Books › Biographical notice of Nicolo Paganini, With and analysis of his compositions and a sketch of the history of the violin, 1876 › scan 28
Scan 28
Biographical notice of Nicolo Paganini, With and analysis of his compositions and a sketch of the history of the violin, 1876
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1Art and Artists.
3WHEN singers possessed only part-songs, such as madrigals, and glees for four, five, or six voices, positive instrumental music was unknown. Instrumentalists played the voice parts in unison, either on bow instruments, or the Organ and Spinett, or on wind instruments, such as Oboes, Flutes, Horns, or Cromorns; for each instrument was then divided into upper, high, counter, tenor, and bass. The ricercari and dance tunes for four, five, or six Viols, formed the only instrumental music properly so called. Little skill was necessary in the execution, and artists required no greater amount of talent than the music itself displayed. As regards the Violin, few persons then cultivated it. In Italy one Giovanni Battista, surnamed Del Violino, is constantly cited, on account of his Violin performance. He lived in 1590. As regards Giulio Tiburtino and Ludovico Lasagrino, who were in high repute at Florence about 1540, and of whom Ganassi del Fontego speaks in his "Regola Rubertina," they were performers on the Viol, and not Violinists. The same may be said of Beaulieu, Salmon, and others, who were at the court of France. According to Mersenne, the French distinguished themselves as violinists at the commencement of the seventeenth century. He speaks in terms of great praise of the elegant playing of Constantine, King of the Violins; of the vehement enthusiasm of Boccan; of the delicacy and expression of Lazarin and Foucard. These artists lived in 1630. However, France soon afterwards lost its superiority in that respect. In 1650, Father Castrovillari, a monk of Padua, became distinguished by his performance on the Violin, and by the music he wrote for that instrument. The art of executing difficulties upon it must have attained a high degree of progress in the north of
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