Pietro Antonio Locatelli: 24 Capricci for solo violin Historically, the term ‘capriccio’ or ‘caprice’ was, as its name suggests, used loosely to refer to any fanciful piece. It was not associated with any particular form or genre, and could be either instrumental or vocal. Although often used synonymously with ‘sinfonia’ or ‘fantasia’, the capriccio was generally more inventive and experimental, and Locatelli’s 24 Capricci certainly fit this description. While Locatelli made use of innovative and experimental technical difficulties in his sonatas and, to an even greater extent, in his concertos, the capriccios represent violinistic pyrotechnics the likes of which had never before been seen and which remained unchallenged until the compositions of such virtuosos as Paganini. They were intended for optional performance in the violin concertos and, in one case, as the final movement of the Sonata Op.6 No.12. These writtenout capriccios were usually followed by an improvised cadenza which would provide a bridge to the final tutti section of the concerto movement. For the aforementioned sonata, Locatelli provided us with a written-out cadenza, and Igor Ruhadze has followed this example by improvising cadenzas in the style of Locatelli as bridges between all 24 capriccios and the final tuttis of the concerto movements to which they belong. For this recording, Mr Ruhadze has added closing sequences to these capriccios and improvised cadenzas in order to allow them to be released separately and in their entirety for the very first time. Although the capriccios were notated and not improvised, Locatelli often used a system of notation which requires decoding. After notating a pattern in a certain configuration for one bar, Locatelli would then notate the rest of the passage as block chords, leaving its exact execution up to the performer. Many of these capriccios are quite long, and four of the 24 actually exceed the length of the movements to which they originally belonged. A contemporary description of one of Locatelli’s performances – of his ‘Labyrinth’ Concerto (No.12) in 1741 – recounts that the capriccio for the first movement was so long that it required seven pages to notate. As there was no place to turn the page, Locatelli glued these pages together, creating a part which was two metres wide! As has already been mentioned, for his capriccios Locatelli made even greater use of the innovative and experimental technical difficulties found in the solo sonatas and concertos, such as rapid leaps and stratospherically high writing. An example of the latter can be found in Capriccio
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No.22, which was intended for the third movement of the eleventh concerto in Op.3. While positions above the seventh were quite rare in the music of the time, this capriccio requires the nineteenth position. The C sharp produced is a semitone higher than the highest note on the modern piano! Rapid jumps between notes several octaves apart are commonplace in Locatelli’s capriccios and would be impossible without some kind of support for the violin. Locatelli is described as having performed wearing a thick coat. This, in combination with the shoulder filling common to the male clothing of the 18th century, would likely have provided support similar to a modern chin rest and shoulder support. The text that follows outlines some of the other techniques exploited by Locatelli and the capriccios in which they can be found. His extensive double-stop writing can take several forms. He wrote rapid sequences of thirds either in a fixed position or by shifting (Capricci Nos. 7, 8, 10 and 20), or revolving around a fixed note (Nos. 2, 12, 17 and 24). Considerable stretching or extending of the left hand, as well as tremendous agility, is often required. Capriccio No.18 is a good example of fugal writing. Staccato on a single bow (both up-bow and down-bow) can be found in Nos. 1, 2, 10, 12, 13 and 14. Détaché bowing can be found in Nos. 22 and 24, and Nos. 6 and 24 feature flying martelé or spiccato in reverse bowing combined with double-stops. Different types of bariolage are featured in Nos. 5, 7, 15, 21 and 23. The capriccio ‘Prova dell’intonazione’ forms a brilliant conclusion to the set of Op.6 sonatas and to his capriccios as a whole. It was written ten years after the capriccios intended for inclusion in the violin concertos and displays all of the techniques used in these previous works. As such, it can be regarded as a true compendium of Locatelli’s violinistic pyrotechnics. Long after Locatelli’s death and well into the 19th century, the 24 Capricci continued to be published and to appear in violin methods. They were the direct inspiration for Paganini’s 24 Caprices, 70 years after the appearance of Locatelli’s. 훿 Vaughan Schlepp
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Igor Ruhadze graduated with distinction in 1996 from the Moscow Central School of Music and the Moscow State Conservatory. Since 1999 he has resided in the Netherlands, and in 2002 he graduated cum laude from the Amsterdam Conservatory, where he specialised in Baroque and Classical violin. At the age of 12 he began his career as a solo violinist, performing the Vieuxtemps Violin Concerto No.5 with the Odessa Symphony Orchestra. Ruhadze has performed as a soloist with various orchestras and ensembles, in music from the early Baroque to contemporary repertoire. His interest in Baroque music led him to become concertmaster of the first Baroque orchestra in Russia – the Moscow State Classic Capella – a position he held for seven years. As a member of the Taneyev Trio, Ruhadze was awarded first prize in 1996, as well as the prize for the best trio. The ensemble was also awarded the public prize in the International Taneyev Chamber Music Competition. In 1997 he won third prize at the Locatelli Baroque Violin International Competition in Amsterdam and in 1999 the Diploma of the Musica Antiqua competition in Bruges. In 1996 Ruhadze became a teacher of solo violin at the Moscow Conservatory and the Moscow Central School of Music, and in 2002 he became a teacher of Baroque violin and Baroque orchestra there. In 2006 he worked as a guest teacher at the Amsterdam Conservatorium. Ruhadze has performed throughout Europe and the USA. He frequently appears at festivals in Utrecht, Potsdam, Bruges, London, Ghent, Montpellier, Vollore, Nassogne, Eindhoven, Budapest, New York, Moscow and St Petersburg. He is also concertmaster of the Bach Orchestra of the Netherlands and Musica Antiqua St Petersburg. He is a member of several chamber music ensembles and is the founder and leader of Violini Capricciosi. Ruhadze has recorded numerous CDs of both chamber music and solo repertoire for a variety of labels.
Recording: January–May 2013, Westvestkerk 90, Schiedam, The Netherlands Producer & engineer: Peter Arts & 훿 2016 Brilliant Classics
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Also available on Brilliant Classics
Locatelli: Complete Edition 94358 21CD
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Locatelli: Trio Sonatas 94376 2CD
Locatelli: Violin Sonatas 94423 5CD
Locatelli: L’arte del violino 94469 5CD
Locatelli: Concerti Grossi 94773 6CD
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