JAVS Summer 2025

and artistically rich bouquet. Notably, the first edition allowed performers the option to omit the fugue. The dance-like coda is typical for potpourris, reflecting the significant presence of dance music in opera and its capacity to excite audiences. Many violists today are more familiar with the heavily abridged version of op. 94 , which retains only the introduction, the tune from Mozart’s Don Giovanni , and the coda. This version, renamed Fantasy but keeping the same opus number, lasts about two-fifths of the original potpourri and first appeared in 1899 without Hummel’s authorization. Around 1798, Hummel composed and published his Viola Sonata in E-flat Major, op. 5, no. 3, where the piano holds a more prominent role, typical of the classical period and possibly intended for home entertainment. Niccolò Paganini’s towering influence on violin playing and composition is well-known worldwide, and his performances were a major draw throughout Italy and beyond. However, Paganini’s connection with the viola remains less familiar. In 1808, he composed a trio for viola, cello, and guitar (MS 17) for the wedding of his sister Domenica Paganini on July 20. His first visit to Britain in 1831 led, in the following year, to the acquisition of a 1731 Antonio Stradivari viola, completing his collection of Stradivari string instruments and sparking his enthusiasm for the viola over the next two years. This sonata is closely linked with Hector Berlioz. By 1830, when Berlioz won the Prix de Rome to study in Italy, he already held Paganini in high regard. Paganini attended one of Berlioz’s concerts in Paris on December 9, 1832, and met him again a year later, shortly after Berlioz’s marriage. Paganini then commissioned Berlioz to compose a viola work for his upcoming tour in Britain. The result was Harold en Italie , a symphony tailored to Paganini’s playing style. Paganini, however, felt the piece had too many rests and preferred to keep playing continuously, so he never performed it. Despite this, their mutual respect and friendship endured. Although Harold en Italie had premiered several years prior, it was not until December 16, 1838, that Paganini—then gravely ill with throat cancer—attended a performance. So profoundly moved was he by the work that he dispatched his son, Sonata per la Grand Viola, MS 70 by Niccolò Paganini (1782-1840)

Achille, to convey his admiration on his behalf. Two days later, Achille delivered a generous cheque of 20,000 francs to Berlioz, which greatly assisted the composer financially. In gratitude, Berlioz dedicated his symphony Roméo et Juliette to Paganini. During his second British tour, Paganini performed his trio for viola, cello, and guitar (MS 114), composed in 1833, at a private concert. Paganini played viola, Robert Lindley the cello, and Felix Mendelssohn sight-read the guitar part on the piano. For his solo repertoire, Paganini composed the Sonata per la Grand Viola, MS 70. The title “Grand Viola” refers to a large Parisian viola loaned to him by his friend Luigi Guglielmo Germi. On April 28, 1834, Paganini premiered the sonata at Hanover Square Rooms in London, where it received a lukewarm response. Some have suggested that the audience of the time was unprepared to embrace the viola as a virtuosic solo instrument, though such initial receptions are common even for masterpieces. Following this, the sonata was rarely performed, and Paganini’s interest in the viola waned. Nevertheless, the work remains a significant addition to the nineteenth-century virtuoso viola repertoire. 7 As an Italian musician, Paganini lived a life deeply entwined with the theater and was an avid theatergoer. Upon arriving in any new city on his tours, his first destination was always the theater. Many of his violin compositions are highly lyrical and operatic in character, and he also composed vocal music. This sonata is performed without interruption, though it consists of three distinct sections, each reflecting a typical operatic instrumental style. The sonata opens with a dramatic orchestral introduction, followed by a free recitative for the solo viola. As Paganini intended, the solo viola plays continuously until the conclusion. The second section, Andante Cantabile , features a melody in 9/8 time that quotes Paganini’s own theme from the third movement of his Trio for Violin, Cello, and Guitar, MS 69, composed on August 4, 1833, with minor adjustments. This melody lasts just eight measures. The final section is a textbook theme and variations, showcasing operatic writing that culminates in a brilliant finale. The theme here is borrowed from the first movement of his Sonata for Violin and Guitar, no. 15 ( Centone di Sonate, MS 112, no. 3), composed around 1828 or later, again with some modifications. While it was common practice for composers to recycle melodic ideas, few violists are familiar with Paganini’s ensemble

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Journal of the American Viola Society / Vol. 41, Summer 2025 Online Issue