era, the concept of

"Etude-Caprice" emerged: Franz Benda (1750), Pietro Nardini (1760), Nicolo

Mestrino (1781), Antonio Bartolomeo Bruni (1787), Auguste Frederic
Durand (c.1790), Federico Fiorillo (1793), Pierre Cavinies (1794), Rodolphe
Kreutzer (1796), Wenzeslaus Piehl (1801), Pierre Baillot (1803), Jacques Pierre
Rode (1819), Antoine Bohrer (c.1819), and, indeed, Paganini (1820), all wrote
collection of violin Caprices with a more or less pronounced didactic
purpQse. In the titles the term Etude increasingly appeared in conjunction
with that of Caprice: Etude de ViQlon QU Caprices (Benda), Caprices QU
etude du viQIQn (Mestrino), Caprices et airs varies en fQrme d'etudes
(Bruni), Etude pQur Ie viQIQn fQrmant 36 Caprices (Fiorillo), 40 Etudes QU
Caprices (Kreutzer), 24 Caprices en fQrme d'Etudes (Rode), Caprices QU 18
etudes (Bohrer). It must be observed that even Paganini referred to his 4
Caprices as "studies":
25Stolba, Maria, A History of the VioHn Etude to about 1800, PhD diss., University of Iowa,
1965,p. 219.
2&rhe Etude (like the Caprice) does not have a definite, established structure. Depending on
the case, it will lend its design to three different types: A-B-A structure of the pre-classical
sonata, A-B-A' structure of the "lied" and sometimes the Rondo form.

158

"Prof. Franzoni told me that the Caprices were not originally intended for concert performance
and that Paganini considered them as studies. However, to dispel rumours that he was not
capable of executing them, he soon decided to play them in concert, in groups of six at a
time,'27 [trl. PXBj

Frescobaldi's early observation that "only through practice will the manner
of performance reveal itself" carried a warning. Mastery of the difficulties
contained in a Caprice requires long hours of study. Spontaneous, free
musical expression and serious study are distinctive - and contrasting aspects of the particular genre.

The finer the balance between these

seemingly antinomic aspects, the greater the artistic achievement. In the

preface of his transcription of six Paganini Caprices (op.3), Robert Schumann
wrote that:
"To no other type of musical compositions are poetic liberties as beautifully suited as to the
Caprice.

But if, beyond the lightness and the humour which should characterise it,

profundity and depth of study also appear, then this is really the true mastery.,,28[lrl. PXBI

Schumann's observation was also a token of admiration for a fellow

composer who had raised a comparatively minor musical genre to his own
extremely high artistic ideals. Never had the term Caprice been so apt, so
precise, as it was for Paganini's 24 brief, etching-like pieces. Furthermore,
the didactic purpose had never been so ambitious. One could say that
Paganini re-elaborated on two contrasting levels the original features of the
works of earlier masters. On the one hand, he took virtuosity to an extreme;
on the other, he gave his work a formal finish and an artistic distinction
which were quite new to the genre of the Etude.
27"U prof. Franzoni rni diceva che Paganini non suonava i suoi Capricd in pubblico perche li
considerava studi e non pezzi adatti per concerto. Ma quando gli venne rerito che 10si
credeva incapace d'eseguirli, li avrebbe tosto suonati in concerto a gruppi di sei per volta,"
Conestabile, Count Gian Carlo Vita dj NiccolI> Paganini. ed. by F.Mompellio, Milan: Dante
Alighieri, 1936, p.392, n. 1. See also: PE"p.191, note 1.
28"Keiner andem Gattung musikallscher Satze stehen poetische Freiheiten so schon als der
Caprice. Ist aber hinter der Leichtigkeit und dem Humor, welche sie charakterisieren sollen,
auch Griindlichkeit und tieferes Studium sichtbar, so ist das wahl die echte
Meisterschaft/Bchumann, Robert, Studien nach Capricen von Paganini (1832), ed. by E. von
Sauer, Frandart, c.F. Peters, p.3.

159

During his stay in Paris, Paganini noted with pleasure that the pupils of the
Conservatoire "played Beethoven's works much better after they had
studied the Caprices he had written for the violin".29 In later years, he
repeatedly expressed his intention of writing a book of instruction for string
players. 30 Unfortunately, poor health prevented him from carrying out his
plan. If he did not found a school of his own, he became a teacher indirectly
as his Caprices constituted - and still constitute - the indispensable study
material for the advanced student as well as for the professional player - in
the words of Yehudi Menuhin, "a violinist's vade mecum'Y) The greatest
performing artists, beginning in the early days with Heinrich Wilhelm
Ernst, Camillo Sivori and Joseph Joachim, have adopted them as concert
pieces as well as material for daily studies:
"My repaired violin encourages me to the study of the Paganini Caprices [wrote Joachim].
Their grand poetic content and originality of composition appear increasingly evident to
me.,,32 [trl. PXBJ

--.

N. Pagani ni

,..... ~"

Caprice 7 (Bar car.lle)

29Records of the Societe libre de l'Eure, 1833. Report made by M.APetit in the public
session of 4 August 1833. (quotedby G. de Courcy, op.cit., vol. II, p.114).
30See: PE 229 (letter to F. Zaffarini); PE 149; Gazette Musicale, Paris ( issue of 23 Janvier,
1840)
31Menuhin, Yehudi. The Music of Man,Sydney: Methuen, 1979, p. 66.
32" Meinereparierte Geige eifert mich zum Studium der Paganinischen Emden an, in denen
mir imIner mehr eine groBe Fiillevon Poesie und Originalitatder Composition aufgeht."
Joachim, Joseph, Letter to Clara Schumann (20 Mai 1857). Quoted by Moser, Andreas,
Geschichte des Yjolinspiels. p.433, n, 2.

160

"

The violin Caprice after Paganini

The topic is a very vast one, and since it has already received some attention
elsewhere, notably in Federico Mompellio's "La lezione di Paganini",33 I
shall limit myself to one particular, significant aspect.

For various reasons,

Paganini chose, in his op.l, to keep within the strict compass of what could
be defined as serious, "legitimate" violin playing.

With the single exception

. of a sparkling left-hand pizzicato in Caprice 24 (var.9), he refrained from

using such effects as artificial and mixed harmonics, scordaturas, sostenuto
playing on four strings, plucked accompaniment to a melody, right-hand
pizzicato etc. One of the major points of interest of the post-Paganinian
Caprices lies precisely in the frequent use of such special procedures. One
could say that, while virtually all the collections of Caprices and Etudes
written after Paganini betray to a greater or lesser extent his influence, they
were inspired not so much by the 24 Caprices themselves as by works in

mezzo carattere style such as the Nel cor pill non mi sento, the God save
the King, or even by virtuoso procedures which Paganini frequently used in
performance, but never wrote down. This is particularly true of the
technique of "mixed harmonics", described at length by Carl Guhr,34 and
which Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst, owing to his patient, careful observation of
Paganini's playing, thoroughly assimilated.
According to the tradition passed on by St. Augustine, the sound of the open
string, as well as that of its respective natural harmonics, has a "matutinal"
quality or character; a note stopped in the ordinary way, on the other hand,
is "vesperal", whereas the artificial harmonic belongs to the "magic
world".35

The technique of mixed harmonics, i.e. the combination of

stopped notes, natural and artificial harmonics, far from being a mere
technical "trick", may, in certain cases, carry serious symbolic overtones. A
33Mompellio, Federico, "La lezione di Paganini" in: NicolO Paganini e jl suo tempo. edited
by R. Monterosso Genoa: Citta di Genova, 1982,p.113-164.
34Guhr, Karl. tiber Paganjnjs Kunst die Yjoline zu :wie1en.. Mainz: B. Schott's
S6hnen,1829, p, 39.
35See: Breton, Luc, L'Instrument a Cordes dans rOceident Chretien, Limoges: Journal de
L'Ensemble Baroque de Limoges, 1995, p.7. (Copy of article kindly given by Prof. Breton)

161

fascinating example is found in Ernst's sixth Etude, applied to Thomas

Moore's Last Rose of Summer:
"The last Rose"

H'w.Ernst

(Etude n26, var.tv)

(ed. by Ph.B)

-----In 1854, the same Ernst, with brilliant artistic intuition, took the genre of the

Caprice to heights hitherto unsurpassed. Profoundly moved by Schubert's

song Der Erlk6nig (he himself had suffered a cruel loss), he committed
himself to the task of adapting the piece for his instrument.

The

transcription makes abundant use of techniques such as left-hand pizzicato,

mixed harmonics and left-hand tremolo. But its secret signature is of deeper
philosophical import: Ernst's Grand Caprice after Schubert's Der Erlk6nig is
an example of the suonare par/ante, often alluded to by Paganini. Here, the
violin literally speaks Goethe's poem, each string representing in turn the

162

reader, the father, the ailing child, the King of the Elves (in artificial
harmonics), while the dramatic ride is suggested throughout by a frantic,
tarantella-like staccato:

II

Presto
,

J=

DerErllWDig

152

tl

,.

V- --

1""1I.

. '.

V
J

... -

:.u

I'

~-

-I"""

-- -- WW

rr

"

57 Du

-I""
I.

J
r r ::

p"
Il

(eUv PXB)

151

rWp

7,:

H W Emit (Grand Ca.pIice op 26)

(S,hul>ertj

lit-

......

......

I'" I'"

I'"

rit.

~ ~

kom.m.,

KiM,

~;~~
pizz (arp) arco

II 6b --+

163

In a different register, Casimir-Ney's 24 Preludes of 1847 constituted a

breakthrough in the literature for viola. 36

Casimir-Ney (nom-de-plume of

Louis Casimir Escoffier) was listed as "composer and professor" in the

Annuaire des Artistes Francais of 1833.

A very popular and active figure in

Parisian musical circles from about 1841 to 1865, he was, along with Chretien
Urhan, one of the most sought-after viola players of his time.

In 1841,

Casimir-Ney was admitted to the Societe Academioue des Enfants

d'Apollon, of which he became the President in 1853. Several of his works

were performed there, including his Etudes for viola.

A member of the

Alard-Chevillard Quartet Society from 1845 to 1847 and subsequently of the

Alard-Franchomme Society from 1847 to 1866, Casimir-Ney also joined the

Nouvelle Societe de Musique de Chambre, with Camillo Sivori as violinist.

Henri Blanchard, the music critic of the Revue et Gazette Musicale,
welcomed the publication of the 24 Preludes, giving a short and accurate
description:
"This work is a collection of studies, virtuoso passages and even melodies, written with
excellent musical feeling, which will certainly make an important contribution to viola
playing. Nothing has been omitted from this treatise: rational and exceptional fingerings,
double-stopping, trills, all possible varieties of bowing, harmonics, the dramatic genre, and
even imitative music... Mr Casirnir-Ney has written a work which was needed but which was
lacking for teaching purposes.',37 [trl. R. Charnock]

The first numbers are comparatively short, justifying the denomination of

"Preludes".

However, as one proceeds through the collection, the pieces

acquire the dimensions and character of true"Etudes de concert", . This

applies particularly to Prelude 20, where Casimir-Ney introduces a most
interesting passage in right-hand pizzicato followed by an episode in
harmonics. The fingering indicated for the pizzicato passage was suggested
by Paganini to Berlioz, who. included it in his Traite de J'instrumentation et
d'orchestration mod erne of 1843.38

The manner of execution closely

36The manuscripts of n 1 and 3 are in the possession of the Bibliotheoue Nationale. A

reprint edition of the work has been published in New-York by the Editions Musicus in 1961,
with notes by Quinto Maganini.
37Quoted in: Laine Frederic, "The strange case of Casirnir-Ney",The Strad magazine,
dec.1993,p. 139.
38 [Engl. transl as A trealise on modern instrumentalipn London. 1858, p.21.]

164

resembles guitar technique, which involves laying down the bow and
holding the violin against the chest.

In so doing, the thumb, index, middle

and ring fingers are left free to pluck the strings, thus allowing great speed of
execution, especially in arpeggio figurations:

~
~

(p~2
Tempo I .

--

/-

...

-.,.

....

I I

arco

L.J
I

(Pr.lude n220)

...-

Casimir-Ne\!,

"

L.J
L.....J

O~22

.'

.;

Francois Hubert Prume (1816-1849) was born at Stavelot near Liege.

Showing a considerable talent for the violin at an early age, he was sent to
Paris in 1830 to study with Francois Habeneck at the Conservatoire de

Musique. Habeneck, who conducted most of Paganini's Paris concerts

during 1831-32, gave his young student the opportunity to attend several
rehearsals. Prume thus acquired a unique insight into Paganini's style of
playing.

This was the basis for the fabulous technique he subsequently

developed and which is reflected in his Etudes and Caprices, as well as in his
at one time popular piece La Melancolie (a premonitory title).

Having

developed an eye condition during a concert tour in Germany, Prume

became completely blind.

Overcome by melancholy, he fell into a state of

deep depression which led to his early death in 1849, at the age of 33. The
second of his Six Grandes Etudes op.2, subtitled "Duetto pour un seul
violon" gives a idea of his phenomenal left-hand dexterity:

N22. DUETTO POUR UN SEUl VIOlON

I'
II

tJ

.~~

.....

--

.. UJ

. . . . : -,

.':-J -

"

f. Prume, Six Grendes ttudes, op.2

165

<,
~

~ - '

",'5

--

.1
I

I..I~JL

tJ

"IT

~'-

..I
- -..:.==-"""

~
~

,----.

rr~r(tr. by PXB)

The 20th century Caprice

George Rochberg (b.1919) (e-Scalero) completed his Caprice Variations for
unaccompanied violin in 1970. As stated in the afterword, "the stylistic
spread is a fundamental premise of the work".39 The final variation, a
statement of the theme of Paganini's 24th Caprice, provides a key to the
composition.

Quotations of Beethoven, Brahms, Mahler, Web ern, and

others, which appear in the fifty preceding variations, all seem to spring, as
it were, from the brief, quixotic melody of Paganini.

An unmistakable

reference to a figure in Stravinski's L'Qiseau de Feu ushers in the

concluding bars:
G. Rochberg (Cepric.e Verietion3)

Qusi Presto; rohsto

vu"_,,g
<c:
>.

~c>.

>._~

f
r~

r>

39Rochberg, George. Caprice Variations, New-York: Galaxy Music Corporation, 1973, p. 52.

166

Salvatore Sciarrino's 6 Capricci for solo violin are dated Rome, 22 April
1976. Consisting almost exclusively of natural and artificial harmonics, they
present on paper a striking resemblance to Paganini's original, similar to a
photographic negative.

The challenge presented to the performer is

considerable:

8-----------------------91i55.
S. Scierri no

-.~

-~=====:::::=ppp

Alfred Schnittke (b.1919) received his early training in Vienna.

He

subsequently studied at the Moscow Conservatoire under Yevgeni Golubev

(composition) and Nicolai Rakov (instrumentation). A prefatory note to his
work presents him as a "Hauptvertreter moderner Polystylistik".40 A.
Paganini. written in 1983, is a "collage" employing classic and modern
techniques.

The Russian composer's frequent and masterful use of

quotations contributes to an examination of the 24 Caprices through a kind

of musical kaleidoscope.

In the following example, the G-Ab-G "lament" of

Paganini's Caprice 4 lies in the middle of fragments of 10, 13, and 17:

40Schnittke, Alfred. A Paganjnj, Hamburg: Musikverlag Hans Sikorski, 1983, p.2.

167

I. Collections of violin Caprices from Locatelli to Paganini

date of publication

1733

Locatelli,

Pietro

(>Corelli).

L'Arte

Capricei ad Libitum dedicati all' llt.mo,

Lini, Patricio Veneto, Amsterdam: Le Cene. 1733.

del
et

yiolino,

Ecc.mo

Sig.re

12 Concerti con 24
Girolamo

1753 (c.)

Nardini, Pietro (>Tartini). jO Capriccj.1

1760 (c.)

Benda, Franz; Etude de Violon ou Caprices

1760 (c.)

Lolli, Antonio (>?). 36 Capricci [location unknown]

1762

Guillemain, Gabriel (>?). 12 Caprices ou Amusements pour violon seul

1780 (c.)

Mestrino, Nicolo. Caprices ou etude du vioJon dedies aux Amateurs-

1787

Bruni, Bartolomeo (>Pugnani). Caprices et airs varies en forme d'etudes

1793 (c.)

Fiorillo, Federigo (>I.Fiorillo). Etude pour Ie violon fonnant 36 Caprices

1794

Gavinies, Pierre. (>?) 24 Matinees

1796

Kreutzer, Rodolphe (e-Stamirz). 40 Etudes ou Caprices

1796

Pichi, Wenzeslaus (> Nardini). 12 Caprices op.19

1801

Pichi, Wenzeslaus. 12 Caprices op. 46

1803

Baillot, Pierre Marie (>Pollani). 12 Caprices, op.2

1810 (c.)

Durand, Auguste Frederic (e-Viotti). 6 Caprices ou Etudes, op.l5

1805 (c.)

Campagnoli, Bartolomeo (e-Nardini). 7 Divertissements, op.l8 3

1813

Rode, Jacques Pierre (e-Viotti). 24 Caprices en fonne d'Etudes

1815 (c.)

Libon, Felipe (c-Viorti). 30 Caprices. op. 15, (dedicated to G.B.Viotti)

1819

Bohrer, Antoine (>Kreutzer). Caprices ou 18 Etudes, op.59

1820 (c.)

Rovelli, Pietro (>Kreutzer).12 CllPricci

1820

Paganini, Niccoli'>. 24 Capricci, op.1 (dedicated to the Artists)

lEd. by A. Moser and published by Max Hesses, Berlin,

2menrioned in EE. 189.
3 mentioned in EE. 313 and 314.

168

1925.

Michie!

II. Post-Paganinian collections'[

date of publication

1827
?

1830
1833

Lipinski, Karol. 3 Caprices, opJ (dedicated to Paganini)

Maurer, Ludwig. 9 Etudes ou Caprices op.39.
Mayseder, Joseph. 6 Etudes, op.29.
Garcia, Manuel. Caprichos Liricos Esraiioles, dedicados it los aficionados(songs)
Schumann. Studien far das Pianoforte nach Capricen von Paganini. op.3 (piano)
Chopin, 12 Etudes. op.1O (piano)

1835 (c.)
1840 (c.)

1845 (c.)

1847
1850 (c.)
1851

Saint-Lubin, Leon de (>Polledro). 6 Grands Caprices

Lipinski, Karol. 3 Caprices op. 29, (dedicated to Mr Gustav Adolph Bernard)
Mazas, Jacques Fereol (>Baillot). 18 Etudes d'Artiste
Prume, Francois (>Habeneck) 6 Grandes Etudes op.2
De Beriot, Charles (c-Robberechts). Six Etudes brillantes, op.l7
Alard, Delphin (>Baillot). 24 Etudes-Caprices dans les 24 tons de la Gamme
Wanski, Jan Nepomucen (c-Baillot). Caprices
Prume, Francois, 6 etudes ou caprices de concert op.14
Vieuxremps, 6 ElUdes de concertop.16
Dont, Jakob (>Bohm).24 Etudes et Caprices, op.35
Casimir-Ney, Louis. 24 Preludes pour l'alto viola, op.22 (dedies aux Artistes)
Giorgetti, Ferdinando (>Giuliani). Sei Studi per violino per servire di esercizio
preliminare a Quelli di Paganini, op.28
Paganini, Niccolo, Etudesen 60 Variations sur l'air Barucabil
Liszi, Grandes Etudes de Paganini transcrites pour le piano

1852
1854
1865
?
1870

?
1880 (c.)
?
1890 (c.)
1893
1908 (c.)

1929
1970
1976

Deldevez, Edouard (c-Habeneck). Six Etudes caprices, op.13

Wieniawski, Henri (c-Massart). "L'EcoleModerne", 9 Etudes-Caprices, op.10
Ernst, HeinrichWilhelm. 6 Mehrstimmige Etiiden, Hamburg
Casimir-Ney, Louis. 18 Caprices for violinon the G string (dedicated to C.Sivori)
David, Ferdinand. 6 Caprices. op.9 and 26 Caprices, op.39
Dancla, Charles. 20 Etudes brillantes et caracteristiQues. op. 73.
Abel, Ludwig.o-David). Sechs groBe EtUden nach motiven aus Wagners Opern
Sivori, Camillo (>Paganini).l2 Etudes-Caprices, op. 25 (dedicated to H. Leonard)
White, Joseph (>Alard) 6 Etudes
Ondricek, Franz (Bennewitz), 15 Etudes d'artiste
Petri, Henri. (c-Joachim) 5 Kiinstler-Ettiden, op.9
Viardot, Paul (sl.eonard) 9 Etudes caprices, op. 13
Saurer, Emile (:>De Beriot) 24 grandes Etudes-caprices, opJ6
Villa-Lobos. Heitor. 12 Estudos (guitar)
George Rochberg. CapriceVariations
Sciarrino, Salvatore. 6 Capricci

4Collections of Caprices for instruments other than the violin appear in italics.

169

Miscellaneous Ca~rices
date of pubUcation

1624

Frescoba1di, Girolamo (>Luzzaschi). n ~rimo 1ibro dj Capricci (keyboard)

1626

Marini,Biagio. Capriccio per sonardue vjo1ini a quattro patti

1627

Farina, Carlo.Capriccio stravagante (violin with string accompaniment)

1704

Bach, J. S. Ca~riccio

1705

Rebel, Jean-Fery (>Lully). Le Caprice(violin and basso ostinatoj''

1828

Paganini, Niccoli>. Ca~riccio a quattro corde (solo violin)

1832 (c.)

Schumann,Clara. Ca~rices en forme de valse, op.2 (piano)

1835

Mendelssohn, Felix. Three Ca~rices, op.33 (piano)

1839

Berlioz,Reverie et Caprice(Romance), op.8 (violin & orchestra)

1854

Ernst, H. W. Grand Caprice 0~.26 nach Schubert's Erlkonigfsolo violin)

1870

Tchaikovski, Piotr llyich. Ca~riccio in G flat mitior (piano)

1870 (c.)

Vieuxtemps, Henri. Capriccio pour alto seul, op.posth.

1879

Brahms, Johannes, Ca~rices op.76, n 1-2-5-8,and op.1l6, n" 1-3-7 (piano)

1880

Tcnaikovski, Piotr Ilyich, Italian Ca~riccio (orchestra)

1887

Rirnsky-Korsakov, Nicolai. S~anjsh Capriccjo (orchesrrajf

1909

Busoni, Ferruccio. Introduzionee Capriccio (piano)

1911

Kreisler, Fritz (e-Massart), Recilativo und Scherzo-Ca~rice, op.6 (solo violin)

1929

Stravinsky, Igor. Ca~riccio (piano& orchestra)

1935

Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Capriccio diaboljco (Omaggioa Paganini)

1942

Strauss, Richard. Capriccio. op. 85 (one act opera)

1979

Gaudibert, Eric. (>Dutilleux) Capriccio (solo violin)

1982

Vaclav Kucera, Capriccia pro housle a kytaru (hommage 11 Paganini) (violinand guitar)

1983

Schnittke, Alfred. A Paganini (solo violin)

so~ra

la 10nlananza del fratello di1ettissimo (keyboard)

*******
5From the opera~.
6Based on a projected "Fantasy on Spanish themes" for violin & orchestra. In his memoirs, Rimsky
defined his Spanjsh Capriccio as "a work of virtuosity in orchestral colours and timbres",

170

APPlENDIX A

SAMPLE ANALYSES

An analysis of all 24 Caprices, both individually and in their relationship

with one another, has the potential of rich rewards. This, however would
necessitate extending the scope of the present dissertation unreasonably.
However, sample analyses of 6 Caprices (1-4,9, and 18) are offered in order
to illustrate distinctive features of Paganini's compositional style which
have been sources of inspiration for other musicians.

171

CAPRICE 1
"A formidable visiting card,,1

~
..

..

A very important study for both right and left hand, and a highly musical
virtuoso piece, Caprice 1 ideally combines the two aspects essential to this
particular genre. It is in the key of E major and is 76 bars long. The timesignature is 2/4. The musical materials are reciprocating arpeggios on four
strings, triple-sound chords and rapid scales in thirds. The demiserniquavers of
the arpeggios give the illusion of a very fast tempo. However, it is the
harmonic rhythm (one change per half bar) which gives its walking pace to the
piece.
Form and harmony
Caprice 1 can be divided into three sections A (b. 1-16), B (b.16-52), and C (b. 5276).
Section A (b. 1-16) : E major. Here and there, the flow of the reciprocating
arpeggios is punctuated by two ascending serniquavers:
N. Pegeni ni (Ceprice 1)

1
''...quel primo, rnusicalissirno, elegante Capriccio in mi maggiore che e un formidabile
biglietto da visita..," Cantil, Alberto, "I 24 Capried op.1 per violino solo" in: Incontri con la
Musiea di Paganjni. atti del 5eminario di studi a cura dell' Istituto di 5tudi Paganiniani,
Genoa: Comune di Genova, 1982.

172

The harmonies are simple, clear, and resonant.

The section ends with a

cadence altenating single notes and triple sound chords.

Paganini uses

subdominant harmony before the cadential six-four chord.

The full

progression reads as follows:

(ed.by PXB)

Section B (b. 16-52) is characterised by high virtuosity of harmonic and

instrumental treatment. Starting in E minor, it modulates to G major in bar 22:
N. Pagani ni (Caprice 1)

(13th)

The interval of thirteenth (b'-g"') in the second half of bar 22 has been
deliberately changed to d"-g'" in many modem editions, probably for facility of
execution. However, in the original disposition the arpeggio is more resonant.
Bar 26 culminates on g"" (the highest note of the piece). The triplet scales in
thirds appear for the first time in bar 27:

This is followed by an extraordinary sequence which rises chromatically

through all keys from G right through 0 flat. The grand pause of bar 44, just
before the resolution of V7 /Vlb, heightens the dramatic tension:

173

The method of modulation applied in bars 32-43 is known as "Paganini's

rosalia".2 The tonic of each degree of the sequence is followed by its parallel
minor. This is in turn followed by a VI chord in the tonic minor which is
enharmonically re-spelled to become the V chord of the next degree of the
sequence.I
2The term rosalia, according to Charles Burney (quoted in Grove) is derived from the name
of a saint, famous for repealing her Pater Noster and telling her beads. "Upon hearing a
string of repetitions either a note higher or a note lower, of the same passage [writes Burney],
an Italian cries out: Ah, Santa Rosalial-".
3Enharmonic re-spelling occurs in bars 35 and 39.

174

After the pause of bar 44, the arpeggios recommence piano in D flat major and
move to the parallel minor re-spelled as C# minor in bar 46.

After a fleeting

passage through A major and B major, the section cadences on the original
tonic (E major) at bar 52.
Section C (b.52-76): two pairs of parallel periods lead to the coda:
52

N. Pagani ni (Caprice 1)

~
~
I

(sd. by PXB)

IV

(ed. by PXB)

IV

The progression I

IV minor, with the resulting reiteration of the flattened

sixth degree, signals the approaching conclusion. In bar 66, several editors,
including Bachmann, Becker, Berkley, Flesch, Ghertovici, Hertel, Kross, Polo,
Poltronieri, von Reuter, Schmidtner, and Wronski have added a natural in
front of the c'.

This does not exist in the manuscript, the first Ricordi edition,

or the Massart edition (Paris, Schonenberger, 1851). Nor does it appear in the
Schumann version with piano accompaniment:

175

N.

P~q~ni

ni

(C~price

1)

Piano ace. by R. Schumann

v
The change from C# to C natural, which has roots in Liszt's piano transcription
for piano (3rd version, 1851) transforms the original diminished seventh chord
into a German sixth:

~
IV 3 (German)

The last episode, or coda (bar 68-76), starts with a winding down of the arpeggios
over a tonic pedal (open E string):

In bars 72 and 73, Paganini twice embellishes the tonic with the Neapolitan.
The resulting chord could perhaps be analysed as IV6#/ IV:

176

The arpeggio technique

Remy Principe has compiled a comprehensive list of all the bow strokes utilised
in classical violin playing which is, to my knowledge, the clearest exposition of
its kind, especially as far as terminology is concerned.t

The traditional term

for the technique utilised by Paganini in Caprice 1 is, simply, arpeggio: it

describes the bouncing of the bow across the four strings as it moves back and
forth. Here is, given by Carl GOOr, a brief description of Paganini's execution of
the arpeggio:
"He knows how to give great precision and roundness to his arpeggio; here, he doesn't quite
use the middle of the bow:

~.

- RELATED WORKS -

Sources
Several technical devices used by Paganini find their origin in the works of
Pietro Locatelli (1693-1764). To trace and evaluate Locatelli's influence, it is only
necessary to compare his own set of capricess with those of Paganini. Thus, in
the opening bars of Locatelli's seventh caprice : the arpeggio movement is
identical in tonality and note values to Paganini's Caprice 1;

the chord

progression also is similar:

P. Locstelli (Ceprtccio N27)

Moderato

.~
4Principel Remy. n Violinoo mao yale di cultura e didattica violoojstica. Milan: Curci, 1951,

p. 112-118.
5"Grosse Fertigkeit und Rundung weiss er seinern Arpeggio zu geben. Er gebraucht hier nicht
ganz die Mitte des Bogens".Guhr, Karl. Dber Paganinis Kunst die Vjoline zu spielen, Mainz: B.
Schott's Sohnen,1829, p.ll.
6Locatelli, Pietro, L'Arte de! Yiolino. 12 Concerti con 24 Capricd ad libitum, op.S,
Amsterdam: Le cene. 1733.

177

Locatelli's left hand technique must have been remarkably advanced; the
following chord progressions, with their unusual finger combinations are
particularly interesting:
23

Even Paganini seldom wrote chords which necessitate such contortion of the

~~
~23JM!!1f
Transcriptions of Caprice 1
Liszt's famous transcription of Caprice 1 had several avatars before its final
version of 1851, which keeps Paganini's text practically intact? As Ian Altman
shrewdly remarks:
"Formally, the piece cannotbe improved upon. It took Liszt three versions to decide this for

. himself."
LiS2t- Pegeni ni (Ar eggio Study)
2

mg.
(final version, 1851)

[Liszt's own fingerings]

This final version was published as N 4 of the Grandes Etudes de Paganini

transcrites pour Ie piano et dediees it Madame Clara Schumann (Breitkopf &
Hartel, 1851). Reuss' edition, in which three versions of Liszt's transcription
are printed side by side, constitutes the ideal tool for comparison.
7See supra, Chapter I, 4. Paris 1831, Paganini and Liszt.
8Altman, Ian Henry. Liszt's Grand Etudes after Paganinj' a historjcal and analytical study,
DMA diss University of Cincinnati, 1984, pp.149-S0.

178

CQmpQsitions inspired by Caprice 1

If Schumann did not include Caprice 1 in his Paganini Studies op.3 and 10, he
used reciprocating arpeggios in several of his works for piano, including the
third variation Etudes symphooiques Qp.13:

far. III U i vace

J~ 6.3

R. Schum8~n .< ttude3 Symphonique3

(ed.byPXB)

TQ ensure that he wrote appropriately for the violin, Mendelssohn, when

working Qn his E minor concerto, sought the advice of Ferdinand David. The
Leipzig concertmaster, himself the author of an early edition of the Caprices'',
was eager to discuss and analyse the various techniques used by Paganini. The
famous arpeggio passage at the end of the first movement is clearly linked to
Caprice 1:

9Published by Breitkopf&Hartel,Leipzig (c.1843).

179

Among the more recent quotations of Caprice 1, one must mention Salvatore
Sciarrino's Capriccio N1 (1976), a difficult work written almost exclusively in
harmonics:

Finally, I would like to bring to attention the musical symbolism related to the
figure of Pierrot, via the French pantomime and the Pedrolino of the

Commedia dell'Arte, used by both Debussy and Schoenberg:

Fantasqu" "t

1e9""

IItIlib. qUasiclltlefl.:.""8

C. Debussy (G minor S~sts)

~i~~
A. Schoenberg (P~

Mllll~I~Y~
.
.
.
.
.
Fliessend"

(ed, by PXB)

180

CAPRICE 2
~

'II

1111

~L"':'" ~" .."~

II- II- II- II-

11."'-"'"

..... 1...........

'da2d
Caprice 2 is written in two-part counterpoint and is 84 bars long. The key is B
minor, with a time-signature of 6/8. Paganini indicates dolce in two instances
(bars 1 and 67), srnorzando in bar 49, and piano in bar 51. There are no other
dynamic indications.
Form. counterpoint. and harmony
The piece can be divided into three sections A (b.1-34), B (b.35-66) and C (67-84).
Section A (b.1-34): B minor until bar 15. One voice stays level while the other
draws a melancolic, chromatically inflected melodic line (see caption figure ).
The chord of the augmented sixth makes a first appearance in bar 8:

~ L II-

8
11

II-

N. Pa9anini (Caprice 2)
rr>.
II- !: !:!:I!: ~!:

I.

III

*
Paganini employs augmented sixths freely, often to great emotional effect.
Here, the descending figure d-c#-b-g-e# could be defined as a combination of a
French and a German sixth. Before the corona, the chord reappears in its more
stark Italian version:
13
II

~.

d"

~.

d"

"

I I

I I

.
I

181

C1I. ~
"
I

N Pa9a01..
11-1.
01 (Caprrce 2)
~

!:

'"

"
"

Ced. by

PXB)

From bar 16, the key changes to D major. After an harmonic sequence of very
beautiful effect (b. 20-24), the two voices change from oblique to parallel motion,
over an open string pedal:
N. Pegeni ni (Caprice 2)

.-,

The widest interval between the two voices in the whole Caprice is reached in
bar 29:
r--iLN.Pegeni ni (Caprtce 2)
I!:
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~

~ ~ ~ ~

29

II II

~
~

-=

~
~

~
=
=~

~
~

(ed. by PXB)

II.

I-

"I

tJ,

-= ~
I

II.

===

r'

I-

I-

=.--

19th

Section B (b.35-66) which starts in B minor is highly chromatic in its melodic as

well as harmonic treatment.

Constant reference is made to the semitonal

inflection b-a#-b of the opening statement, which becomes, as it were, the idee

fixe of the section:

3;

;::e'

G'

II.! hJ"

, , , " ' ... , .......

N.Pegeni ni (Ceprice 2)

II. II. II. II.

I." I." I.

r IIr r

1"1"

In bars 51-54, a pair of chromatic scales is formed by the succession of ascending

minor thirds. The serniquaver figuration of Chopin's B flat minor Etude, said
to be an allusion to the wanderings of Orpheus in the Underworld, comes to
mind:
N.
1

tJ

Peg~ni

ni (Ce~rice,2)

L.I~.. h.." I...l.~

~p'

F. Chopin Wude 6)

182

In the second part of bar 54, the minor thirds start a descent, taking the form of

diminished sevenths falling chromatically. The change from g# to g natural at

the end of bar 58 alters the diminished seventh to a German sixth:
N, Pegeni ni (Caprice 2)
="
(.d. )y PXB)

IV~#
3

From bar 58 to 61. Paganini introduces an episode in double counterpoint, over

an implied dominant pedal.!
N. Pagani ni (Ceprice 2)

(double counterpoint)

58

1":7""""\

Section C (67-84) begins dolce, with a recapitulation of the theme (b.67-70),

followed by a graceful harmonic sequence, and an arpeggiated German sixth:

71
II' iI

.~

N. Paganini (Caprice 2)

~,~.""--,,

. r--- .

. "r-:-~

tJ
6#

IVS

The minor thirds of bars 51-54 reappear before the conclusion, but, this time,
descending in retrograde motion:
78 r----

N. Paganini (Caprice 2)

..

.M

118~
lJ

-l

.~.~ ~ !:::

~.~

f-. f-

.
.0

rt>;

.-

IL

,..

IL

'fI

lSchumann's piano accompaniment keeps the f# at the bass throughout bars 58-61.

183

IL

.
.

,..

~.

The technique Qf the brisure

Caprice 2 requires a skillful handling of the bow, Large intervals whose notes
occur on non-adjacent strings must be played without allowing the bow to
touch the intermediate strings. This technique is often referred to as brisure, a
term used by Pierre Baillot in his L'Art du ViQIQn. The following definition of
the brisure is given by Michel Brenet in his DictiQnnaire Qf 1926: "A manner of

performance in violin music which requires a special dexterity in the management of the bow,
which must skip from one string to another non-neighbouring string"2 [tr. PXBj Carl Guhr
observed that Paganini executed the brisure in separate strokes as well as in

legato:
"Heskipsoverstrings with certainty andclarity, also in slurred passages, for example:

II

,~--h
I

II'

.
I

e--h

II'

C1~

i"""'-.

~ ~

N.ll.

N.ll.

..

'3 [lrl. PXBj

Transcriptions of Caprice 2
Robert Schumann's transcription of Caprice 2, which appeared in 1835 as NS of
his 6 Concert-Etiiden nach Capricen yon Paganini (op.IO), brings out the more
subtle character of the piece: that of a tranquil and introspective barcarolle:
R. Schumann (Concert-EtUde nech Pegeni ni N25)

(.d. by PXB)

2"Formule d'execution dans la musique du violon ... exigeant une dexterite speciale dans Ie
maniement de l'archet, qui doit passer d'une corde a une autre corde non voisine." Brener, Michel,
DjctionDajre pratique et bistoriqye de la musique. Paris: A.Colin, 1926, p.43.
3"Mit Sicherheit und Deutlichkeit uberspringt er, in geschliffenen Satzen, Saiten, Z.B
[...]"Guhr,Karl. Dber PaganiDis Kuost..., Mainz: B. Schott's S6hnen,1829,p.1l, ex.lS.

184

To keep the steady flow of the semiquavers undisturbed by jerks of the hand,
the transcriber sometimes moves the lower voice up an octave:
R. Schumann (Conce~ nsch Paganini N!5)
8
11

". ~ !: ~ !:.~" ~

I'

(ed. by PX8)

~!.~.~

IV~#

i~

II

r'

~I

Schumann harmonises with great care and feeling, remaining both respectful
of Paganini's intentions and true to his own romantic inclinations. Thus, his
favourite progression IV!#I

I:/II~,

which he uses with such compelling effect

at the beginning of the Manfred Quvertiire. makes an appearance at bars 86 and

89:4
R. Schumann (Ccncert-Etlide nach Pagani ni N!5)
86

(ed. by PX8)

II~ V
Although Schumann did not review his own compositions in his journal, he
made an exception for his op. 10 (which he discusses as the work of Paganini).
About his Concert-EtUde N 5. he wrote:
"In No.5 [transcription of Caprice 2], I intentionally omitted the expression marks. leaving

students to find out its heights and depths for themselves. This will afford a good opportunity
. for testing the scholar's power of comprehension'P [tr. by F. Ritter]
4schumann, Robert. Manfred Oyyertjire, op.llS, b. 2. Owing to the key of E flat minor, the
6\

progression reads: rvg

Langsam.

1141 II 5.

It reappears at the end of the overture, at bar 1 of the

S"ln N 5 UeB ich geflissentlich alle Vortragsbezeichnungen aus, damit der Studierende
Hohen und Tiefen sich selbst suche. Die Auffassunggskraft des Schillers zu priiien, mochte dies
Verfahren sehr geeignet scheinen." Schumann, Robert. Gesa=elte Schrjfte tiber Musjk und
MU5jker Berlin: Wegweiser Verlag, 1922, p.165.

185

CAPRICE 3

~:t
.".

Form and harmony

The form of Caprice 3 is A - B - A' (Prelude, Corrente, Postlude)
A (b. 1-24) is a long, soulful melody in octaves, to be played sostenuto.

The

semitonal inflections, in particular the leaning on the Neapolitan (b.14 and 18),
accentuate its elegiac character:

The two voices forming the octaves fuse in unison at the end of the section:
N. Pagani ni (Caprice 3)

*'

)f\

: t ~

~
*

.".

lSeveral editors have changed the f of bar 14 into an f#, thus tampering with Paganini's
implied harmonic progression II 6\/ I:/V. However, the f natural is clearly indicated in both
the manuscript and the first Ricordi edition.

186

B (b.25-102) is a very fast 3/8 Corrente in sustained legato bowing. Paganini's

original slurs require enormous phrasing capacity:

25

N. Pa9anini (Caprice 3)

--. .

'P~lJto _-----

(ed. by PXB)

The systematic employment of appoggiaturast), often on unaccented

subdivisions of the beat, charges the flow of semiquavers with expressivity. This
higly chromatic treatment of the melodic line also creates a degree of tonal
ambiguity, by doubling, as it were, the original key with its immediate
neighbour.

Thus, in bars 46-48, the descending B major scale brings in its train,

like a fidus Achates, the scale of A# major:

----.....

~. 11-1.

N. P.!!!ani ni (Caprice 3)

,-,t--- -J . ,

. . . . .

---.-._

. .

lJ Il!IItIm
... II

II

It

.J

J.,

It..

tJ(PX.dit.)

II

..
[Ref: N. Paganlnl, Capnce 3, b.46-4Bl

Modulation is an element of variety which Paganini handled in masterly

fashion. Thus, in the space of forty bars 51-92, he changes from B major (b. 51) to
B minor (b.53) and successively modulates to G major (b. 58), C major (b.63), G
major (b.88), B flat major (b. 77), E flat major (b.88), B major (b.90), to finally
return to E major at bar 92.

At bar 99, another "double-scale" (D# major

following in the steps of E major) leads into the outer wing of the tryptich (A' or
Postlude):
~-------._.

.i.

11-1.

-I.

N. Pagani ni (Caprice 3)

-.10~~.

".

187

...

Double trills in octaves and unisons

A 'rather reticent criticism of Paganini carne from the German musicographer
Georg Ludwig Sievers, who attended a concert given in February 1825, at Rome.
Here is a short excerpt of his review, in which mention is made of Paganini's
playing in octaves:
..."Paganini's playing is well known outside Italy, by report. His performance on the G string
reveals indefatigable industry, but it lacks the ultimate finish, The same is true of his octaves,
which he plays much better than the other violinists. But here too the finishing touch is
wanting. He even trills in octaves, though the trick does not always come off. "2 [de Conrey's
transl]

There has been much controversy as to who first employed the method of
playing octaves with 1-3 and 2-4 instead of 1-4.

Both Carl Flesch and Eugene

Ysaye thought that Paganini should be credited with this "invention":

"Paganini [Carl Flesch writes] was probably the first to use the octave fIngering If3 and 2/4 .
Possibly even the so-called 'secret' of this hero of the violin is based on the study of this
fIngering. At any rate, it is no longera secret to anyone today, that practisingfingered octaves
for ten minutes does as much for the violinist as a half hour of ordinary practising.v-' Itt. B.
Schwarz]

"In my first youth [Eugene Ysaye writes], at the Conservatoire, fingered octaves were scarcely,
or not at all used; neither Vieuxtemps nor Wieniawski wrote them; it is only in Paganini and

Ernst that they are found."4 Itr, de Ribaupierre]

Ysaye was a pupil of both Vieuxtemps and Wieniawski.

His interesting

statement concerning these two masters cannot therefore be doubted. Vet,

evidence exists that Paganini was not the first violinist to play fingered octaves
or double trills in octaves. An example of their earlier employment is found, for
example, in Andreas Romberg's Sonata op. 32. NQ 2 (c. 1800).5 On the other
2Quoted by de Courcy, Geraldine, cp.cit., YoU,p.238 (According to de Conrey, the review was
published in the Mainz magazineCrcilia).
3F1esch, Carl. Violin Fingering, its Theory and Practice, London: Barrie and Rock1iff, 1966. p.
234. See also, by the same author "Apropos Paganini's Secret" in: The Strad L (September 1939),
pp.205-207.
4Eugene Ysaye. Ames Maltres Vieuxtemps et Wieniawski, Dix Preludes pour Violon Seul (op.
posth.), Bruxelles:Schott, 1962, p.30.
5Romberg, Andreas Jakob (1767-1821), German violinist and composer. His compositions

188

hand, the double trill in unison which appears in bars 24 and 112, is no doubt,
the first specimen of its kind in the whole violin literature (and perhaps the
only one):
N. Pagani ni (Caprice 3)
23 'Ir.

4r.

'"

~!

4r

Carl Flesch judges its execution "not without danger for a normal hand'v,
while Forizel von Reuter flatly dismisses it as unplayable ("nicht
ausfiihrbar").7

Several editors, including Singer, Polo, Berkley, Ghertovici,

and Wronski suggest to trill on the D string only:

""

~
According to contemporary reports, Paganini played entire melodic episodes in
unisons (which he perhaps executed with the 1-3 and 2-4 fingering):
"One cannot imagine how much he has augmented and perfected the techniques to approximate the
human voice. One knows, for example, that to achieve the expression of pain, one plays the same
note on two different strings simultaneously (unison). To this day, this has only been an isolated
case, only a fleeting accent. Paganini, with such sounds, has succeeded in creating entire lyrical
phrases whose effect is so sweet, so penetrating and moving, as to recall these beautiful women's
voices in which it is said there are tears.',8 [or. PXB & L.O]

include 23 violin concertos, quartets, several operas, and six symphonies, Andreas Romberg was
the cousin of the fames cellist Berhard Romberg, the dedicatee of Caprice 19 in Albi Rosenthal's
list (see Chapter Ill.A quotation from the Sonata op. 32 N 2 can be found in: Stowell, Robin.
Violin technique and performance practice in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.
Cambridge: C.U.P.,1985,p.332 .
6Carl Flesch, op. dt., p.158.
7paganini, Niccolo. 24 Caprices revised by Florizel, Leipzig: Eulenburg, 1924, p.13.
S"Onne se figure pas combien il a augmente et perfectionne les precedes techniques pour se
rapprocher de la voix humalne.. On sait, par exemple, que pour parvenir 11 une expression de
douleur, on prend simultanement la meme note sur deux corde differentes (l'unisson): jusqu'ici ce
n'avait ere qu'une indication isolee, qu'un accent transitoire; Paganini, avec des sons de cette
nature, est parvenu 11 former des phrases entieres de chant, dont l'effet, tant iJ est doux, penetrant
et pathetiques, rappelle ces belles voix de femmes dans lesquelles on dit qu'Il y a des larmes".
Imbert de Laphaleque, G. Notice sur Ie celebre violiniste Nicolo PaganinL Paris E. Guyot,I830,

p.17,

189

Twentieth century performers & Caprice 3

If played on two neighbouring strings (D and A, as prescribed by the majority of

editorsi.? bars 55 and 56 require an unusual extension between the first and
fourth fingers (interval of the 13th). Here is Ruggiero Ricci's comment.U'
.."Many of Paganini's unusual technical combinations are directly traceable to his guitar playing.
The chord progressions in the first Caprice constitute a striking example: these unusual finger
combinations would appear devilishly intricate to a violinist trained 'traditionally', but they
might have seemed even commonplace to someone who had played the guitar. In certain cases,
Paganini might have applied the hand position of the guitarist to the violin, and this, in my
opinion, is the way in which many stretches should be played. For example:

N. Pagani ni (Caprice 3)

<,

'==_=:::I::=,~~-!~~~ing
used by R.R~:!!:y
--_.;

"U you cannot slide the 1st finger all the way back to E, still holding the top C, then you are trying
to stretch back in the conventional way in which most violinists stretch, i.e. by forcing back the
hooked first finger, A more realistic way to reach the E is to unbend your 1st finger completely.
Then you will not press the string with the tip of the finger, but more with its side ...ll

9This indication, however, does not appear in the manuscript and the first Ricordi edition.
10Ricci, Ruggiero (b,192Q) (xPersinger).
11Ruggiero Ricci, Conversations with Ph. Borer. Bisceglie,July 1985. See also Applebaum,
Samuel & Sada. The Way they Play. Neptune City: Paganiniana publications, Book 1,pp.149161.

190

Caprice 4
'In the working out of this Caprice, the Funeral March
from Beethoven's Eroica symphony floated before me.
Perhaps others will guess as much. The entire number is
filled with romanticism. "
(journal of R. Schumann)

Caprice 4 is divided into four sections alternately minor and major: A (C

minor, b. 1-32), B (E flat major, b. 33-58), C (F minor

C minor), B' (C' major).

The piece is headed Maestoso (it. majestic, grand or stately).

Form. harmony. and counterpoint
The nostalgic, questioning theme, marked piano, is presented in the form of a
partial two-voice canon at the unison, punctuated by a vehement call in
octaves (G-Ab-G):

~Com.s

The compelling lyricism of these opening bars has been noted by several
comrnmentators: "Quel doloroso primo tema, con la sua frase pensosa ..." (A. Cantil);
"Une idee large et prenante" (A.Bachmann); "D'un archet calme, Paganini attaque en doubles
cordes, Maestoso, en ut mineur, son 4e Caprice. La pensee est grave" (Georges de SaintFoix); "II quarto Capriccio. in do minore, e uno dei piu belli. L'inizio Maestoso, di carattere
sinfonico, ha una frase ampia e avvolgente, e accenti beethoveniani" (Maria Tibaldi Chiesa).

191

The dramatic tension increases in bar 11 with the first appearance of IV6#:

N. Pagani ni (Caprice 4)
r--.

Schubert used this chord in much the same way, usually at moments of
emotional intensity:
F.Schubert (Am Grabe Anselmcs)

(ed, by PXB)

An expressive climax is reached in bar 14 (II6b, "Neapolitan"):

2 3 N. Pagani ni (Caprice 4)
3

This also is strongly reminiscent of Schubert:

/I

.~

,
III

F.Sc ubert (An Mignon)

acn -Isehen l~n - g. war

..
.

C: . 6b

192

"11"

ich

'1

tot

..
::;;

....

The first "square" of 16 bars (4x4) concludes on a I chord.

The omission of the

third of the triad produces a suspenseful effect. The melodic termination of bar
15 (c-d-eb) gives the chord its modal identity:
1 Maestoso

-_

~~

~
~

" . -<,

:-.:--...

.....----...
13
1

.....-~ .I .. .I

....--.....
j

...----....

-~ .. J I

~J

irj

14

Triplet scales in thirds and tenths are introduced in bar 17, creating the illusion
of a fast tempo:
N. Pagani ni (Caprice 4)

At bar 28, the initial rhythm reappears and the section ends in broad triple
chords on B flat, the dominant of the new key:
N. Pagani ni (Caprice 4)
~

r-r-- 29

193

Section B (Eb major), (b. 33-58) starts with an exuberant episode in staccato
demisemiquavers.

The rapid succession of passages in thirds, sixths, and

tenths, makes great demands upon the performer:

41

cresco

A "double scale" in tenths (E flat coloured by D) leads to the concluding part of

B:

Bars 55 and 56 are distinguished by the presence of the flattened submediant

(9b

of V):l

Section C (F minor

~~

C minor, b. 59-58) is one of the modulating episodes

which so excited Brahms's admiration. Paganini goes from F minor to Db

major (b. 64), and successively modulates to Bb minor (b.66), Eb minor (b. 75), Db
lS ee also bars 24, 26, 59, 122.

194

major (b.76), Db minor (b.78), Eb minor (b. 81); then, by way of enharmonic
change, to B major (b. 84), E major (b. 89), G# minor (b. 90), and,
enharmonically again, to C minor.

IV6# (followed by V) makes three

consecutive appearances in the last bars of the section, creating great tension
and suspense:
N. Pegeni ni (Caprice 4)

rr>.
95

f':',

Section B' is a C major replica of B, with the addition, at the end, of a jubilant
V-I cadence in four part harmony.
N. Paganini (caprice 4)

123

'"

.f
Transcriptions of Caprice 4
Robert Schumann's transcription of Caprice 4 appeared as N 4 of his set of Q.
Concert-Etiiden nach Capricen yon Paganini (op. 10). The harmonic working
out, with its "denser German middle parts'} stresses the Romantic character
of the piece.

Paganini's canonic theme obviously stimulated Schumann's

contrapuntal verve, as the opening bars of his transcription shows:

l1aesl so

~l

R. schumenn (Concert-EtUde nech Pegeni ni N!4)

r>;

,r-..,

soHo voe.
(.0 PXB)

2.schumann's own expression: "... die dichteren deutschen Mittelstimmen" op. cit. ~ p. 163.

195

Apropos of the transcription of Caprice 4, Schumann noted in his journal:

"...In the working out of Nr.4, the Funeral March from Beethoven's Eroica Symphony
floated before me. Perhaps others will guess as much. This entire number is filled with

romanricism.vPaganini had the greatest admiration for Beethoven and, as Geraldine de

Courcy finely observes, put him "at the summit of his musical Olympus".4

An unmistakable reference to the Marcia Funebre of the Eroica appears in one

of his later works, the 4th Concerto in D minor. The quotation appears in the
opening bars of the 2nd movement.

In bar 5-6, the motif, presented as a liberal

inversion, is coloured by an expressive diminished seventh:

Adagio fIehile
~concerto)

~==~m
5

Interpretation - fingerings
"Over a prolonged period 1 was fortunate enough to frequently hear this great master constantly
and to discuss with him the manner of his playing", Carl Guhr wrote in the preface of
his treatise. 6 In the chapter entitled "PAGANINISCHE TOURS DE FORCE",
3Sei der Ausfiihrung Yon Nr. 4 schwebte mir der Totenmarsch aus der heroischen Symphonie von

Beethoven vor, Man wiirde es vielleicht selbst finden. - Der gauze Satz ist voll Romantik."
Schumann, Robert. Gesammelte Schriften jiberMusik und Musiker. Berlin: Wegweiser Verlag,
1922, p.165.
4De Conrey, Geraldine, op. cit.,VoU, p. 13.
5The unusual tempo marking (Adagio jlebile) refers to Ovid's Metamorphoses (Book Xl, 50-53):
...membra iacent diversa locis; caput, Hebre, lyramque excipis, et (mirum!i, media dum labitur
amne, [lebile nescio quid queritur lyra, jlebile lingua murmurat exanimis, respondent [lebile
ripae. "...the limbs of the poet lay scattered; his lyre and head, Hebrus, thou didst receive, and
(marvel!), while floating in the stream, the lyre gave forth some tearful notes, the lifeless tongue
muttered a tearful message, and the river banks echoed tearfully." [tr.PXBj
6Guhr, Karl. Dber Paganinis Kunst. die Violine zu s.,jelen, Mainz: B. Schott's Sohnen,1829,
p.I.

196

one finds the following quotation of Caprice 4:

C. Guhr (Ueber P8g8ni ni'3 Kunst...p.44, ex.20)
30
.~'"
2

..
~
...

r:,' ~.....l

1 1

3 3

Sua ---,

..

r"

_--

It is quite possible that Carl Guhr had the privilege of a private audition of

Caprice 4. The above example is therefore of great interest to the performers in

so far as it is not identical with either the manuscript or the first Ricordi
edition. The divergences from these two sources are marked with an asterisk.

197

Caprice 9
"...Ia nuance seule fiance
Le riue au riue et /a flute
[au cor!"

(P.Verlaine)l

~~tuJ
SullaTastiera imi1aIUlo UPlall1D ...................

Paganini's famous ninth Caprice (known as "The Hunt") is in the key of E

major and comprises 111 bars. The tempo marking is Allegretto and the
time-signature 2/4.

The piece is cast in the form of a Rondo, A-B-A-C-A.

The three A sections (or ritornello) consist of a double period of sixteen

bars (except for a one bar extension on the last repetition), and are entirely
scored in thirds, fifths and sixths. This invol ves a particular note-pattern
called the "horn fifth". This figure, which was frequently given to the
horns in the days when they were valveless, became sanctioned by
contrapuntal usage.

A well-known example of its employment in

keyboard music is found in Scarlatti:

D. Scarlatti (Longo

Allegro

,~

I'

t (ed. by PXB)

ir

2 4

N~S)

..

With this musical material, Paganini brilliantly illustrates the timbral

potential of the violin. Thus, the first period of the A section (b. 1-8) is
marked dolce and bears the instruction "sulla Tasiiera imitando il
1 Art

poetique. 13.16.

198

Flauto",2 while the first phrase of the second period (b. 9-12) is marked
forte, with the instruction "imitando il Corno sulla 3a e 411 corda".3 In
the concluding bars of this section, the two tone qualities alternate (b. 1315).

The theme of the flute and the' answer of the horn (in liberal

retrograde motion) are played between tonic and dominant, i.e, over
implied I and V pedals, respectively:
Allegretto

..

N. Pagani ni (Caprice 9)

Sulla Tast"ra lmltando 11 Flauto

dolce

.........., imitando i1 Corno sulla 3"0 4"corda

SUl1aTastiora

Tastiora

Section B (b. 17-36) begins in the parallel minor, and continues the
rhythmic figure of A (anapaestic), but with a different anacrusis. A triple
sound chord is scored on each beat:
B ,.---....
16

"

.-----....
..o...

simili

The second phrase of B is announced in the relative key, with a sonorous

G major chord on four strings. After a harmonic sequence employing root
movements up a fourth and down a fifth, the section closes with a gracious
Neapolitan cadence:
N. Pagani ni (Caprice 9)

2"On the fingerboard. imitating the flute".

3"rmitating the horn on the third and fourth strings".

199

Section C, in bravura style, opens in A minor with an emphatic motif

based on the tonic arpeggio followed by prestissimo ascending scales and an
episode in ricochet.

According to the manuscript, as well as the first

Ricordi edition, Paganini's suggested manner of execution indicates taking

five notes in one bow (not four notes down and one up as stated by most
modern editors):

{m;

----

From bar 69, the key changes to C major. The arpeggio motif and the scales
are restated one third higher. This is the climactic passage of the Caprice,
which reaches i'", at bar 75:
aue

N. Pagani ni (Caprice 9)

~-

.".

~ --'

~~~
f....

,~-.;..

The new ricochet episode moves from C major through F major, G major,

A minor and E minor. A two octave arpeggio on the dominant introduces

the last ritornello.

Several editors (including Von Reuter, Wronski,

Flesch, Gulli and Berkley) suggest playing this last section in double
harmonics:

"t:

II

l~r.bY PXBh
94 /I
11

i.

"l

N. Paganini (Caprice 9)

1i ~

. . ..--...
i. .

.:.

~ ;

. .

;,---...

1i

r---

.:.

. r-:
...

(as revised by Carl Flesch)

It is very likely that this performing tradition is based on personal accounts

of musicians who, like Eugene Sauzay (the teacher of Carl Flesch at the
Paris Conservatoire),4 heard Paganini play in concert.

4Sauzay, Eugene 0809 - 1901) (c-Baillot) Was among the first violins in the Opera
Orchestra at Paganini's Paris debut in 1831.5ee: Flesch, Carl. "Apropos of Paganini's Secret",
in: The Strad L [=593] (1939), p.205. See also: Niccolo Paganini 24 kaJ?rysy na skrzV1?ce solo.
ed, by Tadeusz Wronski, Krakow: Polskie Wydawnictwo Muzyczne, 1977, p. 4-5.

200

Transcriptions of Caprice 9
Liszt published two versions of his transcription of Caprice 9, both of
which he entitled "La Chasse". While the first version (1838) accumulates
the technical difficulties, heavily adding to the texture of the original, the
second one (851) comes much closer to Paganini's text. There, much in
the vein of his transcription of Caprice 1 (Srd version), Liszt reproduces the
initial A section exactly, adopting the violin notation on one stave.

The

execution is divided between right and left hand:

5 imii:aa.do il PlCD.lto

~~
:

(Liszts fingering)

Schumann's transcription of Caprice 9 appeared as N"2 of his 6 Studien

nach Capricen von Pag-anini. op.3. The violin part, reproduced almost
note for note, is played by the right hand.

The left hand provides

unobtrusive harmonic and rhythmic support:

R.Schumann (Studien nach Capricen vO~l!.~ini, op.3 N~2)
rr: r">: r">
rr': -

..... .. .. . ....

Allegretto,-II)

II

II

t.l
t/Ql
(ed. by PXB)
11

-r:==

...1:::

-- -=
.
~

. r--. ,:' (

.r

::

. ,-..
........

- -- - --.. =
. .
.
~

....

..

The theme of Caprice 9 makes an appearance in part IV of Dallapiccolla's

Sonata Canonica, in fleeting counterpoint to Caprice 14:

201

.-

~~~

If)

~ l.
,T

-11.

Dallapiccola (Sonatina Canonica,IV)

.~~ ~~

_. ..

(kby PXB) JJr

;;.

.~

"
"

ppp
"

-.....
rr

202

L..

==""'-:'-_:;
1'4-"

CAPRICE 18
~
4acorda,..--------- - .

.--

-.

~:a=~

:>:>

:>:>

simi];

Known as "the call of the post hom", Caprice 18 has an evocative, refreshingly
romantic character.

Schubert's Die Post (from the Winterreise) comes

naturally to mind. From the technical point of view the piece constitutes an
admirable study in thirds and is particularly challenging as far as intonation is
concerned.
The greatest experts of the time, including as severe a critic as August Kestner
and such an embittered rival as Louis Spohr, were unanimous in their praise
of Paganini's constantly pure intonation. Yet, according to several reports,
and even on his own admission, he often played on an out of tune violin:
"After the concert we chatted for a long time with Paganini, who was very exhausted.
Probably because when he plays, he uses his whole body; and he is physically very
weak...He showed us some astounding tricks on his violin...It often sounded as though three
people were playing. His passages in double stops are dazzling, and I've never heard anyone
run over the strings so fast...Then he imitated a donkey, a parrot, and a thrush - all
wonderfully natural. Later, Dr Martecchini tried to play on his violin and found, to his
astonishment. that it was completely out of tune. Whereupon Paganini simply doubled up
with laughter, and said that he alwaysplayed on a mistuned violin." I

[tri. de Conrey]

IDe Cethaldi, Matthaus Nikolas, Correspondence (Letter dated Venice, October 2,1824),
published in: Achl Uhr Abendblatt, Berlin, March 19,1934. Quoted by G. de Courey (in her own
English translation), cp.cit., YoU, p.234.

203

Paganini, who made frequent use of open strings and harmonics, must have
had very good reasons to tune his instrument the way he did. It seems that he
practised, besides the scordaiura proper, a kind of extremely sophisticated
adjustment of the traditional tuning in fifths:
..." One finds it extraordinary that he plays on a mistuned violin. Buthis violin is not out of
tune. On the contrary, it is tuned with great diligence.v- [trl.PXBj
An arresting hypothesis formulated by [utta Stuber is that Paganini - like the

lute players, for example - manipulated the tuning of his instrument

according to both the key of the piece and the temperament best suited to his
immediate purpose.

The German researcher is inclined to think that

Paganini favoured mean tone temperament (or "just" intonation) and gives
rather convincing reasons to support her views.3 However, the unerring
accuracy of Paganini's intonation in so many different circumstances and
contexts, his mastery of very advanced techniques of the scordaiura (e.g. the
First Concerto where the violin and the orchestra play, as it were, in two
different keys)4 strongly suggest that he was proficient in several systems of
intonation (Pythagorean, tempered, natural-harmonic, etc). Be that as it may,
Stuber's proposition is of such interest, that an extensive quotation seems
justified:
"Willy Burmester5 withdrew from the Berlin concert scene and practised this piece
[Caprice 18J 4276 times. 6 What is then so difficult about this piece, which is,
2... "man staunt es wie ein Wunder an, daB er auf einer verstinunten Geige spielt. Seine Geige

ist aber nicht verstinunt, sondem im Gegentheile mit grollem fleiJle gestinunt. " Schottky, Julius
Max. Paganjni's! eben und Trejben als KUnstler und als Mensch. Walluf: Sandig- Reprint, 1974,
p.282.
3See: Stuber, [utta. Die Intonation des Geigers, Bonn: Verlag fur systematische
Musikwissenschaft, 1989, pp.169-171, 303-305, 358-362.
4present-day performers have eluded the difficult problem of the scordaiura by adopting
the Kalmus version of the orchestral part which is, in fact, a transcription of the original
orchestration from E flat down to D Major. The execution is thus facilitated for both the
orchestra and the soloist; this is unfortunately at the expense of the contrast of timbres existing
in the original version.
5Burmester,
. Willv. (1869-1933) (>Joachim).

204

barmonically, quite clear and simple? - Tbat it is written in C major. If we examine the
"tone-net" corresponding to the four bars of tbe example, and try to fit in it the four tones g,
d. a. and e of the open strings, we will recognise at once that the piece cannot be performed
satisfactorily with the ordinary tuning:
9#

d#

-h
fe

f#

....
<,

.---.... *
\,.

....

<,
<,

lIin~re

....

..

b.29-33

~
..
[J. Stuber, Ole Intenetien des GeIgers, p. 303]

(tr. by PXB)

"The C major scale's own thirds ULand ~ clash with the a and e of the open strings. The E
string should therefore be tuned down at least to a thirdcomma (22 cents). The tuning of
the E string could result as follows:

~::

s
L=(tr.bYPXB)

[J. StUber, Die Intonetion des Geigers, p. 304]

"The violinist tunes the G, D, and A strings as usual in pure fifths; then, on the A string, he
finds the ll', blending it with the open

g' and, finally, tunes the perfect e" to this g'. With a

lowered E. string, the violinist can employ the open string for the first tbird in bar 29. And
also the octave leap to !<'"-c''' is now comparatively free of risk, since !<'" is the natural
harmonic of the

f. string.

It is also safer because the violinist only needs to concentrate on

the formation of the c'", Carl Flesch said that the opening bars of the Caprice in thirds were

The mosT difficulT intonation exercise in the whole violin literature: 8

6s.""

Burmester, Willy, 50 Iahre Kiinstlerleben. Berlin 1926, p.95.

; ~ ~ Tartinian hook (V7-).
Ss"e, Flesch, Carl, Dje Kunst des Yiolinspie1s, Berlin, 1929, vol.I, p.132.

205

[J. StUber, Die Intonetion des Geigers, p. 304]

#bYP;B)

"Essentially, these bars are not difficult; they are only difficult for those who do not bear in
mind that the E string, if tuned in the usual way, does not match the key of C major. If the
player is not ready to tune his E string down one comma (to !:."), he must 'neutralise' it in
order to prevent it from vibrating, and he must also avoid the E string in bar 4. If it actually
vibrates, it wiIllead the player to play the e too sharp and the C major harmony is disturbed.
Flesch further remarked that one should play these bars as quickly as possible, in order to

make these hardly rectifiable deficiencies less perceptible. In those bars, the misery of the
violinist of today - and that of his listener! - is made plain: comparatively easy bars prove
unplayable. One of the leading violinists (Burmester) practised these bars 4276 times in five
months. The leading teacher (Flesch) instructed several generations of pupils to play 'these
hardly rectifiable deficiencies' as fast as possible, in order that the listener would not notice
them. These 'deficiencies' - and not only in the Caprice in thirds - can be rectified, as long
as the violinist deepens his knowledge of the acoustic of the instrument and becomes versed
in the question of intonation. ,,9 [trl. PXBJ
9 "Willy Burmester 'log sich vom Berliner Konzertleben zuruck und ubte dieses Stiick in fUnf
Monate 4276 mal. Was ist an diesem Stiick mit schlichter Harmonik schwierig? - DaB es in cOur stehl. Wer das unseren vier Takten gehorenden Tonnetz besieht und in ihm die vier in den
leeren Saiten liegenden Quinlt6ne g.d.a.e zu lokalisieren sucht, erkennt sofort, daB das Stuck in
ublicher Slimmung nicht klingen kann. Die tonieitereigenen Terztone a und ~ reiben sich mit den
Quintt6nen der a- und der e-Saite. Zumindest die e-Saite miiBte urn ein Terzkomma zu 22 cent

herabgeslimmt werden. Das Einslimmen der !:",Saite konnte wie folgt erfolgen: [...J Der Geiger
stimmt die Saiten g. d, und a wie ublich in reinen Quinten, intoniert sodann auf der a-Saite das
mit der d-Saite verschmelzende h' und stimmt zu diesem h' sodann die reine Quarte e" ein...Bei
herabgestimmter ~-Saite kann der Geiger filr die erste Terz (l:"-c") von Takt 29 die leere ~-Saite
verwenden. Und auch das Hineinspringen in die urn eine Oktave hohere Terz ~"'-c'" ist jetzt
relativ gefahrlos, denn e" ist natiirliches Flageolelt der ~-Saite. Es ist dem Geiger also sicher,
er braucht sich nur noch auf das dazu erklingende c'" zu konzentrieren. Von den Anfangstakten
der Terzen-Caprice [...J sagte Carl Flesch, sie seien die schwierigste Intonationsubung in der
gesamten Geigenliteratur. Im Grunde sind diese Takte nicht schwierig. Sie sind nur fUr den
schwierig, der nicht bedenkt, daB die e-Saite bei reinen Quinten, also in gewohn1ieher

206

Here is Dr. Sedivka's perceptive comment:

"...Everyone with a good sense of pitch does follow the natural scale Gust intonation). Harmonic
complexity and modulation necessitate however adjustment of pitch or adjustment of tuning.
Hence, in the Well-Tempered Clavier, we see a compromise in the use of tempered intervals,
i.e. mist!lning, making it possible to cover the whole spectrum of tonalities. It is possible that
Paganini combined the two devices: finger manipulation as well as different tunings of the
instrument. This would also clarily the statement that he tuned with great care:,l0

Related literature:
Chesnut, John Hind. "Mozart's Teaching of Intonation", Journal of the American
Musicological Society XXX, 1977,pp.254-271.
Heman, Christine. Intonation auf Streichinstrumente, Basel, 1964.
Istel, Edgar. Nicolo Paganini, Leipzig: Breitkopf & Hartel, 1919, p,17,
Marak, Jan. Housle, Prague: H. M. (3rd edition) 1944.
Mostras, Konstantin. Die Intonation auf del Violine (German translation by Karl
Kramer) Hofheim am Taunus: Friedrich Hofmeister, 1961.
Norden, N.Lindsay. "A new theory of untempered music", in: The Musical Quarterly
XXII (1936), pp.217-233.
Sevcik, Otakar. School of Intonation, op.ll, New-York: Harms,1922.
Vogel, Martin. On the Relations of Tone, tr. by V. J, Kisselbach, Bonn: Verlag fur
systematische Musikwissenschaft, 1993 pp. 397-421.
Tartini, Giuseppe, Tlaktat iiber die Musik gemaB der wahren Wissenschaft von der
Hannonie, trans!. by A. Rubeli, Diisseldorf: Orpheus-Schriftenreihe zur Grundfragen der
Musik 6, 1966.
Stimmung, nicht zu diesem c-Dur pallt. Wenn der Spieler sie nicht um ein Komma nach e''
herabstimmen will, mull er sie abdecken, damit sie nicht mitschwingt; und er mull dann auch in
Takt 4 die leere Saite vermeiden. Schwingt sie nahmlich mit, verleitet sie den Spieler, das
eingestrichene e scharf zu nehmen, und die c-Dur-Harmonie ist gestort, Flesch bemerkte noch zu
diesen Takten, man solIe sie moglichst rasch ausfiihren, urn die nie ganz a!lsz!ltilgenden
Milngel weniger horbar Z!l mathen. An diesen Takten wird das ganze Elend des heutigen
Geigers" und seines Horers! - deutlich. Relativ leichte Takte gelten als unspielbar. Einer der
fiihrenden Geiger (Burmester) iibte diese Takte in run! Monaten 4276mal. Der fiihrende Lehrer
(Flesch) gibt mehreren Schiilergenerationen mit auf den Weg, die "untilgbaren Mangel"
moglichst rasch zu iiberspielen, damit der Horer sie nicht merkt. Die Mangel - nicht nur dieser
Paganini-Caprice - sind a!lstilgbar, sofem der Geiger sich in die Akustik der Geige vertieft und
sich mit den Intonationsproblemen vertraut macht." Stuber, [utta. Die Intonation des Geigers,
Bonn: Verlag fur systematische Musikwissenschaft, 1989, pp. 303-305.
lOSedivka, Jan. Conversation with Ph. Borer. Tasmanian Conservatorium of Music, Hobart, 10
March, 1995.

207

AJP'JP'lENlDJI}( 13

THE MANUSCRIPT

The manuscript (and only known autograph copy of the Caprices) consists of
forty-one pages in oblong format, with ten staves per page". There is also a
front cover which bears the following inscription:
N" 24 Capricci per Violino
di
NiccolO Paganini
Dedicati alli Artist;

Opera l.a
I primi Dodici parte La
altri Dodici D-a 2.a

In fact, the Caprices are grouped into three separate booklets, each ending
with the latin word Finis and containing respectively 6, 6, and 12 Caprices.

The title page of the first group of 6 (opera prima) includes an interesting
inscription on the left hand bottom comer.
S.rTomaso
u. 24 9bre /8/7

403.

altre lastre W6- A di Giugno Lastre

in compimento N"ll.
L'.7. aim -----3Le.S.,

altre - - 9-

"sr Tomaso" was probably an employee of the firm Ricordi and perhaps the
engraver himself. Of particular interest is the date appearing under his
name: 24 November 1817 (Ii. 24 9bre /817),
Like most of his other works, Paganini's Caprices seem to have been written
"du premier jet", in the white-hot speed of execution (de Courcy's phrase).
To my knowledge, no preliminary sketches, revisions, re-touchings or
tentative drafts have survived. Here are several examples of the
peculiarities in Paganini's graphics to be found in the autograph:
lThirty.eight pages of music plus three title pages.

208

1) The natural

<!I) is written ~ (not to be confused with a rest)

2) The 16th note

(.~ is written d5

3) The quarter rest (S) is written 1\ or /"

4) The eighth rest (,,/) is written )

5) The 16th rest

6) The 32nd rest

(~)

is written V

(~ is written

'f-

7) The left hand tremolo of Caprice 6 is thus abbreviated from the 2nd bar
onwards:

Most editors have adopted the following notation instead:

~
. . .

:: :: ::

209

8) Paganini writes twelve note groupings as follows:

-------

~
12

12

The following grouping (3x4) is used in many modem editions:

-----

~,~
12

As Prof. Neill points out, the decision to separate them is highly debatable
from a rhythmic point of view. 2
9)In Paganini's system of notation, a chromatic alteration affects the
subsequent upper and lower octaves appearing in the bar (although it may
be occasionally repeated for more clarity). The same is true of octaves in
double-stops or chords: only one of the two notes bears the alteration. This
was common notation practice in the early 19th century. For example:

11) Paganini uses the symbol "0" to indicate the notes to be plucked with the
left hand (Caprice 24, var.9):
n

'=::1=

2Neill Edward. General Introduction of his Urtext edition of Paganini's 24 Caprices

(Milan: Ricordi,1988, p.v),

210

Reproduction of the facsimile-

3Facsimile Qf the autograph manuscript Qf Faganinj's 24 Caprices, ed.by Federico

Mornpellio, Milan: Ricordi, 1974. (courtesy of G. RICORD! & C. s.p.a.) See: Bibliography,
p. 265, n. 3).

211

---~--'-'---

212

..

.~
~'~~'U:-:i
1
'

",

..

. . ;""-

. -

213

t'

.....

-s ,

.'

"

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1:".

~':~~~::?;~:::~"/:;7,:,i,;.;, " r :; z~L i

'~~;,~:~ ..~;~ .,'~:':~_.-l-~. ~2i",:.;t{,~:,;~o~~.;:'-:

i_'

. ' f~;~. ~. '. '. ..-:..~~L:..,;~_

u:~ ~

- =. -,

214

.. "'v

",-

-,

<I"-

'"

"

'

.~/.

...:

0,

~: . :/00'1"" ~:~

.
~'t~.'1-~

-.l.'"

~-

;V~

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....... "
v

'2f

~.,

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215

~'i-,

~j~ .' .:.::,.

. .' - \ ....

\
.:

:-:-:~:.\
;'

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_ "'~ __ .:.;,.-.. :.~~. ', ".oL~::;:':,~.:;':"""':' .,:~.~'::: ...:;::."..........'}f I

216

--

.'

.'

., .
.n

. 1

. _ _._.T:;.

"'.;" ;~ l ..
. ~

~:

"~~' __'4'-'"........,,!..
217

' ) r r : . I!

'!,..
~,' __.'
. ''";;
'
~J.;,.~.':.. ~.,j"'---,,-,,"..l:l~'.~~'lL)..~-~"':':"-",;,.<t"."
....! ;,:..
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",
.;;,!~,~.,

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218

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";,_-a<..........--':' ,_

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.......

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219

.,,

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---.-----~

"""

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~..:.........~:/:

',~J

-, -,
t;

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"""''S....'
.::;--~,,-.,
../
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220

.\

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.

.'

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.~ ~~~A~'~~;~~
~)~-?-

.',

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:.

;.

:" .z: '.

,
.1.

,'- \........

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. ....,.

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7

~~_

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 '.::::"

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224

~~ .. 1:-" ;~.~~_~ ~~-.1

" '

,.-.< ]

: '<i
"

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"

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225

>-

.. ..
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;----...:.-- - ,- .'
,

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......._ _ J_'

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"

:,~

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226

'~-&.~~

t !Sol' : ....": --::..:.\.'.. :-~' _'-

..
--~---_._----

,,:;1.',',.1

--

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.r

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"

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..

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,

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.....

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-... '?'

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- '. .. .,. .

....~'"' 'f - ,

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.:....-.j"

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'

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'

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"

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-- . ~.
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230

"<t ,.

231

'

232

APPENDIX C

THE DWLOMATICTRANSCRWT

Comparison with the facsimile will show that the diplomatic transcript
(Caprices 1-4) endeavours to reproduce Paganini's notation as accurately as
possible. Such details as the number of bars per line and even the choice of
upwards or downwards sterns have been scrupulously reproduced. Extramusical text (front cover, title-pages page numbers) has been included.
Paganini indicates the key signature only at the beginning of each Caprice or
when a change of key occurs l , The computerised scoring programme
which was used to create this diplomatic transcript automatically places the
key signature at the beginning of each line Z. To erase these extra key
signatures would have necessitated a long and complex technical process. It
was finally resolved to keep them for caprice 1 to 3. This is the only
significant divergence from the original notation.
Asterisks (*): they refer to the corresponding note in the critical commentary
and constitute the sole editorial addition.

lThe abbreviated writing of key signatures used by Paganini consists of two short
strokes at the beginning of each system (

//=~~~~~~~)

2projessional Composer is the registered name of the software package (issued by

"Mark of the Unicorn").

233

.0 V'10 Z'tno
N o 24 Capn~per
di

Niccolo Paganini
Dedicati alii Artisti

Opera t.a

r7

1 primi Dodici parte J.a

altri Dodici D--a 2.a

234

Opera

I: rna

N 6. Capriccj per Violino

di

Niccolo Paganini

S.T Tomaso
li 24. 9bre 1817

Le.5.,
L e. 7.

403.

altre Lastre N" 6 A di I' Giugno Lustre

altre -- - - - 3.in compimento N'II.

altre

235

!l.

!liplOllllltic tnImIcriptiOl1 by P.X.B.

236

-~~
Fr

237

-,......,.

re: ~ eo eo

i!:

e:

l!:

eo

-.

e: e:

l"-

~ e~

aid:

"I

,..-~ ~ IL

IL

I::l::l:::I:i

*
.--:;--..

e: I"e:
E

.'

e:

I"

~ ~ ~
I

, I~

IL ..

, , ,
~

.,

It:

., * .. ..I- 1.1

..

IL II.J I~~I

.~~"'

~ ~

Y 1Y T

~IL

1oJ=;:FF
"'

~I~~ ~ ~~

238

IL

l"lllt

111

IL-

'H:l:

~ ~ ~ ~

a.

~r

ILIL

IU!:::!:

ec .

IL

~ le: q": I!:

~
I

==8'

r,rr

....

-...

~ ......~

I_~

,~

.IL

r.-..

~IL.

II- II-

b~bC ~ ~~
~~ ~*~ f= e:-=

~.

!!:

/I.

r or

tj

11......

~ ~ ~ ~!';

M -=~ ce:

~ ~

1r

239

~ I!: I!: ~ e: \ ~
~

-I'

'f I r

>'=

--../

~
Ii

,--

, --... _t

...

:41
.",

'!r.

" ..... _--"

-----~ ...:e.

4E:_

'"- -....::::;:;

,,::t.

--

'-----'"

-.........

-_./

3a e 4 a

~---

: t

~pr,.

-> -..-

240

>
-------->._-----....

h-

---.....,

*
>

.-------'----

~
'-----

Dti~--~_---

---....y .-_....- - -

..... ---

241

II

242

.~.

<J-~

243

Critical commentary (Caprices 1-4)

Front-cover
Paganini writes alii ..hristi rather than agli Artisti, as in the first Ricordi edition.

Title-page I
S.rTomaso
ii. 24 9bre 1817

403.

L .5..

allre Lustre S' 6- A di l' Glugno La,lre

in compimento N'l l,
L"'7. altre ----j,
altre - -

9-

Albi Rosenthal suggests that these words were entered "by Ricordi's engraver or some
other employee of the firm after receipt of the MS." 1 S. r Tomaso (perhaps the
engraver) would then have received the ms. on 24 November 1817.
403.: plate-number allocated by Ricordi to the first edition of the work. The abbreviation

L stands for Lastre (hand-engraved plates).

W11. [II plates engraved by Ist June)

A di l' Giugno Lastre in compimento

Caprice 1
bar 22
many editions read:

(see Appendix A, Caprice I)

bar 36

there is no sharp in front of the c" in first reciprocating arpeggio.

bar 75

many editions read:

1Rosenthal, Albi. "An intriguing copy of Pagaruni's Capricci'jn: Niccolb Paganinj e jJ suo
~

Genoa: Citta di Genova, 1982. p. 235

244

Caprice 2
bar 9

the majority of editors, including Schiinemann, write:

,,--.....,

!:

I!: !: !: I!: !:

bar 15

the dot on the crotchet rest is lacking.

bar 63

several editions have an e' sharp instead of the e natural specifically written
by Paganini.

Caprice 3
bar 14

many editions have an f" sharp instead of the f natural specifically written
by Paganini (see Appendix A, Caprice 3).

barM

the g' lacks the natural.

bar 73

Some editions have an e" flat.

Caprice 4
bars 12-14 no dots are visible in front of the harmony quavers.
bar 38

there is no flat before the last e' of this bar.

bar 39

there is no flat before the b' in last quadruplet.

bar 49

there is no natural mark before f" of second duolet.

bars 75-76 the manuscript reads:

It is possible that the harmony notes on the first beat of each bar are crotchets with upward
stems. Paganini perhaps intended:

rr-.

245

AJP'JP'ENDKX D

ALBUM LEAYES & SCALES

1) Capriccio per Violino Solo di Pag-anini. dedicated to Maurice Dietrichstein

and dated Vienna, 9 August 1828. Osterreichische Nationalbibliothek, [mus
HS 18 718J (Biblioteca Palatina Vindobonensis).
Dip!' transcript
p.247
Manuscript (microfilm)!
p.248
2) Largo con forte espressione. e sempre crescendo. dedicated to Jean-Pierre
Dantan, and dated Paris, 21 July, 1837. Bibliotheque Nationale [BN Res. 537],
page 15 of Dantan's autograph album.
Dip!' transcript
p. 249
3) Scala di Pag-anini. dated Breslau, 3 August 1829. Facsimile in: Auktions
Katalog LXXXVII, 19-20 February 1907, e.G. Boerner Buchantiquariat,
Leipzig.
Dip!' transcript
p. 250
4) Armonici a doppie corde di terza. scale in double harmonics for Luigi
Guglielmo Germi. Washington, Library of Congress, Music Division
[Photostat 998, supp!. to Maia Bang collection].2
Dip!. transcript
p. 251

1Cou,rtesy of the Osterreichische Nationalbibliothek.

2See: Kirkendale, Warren. "Segreto comunicato da Paganini'', in: Journal of the

American Musicological Society XVIII/3 (1965), pp. 101-116.

246

dipl. transcript
by PX Borer

,1nJantt
,A

..

dolce

dole~

dolce

CAPRICCIO PER YIOLINO SOLO 01 PAGAN IN I

Umigiiato a S.E. iI Sig 9 Conte Maurizio Oietrichstein

. :.:

.--.,

I'- ~

ern.

dolc~--J:-

"V

,
~

..

<:---,

<: +

$. .. "

....-..,

T ~

t-

~ cres.

~ E

'4)-

"-

~
I'- ~.. I'-

..

z..3
il.

I
~

I'-

T~

R..

I'-

~G

...

to

..,

# 1#

-c:

cres.

I'-~

ern.

cres,

11

t..

~
l'

~res.

--.---p- cr/;.

b#,.-i>

~
p

e .&

~f

.0

l'

a:

:;:,..

:;:,..

mancando

==-

==-

mancando

:s-

:s-

V!!.ancando

'0

'"
'"

A ,

'"

mancondo

'"
~

V.cnlUl fi 9. J3.gosto 1828

247

-'.-~":"'"-~."'--"':'"""-:-'-~-

- -'--"::'"r-.~

",

~l

co",

248

t"

Album of the sculptor Dantan

Ref.[BN Res. 537], p.15 (dipl. tr.)
Con forte espressione, e sernpre crescendo

largo

249

Nicolo PAGANINI
21 JULY 1837

[Ref. C.G.Boerner]

Scala di Paganini

(dipl. tr.)

sua - - - - - - - - - -

250

Segreto cornunicato e raccornandato da

Paganini al suo caro arnico L.G. Germi.
Arrnonici a doppie corde di terza

2daCorda ------------------, c:8I\tiruo--------------------------------,

4
4
4
4
4
4

4j

db

C8I\tiruo----------------_--------,
4

~ ~
2

,3

z,

11
111
1111

I"

2daCorda--------, 32aCOrda-------------------------------------,
44224422

do re mi fa sol la
fa
sol la
32aCOrda------------------- J 2da Corda----------------------------,

re
41ll Corda------------ J

k~ ~

si

si
4

mi

la

243

do

sol fa mi
4

1
lOre1re
re do si
41ll Coma---------------------------------------J

Mia caro Gerrni, ti prego per l'Amicizia che mi professi, di lacerare la

presente tosto che l'avrai letta, e di non farti vedere ad eseguirli, perche ti
rappiranno il segreto, e se potessi ti comunicherei un poco della mia magia
per abbilitarti ad eseguirli sul muse di chiunque senza timore di propagarli.
Addio.

deesi appoggiare il dito

Li poco ubbidienti quattro Armonici qui sopra fatti
con qualche grado di soppressione rna non sono necessarj.

[dip!. transcript by PXBJ

251

AJP'JP'JENDliX JE

TWO CONVERSATIONS WITH SCHOTTKY

In Chapters II, III, and IV, numerous references are made to Schottky's
Paganini's Leben und Treiben als Kunstler und als Mensch first published
in 1830 by J.G. Calve at Prague. Julius Maximilian Schottky (1795-1871), a
reader in German at the University of Prague, met with Paganini in 1828
and had conversations with him almost every day of his stay in the capital.
This Appendix contains two of the most interesting - albeit controversial passages of his book, in the original German. They are:
1. The biographical sketch of Paganini, from which several quotations
appear in Chapter III.
2. A famous passage discussing Paganini's legendary "secret". It is presented
here in its original version as well as in a fresh translation.

252

1. Biographical sketch I

Paganjni als Knabe und Jiingling. und ein Wort tiber sejne Familie,
The proper studyof mankind is man.

Pope,

"Ich wurde - erzahlte Paganini dem Verfasser dieses Werkes - in Februar

1784 zu Genua als der zweite Sohn meiner Eltem geboren; weiB jedoch von den
vorfahren nicht viel zu erzahlen, am wenigsten, ob sie von jenem Paganini
abstammen, dessen eine Grabdenkmal-Inschrift in der St. Annenkirche zu Capua mit
den Worten erwahnt:
Hie,Paganine, jaces Musarum gloria, Luci,
Grammaticae pariter Rhetoricaeque decus

Cujusjam meritislantum Campaniadebet,

Varroni quantum maxima Romasuo!)2

"Mein Vater Antonio Paganini, war ein nieht besonders bemittelter

Geschaftsmann und keineswegs ohne einiges musikalische Talent, das jedoch seiner
Neigung zur Musik selbst nicht gleieh kam. Bald erkannte er meine Naruranlage ,
und ihm habe ich die Anfangsgriinde in der Kunst zu verdanken. Seine
Hauptleidenschaft lieB ihn sich viel zu Hause beschaftigen, urn durch gewisse
Berechnungen und Kombinationen Lotterie-Nurnrnem aufzufinden, von denen er
sich bedeutenden Gewinn versprach. Deshalb griibelte er sehr viel nach, und zwang
mich, nieht von seiner Seite zu weichen, so daBich vom Morgen bis zum Abend die
Violine in der Hand behalten mulste. Man kann sich nicht leicht einen strengeren
Vater als ihn denken; schien ich ihm nicht fleiBig genug, so zwang er mich durch
Hunger zur Verdopplung meiner Krafte; so daB ich korperlich viel auszustehen
hatte, und die Gesundheit zu 1eiten begann, Was Sie mir tiber den kleinen
Sigmuntowsky mittheilten, fand damals auch auf mich volle Anwendungj-';
1Schottky, Julius Max, Paganini's Leben und Treiben als Kiinstler uod als
Mensch, Prague: J.G. Calve, 1830, pp. 246-258.
2 Man sehe Keyfsler's Reisen durch Deutschland, Frankreich und ItaHen, Seile 743.
Eigenilich wurde Paganini erst durch den Verfasser dieser Zeilen auf jene lnscbrifft
[sic] aufmerksam.
3Nach der Leipziger "musikalischen Zeitung" 1806, Nro. 26, wo es in den
"Mittheilungen aus dem Tagebuche eines praklischen Musikus" heiJlt:"Es gibt fur mich
kaum einen !raudgeren Anblick, als die Virtuosen in fruhen Kinderjahren, die man, wie
Paviane und Meerkatzen zur Schau urnherfiihrt und die - mit so wenigen Ausnahmen,
daB sie kaum in Betrechtung kommen - traurige Schlachtopfer der Eitelkeit. Habsucht
u.s.w, werden. Die erstaunungswiirdigste von allen so1chen Wunderpuppen, die mir

253

doch hatte es solcher rohen Antriebe wahrlich nieht bedurft, da ich selbst fur das
Instrument begeistert war, und unaufhorlich darauf studirte, urn mir neue und sonst
noch ungesehene Griffe zu erfinden, deren Zusarnmenklingen die Leute staunen
lieB. Man glaubte schon damals in den engeren Kreisen meiner Bekannren
allgemein: ich wurde einst groBes Aufsehen erregen, was den Leuten noch mehr
durch einen Traum meiner sehr frommen Mutter Theresa (einer geborenen
Bocciardo) einleuchtete. Im Schlafe sollte ihr namlich, zufolge ihrer aufgereizten
Phantasie, ein Genius erschienen seyn, an welchen sie die Bitte gerichtet haben
wollte, ihren Sohn einen grossen Violinspieler werden zu lassen. Ein bejahendes
Zeichen, so traumte sie fort, entsprach ihren Wtinschen; und jetzt wurde dem bloBen
Traume von der guten Mutter mehr Gewicht beigelegt, als er verdiente. Ich fuhlte
mich nun aufs neue begeistert, und durch dies Lob das mir wie Musik klang, immer
mehr angespomt; denn jener Alte (Xenophon) sprach volkommen die Wahrheit:
"Ehrliebende Gemiither werden auch durch Lob geschiirft: es hungert einige

Seelen nach Lob, gerade wie andere nach Speise und Trank!" Schon vor meinem
achten Jahre hatte ich unter der Leitung des Vaters eine Sonate geschrieben, die aber
nicht mehr vorhanden ist, sondem eben so zerrissen wurde, wie unzahlige andere
meiner Versuche dieser Art. Wenn ich mich mit Mozart, das heisst, das Kleine mit
dem GroBen einmal zusammen zu stellen wagen darf, so muB ich gestehen, daB mich
die spaterhin erfahrene Nachricht uberraschte: der kaum sechsjahrige Mozart habe
bereits ein Klavierconcert mit Trompeten, Pauken und Allem, was sich geigen und
blasen laBt, besetzt, geschrieben; aber so schwer, daB es kein Mensch spielen konnte.
Auch meine Musik lieB sich nicht auffiihren, doch war bei ihr wohl nur Mangel an
dem Erforderlichen, das HindemiB der Exekution."
"Imrner mehr und mehr breitete sich mein Ruf in Genua aus; und fast mochte
ich sagen, daB sich folgende Stelle von Rousseau damals auch auf mich anwenden
lieB wo er von dem jungen Pariser Boisgelou spricht, der spaterhin den
musikalischen Theil der Pariser konigl. Bibliothek in Ordnung brachte und 1806
starb: "J'ai vu, chez un magistrat, son fils petit bon homme de huit ans, qu'on

met/ail sur la table au dessert, comme une statue au milieu des plateaux, jouer Iii
vorgekommen sind, war der kleine Sigmuntowsky. AJs ein Kind von vier [ahren spielte
er schonauf der Violine und noch besser auf der Viola, die ihm eingelemten Stiicke
wahrhaft meisterlich. Man setzte das blasse schwachliche Kind gewohnlich auf
einen Tisch, damit ma'n nur sah. Es nahm nun seine Geige, wie ein Violoncell zwischen
die Knie, und nur tiber dem Spielbliihte es ein wenig auf und die Augen bekarnenLeben.
Cewohnlich jauchzten aile Anwesenden vor Entzucken, und mir that es in der Seele
wehe: denn ich wuBte, dall der Vater das Kind erzog und behandelte, wie kaum der
roheste Kosak seinen Hund. Nicht unwiderstehlicher Trieb, wie er sagte, sondem
Hunger und Prugel hatten den grolltenAntheil an dieser fruhen Entwicklungungemeiner
Talente. Wollte der Knabe nicht aile Tage gleich fruh stundenJang und immer die
narnlichen Stucke spielen, so bekarn er den ganzen Tag nichts als Wasser und Schiage.
Was war die Folge? Er starb bereits mit eilf Jahren."

254

d'un violon presque aussi grand que lui et surprendre par son execution les
artistes memes." Ich spielte fast jede Woche dreimal in den Kirchen und in
mehreren Gesellschaften, und kam ofters mit meinem ausgezeichneten Landsmanne
Francesco Gnecco zusammen, der einigen EinfluB auf meine musikalische Bildung
iiuBerte, der ISII starb, und dessen Opern in den Theatern zu Neapel, Venedig,
Mailand, Rom, Genua, Padua und Livorno mit unaussprechligem Vergntigen gehort
wurden, weil sie in einer leichten und ungezwungenen Manier geschrieben sind, die
aber nicht in das Triviale fallt; weil er die Arien angenehm, das Accompagnement
brillant und die Instrurnentalsatze meistens gut zu schreiben verstand, wodurch er
den Kennern und Nichtkennern zugleich gefiel.'04
"Bald fand ich, im neunten Jahre, auch Gelegenheit, in dem groBen Theater
offentlich aufzutreten. Marchesi war in Genua angekomrnen, den ganz Europa als
einer der ersten Sopransanger kannte, und der bis jetzt nur wenige seines Gleichen
fand, was Umfang der Stimrne und Mannigfaltigkeit des Vortrags anbelangt. Er ist
mit Marchesi von Bologna nicht zu verwechseln, der Operndirektor war, und die
meisten Kirchenmusiken schrieb und dirigirte; seine Compositionen fur die Kirche
jedoch in Opernstyle setzte, und seine Theatermusik der Kirchenrnusik moglichst zu
niihern suchte. - Jener Marchesi, mit der ausgezeichneten Siingerin Mad.
Albertinotti 5 damals in Gesellschaft, ersuchte meinen Vater, mich in seiner
Benefice-Einnahrne spielen zu lassen, wofiir er denn wieder in dem Concerte singen
wolle, was ich mir vorgenomrnen hatte, bald nachher zu geben. Beides geschah; ich
spielte Variationen von meiner Composition tiber die Carmagnola, ein bekanntes
franzosisches Volkslied, und Marchesi schien mit meiner Leistung vollkomrnen
zufrieden zu seyn.'
"Mein Vater iiberzeugte sich nunmehr, daB er mich weiter nichts lehren konne, und
vertraute mich daher Genua's erstem Violinspieler Costa an, welcher mir in sechs
Monaten dreiBig Lectionen gab, wofiir er jedoch insgesamrnt [sic] nicht mehr und
nicht weniger als einen Dukaten erhielt. Mit Vergniigen erinnere ich mich an die
4 Chladni behauptet von ihm in der Leipziger musikalischen Zeitung (1812,Nr. 2) nach
dem Giornale Italiano und dem Reduttore [sic] del Reno: "Gnecco war sehr geschickt,
mehrere Bogen und Blasinstrumente zu spielen, und beschiiftigte sich auch mit der
Dichtkunst, so daB er selbst die Poesie zu den Opem I.e Nozze di Lauretta. Filandro e

CaroHna und La Proya d'un Opera Seria gemacht hat, wie auch kurz vor seinem Tode
jene zu der Oper La Cooyersazione Filarmonica." Chladni schliefSt:

II

Ich stimme mit volliger Uiberzeugung [sic] in das vortheilhafte Urtheil iiber Gnecco
ein. Selbst die von ihm verfallte Poesie, wenn man sie auch eigenilich nicht fiir gut
anerkennen kann, ist, meines Erachtens, doch weit leidiicher, als die von so mancher
andern Oper.'
5paganini probably said "La Bertinotti" and Schottky transcribed "Albertinotti"
(PXB).

255

Sorgfalt des guten Costa, dem ich jedoch insofem kein sonderliches Vergnugen
machen mochte, a1s mir seine Gesetze nicht selten widematiirlich erschienen, und ich
keine Lust bezeigte, seine Bogenfiihrung zu der meinigen zu machen."
Endlich fasste mein Vater den EntschluB, rnich zu dem ausgezeichneten
Componisten Rolla zu bringen, und wir reisten nach Parma abo Da er jedoch eben
krank und bettlagerig war, fuhrte uns seine Frau in ein Nebenzimmer, wo ich eine
Violine und das neueste Concert des Meisters auf einem Tische fand. Es bedurfte
nur eines Winkes meines Vaters, das Instrument in die Hand zu nehmen, und das
Concert a Vista herabzuspielen. Der kranke Compositeur wurde auf einmal heiter,
fragte: wer sich auf diese Art horen lieBe, und wollte durchaus nicht glauben daB es
ein Knabe seyn konne, Wie er sich jedoch davon uberzeugre, rief er aus: "Hier kann
auch ich nichts mehr lehren, geht nur in Gottes Namen zu Paer; hier verliert ihr eure
Zeit nur fruchtlos.'
"Paer, der damals dem Conservatorium der Musik zu Parma vorstand, empfing mich
sehr gutig, und wies rnich an seinen eigenen Lehrer, den alten aber viet erfahrenen
neapolitanischen Kapellmeister Giretti, der mich nun formlich in die Lehre nahm,
und mir ein halbes Jahr lang,jede Woche dreimal Unterricht im Contrapunkte gab.
Ich cornponirte bei ihm 24 Fugen zu vier Handen als Studien, und zwar ohne
Begleitung jedes Instrurnentes, nur bei Tinte, Feder und Papier. Ich machte
bedeutende Fortschritte, wei! eigene Neigung mich vorwlirts trieb; und bald
interessirte sich nun Paer selbst so sehr fur mich, daB er mich lieb gewann und
durchaus haben wollte: ich solie jeden Tag zweimal zu ibm kommen, urn mit ibm zu
arbeiten. Nach etwa vier Monaten trug er rnir die Composition eines Duetto auf,
das er dann heiter lachelnd durchsah, dabei erklarend, keinen Fehler gegen den
reinen Satz anzutreffen. Kurze Zeit darauf reiste er nach Venedig, urn dort eine
Oper zu schreiben; wir trennten uns demnach fur langere Zeit, doch kehrte ich
spaterhin immer mit Vergniigen zu diesern groBenMeister wieder zuruck, a1s dessen
dankbaren Schiiler ich mich mit Freude bezeichne."
"Die a1lzugroBe Strenge meines Vaters schien mir nun immer driickender zu werden,
jemehr sich mein Talent und meine Kenntnisse entwickelten. Gem hatte ich mich
von ihrn los gemacht, urn allein zu reisen; aber der harte Mentor wich mir nicht von
der Seite, sondern begleitete mich durch die meisten oberitalienischen Stadte,
besonders durch Mailand, Bologna, Florenz, Pisa, Livorno

U.S.W.,

wo ich uberall

Concerte veranstaltete und vielen Beifall erhielt. lch war damals etwa vierzehn Jahre
alr, und gefiel rnir sehr in meinem Wirkungskreise, bis auf die erwlihnte harte
Oberaufsicht des Vaters, der endlich wieder mit mir nach Genua zunlckkehrte."
"In jener Zeit herrschte zu Lucca die Gewohnheit, alljlihjrlich am Feste des heiligen

256

Martin ein groBes Musikfest zu veranstalten, wozu man Fremde aus allen Gegenden
einlud und zahlreiche Reisende aus eigenem Antrieb herbeistromten. Bei dem
nachsten Herannahen desselben suchte ich den Vater zu bewegen: mich in
Begleitung meines Bruders ebenfalls dahin reisen und auftreten zu lassen. Nach
langem Weigem erlaubte er es endlich, und nun fiiWte ich mich von der hemmenden
Fessel befreit. Ich trat offentlich als Solospieler auf, und der erworbene Beifall
ermuthigte mich, nun auf gut Gluck meine fruheren Streifziige zu wiederholen,
wobei ieh manche k1eine Abentheuererlebte."
"Man suchte mich in verschiedenen Stadten zu fesseln, theils als
Concertspieler, theils als Orchester=Direktor; rnein feuriger, ja ich will sagen
ungeztigelter Sinn scheute indeB jede feste Stellung; das Reisen gefiel mir und es
war mir unmoglich, geraume Zeit an einem One zu verweilen."
"Auf einer dieser artistischen Wanderungen kam ich, gerade zur Zeit der
franziisischen Revolution, abermals nach dem Freihafen Livorno, mit Empfehlungen
an den englischen Consul, der mich auch sehr gtitig empfing, mir einen Saal
anweisen lieB und fiir ein zahlreiches Publikum sorgte. Doch Livomo harte, gleich
so vielen anderen Stadten, seine eigene abgeschlossene Musikgesellschaft, die sich
beleidigt fuhlte, nieht an sie empfohlen zu seyn, und es nun dahin zu bringen
verstand, daB mir die gewohnlichen Orchester=Mitglieder untreu wurden. Das
Concert sollte urn 8 Uhr beginnen, der Saal war gefiillt, und noch lieB sich kein
fremder Spieler blicken. Endlich fanden sich drei oder vier mittelmaBige Geister ein;
nattirlich musste ich andere Stucke als die angesetzten wahlen, Mein erwachter
Ehrgeiz JieB mich aber Alles aufbieten, beinah drei Stunden lang, die Versarnmlung
durch das jugendlich lebendigste Spiel zu unterhalten. Man erkannte mein
Bestreben mit dem lautesten Beifalle an, tadelte eben so lebhaft die gehassigen
Gegner, und wuBte es dahin zu bringen, daB mein nachstes Concert in Theater bei
gedrangt vollem Hause und mit voller Orchesterbegleitung gegeben wurde; bei
welcher Gelegenheit sich die feindJiche Partei damit enrschuldigte,sie harte mich fiir
zu jung gehalten, urn das Versprochene auch wirklieh leisten zu konnen,'
"Wenn es mit meinen Gewohnheiten ubereinstimmte, ein Tagebuch zu fiihren; wenn
ieh Rezensionen sarnmelte, die in fttiherer oder spaterer Zeit tiber mich geschrieben
wurden, oder wenn ich auch nur einen Theil der unzahligen Briefe mit mir fuhrte, die
ich aus allen Gegenden und von mehr oder weniger vertrauten Bekannten erhielt, so wurde ich leicht im Stande seyn, Ihnen (so fuhr Paganini fort) unzahlige
Anekdoten aus meinem Jugende und KtinstJerJeben zu erzahlen, die nicht ohne
Interesse seyn durften, da meine Kreuz= und Querztige oft den Irrfahrten des
Ulysses gleichen. Aber, wie ist es mir gegenwartig moglich, mich so zu sammeln,
urn, wenn auch nicht auf alle, doch wenigstens auf die nothigsten Fragen des

257

Biographen geniigend antworten zu konnen? Kaum von der heftigsten Krankheit

einigermaBen genesen, stets durch zahlreiche Concerte iibermiiBig angestrengt, durch
meinen kleinen Sohn Achillino, wie durch viele Besuche fortwahrend gestort und
dabei den Kopf voll Gedanken iiber mancherlei Compositionen, die ich nothwendig
noch schreiben muB, urn am Ende nicht monoton zu werden, - wie ist es unter
solchen Umstanden moglich, Ihren Anforderungen, Heber Freund, geniigend zu
entsprechen? Wenn Sie nun auch auf einige Vollstandigkeit bei meiner
Lebensskizze rechneten, so muB ich Sie beklagen; dazu gehorte eine Reise, die Sie
selbst durch Italien machen miiBten, urn hie und da von Menschen und aus
Joumalen Nachrichten iiber mich einzuziehen, die meinem Gedachtnisse selbst
bereits entfremdet sind. Ihr Publikum wird sich bescheiden miissen; doch vielleicht
ist ihm bereits dies Wenige schon zu Viel, was ich von mir gegenwartig zu erzahlen
weiB: denn ein Kiinstler bleibt doch immer nichts weiter als ein Kiinstler, und in
unserem Zeitalter der ausgezeichneten Manner darf ich nicht darauf rechnen, daB
solche skizzenartige Notizen aus meinem Leben ein zahlreiches Lese=Publikum
finden konnten, Wollen Sie rhapsodische Satze, ist Ihnen mit Aphorismen gedient,
und haben Sie Muth genug, solche an den Mann zu bringen, so bin ich jedoch gem
bereit, die Falten meines Gedachtnisses ein wenig auseinander zu ziehen, und darin
aufzusuchen, was eigentlich fiir immer darin begraben seyn sollte. Also zur Sache!"
"Einer meiner Ausfliige, der keine Kunst= sondem nur eine Lustreise war,
fiihrte mich einst auch wieder nach Livorno, wo man mich zu einem Concerte
nothigte. Der kunstliebende reiche Kaufmann, Herr Livron, lieh mir eine Guarnieri,
da ich keine Violine bei mir hatte; nach geendigtem Spiele jedoch lehnte er es ab, sie
zuriickzunehmen: ich will sie nich profaniren, rief er aus, daher behalten Sie, lieber
Paganini, das Instrument und bleiben Sie meiner eingedenk!"
"Auf ahnliche Weise erging es mir zu Parma: Herr Pasini, ein ausgezeichneter
Maler, horte von meiner Fertigkeit, Alles a Vista zu spielen; er legte mir ein sehr
schwieriges Concert mit der AeuBerung vor, mir eine geschatzte Geige als Geschenk
zu geben, wenn ich die Aufgabe geniigend loste: Die Violine wurde mein
Eigenthum."
"Fiir langere Zeit zog ich mich von Parma nach Genua wieder zuriick, wo ich
mehr den Dilettanten als den Virtuosen machte; und zwar viel, doch grtiBtentheils
nur in geschlossenen Zirkeln spielte. Dafiir aber beschaftigte ich mich ziemlich
fleiBig mit Compositionen, und schrieb auch Zahlreiches fiir die Guitarre."
"Gegenwartig, als Mann, an dem ein vielbewegtes Leben oft stiirrnisch genug
voruberzog, darf ich es wohl gestehen, daB meine Jugend keineswegs frei von der
Fehlem aller jungen Leute war, die, langere Zeit fast sklavisch erzogen, sich dann

258

pliitzlich jeder Bande loB und sich selbst iiberlassen fiihlen, und nun fiir lange
Entbehrung, GenuB auf GenuB zusammen drangen wollen. Mein Talent fand von
allen Seiten aulserordentliche, ja fur einen jungen, feurigen Mann zu groBe
Anerkennung; das ungebundene Umherreisen; der Enthusiasmus, den fast jeder
Italiener fiir die Kunst empfindet; ein genuesisches Blut, das ein klein wenig
schneller zu stromen scheint, als das deutsche, - alles dies, und so manches andere
der Art mehr, lieB mich oft in Gesellschaften gerathen, die in der That nicht die
besten waren. Ich muss es aufrichtig sagen, daB ich mehr als einrnal in die Hande
solcher Leute fiel, die weit fertiger und gliicklicher spielten als ich, aber freilich
weder die Violine noch die Guitarre. Ich verlor oft an einem Abende die Frucht
mehrerer Concerte und sah mich nicht selten durch Leichtsinn in Verlegenheiten,
woraus mich nur die eigene Kunst immer wieder zu retten verrnochte."
"Aber diese Perioden waren zum Gliick voriibergehend; ich bedaure es, daB
sie statt fanden, will aber durchaus nicht glanzender erscheinen, als ich es bin, und
bitte Sie auch, die einfache Wahrheit Ihren Lesem mitzutheilen, unter denen es doch
vielleicht Einige gibt, die den Stein nicht gegen mich aufheben, die in ihren eigenen
Busen greifen, oder doch nicht Lust haben, geradezu zu verdarnrnen, bevor sie nicht
in die andere Wagschaale legten, was Klima, mangelhafte Erziehung, italienische
Sitte und die Art und Weise des
Kiinsderlebens iiberhaupt verschuldeten."
"Doch, urn jetzt noch ein Wort von den Verwandten zu sprechen! DaB ich
meine Familie nach Moglichkeit, nach meinen besten Kraften unterstutzte, kann ich
heilig betheuern, aber ich schuf dadurch freilich nur Undankbare. Nachdem ich
langere Zeit am Hofe von Lucca gelebt hatte, wo die geringe Besoldung meinen
Wiinschen jedoch nicht entsprechen konnte, so beschloB ich, wieder selbststandig
aufzutreten, und als ungebundener Kiinstler zu reisen. Ich hatte die Sumrne von
2oo

Franken baar [sic] gesarnrnelt, und nahm mir vor, einen Theil derselben den
Eltem als Unterstiitzung anzubieten. Mit einigen tausend Franken wollte sich mein
Vater jedoch nicht zufrieden stellen; er verlangte das Ganze und drohte mir selbst
mit dem Tode, wollte ich seinem Begehren nicht willfahren. Er war mit den
Interessen nicht zufrieden, wie ich es wunschre, sondern verlangte den
Gesarnrntbetrag auf seinen Namen in die Gerichtsakten eingetragen zu sehen. Urn
Frieden zu behalten, opferte ich wenigstens das Meiste davon auf; und unterlieB es
nicht, weil ich die PfIichten eines Sohnes ehre, meine Mutter unausgesetzt zu
untersnitzen, als der Vater (vor etwa zwolf Jahren) gestorben war. Einer Schwester,
welche einen Glashandler zum Manne hat, machte ich ein Darlehen von 5000
Franken, das aber bald verschwendet war; die Zweite, deren Mann sich dem Spiele
ganz ergeben hatte und von ihm zu wiederholtenmalen verlassen wurde, blieb ihm
dennoch mit blinder Liebe zugerhan: und wuBte die Mutter, als deren Liebling sie

259

erschien, dahin zu bewegen, von mir sehr betrachtlige Summen zu fordem, die ich
auch stets iibersandte, in der Meinung: meine Mutter bediirfe das Geld; wahrend sie
es stets dem Schwiegersohne einhandigte, der es bald verspielt hatte. Mir wurde
Alles verheimlicht; ja, als die Mutter sogar sieben Monate nacheinander bei mir
allein lebte, sagte sie mir kein Wort davon; bis ich in Genua aile Verhaltnisse von
fremden Menschen erfahren muBte. Dieser Mangel an Zutrauen und die gewonnene
Uiberzeugung [sic], daB man mich nur als Mittel zu habsiichtigen Zwecken
betrachte, emporte mich auf das auBerste; und ich beschloB, mich einige Zeit von all'
diesen Undankbaren loszusagen, die keine andere Liebe, als die eigenniitzige
kennen." - (Zu grollerer Bekraftigung dieser AeuBerungen legte mir jetzt in Beiseyn
des Herro Marco Berra jene Rechnungen vor, welche ihm sein Advokat, Herr Luigi
Gerrni, im Jahre 1826 aus Genua nach Neapel gesandt hatte, woraus hervorgeht, daB
der Farnilie des Kiinstlers von seinem baaren [sic] Vermogen binnen kurzer Zeit
iiber 5000 Franken Hausbediirfnisse gezahlt worden waren, und zwar nicht als
VorschuB, sondem als freies Geschenk).
"Unwandelbar jedoch - nahm Paganini wieder das Wort - ist meine Liebe zu
meiner Mutter, die mir erst vor kurzer Zeit einen herzlichen Brief schrieb, dessen
Mittheilung Ihnen vielleicht willkommen ist. Er lautet:
Carissimo Figlio!
Finalmente dopo sette circa mesi che v'inviai una mia in Milano, ebbi la consolazione di
recevere una vostra in data dei 9 corrente per mezzo del Sig. Agnino, la quale mi e estata di giubilo
assai nel sentire la vostra buonasalute; altrettanto mi ~ stato caro il sentire che dopa il viaggio di
Parigi e quello di Londra, siate intenzionato portarvi in Genova per riabbracciarmi. 10 vi protesto
che prego tutti i giorni I' Altissimo accio mi dia salute. non che a Voi perche possasi effettuare
ambi i desiderj.
n sogno s'e verificato, quello che Dio mi disse e succeduto, il VOSlrO nome e grande, e l'arte
v' ha procurato con I' ajuto di Dio un comodo state; amato e stimato da vostri concittadini, fra Ie
mie braccia, e fra quelle de vostri amici.goderete del riposoche la vostra salute domanda.
Mi sono stati pure di piacere i rittrati che mi mandaste nella vostra lettera, e gia' avevo
inteso tutto quanto dettaglie la nostra gazetta sui vostro conto; potete credere che per una madre
furono estremamente di gioja tali nuove. Caro figlio altro non desidero che mi continuate sempre
vostre notizie, perche una tale fiducciasembrami di potercampare pill lungamente, ed essere certa di
avereungiomo it bene.e la contentezza d' abbracciarvi.
Noi tutti stiamo bene, e a nome de vostri parenti vi ringrazio per Ie Somme mandate.

Abbiate cura e fate sl, che il vostro nome si renda immortale, Guardatevi dal!e intemperie di quelle
vaste dna, e sovvenitevi che avete unamadre che vi amadi cuore, e che non tralasciera giammai di
porgere voti al sommo Iddio per la vostra conservazione. Pregovi di dare un' abbraccio alia vostra
amabilissima compagna, non che un bacia al piccolo Achille, Amatemi ehe siete di euore
eorrisposto.
Semprevostraaffezzionata madre
Teresa Paganini.

Genova Ii 21 Luglio 1828. "

260

2. Paganini' s secret I
"Sehr oft kam Paganini in seinen Gesprache mit mir darauf zuruck, daB er der Welt einst,
nachdem er seine Reisen vollendet und sich in die Ruhe zuriickgezogen haben werde, ein
musikalisches Geheimnis mittheilen wolle, was in keinem Conservatorium der Musik zu
lernen seie; und durch dessen Besitz sich dann ein junger Mensch binnen dem Zeitraume
von hochstens drei Jahren vollig ausbilden konne, wahrend er sonst vielleicht zehn Jahre
bediirfen wurde. Ich ftagte ibn wiederholt, ob er nicht scherze, ob es ibm wirklich mit dieser
Versicherung Ernst seie, worauf er jedesmal erwiederte: "Ich schwore es Ihnen zu, daB ich
die Wahrheit sage, und berechtige Sie, dies in meiner Biographie ausdriicklich zu erwahnen.
Nur ein einziger Mensch, der jetzt etwa 24 Jahre alt ist, Herr Gaetano Ciaudelli 2 zu
Neapel, kennt mein Geheirnnill. Er spielte schon liingere Zeit das Violoncell auf eine hOchst
mittelmliBige Art, so daB sein Spiel fur alltaglich galt und mit Recht ohne Beachtung blieb.
Da mich der junge Mann aber interessirte, und ich ibn begiinstigen wollte: so machte ich ibn
mit meiner Entdeckung bekannt, welche so vortheilhaft auf ihn wirkte, daB er in dem
Zeitraum von drei Tage ein ganz anderer Mensch wurde, und man tiber die plotzliche
Umschaffung seines Spiels Wunder tiber Wunder rief. Wahrend er friiher kratzte, daB es
den Ohren wehe that, und die schiilerhaftete Bogenfiihrung hatte: war sein Ton jetzt rein, voll
und lieblich; er hatte den Bogenstrich ganz in seiner Gewalt und brachte auf seine
erstaunten Zuhorer den bedeutendsten Eindruck hervor." -Man wird mir leicht glauben, daB
auch ich zu dieser ErkHirung unglaubig den Kopf schtittelte, da sie wenigstens mein
Fasungsvermogen tibersteigt. Da mich Paganini jedoch fort wahrend tiber den Ernst seiner
Behauptungen zu versichern suchte, so erklarte ich ibm, diese Anekdote dem Publikum zu
beliebiger Beurtheilung vorlegen zu wollen, was er vollkommen gut hieB, und mir noch, zu
grolserer Bekraftigung, nachstehende Worte eigenhandig niederschrieb, welche ich Herro
Compositeur Tomaschek zu Prag als Geschenk in sein Stammbuch tibergab:

'Gaetano Ciaudelli di Napoli per la magia comunicatagli da Paganini divenne primo

Violoncello dei R.R.Teatri Cola. e potrebbe essere il primo d'Europa.'
"Mein GeheimniB, wenn ich es so nennen darf, durfte den Violinspielern die Wege
andeuten, um die Natur des Instrumentes besser zu ergriinden, aIs es bisher geschehen ist.
und welches weit reicher zeigt, als man gewohnlich annimmt. Nicht dem Zufalle, sondern,
ernstem Studium verdanke ich diese Entdeckung, bei deren Anwendung man nicht mehr
nothig haben wird, taglich 4-5 Stunden uben: sie muB die gegenwartige Lehrmethode, worin
sich's mehr urn's Erschweren als urn's Lehren zu handeln scheint, verdrangen; doch fur
einen Irrthum muB ich's erklaren, wenn man dies GeheimniB, dessen Ausfuhrung Geist
erfordet, nur in meiner Geigenstimmung oder wohl gar im Bogen allein finden will."
1Schottky, Julius Max, op. cit., pp. 276-79.
2ciaudelli, Gaetano (> Fenzi and Paganini), held the post of Professor at the
Academy of Music of San Pietro a Majella (Naples) from 1844 to 1865. His students
included Forino, Laboccetta, Giarriliello, Boubee, and Braga. See: Forino, Luigi, II
Violoncello. Milano: Hoepli, 1930, p.383-84. [my note]

261

"Paganini, in his conversations with me, used to frequently return to the point that
sometimes, once he had ended his travels and had retired to a life of repose, he would
divulge a musical secret which was not to be learned in any conservatorium of music; and by
the possession of which a young man could, within the period of at most three years, attain
to complete artistic development, whereas otherwise he would require perhaps ten. I
repeatedly asked him whether he was not joking, whether he really meant the statement
seriously, and to this each time he replied: -'1 swear to you that 1 am speaking the truth, and I
authorise you to mention this expressly in my biography. Only one man, who is now about
twenty-four years of age, Mr Gaetano Ciaudelli, in Naples, knows my secret. He had for a
long time played the 'cello in very mediocre fashion, so that his playing was considered to be
of the everyday order and justly passed without special notice. As the young man interested
me, however, and I wanted to favour him, 1 acquainted him with my discovery, which had
such a beneficial effect upon him that within three days he was completely transformed, and
the sudden change in his playing was considered truly miraculous. Whereas he formerly
scraped in a way offensive to the ear, and used the bow like a beginner, his tone was now
pure, full, and sweet; he had now the bow under his command and made a most powerful
impact on his astonished listeners.' It won't be difficult to believe me, [continues Schottky]
that 1 shook my head incredulously at this declaration which at least surpasses my
understanding. Still, as Paganini kept on trying to assure me that his assertions were meant
seriously, 1 told him that I proposed to submit this story to the public to judge as they see fit.
He totally approved of this and, as if to clinch the matter, he himself wrote the following
lines, which 1 passed on to Mr Tornaschek, the Prague composer, as a present for his
autograph album:

Gaetano Ciaudelli of Naples became by virtue of the formula [magia] communicated to

him by Paganini, the first violoncellist at the Royal Theatres in that city and could be the
first in Europe.
"My secret, if 1 Can call it such, might give the violinists a better insight into the nature of the
instrument than has been the case so far. It appears far richer than it is commonly assumed.
lowe that discovery not to chance, but to serious study. By applying it, it will no longer be
necessary to practise four or five hours a day. It must supplant present-day teaching
methods, which seem to make things difficult rather than to provide tuition. However, I must
make it clear that it would be a mistake to try and fathom this mystery - the expression of
which demands inspiration - only in my manner of tuning the violin, or, indeed, in my
bowing."

[ttl. PXBJ

262

SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY

263

MANUSCRIPTS
1. Originals
De Giovanni,Nicola.
(>Costa and Paganini)

Metodg teorico-praticQ dj NiceolO De Giovanni per ben fare sui

VjoljoQ Gli Armoojci sempljci triJlatj e dopoY, Genoa: Biblioteca del

Conservatorio Niccolo Paganini,

Giornovik, Giovanni.

Ems. Cas. 5879J, Rome: B.Cas.

Krommer, Franz

Ems. Cas. 5924], Rome: B.Cas.

Paganini, Niccolb.

[ms. Cas. 5560, 5562;5566.67; 5575-77; 5587; 5598; 5599;

5622;5625-27; 5635-5645; 5649; 5704; 6721], Rome: B.Cas.
Sonata a Vjolino e ViQla (viola part only) Genoa: Biblioteca del
Conservatorio di Musica N. Paganini,
Largo con forte espressjone e sempre crescendo,

(Album d'autographes de Dantan, autograph dated 21 July 1837)

Paris: B.N. [Res. Vm7537],cote microfilm R.799.
Gamme cbmmatiQue e1 contraire (Album duPrince
Wielhorski, autograph dated 27 JUly 1837), Paris: B.N. [23.18)
Allegro assaj (Album d'Alfred de Beauchesne, autograph dated II
July 1837, Paris:B.N. [W.24, 30, p.46].
Rolla, Alessandro.

Concerto ger VioUno [ms. Cas. 6072], Rome: B.Cas.; Stud;j Der 2
~ ems. Cas. 6075], Rome: RCas.

2. Microfilms
Locatelli, Pietro Antonio.

Capriccio del Sig Localelly, Paris: B.N.[Vm7-1686].

Paganini, Niccolo.

CapriccioperVjo!joq lJrnigliato a StEt il Sig,Conle Maurizio

Djetrichste;n , autograph dated 9 August 1828, Vienna:

OsterreichiscncNationalbibliothek (BibHotecaPalatina
Vindobonensis)[mus HSI8718].
SCilla ohljgvae cOQ(rarja per Chjtarra dj p'dganjnj, autograph dated 4

January 1829, Prague: Museum Ceske Hudby [TrB 510].

Sesuetg cownnicato e raccoIDandatQ da Pa&anini al suo Cam arnica

L G Genn;. Photostat 998, suppl. to Maia Bang collection. Library of

Congress. Music Division (Location of original manuscript
unknown).
Al menta sivgolare di MadamigelJa Clara Wieck. chromatic scale for
the piano, harmonised in contrary motion (Clara Wieck's album,
autograph dated Leipzig, 16 October 1829), Dresden: Sachsische
Landesbibliothek [Mus. Schu, 223].
Prelud;o ger Vjolino. (Clara Wieck', album,
autograph dated Leipzig, 16 October 1829), Dresden: Slichsische
Landesbibliothek [Mus. Schu. 224].

Stamitz, Johann.

60 Caprices, vjolino, Vienna: Sammlungen der Gesellschaft der

Musikfreunde [Mus. ms. 23464]

264

3. Photostats
La Semaine du Yio!oojste au Exercjces QUQtidiens.suivis de la

Anon.

notationdu fam.ux Hi-Han de l'a~anini, Depot legal Meurthe-etMoselle N' 10, 1889. B.N. call numberL.8. 695.[This booklet
consists of 2 pages of music written by hand - scales and arpeggios
for daily practice.The last number is an interesting notation (probably
written from memory by the unknown author) of one of Paganini's
famous "farmyard irnitations.The transcription.reproduced in footnote
I, is preceded by the following explanatory note: "Dans un
concert de Paganini, au figurait La chanteuse Pallierini, celle-ci est
impertinemment sifjIee. Paganini la vengea sur le champ en
executanrsur son violon le ilidian. ci -dessous, qui fit trepigner fa
salle d'allegresse et valut aI'ane improvise des applaudissements
enthousiastes."] 1
CapticiQ a 2 Violino De! Sjg. Nic. Mestrino,

Mestrino Nicolo

Paris:B.N.[Vmg18928j2
Paganini, Niccoli>.

FacsimiIe of the autggraph manuscript of Paganioi's 24 Caprices,

ed.by Federico Mompcllio, Milan, Ricordt, 1974.3

[B.N. L.9.695J 4~e corde

2

2This Caprice by Mestrino was mentioned by Paganini in a letter to Germi ( f.f.189) The copy
examined is written by hand but probably not autograph ..

3The autograph manuscript of Paganini's 24 Caprices which was handed to Signor Tomaso. an
employee of Ricordi, on 24 November 1820. is still housed in the archives of the firm. With reference to
my request to examine the document. Dr. G. Dono gave the following precisions:
Dear Philippe Borer,

The autograph of Paganini's ~ is not written on robust paper stock and is among the more delicate
documents in our archives. Thus, one reason that led to Casa Ricordi's decision to publish a facsimile, was to
offer scholars worldwide the opportunity to study this precious document. As you certainly will have noticed.
the color facsimile of the

was photographed and printed with great precision. The reproduction is

Iifesiae and all paper edges are visible. The definition quality allows precise rendition of every crease and color

variant. Finally. the darkness of the ink and clarity of the writing in the original allow for identification of all

musical notation [...1With best wishes for your work,

Sincerely yours.

G. RICORD! & C. s.p.a.

Gabriele Datto Dlrettcre Produzione Edizioni.

265

PRINTED SCORES

1. General
Alard, Delphin

24 Etudes-Caprices dans les 24 Tons de InGamme Bruxelles: Schott

Freres, 1924
Blacher, Boris.

Orchestervariatjonen tiber ejnTheron von N PaganioL 01).26. Berlin:

Bote & Bock, 1947

Bohrer, Antoine.

Caprices ou 18Etudes, Berlin: Schlesinger, 1819.

Brahms, Johannes.

Yariationen tiber einTheroa von Paganini, Opt 35, Heft 2, New-York:

Doverpublications, 1971.
Busoni,Ferruccio.

Klayjerjibune in zehnBUcher. Leipzig: Breitkopf& Hartel, 1925

FaUOini-Ljszt Thema mit Variariouen EtUde tr 6, . Eine

Transcription-Studie von Ferruccio Busoni,Leipzig:

Breitkopf & Hartel, 1914
Casimir-Ney, L.

24 Preludes pour rA!tQ Vjola op 22, RNew-York: Edition Musicus,

1961.

Dallapicola Luigi.

Sonata CanoDiea su Capriccj dj NjccolQ Paganinj per pianoforte.

Milan: Zerhoni, 1946

Ernst,Heinrich Wilhelm.

Sechsmehrntimmjge EtUden und "DerErikonig" nach Schubert,

Hamburg: Sikorski, 1954.

Lipinski, Karol.

3 kapeysy on sknypce, Krak6w: Polskie Wydawnictwo Muzyczne,

1976.
Liszt, Franz.

Grandes

Etudes de Paganjnj (ransed tes oour Ie piano (ed. by Alfred

Cortot}, Paris: Salabert, 1949.

Locatelli, Pietro.

Ci\llrices intitules rAn du Vjolon, Paris: J. Frey, 1824.

L'Arte del Vjolino, (ed by R. Franzoni), Milan: Ricordi, 1920.
L'Art du Vjolon. 25 Ci\llrices, (ed, By E. Nadaud), Paris: Costallat,
1905.

266

Lutoslawski, Witold.

Variations on a theme by Pagaoinj for two Pianos, London: Chester.

1972

Milhaud, Darius.

Trois Capricesde Paganinj (mites en duos CODcerTants DOur Viola" et

Piano, Paris: Heugel, 1927.

Mayseder, J.

6 Etudes POur Vio!oo op.29, Vienna, Universal Edition, n.d.

Nardini, Pietro.

30 Caprice" fiir Violine allejn, ed. by A. Moser, Berlin:M. Hesse.

1925

Rachmaninoff, Sergei.

Rapsodie surun theme de Paganioi. op. 43, pourpiano et orchestre,

New-York: Carl Fisher, n.d.

Schumann, Robert.

Sechs Studien Nacb Caprice" von Paganioi On 3, Frankfurt: C.F.

Peters [n.d.]
Etudes d'apres des Caprices de Paganini op, 10, Frankfurt: C.F.
Peters .n.d.
Robert SchuIDanns Werlce, Serie VII, Leipzig:

Breitkopf & Hartel, 1877; RWestmead, Eng.: Gregg Press, 1968.

Sivori, Camillo.

Donze Etudes-Caprices pour violo" seul, Paris: Alphonse Leduc, n.d.

Poulenc, Francis

Metamorphoses, I. Reine des Mouettes; Il.C'est ainsi que tu es; n.

Paganini, Paris: Salabert, 1944.

Prume, Francois,

Six grandes etudes pour Violoo op. 2, Braunschweig: H. Litolff, n.d.

RochbergGeorge.

Caprice Variatjons for Unaccompanied Vio!jo. New- York: Galaxy

Music, 1973.

Schnittke, Alfred.

A Paganjni per violi"o solo, Hamburg: Sikorski, 1983.

Szymanowski, Karol.

Trzv Kaprysy Pagaujnjego, Vienna, 1926.

Vieuxtemps, Henri.

Capriccjo flir Viola op, poslh , Mainz, B. SChOll'S Sohne, 1973.

Ysaye, Eugene.

Six Sonates pour Viola" seul, Bruxelles: schon Freres, 1924.

267

2. Editions of the Caprices

The popularity of the Caprices is reflected in the comparatively large number of published
editions. As T. Wronski points out in the preface of his own 1977 edition of the work, there are
firmly rooted performing traditions which, although departing from the original notation, may
well go back to people who heard Paganini play. Such traditions as some bariolages in the
second and the twelfth Caprices, the double harmonics in the ninth etc., are already reflected in
some of the earlier editions.

Yellr

Editor

1820

Pillce

Milan

Publisher

Ricordi

PlIrticulllrities

First

edition, engraved after

Paganini's

1823 1
1826(?)

H. Auteur

1830

Leipzig

Breitkopf&Hartel

Paris

Richault

Florence

Lorenzi

instructions

probably a pirated edition

of Ricordi's

1831

B. Henry

1836

Paris

Pacini

Milan

2nd Ricard; edition

1839

N. Mori

London

Wessel& Co

1843(?)

F. David

Leipzig

Breitkopf&Hartel

1851

J.L. Massart

Paris

5chonenberger

1873

G. Papini

Milan

Ricordi

E. Singer

1884

J. Becker

Leipzig

Peters(n'6386)

1900

E.Kross

Mainz

Schott

Jnd Ricard; edition

Litolff

the order of the caprices is

completely re-arranged
according to a criterion of

"progressive

1 Date given by Albi Rosenthal in: A Intriguing Copy of Paganini's 24 Caprices (Genoa, 1982)

Z 16-S-II-IO-IS-ZI-ZZ-7-14-13-IZ-9-B-I-Z3-6-19-1 B-Z-3-20-4-17-Z4.

268

djffjcuJty~

A. Rose

Vienna

Universal

1917

A. Lefort

Paris

Durand

1920

G. Marchet

Paris

E.Gallet

"Edition Nationale"

1921

A.Bachmann

Paris

E. Gallet

With 2nd Violin ace.

1921

E. Polo

Milan

Ricordi

1924

F. von Reuter

Leipzig

Eulenburg

The title-page reads: "Revised -

allen freely -for works of study

and in the concert execution".
There is a detailed prtface and a
short introduction into each
Caprice.

1925

J. Hubay

1926

A. Busch

1930(1)

Carl Flesh

Frankfurt

Peters

1941

G. Schiinemann

Frankfurt

Peters

Vienna
1

Universal Ed.

with piano ace. by Schumann

&. urtext ed. of the violin part

1944

H. Berkley

New-York

Schirmer

1945

A. Poltronieri

Milan

Carish

1946

M. Abbado

Milan

Suvini Zerboni

1949

D.C. Dounis

London

The Strad

1952

Gallais Montbrun Paris

Leduc

1952

R. Benedetti

Paris

Choudens

1954

F. 5chmidlner

Hamburg

Sikorski

1958

R. Principe

Milan

Curci

contains preparatory
exercises for Caprice J
(simplified versions and

theory of the "chain system")

1959

K.G. Mostrass

1970

C. Barison

Murghiz
Milan

Carish

the book contains an edition of

10 Caprices as wdl as
preparatory exercises J

1970(1)

L. Raby

New-York

I.M.C.

39-10-11-13-14-15-16-18-20-21.

269

(rans. for viola

1973

1. Galamian

New-York

I.M.C

1974

A. Ghertovici

Bucarest

Editura Musicala

1975

j.Wumrner

New-York

I.M.C

1977

T. Wronsky

Krakow

Polskie Wydawnictwo

trans, for

jluu

Muzyczne

1980

j. Sedivka

not published

available at the Tasmanian

Conserviuonum of Mu.sic
Library

1982

F. Gulli

Milan

Curci

1982

T.Nonnan

Henmar Press

New-York

1984

R. Ricci

Budapest

Editio Muska

1986

K.Hertel

Leipzig

Peters

"unext" edition

1988

Neill! Accardo

Milan

Ricordi

"urtext" edition

1990

R.De Barbieri

Miinchen

G.Henle

"urtext" edition

N.B.

trails. [or guitar

Geraldine de Courey (Pgq"njni the Genoese, uot.It, p.374) mentions en edition by L.Auer but

does't giue Ilny date or publisher. The highly interesting edition published by Kalmus is still
Quailable ( New-York, K 04405}, but, unfortunately enough, the editor's name is not mentioned.

270

BOOKS AND ARTICLES

B.Cas. Biblioteca Casanatense, Rome
B.N. Bibliotheque Naticnale, Paris

ms.

manuscript

not dated
R
reprint
trl.
translated
>
indicates relation pupil to teacher
Dates of birth and death are indicated only for authors of primary sources
n.d.

Abbado, Michelangelo.

"Ho vista Nicolo Paganini", in: La Lettura [Milan] (August 1941).

Come studiare i CwOke; di Paganini. Milan: Suvini Zerboni, 1973.

Abraham. Gerald (editor).

The Age of Beethoven, 1790-1830,London: O.U.P.,1982

Altman, Ian Henry.

Liszt'sGrand Etudes after Paianjnj: a historical and analytical study,

DMA diss University of Cincinnati. 1984.

Anders, G.E.
(1795-1866)

NicolO Pagani";, sa vie sa oeCSQone et quelques mots sur son secret,

Paris.Delaunay.ISd I.

Anon.

Paeanjnj's Method of producing the Hannopic Double Stops,

London, I 840. [University of London library (Royal College of
Music), Call N LXX.F.32 (2)]

Ansermet, Ernest.

Les Eondements de 13 MusjQue dans 13 Conscience Humajne,

Neuchil.tel: Editions de la Baconniere, 1961.

Armando. Walter G.

Paganjnj ejne BjQgraghje, Hamburg: RUtten & Loening, 1960.

Audibert, Henri,

Pagavinj Concerto Style, Narbonne: chez l'Auteur, 1974.

Auer, Leopold.
(>Kohne. Dont and Joachim)

Violin Playing as I Teach It. London: Duckworth, 1960.

Bach. Carl Philipp Emanuel.

Versucb tiber die wahre Art das Clavierzu Spie\en, ersterTheil,

Berlin: the Author. 1753.RLeipzig 1957. (English translation as:
Essay Qn the True Artof Playine KeybQard Ins(ruments, ttl. by
William Mitchell, New-York:Norton, 1949]

Bachmann,Alberto Abraham.
(>Yseye and Thomson)

An EncyclQpedia QftheVjQlin. trl. by F.H. Martens, New-York:

D. Appletan,1925.
Les Grands VjQJQDistes du passe, with a letter-preface by Joseph
Joachim.Paris: Fischbacher, 1913.

271

GymoastiQue al'Usaee des Vjoloojstes DOur Ie nvelm>pement de la

E!lm: de la Main Gauche. Paris: Fischbacher, 1914.

"Nicolo Paganini, sa vie. son ceuvre et son influence" in: Mercure
Musical, 1907,pp.1238-1269 and 1908,pp, 4-25)

Bailbe, J.M.

Le Roman et la Musiaue sous 13 Monarchic de Juillel,

Paris: Minard, 1969.

Belgrano,Tomaso

ImbrevjalUre di Giovanni Scriba, Genoa: Tipografia dell'Istituto

Sordomuti, 1882

Baillot, Pierre Marie

L'An du VioloO' nouvelle Melhode, Paris, 1834.

(1771-1842)
(>Polidori, Pollani and Viotti)
Balzac, Honore de.
(1799-1850)

Modeste Mi~on, [on Moscheles and Paganini, ch.I, P.681].

Le Cousin Pons. [ch. XIII, p. 2381
Le Voleur (Joyrnal d'E de Girardin). [20 mars 1831]
~, [ch.m, p.249]
Letterto S H Berthoud. dated Paris, 18 March, 1831

Barat, Endre.

Boszork;inytl\nk Paganinieletregenye, Budapest:ZenemUkiad6, 1972

Bargellini, Sante.

"Paganini and the Princess", in: The Musical Quarterly XX/4

(October 1934), pp. 408-418.

Barmas,Issay

Die LOsung des vejgemechnischen Problems, Berlin: Ed.Bote &

G.Bock. 1913.

Barres,Maurice

Du sang. de la vo!up!e el de la mort, Paris, 1894. [Also published in

YoUI of L'Garvre de Maurice Barres, Paris: Club de I'Honnete
Homme. 1965. with a preface by L. d'Aragcn and notes by Henri
Quittard, Lue De Vos and Paul Desachy. Of high interest, the long

footnote after the phrase "...Plus haute que routes et seule

fastueuse, voici la tombe du rnysterieux Paganini..."]

Baudelaire, Charles

Choix de Maximes Consolantes sur l'AmQur. in: (Euvres

Paris, La Pleiade. [on Paganini, see p. 1\89J

CQmpH~tes.

Les Paradjs Artjficiels

Beguin, Albert,

L'Ame romantjqueet Ie Reve, Paris: Jose Corti, 1956.

Bennati, Francesco.
(1788-1834)

"Notice physiologique sur Nicolo Paganini", in Revue de Paris,

XXVU17 (May 1831)

Berger, Karol.

Muska ficta: theories of accidental inflections in vocal polyphony,

Cambridge: C.U.P., 1987.

272

Beriot. Charles Auguste de

(1802-1870)

Methode de Vjolon, op.102 (3 Vol.), Paris,1858. [in vol.ID de Beriot

attempts at applying on the violin the principles of the bel como as
passed on to him by his wife Maria MaJibran (>Garcia)]

Berlioz. Hector.
(1803-1869)

Memojres, 2 vol., Paris: Calmann Levy, 1878 [on Paganini, see, in

particular, vol. I, p. 30 I].
Grand Tr;1ite d'Instmmentiltion et d'Qrchestralioo Moderne, Paris:
Schonenberger, 1844.

Bernstein, Susan.

Virtyosity of the Njneteenth. Centur,y: Music and I .anguaU jn Heine

1 is't and Baudeiaire. PhD diss, The John Hopkins University,
Baltimore,Maryland, 1994.

Berri, Pietro.

Paganini ia vjta e ie oDere, Milan: Bornpiani, 1982.

Berthoud.Eugene.

Gymnastjque du Vjoloniste, Geneve: Henn, n.d.

Borer, Philippe.

"Les 24 Caprices de Paganini et la Constellation Romantique", in:

Revue Musicale de Suisse Romande, N"2 (june 1993), pp. 75-85.
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"46 Editions of the Caprices", ibid., pp,47-49.
Aspects of European Influences on Australjan Violin Playing &
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Boss. Roger.

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"Reperes biographiques", in: RevueMusicale de SuisseRomande,

N"2 (lune 1993), pp. 68-74.

Boucher de Crevecoeur de Perthes,

Jacques (1788-1868)

Sous dix Rojs (8Vol.), Paris: lung-Treuttel, 1863-67. [Concerning

Boumiquel, Camille.

QIllWn, Paris: Le Seuil, 1957. [Paganini's influence on Chopin, see

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Boyden. David.

"The violin and its technique in the eighteenth century", in:

The Musical Quarterly,XXXVI (1950), pp,9-38. [Resume:

Paganini and Prince Baciccchi, see Vol. I. p. 584]

..Although the music of the period often reflects more advanced practices
than the methods. the printed notes of the scores merely furnish the
skeleton of that music. The clue to the music's true physiognomcny,

which is revealed largely through the details of performances. lies

concealed in the methods. 'OJ

Bray, Rene

Chronologie du RQmantjsme 1804-1830,Paris: Boivin, 1932.

Brody, Elaine.

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273

Danhauser known as A Romantic Constellation"; Liszt, Sand.

oj

d'Agoclr. Dumas. Hugo. Paganini, Rossini. and Beethoven's bust)]

Bromfield. Louis.

Brown. Malcolm H.

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XXXVI/5 (May1922). p. 5

'TheSovietRussian concept of Intonazia and musical imagery.

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Brunet-Lecomte. H.

Jaques-Dalcroze. Geneve: Edition Jeheber, nd.

Bull. Ole (1810-1880.1

!>Lundholm and Paganini)

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Calcagno. Daniele.

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(unpubI. article kindly forwarded by Author)

Calcagno/Cortese/Tanasini.

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panj

Campagnoli. Banolomeo.

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(>Nardini)

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Capet, Lucien.
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La Technique Supedeure de I'Archet. Paris: Salabert (Coil. M.

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Castiglioni, Vinore.

Paganinj' bjografja. Parma: Pilotta 1982.

Celeda, Jaroslav.

NicolO paganin;. Prague: M.U., 1914

Chesnut, John Hind.

"Mozart's Teaching of Intonation". in: Journalofthe American

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tradition in which Mozart stood"]

Codignola, Arturo I editor).

Paganjni jntima, Genoa: Municipiodi Genova, 1935.

Pagaoiniana. a cura del Civico Istituto Colombiano,
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274

Codignola, Mario.

Me e Magja dj Njccolo' Paganioi, Milano: Ricordi, 1960.

Colombo. Gianluigi.

"Paganini pianista", in: La Scala 127 (June 1960), pp.12-13.

Condat, Jean-Bernard (editor),

NicolO

Pa~anjDi

(1782-1840) Musjcien Magic;e"

QU

Mutant de Marfan?, Paris: Librairie Honore Champion, 1990.

Conestabile, Gian Carlo

Vita dj NjccolQ Paganjni. ed. by F.Mompellio, Milan: Dante

A1ighieri, 1936.

Copertini, Spartaco.

"II segreto di Paganini", Note di Critica e d'Arte, in: II Piccolo

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Conal. Alfred.
(>Diemer)

Aspecls de Chopin. Paris, Albin Michel, 1949. [Inlluence of

Paganini, see pp. 44 and 171 J

Courvoisier, Carl.
(>David and Joachim)

Technics ofVjolin Playjng on Joachim's Method. London: The

Crosby. Dr A.B.

The Art of Holding the Vjo!jo & Bow as exemplified by Qle Bull,

Strad. 1899

London: William Reeves, 1909.

Crickboom, Mathieu.
(>Ysaye)

Le Violon, Bruxelles: Schall & Co., 1923.

Dancla, Charles. (1818-1907)

(>Baillot)

NOles et souvenirs. Paris, Delamotte, 1893.

Deneemann. Ulrich.
(e-Rostal)

IsOJDetrische {"!bungeD furGeiger,Duisburg: Walter Braun Verlag,

1982

Davidov, Carl

Violoncello Schule, Leipzig: Peters. n.d.

Day. Lilian.

Niccolb Pagaoini of Genoa, New-York: Macaulay, 1929.

De Chessin, Alexis.

La Grande Ecole du VjoJon du xyrnme Siecle, Paris. Aubanel Pere,

nd.
De Courcy, Geraldine I. C.

Pagaoini the Genoese, (2 vol.), Nonnan: Universityof Oklahoma

Press. 1957.

Delogu, Gaetano.

"La melodia nei capricci di Paganini", in: Rassegna musicale Curci,

Milan. April 1960, pp. 6-7.

De Martino, Emesto

LaTerra del Rimorso, Milan: II Saggiatore. 1961. [vital source of

information about the origins of the tarentello and the implications

275

of certain musical dance forms in Italy (--+ Caprice 11)]

Delacroix, Eugene (1798-1863).

Journal d'Eugene Delacroix (3 vol.), ed. by Paul Flat and Rene Piot.
Paris, Plon-Nourrit, 1893. (Ms. belongs 10 the University of Paris)
[English trl.asThe Journal of EugeneDelacroix, translated by Lucy
Norton, London: Phaidon, 195I 1 [On Paganini and Ernst. see entry
of 15 January 1856)

Diderot,Denis.

Jacques Ie Fatalist' e1 son Maitre, Paris, 1796.

Dounias, Minos.
(>Kulenkampff)

Dje Vjolinkonzerte Giuseppe Tartjnis aIs Ausdruck ejner

KUnSllerpersOn1jchkeit "od ejner Kulturepoche, ZUrich:

Moseler VerlagWolfenbOttel, 1966. [first ed, 1935].

Duleba, Wladyslaw

Wjeniawskj. his time and life, Neptune City, NJ Paganiniana

t

publications, I984.
Du Maurier, Georges.

IriIllx (first published in 1894), new edition, London: Dent, 1969.

(on Paganini, see pp. 201, 252,253 and 355 of the J969 edition]

Du Rivage.

(~See

Eberhardt, Goby.
(>Dessau)

Mejn System des ("TheDs flir Violine lind Klavier auf

Eberhardt, Siegfried.

Guibal du Rivage, Alexandre Paris, j831).

psychophysiologjscher Grundlage, Dresden: G. KOhlmann, 1907.

Pagauinjs Gejgenbaltyng: dje Entdeckuog des Geselzes vit1U0ser

Sicherheit, Berlin:A.Flirstner, 1921.

AbsoluterTreffsicherheit auf dec VjoIjoe, Berlin: A.Fiirstner, 1912.

Eigeldinger, Jean-Jacques.

Chopin XU Parsosfleves, Neuchate]: Ala Baconniere, 1979.

"Twenty-four Preludes op. 28, genre,structure, significance" in:
Chopin Studies, ed, by J. Samson,Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 1988, pp.167-194.

Einstein,Alfred.

Music;n the Romantic Era, London: J.M.Dent, 1947.

Escudier, Leon,

Mes souvenirs' les vinuQses, Paris: Dentu, 1868

Escudier, Marieet Leon,

Vje et Ayentwes des Cantatrices CJebres: precedCes des Musiciens

de l'Empjre et syivies de 13 Vje AnecdQ(ique de Paganjni.

Paris: Dentu, 1856.

Farga, Franz.

Paganjni def Roman seines llebens, ZUrich-RUschlikon:

A. MOller, 1950.
Ferris,George T.

Great Pianists andGreat Violinists. London: William Reeves,I900.

276

Feris, Francois Joseph.

(1784-1871)

Notice hjofraphjque sur NjcCQlb Paranjoi. suiyje de ('analyse de ses

QUvrages '1

"recede, de

J'bjstoire du violon.

Paris: Schonenberger,

1851. [English translation as: Biograph;cal Notice Qf NicQlo

Paganioi with an Analysjs of his Compositions

and the Sketch of the

History Qf the ViQlin, trl. by Wellington Guernsey, London:Schott,

1852; 2nd edition.London.Schott, 1856].
Trajte cowplel de la theotie el de If) pratique de l'baououje coote0anl

ill dQctrine de la science et de l'an, lIth ed., Paris, 1875.

Flammer, AlTordjman, G.

LeYiQIQn, Paris, J.C. Lattes - Salabert, 1993. [see pp.39:

"...Paganini n'est pas le prefigurateur d'un romamisme flamboyant
mats bien l'incarnation du baroque a son paroxysme..."]

Flesch, Carl.

"Apropos ofPaganini's Secret", in: The Strad l: [=593]

(1939), pp.205-207.
Dje Kunst des Vjolinspiels, (2vol.), Berlin,I923-28. [English version
as: The Au QfVjolin P!ayin~, trl. by W.EMartens, New-York,
1924-30)].
Alta scuola di djttegjatura vjolouisrjca, trl. by A.Curci, Milan:

(>Grtin, Sauzay and Marsick)

Curci, 1960. [English version as: Violin Fineering its Theory and
~, English adaptation by Boris Schwarz, foreword by Yehudi
Menuhin, London: Barrie and Rockliff,1966.

Forino, Luigi.
(>F.Forino>Ciandelli >Paganini)

II ViolQncellQ, Milano: Vlrico Hoepli,1930.

Foscolo, Ugo.
(1778-1827)

Fracht, J. Albert.
(>Sevcik)

The Vjolonist's Handbook Scjentific Gymnastics for the Violjnist.

Furetiere, A.

Djctjonnaire Universe!, The Hague, 1690 I RI970

Galarnian, Ivan.

Principles of ViQlin P!ayjn~ &

(>Mostras and Capet)

Prentice-Hall, 1962.

Galeazzi, Francesco.

Elementj teQrico.pratjci di musica con un saggjo sQpral'ane dj

t;

Ultime Lenere di JnCQPO Ortis, Milan 1802. (between Foscolo and

Paganini there is a similarity noronly in externals, but a still greater

agreement in the style of the two masters (Pulver p.114)J,

New-York, Remsen Press, 1979.

Ieachjn~,

Englewood Cliffs, NJ;

s!lonare jI violino (2 vol.), Rome: Stamperia Pilucchi Cracas, 1791.

[B.Cas.: Mus. 421- 422]
Gautier, Theophile.

Variations sur Ie CamavaI de Venise CEmallx et Cames). ms.

Paris, (" Car ce Camaval de Yenise / Paganini. dans te ruisseau l'a l"QIltWsi I
l'art divinise

fOUl

ce qu'il touche de son sceau. ")

Albertus QU rAme e! Ie Peche. Paris, 1832

Caprices et Zigzags, Paris, Charpentier. 1884.

277

(}ernlrUarU,lFtancesco.
(~Lonati,

Corelli and Scarlatti)

The Art of Playing on the Violin CoDtainin8 AU the Rules necessary

to attain a Perfection on thatInstrument. wjth great variety of
Compositions. which wj1l also be very useful to those who study the
YioloncelJo Hamsichord & c . op. IX, London, 1751; French tri.,

Paris, 1752. facsimile edition by D.Boyden.London: O.V.P., 1952.

[The work offers an insight into the expressive
and technical performance of Italian music of the first part

of the 18th century. The principles of the old Italian Violin School,
as passed on by Carelli, are admirably presented. This is also a
document of capital interest as regards tbe teaching of intonation
(elesser and greaten) semitone and decatonic or rnixt scale in
Ex. II and IV) 011 many occasions Geminiani's observations call
attention to Paganini's own views on musical matters)

Gefen, Gerard.

I&sMusjciens el fa Franc-Macoonerie, Paris: Fayard,1993

Gervasoni, Carlo.

Nuova leoriadi musicaricavata dall'odierna Pratjca, Parma:

Stamperia Blanchon,1812.
Ghertovici, A. (editor).

Paganjni 24 Capdcij, Bucharest: Editura MuzicaIa a Uniunii

Compozitorilor, 1974. [see preface about Paganini's polyphonic

writing and tempo indications]
Gil, Dominic (editor).

The Book of the Vjoljn, Oxford: Phaidon Press,1984.

Giroud, Manuela.

"Les Apprentis Sorciers" in: Nouvelliste et Feuille d'Avis du Valais.

Sion. 13 July 1993. p. 3.

Goethe. Johann Wolfgang von

(1749-1832)

Goethes Briefwechsel mjt Zeiter, Leipzig ,1924. [onPaganini, see

Letter to Zeiter, 9

November 1829, p.4IS : ..... ich none nur etwas

Meuorisches und wusste mir weuer keine Rechenschaft zu

geben." ]

Goldron,Romain.

Les nelmts dy Rornantisme. Lausanne: EditionsRencontre et la

Guilde du disque, 1966. [ for theauthor Romanticism andClassicism
constitute an historic unity (p.19).Includes an interesting 00 Paganini,
described as: " ce sorcier de l'archet. ce Cagliostro
sarti du Diable amQurex de Cezcrre."]

du via/an foul

droit

Grillparzer, Franz

PAGANlNI AdagioIffid RondO auf der G-Saite. Vienna 1828

in: Ged;chlcund Erzahlungen, Wien:R.M.Rohrer Verlag, 1948,
p.l20.
Per armeSpielmann, Vienna, 1848.

Guhr, Karl (1787-\848)

(~Schnabe\ and Janetzek).

Dber Paganinjs Kunst. die Violine zu spieleD. ein Anbang zu jeder

his jetzt erscbjenenen Vjoljoscbyle nebst einer Abhandlung tiber das
FJageolettspjeI jn einfachen ODd D~pe\19DeD, Mainz: B. Schou's
Sobnen,IS'29. [French version as: L'art de joyerdu vjolon de

278

Appendice a toutes les methodes qui ant paru jusqu'a

present. A vee un traite des sons harmoniques simples et doubles,
Mayence: Les Fils de B. Schott, 1829]. [English translation as :
Pa~anini's Art of Playjng the Violin with a Treatise 00 Sjngle and
DoubleHarmonic Notes. trl, from the German by Sabilla Novello. and
revised by C.EgertonLowe, London: Novello, 1915].
Pa~anini

Guibaldu Rivage,Alexandre

RetlexjQDS d'UD aniste sur Ie talent de Paganini, Paris:G.A. Dentu,

1831.

Gut, Serge.

Franl Lisze les elements du langage wllsical, These de Doctorat

d'Etat, preface by Jacques Chailley, Poitiers: Editions Klincksieck,

1975.

Haas, Karl

"Paganini and the Caprices", ABC FM Stereo, Sydney, 25 August

1990.

Harrys, Georg.
(1780-1838)

Pagani"; in seineD Reisewagen uod Zimmer in seinen redseUgeu

StUDdeD. jn Gesellschaftlichen Zirkel" uoo seinen Konzerten,

Brunswick: Vieweg, 1830.

Havas, Karo..

The Violin and !, London, Bosworth, 1968.

Haweis, Hugh Reginald.

My Musjcall.ife. London: W.H. Allen, 1884

Heck.Thomas F.

The birth of the classic

~j[ar

and

its cultjvation in Vjenna. reflected

in the careerand composjtions of Mauro Giuliani, PhD diss., Yale

University. New Haven,Connecticut,1970.
Heine.Heinrich.
(1797-1856)

Florentinjsche Nachte (1837) (GS)

1.lllliill (GS)
'The Romantic School", English trl. by Francis Storr. 1887,
published in: Heines" Prose and PoetfV, London: I.M. Dent, 1966,
pp.244-255

Heron-Allen, Ed.

Violin-Making. London and Melbourne: Ward, Lock & Co. 1885.

Hodeir, Andre.

I.e, Nmes de ta Musique, Paris: P.D.F., 11th ed.1990. [first edition,

1951].
Musjkant. Paris: Le Seuil, 1987.

Hoppenor, Dominique.

1& YiolonInterieUf, Paris:

Hosiasson, Dr S.

Van de Velde,198I.

La MaltOse du Violon parI'Entrainemem psycho. DynamiQue, Paris:

Libraitie Fischbacher. 1959.

Hugo,Victor.
(1802-1885)

Cromwell, Paris: Alphonse Lemerre, I 827. (preface: pp. V-LXVII)

Les Qriemales, Paris: Hetzel, 1829.(preface: pp. 1-7). [English trl. as:
Eastern Lyrics],

279

Iampoliski, LM.

See:Yampolsky,

Ianegic,Ion.

Paganjni. omyl sj opera. Bucarest: Editura muzicaJa a Uniunii

compozitoritor din. R.P.R, 1964.

Imbertde Laphaleque, G.

Notice sur Iecelebre vjoliniste Nicolo Paganjni.Paris E.Guyot, 1830.

Istel. Edgar.

Nicolo Paganini, Leipzig: Breitkopf & Hanel, 1919.

"The Secret ofPaganini's Technique", in: The Musical Quarterly,
XVI (1930)pp.101-1 16.

Jacobi, Erwin R.

"Nicolai's manuscript of Tartini's Regale perben suonar il violino"

in: The Musical Quarterly, XLVW2 (April 1961), pp.207-223.

Jacobsen, Maxim.

The Masteryof Violjn Playing (2 vat), English text prepared by

GemmaFarmer, New-York:Boosey & Hawes, 1957.

Jampolskij,Izrail Markovic.

See Yampotsky.

Janin, Jules.

Un Ceenr pourdeux Amours. [on Paganini: p.l?]

JoachimIMoser.

Violinschule (3 vat), Berlin: Simrock, 1905.

Johnston, R.M.

The NapoleQDjc Empire in Southern Italy and the Rise of the Secret

Societies,London, Macmillan (2 vat), 1904. [On General Pino,

Paganini's friend and protector, see Vol.!, pp.272-273. Of great
interest is chapterII, vol.Il, on the origins and rites of the
Carbonari]

Kelley,Edgar Stillman

Chopin the Composer, New-York: Shirmer, 1913.

Kendall,Alan.

Paganini. a Biography, London: Chappell, 1982.

Kestner, August.
(1777-1853)

R6mjsche Smdjen,Berlin:Verlagder Deckerschen GeheimenOberHofbuchdruckerei,1850 [containsvaluable witness reports on

Paganini'sconcerts in Rome during 1819-1825, pp. 33-51].

Kinski, Klaus.

Paganini, Munich: WilhelmHeyne, 1992.

Kirkendale, Warren.

"Segretocornunicatoda Paganini", in: Journal of the American

Musicological Society XVIII!3 (1965), pp.101-116.

Klein. Joseph BA

Paganjnjs ihmngsgebeimnjs Lehrgang des geistiaen Ubc"::. flir

Anfangersowie fUr Fongeschdnene

Leipzig: Steingraber, 1934.

280

alsWe~ zur wahren Viuuosjrlit.

Kmoch, Vladimir.
1967),

"Scordatura 'Secret' of Paganini", in: The Strad LXXVIII (June

pp.67-71

Kolneder, Walter

Pas Buch der Violine,ZUrich: Atlantis. 1972.

Hannoojelehre fUr Geiger, Wilhelrnshaven, 1984.

Komroff, Manuel.

The MaiPc Bow: a Romance of Paganini,New-York: Harper, 1940.

Kraft, Zendo von.

GroBe Musj\ler. Munich:J.F. Lehmann, 1961

Krizek, A,

Hand-Kultur, Leipzig: FriedrichHofmeister, 1905.

Krone. E.

See: Kross, Emil.

Kross, Emil.

Studium der 24 Capricen, Mainz: Schott, 1900. [English version as:

The Study ofPaganini's Twenty-fourCaprices, trl. by Gustav
Saenger, New-York: Carl Fischer, 1908.

Kulenkampff, Georg.
(>Hess)

Geigerische BetrachlUngen, Regensburg,GustavBosse, 1952.

La Mara (Marie Lipsius] (editor)

Franz Liszts Briefe (8 vol.), Leipzig, 1893-1905. [On Paganini, see

vel. I. p.7. LeU,r [Q Pierre Wolff of2 May 1832}

La Laurencie, Lionel de.

L'Eco\eFrancaise de Vjolon de Lully ~ Vioni. Pelagrave, Paris,

1924.

Lang, Paul Henry.

Music in Western Civilization, London J.M. Pent, 1941.

Lemarie.A,

Secret de Paganjnj: sa maojere de travaille[' IDQyeos avec lesqyels jI

est parvenu aexecuter ses prodiiieuses djfficultes, Paris:

Schonenberger, 1872.

Leo XlI (Pope)

Djlecto Filip Njcolao Paganini, Datum Romae: apud Sanctum

Petrum, sub Annulo Piscatorisdie m. Aprilis MDCCCXXVII [Ie"

of Paganini's nomination as Knight of the Order of the Golden Spur.

Rome, 3 April 1827].

Leopardi, Giacomo.

Zibaldonedj Pensjeri,complete works, Sansoni,Firenze. 1976,[on

philosophyof music,vol.II, pp. 803-806).

Lewin, R.

"The Secret", in:The Strad LX (Sept. 1949), p.137-140 (Oct.1949),

p.169-174).
"Left of Right", in: The Strad LX (Pee. 1949, p.233-236)

Lipizer, Rodolfo.

La Tecnjca SuperiQre del Vjoljoo. Milan: Ricordi. n.d,

281

Liszt, Franz (18111886).

"Sur Paganini A propos de sa mort", in: Gazette Musicale, 23

(>Czemi and Paer)

August 1840, pp.431432. [Liszt's obituary for Paganini]

Losco, Ettore.
(:>Supino and Brengola)

Pagauinj et sa TechniQue

Luce,Joan.

The virtuosity and unique role of the Caprices for solo

ell

13 posjtion vjo!oojstiQue de Paganjni.

Nice: chez l'Auteur, 1991.

violin in Pietro Locatellj's "L'Ane del Vjolioo", PhD diss.,

University of Michigan, 1975.
Lupo, B.

"Paganini piooiere della direzione d'orchestra", in: Rivista Broletto,

Como (March 1938).

Macmillan, F.

"Paganmi's Lost SecretRevealed at Last," in: Musical Courier

UV/12 (December 1907), pp.I6--17.

Mantero, R.

"Les mains de Marfan de Niccolo Paganini". in: Annales de

Chirugie de la Main, 7, n'4, 1988, pp. 335340.

Mantovani, R.

Le Secret de Pagauinj methode des methodes de violoD, Paris:

(:>Maino)

Hachette, 1922.

Marak, Jan and Nopp Viktor

~,Prague:

Marcelli, J.

Hudebnf Matice Umelecke Besedy, 1944.

Aux unlonistes Petit (mite de Vjolon pour Ie developpement rapide

~ 13 technique

eX de 13

sODorit~

par "application du Secret de

Paganin; et I'art de travailler, Croix: chez l'Auteur, 1937.

Martinotti, Sergio.

Ottocento Strumemale Italiano. Bologna, Forni, 1972

Maupassant, Guy de.

Sur l'Eau (written in 1887) first ed. Paris, Conard, 1908. New ed. by
Gallimard, collection Foglio, 1993 [on Paganini: see pp. 46-47 of
the Gallimarded.]

Mayhall, Ronald Bruce.

Tempo fluctuation in the Romantic era. PhD diss., The University of

Oklahoma, 1990.

Meis, Jacinthe de.

Les Secrets du Viola" ManleN d'attejndre (sans joyed ODe technique

fonnjdabJe et de produjre un son encbaoteur Augmentt de quelques

intuitions sur 13 MecaoiQyeTranscendantale de Pa~anini, Paris. 1923.

[B.N. A 132].
Menuhin, Yehudi.

Secbs YioliDstuDden. RUschlikon-ZUricb, 1973.

(:>Persinger and Enesco)

Menuhin, Yehudi, and

The Music of Man, Sydney: Methuen, 1979.

Davis, Curtis W.

282

Mercer. David S. (editor)

Festschrift Ian Seslivka. The Tasmanian Conservatorium of Music.

University of Tasmania, 1982.

Metzner, Paul R.

Crescendo of the Virtuoso" Virtuosity jn Paris dyring the age of

Revolution. a study of personality and values, PhDdiss.. University

of Washington, 1989. [Paganini 's name is listed alongside those of
Vidocq, Liszt, Careme. Cuvier; and Napoleon)

Miramon Fitz-james, Berenger de.

Paianini II Marsejlle 1837-1839. Marseille: ilia Librairie Fueri, 1841.

Moens-Haenen, Greta.

Das Vibrato in der Musik des Barnck. Graz: Akademische Druck- u.

Verlagsanstalt, 1988.

Mompellio, Federico (editor).

Facsimile Drtbe autoiraob manuscript of Paianinj's 24 Caprices

Milan, Ricordi, 1974.

Monterosso. Raffaello (editor).

NicolO Paianini e ;1

SilO

temoo. Genoa: Citra di Genova. 1982.

[Contains articles by : 1) Cerofolini, Fulvio. "Saluto al convegno"

2)Monterosso. Raffaell0."L'Edizione Nazionale delle Musiche di
Paganini: premessa alla risccperta di un muslcista" 3)Puncuh, Dino. "La

cultura genovese in eta paganiaiaaa" 4) Croll. Gerhard. "Paganini a

Vienna 1828. La prima tappa della sua prima tcurnee aU'estero"
5) PuPPO. Mario. "Divinita e dernonismo delta. musica nella cultura
romantica" 6) Pistone. Daniele. "La fortuna d.i Paganini in Francia" 7)
Mompellio, Federico. "La lezione di Paganini" 8) Salone. Anna
Maria/Amalberti Fausto. "Documenti Paganiniani del1'Archivio di State
di Genova" 9)Martinotti. Sergio. "La musica strumentale italiana nel
prime onocemo" LO) Macdonald. Hugh. "Paganini inScotland" 11)
Lesure.Francois. "Paganini aLucques: nouvelles sources" 12)Cantu.
Albeno."Derivazioni. attegiamenti e novita del violinismo
paganiniano"13) Rosenthal. Albi. "An intriguing copy of Paganini's
'Capricci' and its implications" 14) Iscua, Paolo. "Trasposiaioni

planisuche di Paganini" 15) Monterosso, RaffaeUo. "Chiusura del

Ccnvegno con la presenza del presidente della Repubblica", 29 October
1982.
Montgomery. Colonel Maxwell.

My Adventures. Genoa, 1815. [Conlains valuable information about

Paganini and the Marquis Di Negro]

Moos, Alfred.

Per Gespenstjge Geiger das J ebeD des grossen Vjo!jn-Virtuosen

NicoloPa~aninj.

Mostras, Konstantin G.

24 KanpHca

Basel: R.O.Zbinden. 1924.

alia Ckpt1DKH Cono H IIarWHHM, Mocxsa:

rocv llAPCTBEHHOE MY3blKAJlbHOE H311ATE!lbCTBO, 1959

(24 Kaprisa dla skripki solo N. Paganini, Moscow:
Gosudarstvennoe Muzikal'noe Izdatel'stvo 1959)

283

Dje IntonatioD auf clef Vjo!jne (German translation by Karl Kramer)

Hofheim am Taunus: Friedrich Hofmeister, 1961.

Neill, Edward,

"Studi e Capricci prima di Paganini" in: Quademi dell'lstituio di

Srudi Paganiniani, N"6, Genoa (October 1990), p. 25.
NicolO Paganjnj' 13 vita aUraverSQ Ie opere j document; e le

immagjni, Genoa: Cassa di rispannio di Genovae Imperia,1978.

Paganin; Pistalado, Genoa: Comune di Genova, 1982.
II ~(PrimQ Coocerto dj Paganjnj' jndagjnj e riSCOotri. Roma-

Torino:ERl, Edizioni RAI, Radiotelevisione Italiana, 1987

II CayaliereFjlannnnjco.Genoa: De Ferrari, 1990.
Neumann, Frederick,

Vjolin Left HandTechnjque.Urbana: ASTA, 1969.

Norden, N, Lindsay.

"A new theory of untempered music", in: The Musical Quarterly

XXII (1936), pp. 217-233.

Nunamaker, Nonnan Kilt.

The vjrtuoso Concerto before Paganjnj' the Concertos ofLo!)i.

Giomovjchj and Woldemar. PhD diss., Indiana University, 1968.

Catalogo IematjcQ delle Musjche di Niceoia Paganjnj, Genoa:

Moretti, Maria RJ Sorrento Anna.

[M.S.]

Comune di Genova, 1982.

Paganini, Niccolo.

"Autobiografia", in: Almanacco Musicale. Storico, Estetico,

UmoristicoMilan: Tito Ricordi, 1853 (verbatim transcript by Peter

Lichtentbal of a conversationwith Paganini in Milan, on 28 February
1828, just before the latter's departurefor Vienna). [French version
as: "Notice surPaganini ecrite par lui-merne" in: Revue Musicale,
Paris, 1I September, 1830.German versionas: "Selbstbiographie"
in: AllgemeineMusikalische Zeitung, Leipzig, N"20,1830] Progettj
dj Regolamento per 13 Ducale Orchestra dj Pannae perun'Accademia
da erigersi nelIastessa Cjtttl umjeJiari aUa Maest4 di Maria Luigia

dal Barone NicolO Paganjnj I'AnDo J 836. State Archives of Parma.

(reproduced in Neill's Cavaliere Annonico, pp. 299-311).
Payne,Edward.

"Trornba Marina", in: Grove's Dictionaryof Music and Musicians,

first edition, IV, p.175 ["Paganini's extraordinary effecrs in harmonics

on a single string were in fact produced by temporarily converting his
violin to a small marine trumpet. As is wen known, that clever player
placedhis single fourth string on the treble side of the bridge, screwing it
up to a very high pitch, and leaving the bass foot of the bridge
comparatively loose."]

Payton, Leonard Richard.

Contrabass baODoDjc potential" a study jn acoustics and compositon

PhD diss.. Universityof Califorrtia San Diego. 1988.

Penesco, Anne.
(>Pasquier)

"Paganini et l'ecole de violon franco-beige" in: Revue Internationale

de Musique Froncaise. N"9, November 1982, pp.17-60.

284

L'apAAn de Pjiianini a la technique du VjoJQD, MMus thesis,

University of Paris IV, 1974.
Pearson, Roger.

Stendhal's Violin, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1988.

Pereira, Ernest.

Twentieth-century violin technique, DMA diss., The University of

Texas at Austin, 1987.

Pincherle, Marc.

The World of the Virtuoso. trl. by L.H. Brockway, New-York:

Norton, 1963.
Les Instruments du Ouatuor. Paris: P.U.F., 1947.
Pipes, Charlotte.
cent YO'
Pistone, Daniele.

A study of six selected coloratura "Mad Scenes" in njneteentbQIll:[ll.

DMA diss., Louisiana Stale University, 1990.

"Paganini et Paris", in:Revue lnternationale de Musique Franfaise.

N"9, November 1982, pp.7-16.

"Manifeste et Musique en France", in: Revue lntemationale de
Musique Francoise, N"20. June 1986.
Pizzetti, lldebrando.

NiccolO Pa~anini. Turin: Edizioni Arione, 1940.

Polko, Elise Vogel.

(>Garcia)

NiccolO Pa~anini und die Gei~enbauer, Leipzig: Schlicke, 1876.

Polnauer, Frederick.

Senso-MotQr Study and its Application to Vjolin Playjne. Urbana:

ASTA, 1964. [The author. invoking the authority of Tasmanian speech
teacher F.M. Alexander, uses himselfas the subject of senso-motor studies
related to violin playing and tries top reproduce Paganini's playing
posture. Bilateral bowing is found to be "the most essential prerequisite in
recreating Paganini's method of bowing".]

Plantinga, Leon.

Romantic Music. New-York: W.W.Norton, 1984.

Powroznik, JOseph.

Paganini. Krakow:Wyd. Muzyczna. 1982.(frrst ed., 19S8)

Praetorius, Michael.

Synlagma rousjcum, Wolfenbuttel, 1619, R Cassel: Documenta

Musicologica, 19S8

Prefurno, Danilo I Cantu, Alberto.

Le Opere d;

Principe, Remy,

II Vjoliuo' manuale dj cultura e didanica violonjstjca. Milan: Curci.

(>De Guarnieri)

19S\.

Prod'homme, Jacques Gabriel.

Pa~anini.

Pulver, Jeffrey.

Pa~anini.

Pa~an;ni.

Genoa: SAGEP, 1982.

Paris: H. Laurens, 1927.

the Romantic Virtuoso. London: H. Joseph, 1936 and NewYork: Da Capo Press. 1970.

285

Reuter, Florizel von.

Psychical Experiences of a Musicjan, London: Simpkin Marshall [in

his introduction to this intriguing work, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
writes: "...The reader has that remarkable odyssey of psychical adventure
before him, and canjudge for himself. I can only say that where I have
myself concerned in the experiments, as in the most remarkable Charles
Dickens incident, I can answer for the restrained accuracy of the account. ..
In the case of Paganini there were special bonds of sympathy which

explain the very close relationship which seems to exist between himself
and Florizel von Reuter".]
Rietmann, Carlo Marcello

II Violino e Genova, Genoa: SAGEP, 1975.

Ronze-Neveu, M.-J.

Ginette Neveu, Paris: Pierre Horay, 1952.

Rostal, Max
(>Rose and Flesch)

Gedanken zur!utemretatioD dec Klavjer-ViQUn SQuateu von I. van

Rothschild, F.

The Lost Tradition in Music (2vol.), London & New-York, 1961.

Sabatini, Renzo.
(>Principe)

I "Ane dj Studjare j 24 Capriccj dj Pagaoini per Vjoliuo, Milan:

Sachs, Harvey

Virtuoso. London: Thames and Hudson, 1982.

Sartorelli, Fausto

L'UoIDO Vjoliuo - Paganiui, Rome: Edizioni Abete, 1981.

Salzedo, S.L.

paganinj's Secret at I ast, London: Nicholson & Watson, 1946.

Salvaneschi, Dino.

Un vioUna 23 donne e

Beethoven, Munich: Piper,1984.

Ricordi, 1937.

jJ

djavo!o' la vjta ardente di NiccoJO

Pa&aninj, Milan: Corbaccio, 1938.

Saussine, Renee de.

Pa&an;nj Ie Ma,pcien. preface de Jacques Ihibaud, Paris: Gallimard,

1938. [English trl. as: Paganini. transl. by Marjorie Laurie, London:
Hutchinson, 1953].

Le Violon Hannooique ses reSSQurces son emploi danS les ecoles

Sauzay, Eugene
(e-Baillor) Flesch)

ancjennes et modernes, Paris. 1889. _

Scher, Steven Paul.

Verbal Mysjc in Genna" I,jterature, New Haven: Yale University

Press, 1968.

Sheppard, LeslielHerbert Axelrod.

Paganini, Neptune City (NJ): Paganiniana Publications, 1979.

Scholes, Percy A.

The Oxford Companion to Music. London: O.U.P.,1955.

Schottky, Julius Max.

Pagaoini's Leben lInd Ireiben als KjinstJer pnd als Mensch, Prague:

J.G. Calve, 1830; RPrague: Taussig &Taussig, 1909; Walluf:

286

Sandig-Reprint, 19091 R1974.

Schwandt, Eric.

"Capriccio", in :The New Grove Dictionary of Musjc and Musicians,

vol. m, p. 758, London: Macmillan, 1994.

.,
Schwarz, Boris.
(>Flesch and Capet)

"Paganini, Nicolo". in: The New Grove Dictionary of Music and

Schwarz,Vera(editor).

VioljnspieJ pod Vjo!jomusik in Geschjchte god Geeeowart, Vienna:

Musicians, vol.14, pp. 86-90,London:MacmiUan, 1980.

Grea! Masters of the Violin. New-York: Simon & Schuster, 1983.

Universal Edition, 1975. [Contributors: DavidBoyden, Erich

Doflein, LudwigFinscher,Brigitte Geiser,Lev Ginsburg. Conrad von
der Goltz,Peter Guth, Friedrich von Hausegger, Max Heider. Susanne
Klein-Vogelbach, RudolfKolisch, Jan Kratina, Marianne Kraemer,
Christophe-Hellmut Mahling. SonyaMonosoff, WolfgangMUllerNishio, Rudolf Pecman, ErichRaschl, Francis Rosner, Prof. Max
Rostal, Wofgang Schneiderhahn, Baris Schwarz. VeraSchwarz. Hans
Sittner,Rudolf Stephan, Gerhard Stradner, KarlHeinrich vonStumpff,
Dimitris Themelis, HelgaThoene,Christoph Wagner, Manfred
Wagner. Aristide Wiesta].
Scaramelli, G.

Saggj sapta dj doveD di un primo vjolioo djrettQte d'orcbestra.

Trieste, 1811.
Schumann, Robert (1810-1856).

Gesaromelte ScbrifteD tiber Musjk unci Musjker. Berlin: Wegweiser

Verlag, 1922

Seashore, Carl.

The Measurement of Pitch Intonatioo wjth the Tonoscope in Singing

Sefl, Vladimir.

Md Playing, Iowacity, 1936.

"24 x Paganini" in: Hudebni Rozhledy XIVI2l (1961) p.920.
(review of three recorded versions of the 24 Caprices -Ricci. Renardy
and Ivan Kawaciuk. Tthe Czech violinist Karel Srobek. who played
the Caprices in concert, but did not record them is mentioned]

Sevcik. Otakar.

Skala houslvehQ prednesu DR oodklade melodjckem, op.16, Brunn:

Pazdirek, (>Bennewitz)l929.
Analytical Studies for Pa'laninj Concerto Nl, op.20. Bmo:

Pazdirek, 1932.
Schoo! of Intonation, op. II, New-York: Harms, 1922.
Sfilio, Francesco.

AltaCultura dj Teen;caVjolonjs!;ca. Milan: Bocca, 1937.

Sircy, VirginiaS. Rice.

A comparison oeselected I,iszt and Schumann pianO transcriptions of

Pagaoinj violin Caprices, a lecture recital, DMA diss., North Texas

State University,1980.
Spohr, Louis (1784-1842)
(>Eck)

Selbstbjograpbie (2 vol.), Cassel, 1860.

287

Spronk, J,EW.

Bijrage tot de biQgrafie vanN Paganioi. Gorinchem: J.Noorduijn en

zoon, 1965

Stendhal (Henri Beyle).

(\ 783-1842)

Vie de Rossini, Paris 1823. [includes a famous footnote

concerning Paganini (p.4~l): " Paganini, le premier violon d'ltalie et

peut-etre du monde, est dans ce moment un jeune homme de trente-cinq

ans, aux yeux ncirs et pe~~ts. et ala chevelure touffue ... II ne faut pas

entendre Paganini lorsqu'il cherche

aluner avec des violons du Nord

dans des grands concertos, mais lorsqu'il jane des caprices une soiree ou it
est en verve. Je me hate d'ajouter que ces caprices sent plusdifficiles
qu'aucun concerto."]

Stolba, Maria.

A history oftbe violin Etude to about l800, PhD diss., University of

Iowa, 1965.
Stowell, Robin.

Vjolin technjQue and perfoDDauce practice jn the late eighteenth and

early njneteenth centuries, Cambridge: C.U.P., 1985.

"Paganini, technical innovator?", in: The Strad vol. 93, N" 1110
(Oct.i982), pp. 397-399)

Straeten, E. van der.

The HjstQry Qfthe VjQlin (2vol.) New-York: Da Capo Press, 1968.

Stuber, Jutta.

Dje Intonation des Geigers. Bonn: Verlag fur systematische

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Suder,Alexander.

NicolO Paa-anini KOnig det Geiger, Basel:Lux. 1960.

Sugden, John.

Pa~aninj'

Suggia, Guilhennina.

"Violoncello Playing", in: Music & Leiters 2,1921, pp. 130-134.

Targonsky, Y.B.

The Harmonics on String Instruments, with an introduction by N.A.

his UCe and tjmes. Neptune City (NJ): Paganiniana

PubUcations, 1980.

Garbuzov, Moscow, 1936.

Tartini, Giuseppe.
(>Padre Boemo)

"Letteraa MaddalenaLombardini Sirmen" in: Europa Letteraria

vol. V, part 2 (Venice 1770), pp. 74 sqq.
[Engl. version as: An Important Lesson to penQwers Qn the VjQ!jn'
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Bumey(l771) RoC 2nd edition London, 1913.

Taruskin,Richard.

"Chemomorto Kashei: Harmonic Sorcery or Stravinski's angle",

in: Journal of the American Musical Society XXXVllIJI (Spring
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Themelis, Dimitris.

EntstebuDvgeschjchte def VjoUnetiide: aUgemeinne. spjeltecbnische

YI1d musikaljscbeVoraussetzungen his zur Griindung des Pariset

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Vjolinspjelllod Violjomllsik in Gescbjcbte "ud Gegeowao. ed. by

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Thibaud,Jacques.

Preface to Renee de Saussine's Pa~aojoi Ie Ma~cjeo, Paris:

Gallimard, 1938. ["...P~ganini est, dans l'art instrumental. une double
liaison entre le style c1as~ique.romantique et le style modeme. II a
done devance d'un siecle l'ecriture violonistique actuelle, et je teste
persuade que ses inventions, ses trouvailtes, ses heureuses creations
ont influence les possibilites techniques de loute l'orchestrasion." ... J "

[...In instrumental art, Paganini forms a double link between the classicalromantic and the modem style. His genius was seconded by incredible
virtuosity, which anticipated all the musical art of thefuture. He was a
century ahead of contemporary writers of violin music. I am convinced
that his inventions, his discoveries, his happy creations, influenced the
technical possibilities of universal orchestration...]"
Tibaldi-Chiesa, Maria.

Pa~anini

Trifiletti, Igino.

"NiccoloPaganini ed Ugo Foscolo", in: Uomini VITlI/5 (1957),

pp.12-l3.

Tse, BenitaWan-Kuen,

Piano variations ipspired by Paanini's Twenty-Fourth Caprice from

la vita e l'oQera. Milan: Garzanti, 1940.

l4W., DMA diss., University of Cincinnati,1992.

Urbschat,Emil.

6 i e.Sechs geJOste RIDsel decPagaoini-Tecbpjk, Bielefeld: E.

Urbschat, 1951.
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NjccolO Pa~.niDi, 1784-1840, Nice: E.F.L.Jacques Dervyl, 1950.

Valery, Paul.

L'EJo~e de la Viouosjte, Nice: City of Nice, 27 May 1940.

[published to commemorate the looth anniversary of Paganini's

death]
Vinogradov, Anatolii

The Condemnation of Paganipi. trans. from Russian by S. Garry.

London & New-York.Hutchinson, 1946. [polish version as:
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Qn

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La Vie Amollreusede Pa~aninj, Geneve: Celta, 1947.

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Briefe 30 den Grafen Karl vQn Bruhl, ed. by G. Kaiser, Leipzig,

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Yarnpolski, Izrail Markovic.

(>Stoliarski)

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The Yost System The Key to the Mastery Qf the Finger-BQard,

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Ysaye, Eugene,
(>Vieuxtemps and Wieniawski)
Zacharewitsch, Michael.
(>Sevcik)

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