[godzillaviolist]

Paganini

I heard somebody was playing this piece at my conservatoire. Was not aware there was one. Can somebody verify this?

Has anybody heard this? Is it any good? Does this mean that paganini also sometimes played the Viola?

Short answer; yes yes no yes.
Paganini both wrote for and played the viola. He also commisioned Berlioz to write for the viola, the result being "Harold in Italy". Paganini didn't like "Harold" however, and for that matter, neither do I
Paganini wrote an unfinished concerto for a viola with five strings, and several other works for viola. Here is a sound sample of Paganini's viola sonata:

http://www.sergeikalinin-viola.net/gbflash.htm

I'm not a Paganini fan myself, but if you do like Paganini, you'll probably like it.
godzilla

 

[godzillaviolist]

viola concerto

I'd say the ultimate has yet to be written. Violists really don't have an equivalent to the 'cellists few the violinists many great concertos. I'm not a fan of the Walton; I like that it helped popularised the viola, but I don't enjoy listening to it.
The closest, in my view, violists have to a great concerto, is the Bartok. The second movement is absolutely brilliant. But the other movements aren't quite as good. Interestingly Bartok also died before completing his viola concerto ( the viola claims another victim! )
As for having to like Paganini, well, I suppose it's better than having to like Hindemith ( a violist cliche ).
godzilla

 

[godzillaviolist]

Viola arrangements

Thanks for the welcome.
I'm thinking of making an arrangement for myself of a charming Romanian peice, Porumbescu's Balada ( for violin and piano originaly ).

 

[godzillaviolist]

unfinished works

There are tonnes of unfinished works played; the most famous is Mozart's requiem ( I heard a joke once about him being killed by the tuba mirum... ) Basicly what happens is that some unpopular composer goes and finishes the work. However, the Bartok is heated debate at the moment; three people have three different versions all claiming to be the most true to the composer's intentions. The most popular one has been shown to be slightly artificial; Primrose spiced it up so that he could show off his viola playing! The battle rages on as I write

 

[godzillaviolist]

My name

Oh, my names just a joke; I'm over two meters in height. Also I have very large hands. Thats one of the reasons I took up the viola; I have a physical advantage that makes the viola, for me, as easily playable as a violin. Actually I'd probably have problems playing violin as the intervals are much smaller and my big fingers would just get in the way
godzilla ( I'm not green and scaly [ yet ] though )

 

[godzillaviolist]

Lucky

You are lucky to live in a such a cultured place!
The symphony where I live is bit sad. Half the time it plays pops, the other half very light "pop" classic hits. Also its a bit weak. It's dimensions are as follows;

2 flutes
2 oboes
1 clarinet
1 bassoon
3 trumpets
4 horns
3 trombones
no tuba
perscussion
10 first violins
8 second violins
5 violas
6 'cellos
3 basses
harp ( I know the harpist; noxious woman, if you are even ONE second late in leaving the practice room she makes a fuss )

And with that, the ticket prices are still outrageous. I once calculated that I could afford ten CDs at the price one ticket for one performance...
So no Beethoven's tenth here I'm afraid
godzilla

 

[godzillaviolist]

No discount for symphony, but I do get free opera tickets! They gave out free symphony tickets last year to the conservatory students. But I didn't want to go to a program of Shostakovich and Bernstein...
Reconstructions can sound odd. I still think Mahler's tenth has been incorrectly realised. The last movement sounds bizzare and rather dissimilar from the rest of the symphony; he only wrote sketches for the last movement before he died. Of course we're talking about a composer who used a cowbell as a prominent instrument, so who knows...
One of my dreams would be to fill out the full score for Boito's Nerone. He wrote the vocal parts and the short score, but died before he could orchestrate it. Toscanini did that, which makes the whole thing sound like Toscanini and not Boito. The inner bragart in me thinks I could do better
godzilla

 

[godzillaviolist]

two tubas, where are you? I mean which city?