Violin, Guitar
SKU:
UT.CH-335
Composed by
Nicolo Paganini. Edited
by Italo Vescovo. Saddle
stitching. Classical.
Score and Parts. Ut
Orpheus #CH 335.
Published by Ut Orpheus
(UT.CH-335).
ISBN
9790215326538. 9 x 12
inches.
The Trois
airs variés for violin
and piano belong to the
small nucleus of
compositions for this
scoring which, in the
Catalogo tematico,
also includes the
Cantabile in D
major (M.S.109), the only
original manuscript piece
for violin and piano
recently published in a
critical edition, and the
Quattro Notturni a
quartetto (M.S.15).
This
‘triptych’,
whose authorship is
unknown, is familiar
thanks to the
nineteenth-century
editions Ricordi, Pacini
and Hofmeister, the only
evidence of the piece
which is placed in the
Catalogo tematico
at n. 3 of the uncertain
works (Section V, pp.
346-347), that is, those
works whose authorship
remains in doubt due to
the lack of objectively
valid documents. This
placing does not
categorically exclude the
originality of the piece,
at least as regards the
violin part, and that
Gustavo Carulli
‘completed’
them later by adding the
piano part. Given that to
date there is no evidence
to deny Paganini’s
authorship of the piece,
we rely on the editorial
tradition documented by
the three publications
mentioned above and, of
course, on the style of
the composition.
Regarding the
instrumental aspect, the
technical peculiarity is
given by the exclusive
use of the 4th string
which must be transposed
one tone above, in all
three airs, including the
variations. Concerning
the piano part composed
by Gustavo Carulli, it
can only be said that it
is simple and functional,
aimed at highlighting the
violin part, nothing
more. Since the piano
part is not original, the
guitar has been thought
of as the ideal
instrument (as indeed is
proved by
Paganini’s
considerable musical
production for this
scoring) to support the
violin part and which is
better suited to these
small but pleasant
pieces. In the
transposition for guitar,
however, the aim has been
to include Gustavo
Carulli’s musical
lesson, where it is
convincing, in other
cases, however, the
preference has been to
find different solutions,
while trying to remain
within Paganini’s
‘style’ also
as regards writing for
the guitar. The present
edition therefore seeks
to be a plausible
alternative to the
previous editions, also
in order to make these
delightful but forgotten
pieces more usable.
3 PIECES FOR VIOLIN AND GUITAR
