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Scan 457
An Encyclopedia of the Violin, 1925
18 lines. Read by computer on 28 September 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.
1was his development of the technique of the bow, for which he opened up possibilities as yet undreamed of. Somis, Giardini, Pugnani, Geminiani and Locatelli must also be mentioned among those who added to the possibilities of violin technique and bowing, each one paving the way for his successor, who elevated the violin to the point where it became known as "the King of instruments."
3In France, Anet, Francoeur, Leclair, Pagin, Lahoussaye, Barthelemon, Gavinies and Boucher were prominent among those who exploited the violin by playing and composing for it, while in Germany, Graun, Carl Stamitz, with his two sons, and the immortal Mozart perpetuated both their own and the violin's fame by their performances and compositions.
5Kreutzer, Rode and Baillot, all teachers at the famous Paris Conservatory, constituted a united trio who worked zealously, in the period 1750 to 1840, for the ennobling of the art of violin playing, while Franz Eck was the teacher of Spohr, whose concertos are regarded as among the greatest contributions to violin literature.
7Paganini, both through his extraordinary playing and the remarkable nature of his compositions, is another who occupies an exalted position in the history of the violin, chiefly because of his development of the technical resources of the instrument.
9The field of salon violin composition was developed by Deberiot, Vieuxtemps, Dancla, Alard and Léonard, while the brilliant compositions of Wieniawski, Ernst and Sarasate are still featured on recital programs, being unique as examples of the virtuoso style.
11Ferdinand David's contributions in the form of revision of classical manuscripts are considered by many to be a part of the violin's most important history, while the transcriptions of his pupil, August Wilhelmj, may be found on almost every concert program.
13From the year 1800, a long succession of violinists, famous as teachers, performers and composers, all of whom contributed to the pedagogical or virtuoso classes of violin literature, brings us down to the present time, when almost every composer writes in the larger or smaller forms for the instrument. While the modernists' thematic material and its development in many instances are superior in musical value to that of the older composers, lack of technical knowledge on the part of those who compose for the violin often renders performance ungrateful and the actual tonal effect far from pleasing, the orchestral or piano accompaniment frequently overshadowing the violin, and robbing it of its most beautiful characteristics.
15What the famous classicists—Bach, Beethoven, Schubert, Haydn and many others—have done for the literature of the violin is almost unnecessary to mention in detail, since they have left a legacy of countless, wondrous works which are constantly heard in concert and recital.
17The museums and libraries of the principal European cities contain
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