The Myth of Paganini in Modern Compositions for Solo Violin: New Performing Techniques and New Meanings

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DOI 10.34690/412

Author Sofia E. Ermasova

Affiliation Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory, Moscow, Russia

Email sofiaermas7@gmail.com

ORCID

0009-0000-7821-9721

Abstract

The article examines compositions for solo violin by three outstanding contemporary composers: Salvatore Sciarrino, Alfred Schnittke and Jörg Widmann. Each of the authors interpreted the legend of the possessed violinist in their own way and found their unique ways to actualize it; as a result, willingly or not, composers enter into dialogue with each other. For Salvatore Sciarrino, the appeal of Paganini's music lies in the ability to hear it distorted—through the prism of new techniques, experiments with which form the essence of his Six Capriccios (1976). In Alfred Schnittke’s “A Paganini” (1982), against the background of a polystylistic dialogue with the music of the past, the religious and ethical problems of creativity are actualized. The idea of the cycle of six Etudes by Jörg Widmann (1995–2010) developed gradually: each of the first three works is devoted to the “research” of a certain performing technique, while in Etudes IV–VI the image of Paganini becomes central. We interpret these three etudes as a new mythological framework: Widmann moves far away from the “demonic—divine” coordinate system in which the myth of the inspired violinist traditionally existed. Parallels arise with the works of Sciarrino and Schnittke discussed earlier in the article, as well as Widmann’s main mythological work, the opera «Babylon.»

Keywords contemporary music, musical analysis, A. G. Schnittke, J. Widmann, music of the second half of the 20th century, extended techniques, musical quotations, violin music, N. Paganini, S. Sciarrino

For citation

Ermasova, S. E. “The myth of Paganini in modern compositions for solo violin: new performing techniques and new meanings.” Muzykal’naya akademiya [Music Academy], no. 3, 2024, pp. 48–61, doi:10.34690/412. (In Russ.)

Acknowledgments

Candidate of Art Criticism, Associate Professor Roman A. Nasonov (Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory), supervisor of my postgraduate thesis.

Published 10.11.2023

Approved 26.02.2024

Submitted 27.09.2024

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The Myth of Paganini in Modern Compositions for Solo Violin: New Performing Techniques and New Meanings

The Myth of Paganini in Modern Compositions for Solo Violin: New Performing Techniques and New Meanings

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