Violin Fingering in the 18th Century

Author(s): Peter Walls

Reviewed work(s):
Source: Early Music, Vol. 12, No. 3, String Issue (Aug., 1984), pp. 299-315
Published by: Oxford University Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3137767 .
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Peter Walls

Violin

fingering

in

the

century

18th

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I 'TheGrandTurkgivinga concertto his mistress':paintingby CharlesAndreVanLoo(1705-1765)(London,WallaceCollection)

The work which I give to the public will at first appear
difficult to many people. Whatoften discourages most of my
followers is shifting positions, which they do not perfectly
understand.
Thus Jean-Joseph Cassanea de Mondonville begins
the preface to Les sons harmoniques op.4. Changing
positions is surely the most difficult area in the
modern revival of Baroque violin technique, so it is
reassuring to learn that in 1738 shifting seemed to be a
major problem. Mondonville's own solution, outlined
in his volume, is totally fanciful: instead of shifting
into high positions for really high notes, the player can
use harmonics. Mondonville provides a diagram showing where these substitute harmonics can be found on

300

EARLY MUSIC AUGUST 1984

the fingerboard. That he did not believe in his own

ingenious suggestion is clear from the fact that the
numerous printed fingerings in this set of sonatas all
deal with the problems of playing in higher positions.
Such fingerings do not throw any direct light on how to
shift, but they do indicate what kinds of shift a
virtuoso 18th-century violinist would have made. It is
possible, too, that by retracing the steps of an 18thcentury violinist where they are as clear as this,
modern violinists might improve their understanding
of Baroque mechanisms of shifting. It is such a hope
that has prompted this survey of collections of 18thcentury violin sonatas which, like Mondonville's op.4,
specify fingerings.

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There are some important preliminary issues that

must be confronted before details of fingering can be
properly examined. The question of how to change
position is inextricably bound up with that of how to
hold the violin in the first place. The difficulties of
shifting undoubtedly account for the high proportion
of people now playing the Baroque violin who use
their chin to stabilize the instrument, more or less as
they would when playing a modern violin. The problems of moving up and (more particularly)down the
fingerboard without using the chin seem at first
formidable; but a player determined to develop this
sort of technique soon reaches a point where it is the
notion of clutching the violin between chin and
shoulder that becomes an image of terrifying insecurity. Performerssuch as SigiswaldKuijkendemonstrate not only that a fluent 'chin-off technique is

possible, but that it can bring musical and physical

benefits that amplyjustifythe endeavour.'The physical
freedom of this approach accords well with the 18thcentury insistence on maintaining a relaxed and
naturalbearing.2The violinist who adopts this method
can play with the confidence that he is not using any
props his 18th-century counterpart would not have
used, so there can be no question of having to restrict
an expressive vocabulary to gestures known not to be
anachronistic.Instead,performerscan strive(asviolinists have always done) to extend their technical and
expressive resources to the limits of the instrument.
Thus many issues, like Geminiani's contentious instruction to use as much vibrato as possible, become
self-regulating.
Historical evidence broadly supports a chin-off
technique, but it would be misleading to suggest that
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2 The aria 'Si caro, si' from Handel's Admeto: detail from the painting by Van Loo (illus.l)

EARLY MUSIC AUGUST 1984

301

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3 'The concert': painting (1741) by Pietro Longhi (1702-1785)

(Venice, Accademia)

18th-century sources unequivocally endorse this (or

any other single method) as the 'right way'. There is
much to suggest that different methods were used in
the same period. Johann Prinnerinsisted in the 1670s
that the violin should be held'so firmlywith your chin
that there is no reason to hold it with the left hand',but
he admittedthat he had known famous virtuosos who
held the instrument against their chests.4 Charles
Andre Van Loo's painting 'The Grand Turk giving a
concert to his mistress' (illus. 1) shows two violinists,
each holding his instrumentin a differentway:one has
it beneath his collar-bone and the other at his neck
(though clearly without chin grip).The detail is so fine
here that this, unlike many paintings, can surely be
trusted as a true record of what the artistsaw. It is even
possible to see from the cover of the violinists' music
that they are playing an'aria del Sig handel', while the
clearly legible score on the harpsichord reveals the
piece as 'Si caro, si' from Admeto,with the viola part,
appropriately,omitted (illus.2). Incidentally, the unison violin line in this arianever leaves first position, so
the man with the violin at his chest faces no particular
difficulties. Pietro Longhi's painting 'The concert'
(dated 1741 by the artist)is less finely draftedthan Van
Loo's picture, but it shows three violinists and each,
once again,has a decidedlydifferentway of holding the
instrument(illus.3). Of the two who have their violins
at their necks, one looks as if he has his chin on the
tailpiece. The treatises by Leopold Mozartand Joseph
Herrandoboth appeared in 1756, and between them
they describe at least two and probablythree different
ways of holding the violin. Although Mozartpoints out
the difficulties of holding the instrument against the
chest, he does not rule out this method, which he
thought had a 'pleasant and relaxed appearance'.5
Clearly there was no universally accepted way of
holding the violin in the first half of the 18th century.
Butthen as now there were good and bad ways of doing
things, so perhaps we should be asking not 'how was
the violin held?'but 'how did the best players hold the
violin?' I know of no convincing evidence for an
accomplished virtuoso's using his chin on the instrument before the mid-18th century. RogerNorth states
that Nicola Matteis held his violin 'against his short
ribbs';but since Matteis is said to have played only his
own compositions (which never go beyond c'" on the E
string) he may have avoided shifting.6 Heinrich von
Biber,however, certainlydid explorethe upperreaches
of the fingerboard,and it is generally thought that he
must have been one of the famous virtuosos that

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4 F. Veracini, Sonate accademiche (London and Florence, [1744]),

frontispiece (London, British Library)

Prinnersaw holding the instrument against the chest.

The celebrated frontispiece to Francesco Veracini's
Sonateaccademicheshows the composer with the violin
at his neck, but with his chin proudlyoff the instrument
(illus.4).
Francesco Geminiani's Artof Playing on the Violinwas

not published until 1751 and his instructions to rest

the instrumentjust below the collar-bone seem so oldfashioned that they have provoked much incredulity.
It is possible, of course, that this section of the treatise
was writtensome years before publication.7But Geminiani's op. 1 violin sonatas, which were first published
in 1716, and the works of his teachers, Corelli and
(especially) Lonati, demand a very agile left hand.
Hence, even if the statement in the treatise had been
written 50 years or more before publication it would
still stand as evidence that virtuoso violin music
requiring a fluent shifting technique was played
without any kind of chin grip. David Boyden thought
that Geminiani's instructions were implicitly contradicted by the frontispiece to the (as he believed) 1752
Frenchedition of the treatise, which shows a violinist,
supposedly Geminiani,holding the instrumentbeneath
his chin (illus.5). Since Geminiani was living in Paris
when the firstFrenchedition appearedand presumably
oversaw its publication, such a disparitybetween text
EARLYMUSIC AUGUST 1984

303

player unequivocally to recommend using the chin.

Before that, this may have been the recourse of less
violinists. Michel Corrette" and Johann
proficient
i:
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both
of whom advocate the use of the chin in
Berlin,'12
::::;:~
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like Prinner- known as keyboardplaywereshifting,
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ers
and
not as violinists. More advanced
composers,
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not to have wanted to use the chin and
players
appear
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it even seems that many may have continued to hold
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the
violin below the collar-bone (which would entirely
-h
:-??precludethe possibility of allowing the chin to gripthe
instrument when shifting).
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Methods of holding the violin remained quite
ii ~i
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until well into the 19th century. In 1761 L'abbe
various
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lefils proposed that the chin should be on the G-string
.liiPside of the instrument,but this practicewas apparently
;a:i~~:i ----~-:i~:---:
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c-~i__Istill not completely accepted by the end of the 18th
: :::
century.'"Atleast, in 1796 FrancescoGaleazziattacked
-Ifd
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the idea of playing with the chin on the E-stringside,
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and his vehemently defensive tone makes it clear that
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must still have been an issue; he claims that it
this
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looks ridiculous, necessitates unwieldy movements
5 F. Geminiani, L'art de jouer le violon (Paris: De la Chevardiere & with the bow and numbs the left ear because of the
Freres le Goux, [c1770]), frontispiece (London, British Library)
proximity of the instrument.14By Galeazzi's time,
though, chin pressure on one side or the other must
and illustration would be very puzzling. But the have been standard;but this meant something quite
engraving is not to be found in the first edition, nor different from modern practice. BartolomeoCampageven in the second, published by Mmine
Vend6meabout noli's treatise of 1824 stresses that the pressure
ten years later; it comes only in the third edition exerted by the chin on the tailpiece must be light and
published by De la Chevardiere & Freres le Goux that the head should be held as upright as possible."5
(whose names appearin an imprintat the bottom of the The inventor of the chin rest, Louis Spohr,lists among
picture).Thisedition cannot be datedwith any certainty, its advantages the fact that it makes it easier to hold
An upright head is not really what
but De la Chevardieredid not go into business until the head upright.'16
about 1760 and it is altogether unlikely that the
volume appeared during Geminiani's lifetime.8 In
other words, the engraving has nothing to do with 6 J. Herrando, Arte, y puntual explicaci6n del modo de tocar el
violin (Paris, 1756), frontispiece (London, British Library)
Geminiani's practice.
It is in fact a copy of the frontispiece to Herrando's
B
a
:::-l_~i
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del modo de tocar el violin,
Arte,y puntual explicacio6n
::::
which was published in Parisin 1756 (illus.6).9On the
7
:::
basis of this engraving, Ralph Kirkpatrickwas able to
identify a violinist in a Spanish court painting by
Jacopo Amigoni (1685-1752) as Herrando.1oThere is
::;::~
ii:i
certainly a striking resemblance between the two
~:,--,?~?!i~:_~.1-~s~B~:..::-:::::
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pictures and both follow quite closely Herrando's --..--"
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i
advice on holding the violin: 'The tailpiece should
:i
come beneath the chin, which can be used to secure it;
i
the face should be turned a little to the right'. :::::~I~:I:::
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Herrando'streatise can be considered a turningpoint.
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of Corelli,he seems to be the first really accomplished

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EARLY MUSIC AUGUST 1984

modern moulded chin (and shoulder)rests encourage,

and it is certainlynot the way most'chin-on' players of
the Baroque violin seem to play.
The advent of using the chin in the 18th century did
not seem to produce an instant solution to shifting
problems. The consistency of rules about shifting and
of shift markings in studies and sonatas throughout
the period under discussion suggests that it was a long
time before the chin came to be used as anything more
than a supplementary aid. The principles assumed by
Veraciniand Geminianiwould, I suspect, have formed
the basis for the shifting techniques of players who
nevertheless admitted the use of the chin. Herrando
stresses that all movements which are not absolutely
necessary should be avoided. Galeazzi's rules for
deciding when to shift are completely consistent with
Leopold Mozart's,and his in turn reflect the practice
of some of the most advanced players earlier in the
century.'7
Guidelines for deciding when to shift are not
uncommon, but no 18th-century treatise gives a
description of the mechanics of shifting. Tartini
avoids the question altogether, saying only that
As regardschangingposition,it is impossibleto give any
hard and fast rules. The student should adopt whatever
methodhe finds more comfortablein each case, and he
shouldthereforepractisethe hand shifts in everypossible
way so that he is preparedfor every situationthat may
arise.8
In the entire literature there are only two sentences
that help significantly, and both are to be found (not
unexpectedly)
Violin:

in Geminiani's Art of Playing on the

Afterhavingbeenpractisedin the firstOrder,youmustpass

on to the second,andthento the third;in whichCareis to be
takenthatthe Thumbalwaysremainfartherbackthanthe
and the moreyou advancein the otherOrders
Fore-finger;
theThumbmustbe ata greaterdistancetillitremainsalmost
hid underthe Neck of the Violin.(p.2)
Itmustbe observed,thatin drawingbackthe Handfromthe
5th,4th and3rdOrderto go to the first,the Thumbcannot,
forWantof Time,be replacedin its naturalPosition;butit is
necessaryit should be replacedat the second Note. (p.3)
In other words, thumb and fingers must move independently rather than together. The hand cannot
maintain a stable'frame'.Geminiani'smusic examples
convey more than his verbal instructions about the
mechanics of shifting. His example ID (illus.7) ostensibly 'shews the different Ways of stopping the same
Note, and discovers at the same Time, that Trans-

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7 GeminianiTheArtof Playingon the Violin(London,1751),ex.I

(London,BritishLibrary)

position of the Hand consists in passing from one

Orderto another'. In fact, it does more than that. It
suggests that, for Geminiani,the concept of an'order'
or position was not much more than a useful way of
describing the geography of the fingerboard. It does
not imply a fixed hand-position. If that example is
used as a practical exercise, it allows the player to
begin to discover the implications of the sentence
quoted above about the independence of the thumb
from the fingers: the easiest way to substitute one
finger for another on the same note is to leave the
thumb uninvolved. The scales which follow in Geminiani's example IEdemonstratethis even more clearly.
The first scale and the others fingered like it are most
easily executed if the thumb is left in one position
throughout. The C majorscales fingered 3 0 4 1 3 (etc)
and 3 4 14 1 4 (etc) ignore the question of position and
instead encourage an extreme elasticity of the fingers,
which arethus enabled to reach forwardand backward
for any notes they want without the whole hand being
involved. The more extended studies later in the
EARLYMUSIC AUGUST 1984

305

volume (particularlyexamples X-XII)take the player

through every conceivable kind of shift and explore
the fingerboardup to seventh position. By adheringto
fingeringinstructionslike these, playersof the Baroque
violin have some chance of retrieving old shifting
techniques.
Leopold Mozart's very orderly exposition of the
principles involved in playing in upper positions (in
chapter 8 of the Violinschule)is, as we shall see, a
codification of the practice of the best violinists for a
generation or so before the treatise was published. His
rules match perfectlythe fingeringmarkingsof players
like the Leclairs; but his examples are merely short
illustrations of his points and have very limited value
as practice material.A number of other violin tutors
contain studies for shifting and playing in upper
positions. Herrandogives eight pages of scales and
exercises for playing in higher positions (including
second position, which he regards as of crucial
importance).The English edition of Carlo Tessarini's
violin method (c1765)contains a few basic'lessons for

indications, which are rather rare in the time of

Leclair'.21 But he is inconsistent about noting exactly
who did include fingering indications; before the
original-instrument revival this may not have seemed
very important. Boyden has only this to say:
The violin music of the time shows that the art of fingering
and shifting had advanced... Fingeringsof this type may be
deduced from certain passages in the music and from a few
specific fingeringsfurnished by the composersthemselves.22

Apart from citing a couple of examples from the

revised edition of Geminiani's op.1 (1739) and mentioning Louis Francoeur's use of the thumb, he gives no
more details.23
Collections of violin sonatas with fingerings specified by the composer were not quite as rare as has
generally been assumed. The list that forms the
appendix to this article is probably far from comprehensive, but it is large enough to increase significantly
our knowledge of the way in which good 18th-century
violinists might have tackled fingering problems.
These sonatas are potentially a useful resource for
the whole shift' etc. 19 L'abbe le fils advertises on his players of the Baroque violin.
title-page that he is concerned with the question of
What do the fingerings printed in these works tell
fingering: Principes du violon pour apprendrele doigte de us? The most common issue focused on in early
cet instrument.He includes a number of useful studies examples of printed fingerings is the avoidance of
in which fingerings are markedand shifts are specified what Hawkins described as 'the disgusting clangor of
by the letter D (for demancher).Corrette'sfirst treatise, an open string'.24Ex.1, from Franyois Duval's last set of

L'ecoled'Orphee,contains just two short fantasias for

practising in upper positions, but his later volume,
L'art de se perfectionner dans le violon (Paris, c1780),

basically consists of an anthology of difficult passages

from well-known works with fingerings added (there
are, for example, four pages of excerpts from Vivaldi's
Four Seasons). Corrette stresses in his preface the
importance of being able to play in upper positions
and shift fluently:
The perfection of violin playing consists of being in
commandof all the different bow strokes, drawinga
beautifulsoundfromthe instrument,beingconversantwith
all the positions on four strings, having facility in shifting,
and playing cleanly and distinctly.20
This kind of material could be usefully supplemented by some of the collections of 18th-century
violin sonatas that actually specify fingerings, and
these have the advantage of being real music (in

conception at least). Verylittle attention seems to have

been paid in the literatureto sonatas with fingerings.
In his three-volume study of the French violin school,
Lionel de La Laurencie wrote that'the development of
left-hand technique led violinists to multiply fingering
306

EARLY MUSIC

AUGUST

1984

Ex.l F. Duval, Les idees musiciennes

L'intrepide, bar 3
(Gay)

~~~i

(Paris, 1720), Allemande

WW'.

JJ

violin sonatas, specifies fourth fingers where no

player today would think of using anything else. Yet
where this very Allemande goes up to c'" sharp on the E
string, Duval gives no fingering. Nor does he give
fingerings for the double stops earlier in the volume. It
is clear that the use of fourth fingers in preference to
open strings was an important new refinement. Roger
North commented on it just a few years after the
publication of Duval's Les idees musiciennes:
There are certein late manners of touch introduc't-the
result of the nicest skill and abillity-of which some are of
admirableefficacy and improvement,and others commonly
over done; and there are those also, which are better spared
than used.
Of the first sort the cheif is the sounding all the notes

under the touch and none with the strings open; for those are

an hardersoundthan when stopt,and not alwaysin tune, time he published his op. 1 he thought of the figure4 as
which the stop (assisted by the ear) effects with utmost indicating not necessarily a fourth fingerbut a stopped
niceness.25
note rather than an open string. The fourth finger
Time and time again, a fourth finger will be insisted markedabove the g' sharp in the second bar of ex.3a
upon in preference to an open string by a composer appears not just in the original London edition, but in
who leaves what arefrom our point of view much more the newly engraved edition published by Roger in
serious problems unsolved. In the first movement of Amsterdama few years later. It makes no sense as a
the Sonateaccademiche(1744),Veraciniinnocently asks fourth finger (and Jean-BaptisteCartier,who included
for fourth fingers in a very straightforwardpassage this piece in his L'artdu violon,omitted the number).26
(ex.2);this in almost comic contrast to the lack of help
In his op.2 sonatas Castrucci provides another
over the upper-position and double-stopping com- reminderthat there were no standardconventions for
plexities in the rest of the volume.
markingfingerings at this time. There, among numerous marked distinctions between fourth fingers and
Ex.2 F. Veracini, Sonate accademiche (London and Florence, open strings, we find one much more
interesting
[1744]),no.1, first mvt, bar 39
He indicates that a passage should be
(ex.3b).
fingering
(Toccata)
4
4
4
played entirely in fifth position with one fourth-finger
extension for the highest note; but he uses a figure 5 to
indicate the extension.27 Later, composers showed
extensions by fingering both the note of the extension
In the early 18th century, the indication of fourth itself and the note immediately following (to refingers seems often to have been the only fingering establish the basic position). In his treatise, L'abbele
choice that composers felt any need to make them- fils uses the symbol 2to indicate an extension. He also
selves. Theirreasons for doing so were musical: here, places a dot in front of the figure 3 to distinguish it
obviously, they were not suggesting solutions to from a triplet marking.As late as 1767, matters were
difficult technical problems, but simply ensuring that not entirely standardized: Leblanc, in marking a
the rightsound would be produced. A scordaturapiece fingering for a note with a trill, gives the number for
by Pietro Castrucci(ex.3a) appears to show that at the the trilling finger rather than for the finger stopping
the main note.28
Ex.3 P. Castrucci
The two earliest examples of printedfingerings deal
(a) XII Solos op.l (London, [c1725]), no.12, second mvt, bars 33-4
with problems that are less mundane than the choice
(Allegro)
4
scordatura
between open strings and fourth fingers. Giovanni
Antonio Piani's Sonate a violino solo e violoncellocol
cimbaloop.1 (Paris, 1712) contains one fourth-finger
actual chords and bass note)
marking,not as a substitute for an open string but to
indicate that a scale passage is to be played in second
position. A third-position passage in the next movement is not fingered, and this is typical of later
developments; third position (or the 'whole position'
as
Leopold Mozart,Herrandoand others called it) was
Y
~,
obviously felt to be less remarkable than second
position and did not need to be specified. (JeanBaptiste Miroglio'ssonatas opp. 1 and 2 have fingering
(b) Sonate op.2 (London, [1734J),no.3, fourth mvt bars 1-7
only for passages involving second position. JulienGavotte
Amable Mathieu introduces the second and fourth
sonatas of his op.4 with a rubric saying that they can
(b) onae
1o.2 Londn, 173]),no., forthmvtbar
be played in second position.)29What makes Piani's
volume
particularly interesting is that he is one of
5!
relatively few composers who felt the need to supply
the performerwith more than just the notes and tempo
directions; apartfrom his one fingering indication, he
I

-I:

EARLY MUSIC

AUGUST

1984

307

Ex.4 J.-M. Leclair I'aine

(a) Premier livre (Paris, 1723), no.12, second mvt, bars 66-7

li

(Allegro ma non tropo)

pi

f,,.T ,L

_i
arpeggio -

r,,

/
le pouce

(b) Premier livre, no.4, fourth mvt, bars 46-7

(Tempo gavotta)

(c) Premier livre, no.12, third mvt bars 44-61

(Allegro ma non tropo)
/

/ ~ii

ii

I,

,dr

8 G. A. Piani, Sonate op.l (Paris, 1742), avertissement

British Library)

(London,

marksin bowings, articulations and inflections. He is

the first to use the signs adopted by Jean-Baptiste
Cupis,Geminiani,Veraciniand others for swelling and
diminishingthe sound and he has a preface explaining
these signs and spelling out in more detail the
implications of his fingering (illus.8).
Three years later, Louis Francoeur'sPremierlivrede
sonatesappeared.These are remarkablefor specifying
that the thumb should be used in fingering an e'-a'-f'
sharp chord. This ratherbizarredevice may have been
taken over from contemporarylute technique.30 It was
adopted by Jean-Marie Leclair l'aIneand was one of
the features of his playing commented on in the

I1

(d) Troisieme livre (Paris, 1734), no.6, first mvt, bar 15

book is the most virtuoso of Leclair'sfour sets of violin

sonatas, and the composer was himself awarethat the
sonatas were far from straightforward.In his preface
he explains that he has'taken care in certain positions
or where the performermight find particulardifficulty
to mark in the figures for the fingers that should be
used'. His fingerings are always useful and it is striking
how often they serve as a warning that a shift to a
particular position is needed to cope not with an
immediate difficulty but with one that is coming up a
Mercurede France in 1738:
bar or so later. Severalof his fingerings are of the kind
He is the firstFrenchman
who,imitatingthe Italians,played that encourage the performer to think beyond the
doublestops,thatis to say,playedchordsof two,threeand concept of positions (or to use what Leopold Mozart
even-by means of the thumb-up to four notes; and he has calls the 'mixed position'); in ex.4b and c arpeggiated
takenthis kindof playingso farthatthe Italiansthemselves chords are
fingered with one finger lying outside the
acknowledgethat he is one of the firstin the field.31
basic position.
Leclairmarksa passage for the thumb in Sonata no.12
None of the fingerings in Leclair'slatervolumes are
of his Premierlivre,published in 1723 (ex.4a). The first as informative.He may have come to feel that the op. 1
308

EARLY MUSIC

AUGUST

1984

sonatas were too virtuoso for his own good, as he is at

pains to stress in the preface to his next volume that he
has included some more accessible pieces:
SothatI mightdeservethe happinessof pleasingthe public
moregenerally,I havetakencareto composesomesonatas
in mindwho areperhapsnot quiteso able;
withperformers
consequently,most of these can be playedon the German
flute.
There are no fingerings in this volume. The few in his
Troisiemelivre (1734) are all concerned with showing
that a particulareffect is to be achieved through string
crossing. In Sonata no.6 he has several chords notated
in a way which shows that they should be broken
downwards,and one of these has a fingering added to
remove any possible ambiguity about the effect intended (ex.4d).The one fingering included in his op.7
concertos (in the Adagio of Concerto no.4) is of this
type. It is generally true to say that fingerings to
indicate that a passage has been conceived with string
crossing in mind are almost as common as fingerings
for upperpositions and shifts. (Cupishas a particularly
interesting example in the second sonata of his op.1,
in which he marksa third-finger extension (ex.5) where
Ex.5 J.-B. Cupis, Sonates op.l (Paris, 1738), no.2, third mvt, bar 16
(Vivace [tempo gavotte])

livre III, no.2, second mvt, bars 9-10

Ex.6 J. Aubert Sonates...

(a) original version (Paris, 1723)

(Corrente)

(b) revised version (Paris, [c17351)

with similar fingering. In one place, Aubert not only

provides alternativelines for violin and flute but adds
a fingering to the violin part to show that it should be
played in second position (ex.7).
Ex.7 L Aubert,Sonates op.1 (Paris,[cl1750]),no.3, third mvt, bars 3033
(Corrente: allegro)
fluto

violino piano

Where only a few fingerings are specified in a

volume they are usually intended not to sort out
technical problems but to specify a particular tone
colour. Guillaume Kennis (c1740) specifies some
colourful effects that approach Klangfarbenmelodie
(ex.8). Carlo Francesco Chiabranotoo shows a strong
Ex.8 G. Kennis, VI sonate op.l (Liege, [c1740])

an open string would disrupt the bowing pattern and

where a fourth finger would disturbthe 'frame'the left
hand has adopted for the figure.)
The option of performance on transverse flute
which Leclair offers32is a common one. For obvious
reasons, it is unusual to find fingerings included in
such works, but there are curious exceptions. One of
the earliest and most naive indications of a change of
position comes in the revised version of Jacques
Aubert's Sonates a violon ... livre III. These are simple

but attractive sonatas which Aubert says can all be

played on the flute. The original version, published in
1723, goes up to d"' once, with no fingering given.
However,in the revised version (c1735),Aubertmakes
two more very straightforwardexcursions into third
position and in each case the upwardshift is indicated
by a figure 1 (ex.6). Aubert'sson Louis also offers the
option of flute performancefor some of the sonatas in
his op.1 (c1750). This volume is sprinkled with fingerings, many of them sequential or, in other words,
following the rule spelt out by Leopold Mozartin his
treatise (p.138) that similar passages should be played

(a) no.4, second mvt, bars 45-6

(Allegro)

^,.

j._

..

I I I I

133

TP

(b) no.6, second mvt, bar I

Allegro

, C

o~

t 0k,*4 ,i

*-_

-Fj

_,m

interest in specifying timbre: most obviously, like

Mondonville 30 years earlier, he includes in his op.l1
(c1761) an explanation of harmonics which he then
exploits in the second and fifth sonatas. Onlythe first
sonata and Lacacciaat the end of the volume have any
actual fingerings and in every case they are a specification for a particularsound quality, as is clear from a
passage in the first sonata (ex.9).
Ex.9 C. F. Chiabrano, Six sonates op.1 (Paris, [c1761]), no.1, first mvt,
bar I
(Allegro)

EARLY MUSIC AUGUST 1984

309

Althoughmost of the sonata collections listed in the

appendixcontain only a sprinklingof fingerings,there
are eight or nine volumes in which the fingerings are
so numerous that they can fairly be described as
comprehensive, that is, in which most of the fingering
decisions for difficult passages have been suggested
by the composer. Leclairl'atne'sPremierlivre(discussed
above) falls into this category, as does Cupis'sop.2. In
1739 several such collections were published, including the Premierlivre (in fact, the only one) by the
younger Leclair. This volume is full of virtuoso
passages, for many of which the composer offers
fingerings. By and large these focus on real problems
and often show a way down from a high position where
the ascent has not been fingered. Leclairis particularly
fond of sequential fingerings and it often happens that
this gives an easy descent in small stages from a high
position (ex.10a and b). There is a striking economy
about the younger Leclair'sfingering indications. He
will insert fingerings to show that a passage which
looks at first as if it requires shifting can be played in
one position (ex.10Oc).
Often a fingering shows the
smallest possible shift: in ex. 10
Odthe performercan get
through to a rest--a natural place to make a large
descent-simply by moving the second finger back a
semitone. Similarlyin ex. 10e an extension is specified
for the one note that lies outside fifth position and an
open string is used for the descent to first position.
Here we see that an open-string trill is acceptable.
Elsewherea change of position is markedfor the sake
of a trill on e", but this is to accommodate a turn at the
end of the ornament (ex.10f). A number of Leclaiis
fingerings ensure a particulartone colour: in Sonata
no.8 a move to fourth position a little earlier than
strictly necessary corresponds to a change from a
section marked 'fierement' to one marked 'gracioso'
(ex.10g).His double stops are interesting:he is one of
the earliest to finger 3rds with adjacentfingers, one of
them extended (ex.10h). (Etienne Mangeau uses the
same fingering in several sonatas of his op.3 and
Leopold Mozart acknowledges the possibility of this
fingering in one of his examples.)33One of Leclair's
passages in 3rds has an extraordinaryfingering that
seems designed to ensure that there will be an audible
slide between some of the slurred pairs (ex.10Oi).
He is
one of the first composers to use half-position freely. A
passage in Sonata no.8 anticipates one in Pierre
Gavinies' op.1 by more than 20 years (ex.10j).
Often the same impulse that led a composer to
suggest fingerings would prompthim to include other
310

EARLY MUSIC

AUGUST

1984

Ex.10 J.-M. Leclair le cadet Premier livre (Paris, 1739)

(a) no.1, second mvt, bars 17-21
(Allemanda: allegro ma non tropo)

(b) no.3, second mvt, bars 13-16

(Allemanda: allegro ma non tropo)

(c) no.4, third mvt, bars 47-55

(Allegro)

#93
2

22

(d) no.4, first mvt, bars 43-4

(Allegro ma non tropo)
.

(e) no.8, second mvt, bars 97-100

(Corrente: allegro ma non tropo)
|

o .

(f) no.1, second mvt, bars 72-3

(Allemanda: allegro ma non tropo)
I

i1

(g) no.8, third mvt, bars 20-24

1

(Aria: andante)
,

I
,

I "

I
I I
49

(h) no.3, fifth mvt, bars 17-19

(Menuetto)

(i) no.8, third mvt, bars 68-9

(Aria: andante)
2
4

24

(j) no.8, first mvt, bars 40-43

(Andante)

:3

2
4a

rC

indications for performance. We have already seen

this in Piani's sonatas. Cupis's op.2 contains not only
copious fingeringsbut also crescendo and diminuendo
markingsand numerous specified inflections. Cupis's
sonatas are much less difficult than those of the
Leclairs, but his fingerings deal with passages that
mightbe problematical.In the firstsonata, for example,
he indicates a downward shift where the ascent that
precedes it is too obvious to mark(ex.11). There is a
Ex.I 1 Cupis, Sonates op.2 (Paris, [c17401), no.l, second mvt, bar 16
2

(Allegro)
fr_

sensible orthodoxy about all his fingerings;sequential

patterns are fingered the same way, open strings are
used for descents, and position changes are generally
planned so that they involve the least possible movement.
In the same year (1739) that the younger Leclair
published his set of sonatas, Geminiani brought out
the revised edition of his op. 1 together with a companion set of 12 more sonatas op.4. These (particularly
op.1) are very fully fingered and have inflections,
bowings and dynamic nuances markedas well. A few

years later, Geminiani's pupil Michael Festing published his op.7 (1747) and op.8 (c1750), both of which
are full of performanceindications. It must have been
the influence of his teacher that led Festing to present
his new sonatas in this way, since they are quite
different in this respect from the two collections he
had published before 1739.
Festing is a very shrewd composer for the violin. He
is a masterof the virtuoso gesture that lies easily under
the hand, so that a sonata such as his op.8 no.3 (illus.9)
sounds more difficult than it really is. Op.8, though,
has fewer fingerings than op.7 and its contents tend to
have a moregalantcast. Op.7is a veryuseful collection,
musically attractive and fingered in detail on almost
every page. The opening of Sonata no.2 (illus.10) is
typical in being a model of orthodox fingering. It
makes good use of second position even when this
means (as in bar 1) changing string for a single note.34
At the beginning of the third system Festing goes into
fourth position and stays there until the first barof the
next system, when he uses an open string for the
descent. In this passage, one note (f") lies outside the
position, and a fourth-finger extension is specified.
Two systems further down, similar figures-in this
case simply a pair of rising 3rds with a turn-are
treated with similar fingerings. All this is, of course,
exactly what Leopold Mozartdirectedhis readersto do
in the next decade. Twice in this movement Festing
indicates a shift for the sake of a trill.Thefirst time (bar
1 of the fifth system)the shift also preparesfor the next
phrase, which begins in third position. The second
time (in the last three bars) is a perfect example of
Quantz'sone fingeringsuggestion:that second position
is useful 'especially in cadencing'.35A few moves are
not spelt out (first position is clearly needed at the
beginning of bar 8, for example), but nothing of
significance is left unexplained.
Geminiani's sonatas confront the performer with
many more problems. In the first place, they are
virtuoso works, not really directed at the gentle
amateurs who make up the list of subscribers to
Festing'sop.7.36The fingerings in the revised op.1 are
plentiful, but they are not enough to solve all the
problems in the horrendously difficult fugal movements. Just as in his treatise, every conceivable type of
shift is represented. In the closing bars of the first
sonata (illus.11) he moves up to a second finger on d'"
(thereby avoiding a fourth-finger trill) and then descends in three stages where two would be possible.
The last part of this move back implies the use of an
EARLY MUSIC AUGUST 1984

311

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10 Festing, Six Solos for a Violin op.7 (London, [1747]),no.2, first

mvt (London, British Library)

open E string immediately before the first finger

markedon"f'sharp.Atthe beginning of the last system
he uses another open string for a shift back to first
position. This excerpt is from one of the more straightforward sections in the volume; the intricacies of
fingeringin manypassagesdefy this kindof description.
Geminiani saw the primary function of the printed
fingerings in the revised op. 1 as being to give guidance
on shifts: his (Italian)title-page states that, for greater
convenience, he has added 'graces for the Adagios,
and numbers for the shifts of the hand'.
The op.4 sonatas have fewer fingerings, but they are
of a similar character.Geminianipublished one more
set of violin sonatas after 1739: the cello sonatas op.5
'transposed for the violin with such changes as are
appropriateand necessary for that instrument'.These
sonatas are quite different from the earlier sets; most
obviously, they are very much less virtuoso, and they
are moreFrenchin style (even than op.4).Thenecessary

and appropriatechanges mentioned on the title-page

of the English edition (1747) are thoroughgoing. The
sonatas have all been transposed for the violin to a
pitch that results in a top note of between a" and d"'in other words, no sonata requires the performerto go
higher than third position- and in all but two cases
this has involved a change of key. More importantly,
the translation to the violin is musically intelligent:
Geminiani never asks the violin to mimic the cello's
special qualities. There are only two fingerings given
in this volume, both of them designed to show that a
particularfigure is possible through stringcrossing. In
the opening of Sonata no.2 (ex.12), the idiomatic
richness of the cello's chords is replaced by an equally
eloquent but more agile figuration.
Fromall these sets of sonatas one could construct a
kind of Gradusad Parnassumthat would begin with the
most basic fingeringproblems and ascend to the limits
of Baroqueviolin technique. The works involved span

312

EARLY MUSIC AUGUST 1984

Ex.12 F. Geminiani, Sonates op.5 (The Hague, 1746),no.2, first mvt,

bars 1-2
(a) violin version
2

Andante

J'exerce dans ma solitude,

Differens traits de Concerto;
Qu'on est charme de son etude,
Quand le public nous dit Bravo
Par une illusion nouvelle,
Non, comme Icare audacieux,
Sur la Brillante chanterelle,
Je v6le jusque dans les cieux.37

Andante
.

vesio
(b)oriina

89

fo celo74#Pars,

Peter Walls is senior lecturerin music at the Victoria

Universityof Wellington.New Zealand He plays the
Baroqueviolinand is directorof the BaroquePlayers,New
orchestra
Zealand'sonly original-instrument

ir

the same period as the most useful 18th-centuryviolin

treatises and would form an invaluable companion to
them. Cupis's op.2 might be an appropriateplace to
start, followed by Festing's op.7, thence to the collections of the Leclairs, and finally to Mondonville and
Geminiani. Having mastered all of these, the violinist
might feel prompted to echo the sentiments of the
doggerel epigraph to Corrette'sL'artde se perfectionner
dans le violon:

........
...

e .... e-

. ...

,'T'.,

~~--)---

~
.
. . . . ...... ..........
-'"...............................
a ..........
. -...... - . .... ... . - 4 "
.. .. ....w ? ....... ? . .. . .... ..............
. . .. ..
.........--

11 Geminiani, Le prime sonate (London, 1739), no.l, fourth mvt (London, British Library)
EARLY MUSIC AUGUST 1984

313

Appendix: violin sonatas with printed fingerings 1700-1770

Date
Publication (name of publisher is given where
known)

[c1750] Aubert, Louis: Sonates d violon seul avec la basse-

continue op.1 (Paris: l'auteur)

Michael: Six Solos for a Violin with a Thorough
Festing,
750]
[cl
Bass for the Harpsichord op.8 (London: John John1712
Piani, Giovanni Antonio: Sonate a violino solo e
son)
violoncellocol cimbaloop.1 (Paris)
[1750] Miroglio, Jean-Baptiste: Six sonates d violon seul et
1715 Francoeur,Louis:Premierlivrede sonatesd violonseul
basse op.2 (Paris: Boivin)
et la basse (Paris: l'auteur etc)
1756
Mathieu, Julien-Amable: Six sonates d violon seul et la
1720 Duval,Frangois:Lesideesmusiciennes:
sonatesd violon
basse continue op. 1 (Paris)
seul avec la basse (Paris: l'auteur)
[c1760] Gavinies, Pierre: Six sonates d violon seul et basse op. 1
1723
Leclair l'ain, Jean-Marie: Premier livre de sonates d
(Paris: l'auteur)
violonseul avec la basse continue(Paris:Boivin)
[c1761] Chiabrano, Carlo Francesco: Six sonates a violon seul
et basse continue op.l (Paris: Huberty, Freres le
[c1725] Castrucci,Pietro:XIISolosfora Violinwitha ThoroughbassfortheHarpsichord
orBass Violinop. 1(London:
Goux)
Walsh & Hare)
[c1762] Stamitz,Johann:Seisonateda cameraa violinosolo col
--:
[1734]
Sonate a violino e violone o cimbalo op.2 (London:
basso (Paris: De la Chevardiere)
Walsh)
[1764] Gavinies, Pierre: Six sonates d violon seul et basse op.3
(Paris: Le Duc)
[1734] Leclair I'ane, Jean-Marie: Troisiemelivre de sonates a
violon seul avec la basse continue op.5 (Paris: [c1765] Mathieu, Julien-Amable: Six sonates d violon seul et la
basse continue op.4 (Paris: Le Menu etc)
l'auteur etc)
[c1735] Aubert, Jacques: Sonates a violon seul et basse [c1767] Leblanc [first name unknown]: Sonates d violon seul et
basse continue (Paris: l'auteur)
continue . . . livre III nouvelle edition corigee et
Nicolas: Premier livre de sonates d violon seul
Capron,
augmentee(Paris:l'auteur etc)
[c1768]
et basse op. 1 (Paris: l'auteur etc)
1738 Cupis, Jean-Baptiste: Sonates d violon seul avec la

basse continueop. 1 (Paris:l'auteur etc)

[1738] Mondonville, Jean-Joseph Cassanea de: Les sons
harmoniques:sonates d violon seul avec la basse
continue op.4 (Paris and Lille: l'auteur)

1739

Geminiani, Francesco: Le prime sonate a violino e

basso..,. con diligenzacorrette,aggiuntoviancoraper
maggiorfacilitdle grazieagli adagi ed i numeriperla
transposizionedella mano (London)

1739

--:

Sonate a violino e basso op.4 (London)

1739

Leclairle cadet,Jean-Marie:Premierlivrede sonatesd

violonseul avec la basse continue(Paris and Lyon:
Leclair l'aine etc)
[c1740] Cupis, Jean-Baptiste: Sonates pour le violon op.2
(Paris:Iauteur)
[c1740] Kennis, Guillaume: VI sonate a violino e violoncello o
cimbalo op.1 (Liege)
1744
Mangeau, Etienne: Sonate d deux violons egaux sans
basse op.3 (Paris: l'auteur etc)
[1744] Veracini, Francesco: Sonate accademiche a violino solo
e basso op.2 (London and Florence: author)
1746
Geminiani, Francesco: Sonates pour le violon avec un
violoncelle ou clavecin op.5 (The Hague: author)
[1747] Festing, Michael: Six Solos for a Violin and Thorough
Bass op.7 (London: William Smith)
[1748] Branche, Charles-Antoine: Premier livre de sonates d
violon seul et basse (Paris: l'auteur etc)

[c1748] Miroglio, Jean-Baptiste:Six sonates dcviolon seul et

basse op.1 (Paris:Boivin)
f1748] L'abbe lefils [Joseph-Barnabe Saint-Sevin]: Sonates a
violon seul op.1 (Paris: l'auteur etc)

314

EARLYMUSIC AUGUST 1984

'I am grateful for having had the opportunityto discuss some of

these issues with Sigiswald Kuijken. The attitudes and ideas
expressed in the first partof this article have been influenced by his
teaching and practice.
2JosephHerrando,for example,begins his Arte ypuntual explicacion
del modode tocarel violin(Paris, 1756):'In all arts and sciences, and
especially in this, one seeks naturalness and convenience'. I should
like to thank R S. J. Corran and R G. Poole for assistance in
translating relevant sections of Herrando's treatise. (All other
translations are mine unless otherwise stated.)
3See 'Of the Close Shake' in TheArt of Playing on the Violin (London,

1751), p.8; facs. ed. D. D. Boyden (London, 1952). See also R.

Hickman, 'The censored publications of TheArt of Playingon the
Violin,or Geminiani unshaken', EM, xi (January 1983), pp.73-6.
4See Charles Medlam's letter 'On holding the violin', EM, vii
(October 1979), pp.561-3; Prinner's treatise is Washington, DC,
Libraryof Congress, ML95/.P97.
5Versucheinergri'ndlichen Violinschule (Augsburg, 1756/R Salzburg,

1922); Eng. trans. E. Knocker as A Treatiseon the Fundamental

Principles of Violin Playing (London, 2/1951), p.54

6See J. Wilson, ed., RogerNorthon Music(London, 1959), pp.309

and 355. Matteis'scompositions were published as Ayrsforthe Violin
(London, 1676-85).
7Boydenraises this possibility in the introductionto the facsimile
of Geminiani'streatise (op cit, p.xii).
8Boydenassumed that the edition published by De la Chevardiere
& Freresle Goux was the 1752 edition that he knew of from Eitner,
Quellen-Lexikon(Leipzig, 1900-04) and La Laurencie, L'ecolefrangaise

deviolondeLullyi Viotti,3 vols. (Paris,1922-4/R1971);seeGeminiani

ed. Boyden, op cit, p.x and n.1. The edition of De la Chevardiere&
Freres le Goux is dated 1763 in the RISM Ecrits concernant la musique

(Munich and Duisburg, 1971), i, p.355, and c1775 in the British

LibraryCatalogue ofMusic before 1800. The first and second editions of

the treatise are not listed in the main RISMEinzeldrucke

vor1800, 9
vols. (Kassel, 1971-81), iii, pp.208-15. I should like to thank C. Mews

for checking the copies of Geminiani'streatise in the Bibliotheque

Nationale, Paris.
9Boyden noticed the connection between these two engravings
but, through confusion about the date of Geminiani's volume, he
remained puzzled about their precise relationship; see his The
Historyof ViolinPlayingfromits Originsto 1761 (London, 1965),p.362.
'oSee DomenicoScarlatti(Princeton, 1953), p.112 and fig.38.
"L'ecoled'Orphee(Paris, 1738/R Geneva, 1972), p.7
'2See Mogens Brendstrup'sletter 'Danish violin testimony', EM,
viii (July 1980), pp.429-30.
'3Principesdu violon (Paris, 1761), p. 1; facs. ed. A. Wirsta (Paris,
1961)
'4Elementiteorico-praticidi musica, 2 vols. (Rome, 1791-6), ii,
pp.84-5
"5Nouvellemethodede la mecaniqueprogressivedu jeu de violon
Method
(Leipzig, 1824);Eng. trans. J. Bishop asA New andProgressive
on theMechanismof ViolinPlaying(London, 1856),p.1. The passage is
worthquoting:'It is necessary to avoid drawingthe chin too near the
collar bone, and thereby holding the violin constrainedly; but it
should be so directed, that the head of the performermay remain as
nearly upright as possible'.
'6Violin-Schule
(Vienna, 1832), pp.8-9; Eng.trans. C. Rudolphusas
LouisSpohr'sGrandViolinSchool(London,1833):'Themodern style of
playing which so frequently obliges the left hand to change its
position, makes it absolutely necessary to hold the Violin with the
chin. To do this unfettered and without bending down the head is
difficult; no matterwhether the chin rest on the left or on the right
side, or even on the tail piece itself. It may also, in the quick sliding
down from the upper positions, easily draw the Violin from under
the chin, or at least, by moving the instrument, disturb the
tranquillity of the bowing. These evils the fiddleholder perfectly
removes and in addition to a firm and free position of the Violin, the
advantage is gained of not hindering the full vibration of the
instrument,and thereby injuringthe sound and force of the tone, by
the pressure of the chin on the belly or the tail piece' (p.4). All that
Spohr says about the tonal advantages of the chin rest (or
'fiddleholder')applies equally to chin-off Baroque playing.
'7Herrando,op cit, p.24; Galeazzi, op cit, pp.131ff; Mozart,op cit,
pp.132ff
'8G.Tartini,Traitedes agrementsde la musique(Paris,1771);ed. E. R.
Jacobi and Eng. trans. C. Girdlestone (Celle and New York, 1961),
p.56
'9AnAccurateMethodto Attainthe Artof Playingye Violin(London,
[c1765]), pp.9ff. This is a much extended version of the original,
Grammatica
per i principiantidi violino(Rome, 1741).
dans le violon(Paris, 1782/RGeneva, 1972),
dese perfectionner
2oL'art
p.1
21LaLaurencie, op cit, iii, pp.104-5
220pcit, p.399. His examples from Louis Francoeur'ssonatas are
wrongly attributedto Frangois Francoeur;see pp.376, 421 and 453.
23Therelevant section of the New Grovearticle on fingering is brief
and inaccurate:in'Fingering, ?II, 2: Bowed strings, violin family to
1800', Peter le Hurayhas been confused by La Laurencie,who does
not make a clear distinction between specified fingerings and ones
that can be deduced from context. Hence, Duval's sonatas are said
to be 'importantfor their written-in fingerings' and Jacques Aubert
(who is given a musical example which did not originallyinclude the
fingerings shown here) is said to have 'marked unusual extension
fingerings'.On the other hand, 'Leclairmarkedvirtuallyno fingerings
in his music'. All these statements are wrong and arise from a
misinterpretationof what La Laurencie says. The article also claims
that L'abbele fils says that the violin should be 'firmlygrasped with
the chin' and that Leopold Mozartadvises players'to press the chin
down on the violin in orderto facilitate changes of position'; neither
L'abbe's'le Menton se trouve du c6te de la quatriemeCorde'(op cit,
p.1) nor Mozart'sstatement that the E-string side 'unter das Kinn

kommt (op cit (Augsburg, 1756), p.53) necessarily imply this. As it

stands, Mozart'sstatement could describe Veracini'sway of holding
the violin (illus.4).
24AGeneralHistoryof Music(London, 1776/R New York, 1963), ii,
p.903n.
25Wilson,ed., op cit, p.234
26Twelveof the (many)18th-centurysonatas or sonata movements
in this volume are printedwith their originalfingerings;some others
have fingerings added by Cartier.The first edition appearedin 1798.
Accordingto RISMthere are several copies of this in the Bibliotheque
Nationale, Paris, and one in the Bodleian Library,Oxford;all these
are, in fact, second editions (1799). The third edition (Paris, 1803/R
New York, 1973) is considerably expanded.
27Accordingto Le Huray(opcit)GasparoZanetti uses a figure 5 to
indicate fourth-finger extensions to c"' in II scolaro(Milan, 1645).
28Sonatano.1 in E flat major,second movement (Allegro),bar 35
29Infact, the marking'A la seconde Position' before Sonata no.2
can only apply to the first movement. Sonata no.4 is marked'Toute
la Sonate a la Seconde Position'.
30Thiswas suggested to me by Michael Lowe.
31(June1738), p.1115. This comes in part of an article on French
violinists (including Duval Senaille, Guignon and Sommis). In
August,a correction was printedacknowledgingthat Leclairhad not
been the first to use chords on the violin; see M. Pincherle, JeanMarieLeclairl'aine (Paris, 1952), p.62. M. Lemoine, 'La technique
violonistique de Jean-MarieLeclair',Revuemusicale,no.226 (1955),
pp.117-43, discusses some of Leclair's fingerings.
32Even the first volume has on its title-page 'Some of these
sonatas can be played on the transverseflute', and inside the flautist
is directedto the second and fourth sonatas. In the last movement of
Sonata no.2 alternatives for flute and violin are provided in a few
bars. The C majorConcertoop.7 no.3 is markedas suitable for flute.
33Mangeau,Sonata no.1 in F major, second movement (Largo
affectuoso), bar 17; Mozart,op cit (Eng. trans.), p.157
34Onceagain, Leopold Mozart does the same thing; op cit (Eng.
trans.), p.152
zu spielen
J. Quantz, VersucheinerAnweisungdieFlotetraversiere
35"J.
(Berlin, 1752/R 1952); Eng. trans. E. R. Reilly as OnPlayingthe Flute
(London, 1966), p.235
36Thereare approaching240 names on the list and it would not be
accurate to describe them all as amateurs:they include the Apollo
Academy, William Boyce, Johh Freake, Prince Lobkowitz and the
Philharmonic Society.
37Aparaphrase:'I practise various concerto strokes in solitude;
how gratifying these studies become when the public calls out
"Bravo!".Unlike the foolhardy Icarus, who was deceived by an
illusion [?],I fly on the brilliant E string right up to the heavens'.

EARLY MUSIC
November 1984
Theearlypiano 1

February 1985
Theearlypiano. 2

May 1985
J S Bach tercentenary

EARLY MUSIC AUGUST 1984

315