Paganini: Violin and Guitar Works

Featuring

Luigi Alberto Bianchi
Maurizio Preda
Niccolò Paganini

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Composition History

Paganini composed the Six Sonatas MS 26 (published as Op. 2) between 1805 and 1809 during his stay in Lucca, dedicating them mostly to ladies of the Lucca court.

Performer Biography

Luigi Alberto Bianchi, the violinist on this album, was born into a family of musicians in Rimini and began studying violin at age six.

Performer Biography

Maurizio Preda, the guitarist, graduated with honors from the Conservatory of Milan and has collaborated with violinist Luigi Alberto Bianchi on several Paganini CDs.

Composition History

The Allegro Vivace a Movimento Perpetuo MS 72, dated 1835, concludes Paganini's cycle of works for violin and guitar, a cycle he began at age thirteen.

Composer Biography

Niccolò Paganini, born in Genoa in 1782, was a renowned violinist and composer who died in Nice in 1840.

Compositional Technique

Paganini's Sonatas Op. 2/9, despite their title, do not follow classical sonata form but instead showcase his lyrical style, influenced by contemporary Italian melodrama.

Instruments

Luigi Alberto Bianchi plays a violin built in 1620 by Giovanni Paolo Maggini, a luthier of the Brescia school, which once belonged to the Princes of Saxonia.