Niccolo Paganini: 24 Capricci per violino

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The capriccios show the degree of his perfection as a musician already in his youth. There was no match for them in all previous violin literature. True, masters of the Baroque era had also composed works for solo violin, often for the purpose of instruction, but Paganini's Capricci were the first to demonstrate an entirely new type of composition characteristic of the romantic flair. Even though Paganini's technical requirements introduce in his Capricci a number of new or newly exploited elements (two-voice trills, flageolets, left-hand pizzicati, play on the G string, diverse types of saltato, octave playing) they are not just dry etudes but works of distinct musical value in both their harmony structure and melodie inventiveness. Rather than fitting them in the circle of 24 major and minor keys (such as, e.g., Bach in his Well-tempered Clavier or Chopin in his etudes and preludes) Paganini chose the keys ad lib with regard to their suitability for the violin technique. His Capricci left an indelible mark on I9th and 20th century music. Thus, the famous variation Capriccio in A-minor No. 24 inspired, among other works, variations by Schumann, Brahms, Rachmaninov or Lutoslawski. The Capricci remained long in the manuscript form until 1820 when Ricordi of Milan set about publishing them and put them out as "Paganini's opus No.l“. The composer dedicated the work to his colleagues violinists who, however, refused to accept it on the grounds that it was unplayable. It was only with advances in violin virtuosity that the Capricci came to be duly appreciated, and to this day they provide a chance to demonstrate the ultimate in the art of interpretation.