When,
after a taxing concert season, the weary violinist retired to a Swiss
monastery for rest and practice amid peaceful surroundings, rumor had it
that he was imprisoned for some dark deed. To crown the delusion, his
spectre was long supposed to stalk abroad, giving fantastic performances
on the violin. It is his apparition Gilbert Parker conjures up in "The
Tall Master."
Paganini is described as a man of tall, gaunt figure, melancholy
countenance and highly wrought nervous temperament. His successors have
all profited by his development of the violin's resources, the result of
combined genius and labor. He was practically a pioneer in the effective
use of chords, arpeggio passages, octaves and tenths, double and triple
harmonics and succession of harmonics in thirds and in sixths. His long
fingers were of invaluable service to him in unusual stretches, and his
fondness for pizzicato passages may be traced to his familiarity with
the twang of his father's mandolin. He shone chiefly in his own
compositions, which were written in keys best suited to the violin.
Pages:
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165