JAVS Spring 2022

Figure 14: Campagnoli, 41 Caprices, no.14, mm.1-16.

I managed to record all 41 Caprices before the pandemic struck in 2020. Not knowing what was coming, I had a more immediate deadline: our third child was due in February of 2020. Our newborn forced us on a slightly earlier quarantine than the rest of the world, and for once I was very happy to exist online only. As the pandemic wore on, listeners started requesting tutorials on specific caprices. This was something I could do easily enough. I started recording tutorials at home, while the kids were asleep or out with their dad. These tutorials have allowed me to explain how to practice various techniques, in a more organic way than through the written word. They have turned into a way to further connect with violists and demonstrate the mechanics behind each caprice. What started as lofty goal with a clearly defined end has become an organism that keeps growing and changing shape. It seems that The Campagnoli Project does not want to stop, it wants to live with me. As I write this, I

still have plans to record three requested tutorials, and re-record six more caprices, that I first recorded before Stuart came on board as my engineer. Listeners have chimed in to ask for an album. Occasionally, I am asked to play a couple caprices on a period chamber concert. Each time I revisit a caprice, I see it through a new lens, and learn something else about my playing and what I can improve. Mostly, I am thankful to Bartolomeo Campagnoli for giving the world this gift: a truly unique set of caprices, still as challenging and exhilarating today as they undoubtedly were 200 years ago.

Journal of the American Viola Society / Vol. 38, No. 1, Spring 2022

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