24th Caprice
Encyclopedia
Caprice No. 24 in A minor is the final caprice
of Niccolò Paganini
's 24 Caprices
, and a famous work for solo violin
. The work, in the key of A minor
, consists of a theme
, 11 variations
, and a finale. His 24 Caprices were probably composed in the period between 1805 to 1809, while he was in the service of the Baciocchi court.
It is widely considered one of the most difficult pieces ever written for the solo violin. It requires many highly advanced techniques such as parallel octaves and rapid shifting covering many intervals
, extremely fast scales and arpeggio
s including minor scale
s in thirds and tenths, left hand pizzicato
, high positions, and quick string crossing.
Capriccio (music)
A capriccio or caprice , is a piece of music, usually fairly free in form and of a lively character...
of Niccolò Paganini
Niccolò Paganini
Niccolò Paganini was an Italian violinist, violist, guitarist, and composer. He was one of the most celebrated violin virtuosi of his time, and left his mark as one of the pillars of modern violin technique...
's 24 Caprices
24 Caprices for Solo Violin (Paganini)
The 24 Caprices for Solo Violin, Op. 1 was written by Niccolò Paganini between 1802 and 1817 and published in 1819. They are also designated as M.S. 25 in Maria Rosa Moretti and Anna Sorrento's Catalogo tematico delle musiche di Niccolò Paganini, which was published in 1982...
, and a famous work for solo violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
. The work, in the key of A minor
A minor
A minor is a minor scale based on A, consisting of the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. The harmonic minor scale raises the G to G...
, consists of a theme
Theme (music)
In music, a theme is the material, usually a recognizable melody, upon which part or all of a composition is based.-Characteristics:A theme may be perceivable as a complete musical expression in itself, separate from the work in which it is found . In contrast to an idea or motif, a theme is...
, 11 variations
Variation (music)
In music, variation is a formal technique where material is repeated in an altered form. The changes may involve harmony, melody, counterpoint, rhythm, timbre, orchestration or any combination of these.-Variation form:...
, and a finale. His 24 Caprices were probably composed in the period between 1805 to 1809, while he was in the service of the Baciocchi court.
It is widely considered one of the most difficult pieces ever written for the solo violin. It requires many highly advanced techniques such as parallel octaves and rapid shifting covering many intervals
Interval (music)
In music theory, an interval is a combination of two notes, or the ratio between their frequencies. Two-note combinations are also called dyads...
, extremely fast scales and arpeggio
Arpeggio
An arpeggio is a musical technique where notes in a chord are played or sung in sequence, one after the other, rather than ringing out simultaneously...
s including minor scale
Minor scale
A minor scale in Western music theory includes any scale that contains, in its tonic triad, at least three essential scale degrees: 1) the tonic , 2) a minor-third, or an interval of a minor third above the tonic, and 3) a perfect-fifth, or an interval of a perfect fifth above the tonic, altogether...
s in thirds and tenths, left hand pizzicato
Pizzicato
Pizzicato is a playing technique that involves plucking the strings of a string instrument. The exact technique varies somewhat depending on the type of stringed instrument....
, high positions, and quick string crossing.
Variations on the theme
The caprice has provided a rich seam of material for works by subsequent composers. Compositions based on it, and transcriptions of it, include:- AngraAngra (band)Angra is a Brazilian metal band from São Paulo, Brazil known for its symphonic interludes, highly technical instrumental playing and Brazilian regional elements.- Biography :...
- Used the main theme for an interlude on electric guitar on the song "Angels Cry", from the album of same name - Leopold AuerLeopold AuerLeopold Auer was a Hungarian violinist, teacher, conductor and composer.-Early life and career:...
– arranged it for violin with piano accompaniment, and added some variations of his own - BanYaBanyaBanya may refer to:* Banya , a traditional Russian steam bath* BanYa, a South Korean musical group* Banya: The Explosive Delivery Man, a comic by Kim Young-ohIn places:* Banya, Plovdiv Province, a town in southern Bulgaria...
– "Caprice of Otada" is based on Rachmaninoff'sSergei RachmaninoffSergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music...
Rhapsody on a Theme of PaganiniRhapsody on a Theme of PaganiniThe Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini in A minor, Op. 43 is a concertante work written by Sergei Rachmaninoff. It is written for solo piano and symphony orchestra, closely resembling a piano concerto. The work was written at Villa Senar, according to the score, from July 3 to August 18, 1934...
and is used in Pump it Up NX2 - Alison BalsomAlison BalsomAlison Louise Balsom is an English trumpet soloist.-Early life:Balsom was born in Hertfordshire. She attended the Tannery Drift Primary School, then the Greneway Middle School and the Meridian School, all in Royston, Hertfordshire...
– recorded a version transcribed for trumpet - James BarnesJames Barnes (composer)James Charles Barnes is an American composer.Barnes studied composition and music theory at the University of Kansas, earning a Bachelor of Music in 1974, and Master of Music in 1975. He studied conducting privately with Zuohuang Chen...
– "Fantasy Variations on a Theme by Niccolo Paganini", a wind band arrangement with each variation as a solo for a particular section - Boris Blacher – Variations on a Theme by Paganini (1947), for orchestra
- Hans BottermundHans BottermundHans Bottermund was born in Leipzig in 1892 and died in Berlin in 1949. He was a cellist and composer who studied with Klengel, Becker, and Schroeder. He taught in Frankfurt and was the solo cellist of the Berlin Philharmonic.-Compositions:...
– Variations on a Theme by Paganini - Johannes BrahmsJohannes BrahmsJohannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
– Variations on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 35 (1862-63), for solo piano (2 books) - Charles CamilleriCharles CamilleriCharles Camilleri was a Maltese composer, long acknowledged as Malta's national composer.Camilleri was born in Ħamrun and, as a teenager, had already composed a number of works based on folk music and legends of his native Malta...
– Paganiana, for two pianos - Luigi DallapiccolaLuigi DallapiccolaLuigi Dallapiccola was an Italian composer known for his lyrical twelve-tone compositions.-Biography:Dallapiccola was born at Pisino d'Istria , to Italian parents....
– Sonatina canonica in mi bemolle maggiore su "Capricci" di Niccolo Paganini : per pianoforte (1946) - Eliot FiskEliot FiskEliot Fisk is an American classical guitarist.-Biography:Fisk was the last direct pupil of Andrés Segovia and is the holder of all reproduction rights to Segovia's music, given to him by Segovia's wife, Emilia...
– transcribed all 24 Caprices for solo guitar - Ignaz FriedmanIgnaz FriedmanIgnaz Friedman Ignaz Friedman Ignaz Friedman (also spelled by languages Ignace or Ignacy; exactly Solomon (Salomon) Isaac Freudman(n), (February 13, 1882January 26, 1948) was a Polish pianist and composer. Critics (e.g. Harold C. Schonberg) and colleagues (e.g...
– Studies on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 47b (1914) - David Garrett David Garrett (violinist)David Garrett is a record breaking German/American classical violinist and recording artist.-Personal life:...
– "Paganini Rhapsody" (2007) - Benny GoodmanBenny GoodmanBenjamin David “Benny” Goodman was an American jazz and swing musician, clarinetist and bandleader; widely known as the "King of Swing".In the mid-1930s, Benny Goodman led one of the most popular musical groups in America...
– Caprice XXIV - Toshi IchiyanagiToshi Ichiyanagiis a Japanese composer of avant-garde music. He studied with Tomojiro Ikenouchi and John Cage.One of his most notable works is the 1960 composition, Kaiki, which combined Japanese instruments, shō and koto, and western instruments, harmonica and saxophone. Another work Distance requires the...
– Paganini Personal for marimba and piano - The Great KatThe Great KatThe Great Kat is the stage name of Katherine Thomas , an English-born, New York-raised, musician best known for her thrash metal interpretations of well-known pieces of classical music. Most feature her using the electric guitar, but some have her on violin...
– adapted the 24th Caprice for electric guitar - Lowell LiebermannLowell LiebermannLowell Liebermann is an American composer, pianist and conductor.At the age of sixteen, Liebermann performed at Carnegie Hall, playing his Piano Sonata, op. 1...
– Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini for piano and orchestra (2001) - Franz LisztFranz LisztFranz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
– the sixth and last of his Études d'exécution transcendante d'après PaganiniGrandes Etudes de PaganiniThe Grandes études de Paganini are a series of six études for the piano by Franz Liszt, revised in 1851 from an earlier version...
for solo piano, S.140 (1838) – revised and republished in 1851 as Six Grandes Études de PaganiniGrandes Etudes de PaganiniThe Grandes études de Paganini are a series of six études for the piano by Franz Liszt, revised in 1851 from an earlier version...
, S.141 - Andrew Lloyd WebberAndrew Lloyd WebberAndrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
– Variations (1977), Variations (album) originally for cello and rockRock musicRock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band, later also arranged for cello and orchestra; Song & Dance – the Dance part is a reworked version of Variations - Witold Lutosławski – Variations on a Theme by Paganini (1940-41), for two pianos; in 1978 he made a version for piano and orchestra
- Yngwie Malmsteen – Used the main theme for an interlude on electric guitar on the song "Prophet of Doom", from his album War to End All WarsWar to End All Wars (album)War to End All Wars is an album by Yngwie J. Malmsteen, released in 2000 by Spitfire Records in North America simultaneously with Pony Canyon's release in Japan and Dream Catcher's in Europe. While on tour for this album, singer Mark Boals left the band, and was replaced for a brief period by Jorn...
- Nathan MilsteinNathan MilsteinNathan Mironovich Milstein was a Russian-born American virtuoso violinist.Widely considered one of the finest violinists of the 20th century, Milstein was known for his interpretations of Bach's solo violin works and for works from the Romantic period...
– PaganinianaNathan MilsteinNathan Mironovich Milstein was a Russian-born American virtuoso violinist.Widely considered one of the finest violinists of the 20th century, Milstein was known for his interpretations of Bach's solo violin works and for works from the Romantic period...
, an arrangement of the 24th Caprice, with variations based on the other caprices - Robert MuczynskiRobert MuczynskiRobert Muczynski was a contemporary American composer. He was born in Chicago, Illinois. Muczynski studied composition with Alexander Tcherepnin at DePaul University in the late 1940s...
– "Desperate Measures" Paganini Variations, Op. 48 - Pavel NecheporenkoPavel NecheporenkoPavel Ivanovich Necheporenko was a Soviet musician, highly recognized as a virtuoso performer of the balalaika.-Biography:...
– Variations on a Theme by Paganini, transcribed for unaccompanied balalaikaBalalaikaThe balalaika is a stringed musical instrument popular in Russia, with a characteristic triangular body and three strings.The balalaika family of instruments includes instruments of various sizes, from the highest-pitched to the lowest, the prima balalaika, secunda balalaika, alto balalaika, bass...
. - Jeff NelsenJeff NelsenJeff Nelsen is a Canadian French horn player.- Biography :Hornist Jeff Nelsen was born to opera-singing pig-farming parents in Western Canada. He believes this duality contributes strongly to his unique career paths thus far. He is equally successful in both classical and contemporary genres and...
- Performed Caprice No. 24 on French Horn with Canadian BrassCanadian BrassThe Canadian Brass is a brass quintet founded by Dr. Charles Daellenbach and Gene Watts in 1970. In addition to maintaining a heavy international touring schedule, the Canadian Brass have recorded over 80 CDs and DVDs...
. - Simon ProctorSimon ProctorSimon Proctor is a British composer, pianist, and flautist, known for his works for unusual instruments.His best known work, the Concerto for Serpent and Orchestra, was written in 1987 when the composer was attached to the University of South Carolina...
– "Paganini Metamorphasis" for Solo Piano - Frank ProtoFrank ProtoFrank Proto American composer and bassist. Proto was born on July 18, 1941, Brooklyn, New York. Double Bass student of Fred Zimmermann and David Walter. Graduate of the Manhattan School of Music 1966 Master of Music. Self-taught composer...
– Capriccio di Niccolo for Trumpet and Orchestra (1994). Nine Variants on Paganini for Double Bass and Orchestra, also for Double Bass and Piano (2001). Paganini in Metropolis for Clarinet and Wind Symphony (2001), also for Clarinet and Orchestra (2002). - Sergei RachmaninoffSergei RachmaninoffSergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music...
– Rhapsody on a Theme of PaganiniRhapsody on a Theme of PaganiniThe Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini in A minor, Op. 43 is a concertante work written by Sergei Rachmaninoff. It is written for solo piano and symphony orchestra, closely resembling a piano concerto. The work was written at Villa Senar, according to the score, from July 3 to August 18, 1934...
, Op. 43 (1934), a set of twenty four variations for pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
and orchestraOrchestraAn orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus... - Poul RudersPoul RudersPoul Ruders is a Danish composer.Ruders trained as an organist, and studied orchestration with Karl Aage Rasmussen. Ruders's first compositions date from the mid-1960s...
- Paganini Variations : Guitar concerto no. 2 (1999-2000), twenty-two variations for guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
and orchestraOrchestraAn orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
. - Ehsan Saboohi – "Metamorphosis on Theme of Paganini for Piano Solo" (2009)
- Fazıl SayFazil SayFazıl Say , is a Turkish pianist and composer born in Ankara, Turkey.-Biography:Born in 1970 in Ankara, Turkey, Fazıl Say started playing the piano at the age of four. He continued his music training in Ankara State Conservatory as a student of Special Status for Highly Talented Children and...
– Paganini Variations for solo piano - Robert SchumannRobert SchumannRobert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
– Etudes After Paganini Caprices, Op. 3 (1832) - Stanisław Skrowaczewski – Concerto Nicolò for Piano Left Hand and Orchestra, 2003
- Joe StumpJoe StumpJoe Stump is an American guitarist and composer. He plays neo-classical metal, in a style similar to that of Yngwie Malmsteen. He has released albums with his band, Reign of Terror, and as a solo artist. He also plays the lead guitar for the symphonic metal band HolyHell...
– used the main theme for an interpretation on the song "Paganini's Revenge" on the album Guitar DominanceGuitar DominanceGuitar Dominance! is the first studio album by guitarist Joe Stump, released in 1993 through Leviathan Records.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Joe Stump – electric guitar, acoustic guitar*Darrell Maxfield – drums*John Risti – bass guitar...
. The track also incorporates elements from Paganini's 5th CapriceCaprice No. 5 (Paganini)Caprice No. 5 is one of 24 pieces composed by virtuoso violinist Niccolò Paganini in the early 19th century. The piece is known for its incredible speed and extremely high technical difficulty...
. - Karol SzymanowskiKarol SzymanowskiKarol Maciej Szymanowski was a Polish composer and pianist.-Life:Szymanowski was born into a wealthy land-owning Polish gentry family in Tymoszówka, then in the Russian Empire, now in Cherkasy Oblast, Ukraine. He studied music privately with his father before going to Gustav Neuhaus'...
: No. 3 from Trzy kaprysy Paganiniego (3 Caprices de Paganini), Op. 40 (1918); transcriptions for violin and piano - George Thalben-BallGeorge Thalben-BallSir George Thomas Thalben-Ball CBE was an organist and composer who, though originally from Australia, spent most of his life in Britain....
- "Variations on a Theme of Paganini" Theme and 10 variations for Pipe organPipe organThe pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
. All except the last variation are for solo organ pedals. - Philip WilbyPhilip WilbyPhilip Wilby is a British composer.Educated at Leeds Grammar School and Keble College, Oxford, he joined the staff at the University of Leeds in 1972...
– Paganini Variations, for both wind band and brass band - Victor WootenVictor WootenVictor Lemonte Wooten is an American bass player, composer, author, and producer, and has been the recipient of five Grammy Awards....
- "Classical Thump", "A Show Of Hands" - Hans Wurman – "13 Variations on a Paganini theme" for synthesizer on The Moog Strikes Bach (1969)
- HelloweenHelloweenHelloween is a German power metal band founded in the mid 1980s by members of Iron Fist and Powerfool. The band was a pioneering force in the European Power Metal movement and their second and third studio albums, Keeper of the Seven Keys, Pt...
– Used in the opening guitar solo of Future World on the High LiveHigh Live-Disc two:- Credits :* Andi Deris - Vocals* Michael Weikath - Guitars* Roland Grapow - Guitars* Markus Grosskopf - Bass* Uli Kusch - Drums-External links:*...
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