Even those who thought that the fame of Niccolo Paginini was inflated, had to accept when they happened to hear him play.
On October 27, 1782, the Italian virtuoso violinist, composer, recognized genius of world music was born.
This gloomy-looking man, gambler and brawler was completely transformed by picking up a violin. Even those who thought that his fame as the best violinist in the world was inflated, had to accept when they happened to hear him play. For people who did not understand music, he arranged real performances with onomatopoeia - "humming", "humming" and "talking" with strings.
The future genius was born in the family of a small merchant in Genoa. His father tried unsuccessfully to teach music to his eldest son, Carlo. But when Niccolo grew up, his father abandoned his studies with Carlo, which he was undoubtedly happy about. How to raise a genius and virtuoso? You can captivate and entertain a gifted child, as Mozart's father did. Or you can lock him in the closet until he learns a particularly difficult sketch. It was in this atmosphere that Niccolo was raised. The boy practically had no childhood, all his days were spent in endless exhausting music lessons. From birth, he had an amazingly delicate ear, he immersed himself in the world of sounds and tried to repeat it with the help of guitar, mandolin and violin.
The first concert of Niccolo Paganini took place at the age of eleven. The concert of the child prodigy, performing his variations of famous works, shocked the audience. The boy had noble patrons. Giancarlo de Negro, a merchant and music lover, even provided him with the opportunity to continue his studies with the cellist Giretti. The teacher forced a talented student to compose melodies without an instrument, to hear music in his head.
After completing his studies, Niccolò became more and more famous. He started making good money by giving concerts all over Italy. The musician promised to reveal the secret of his skill when he finished his career, and this only fueled the interest of the public. Everything about him seemed mysterious. His appearance is deathly pale skin, sunken eyes, a protruding hook nose and incredibly long fingers, twitching movements of a skinny figure. His violin playing was from God or from the devil, but it was definitely inhumanly good. His lifestyle and gambling addiction caused him to often run aground. And his detached, sublime state, when he stood on the stage, merging with the instrument together.
Traveling and performing, the maestro composed music. At that time (1801-1804) he lived in Tuscany and, walking along the sunlit streets, composed his famous caprices for violin. For some time (1805-1808) Niccolò even became a court musician, but then he returned to concerts. His peculiar, light and relaxed manner of performance and masterly possession of the instrument soon made him the most popular violinist in Italy. For six years (1828-1834) he gave hundreds of concerts in European capitals. Paganini evoked admiration and admiration among fellow musicians. The admiring lines of Heine, Balzac and Goethe were dedicated to him.
His career was cut off quickly and tragically. Because of tuberculosis, Paganini had to return to Italy, and coughing fits prevented him from speaking. He returned to his native Genoa as a deeply sick person. Suffering terribly from severe seizures, Niccolo lived for three more years. The musician died in Nice on May 27, 1840. The papal curia did not allow him to be buried in Italy for a long time because of his lifestyle. The embalmed body lay in the room for two months, and for another year in the basement of his house. He was reburied several times, and 36 years later, Niccolo Paganini found peace in Parma. After the death of Paganini, humanity inherited 24 caprices, many variations on opera and ballet themes, six concertos for violin and orchestra, sonatas, sonatas for violin and guitar, variations and vocal compositions.
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By the way, not long before his death, Paganini revealed his secret of excellent violin skills. It consists in complete spiritual merging with the instrument. You have to look and feel the world through an instrument, store memories in the neck, become strings and bow yourself. It seems that everything is simple, but not every professional musician will agree to sacrifice his life and personality to music.
"Evening Moscow" brings to your attention 7 amazing facts from the biography of the great maestro.
1. At concerts, Paganini put on a real show. This made such a strong impression on the public that some fainted in the hall. He thought over every issue and exit to the smallest detail. Everything was rehearsed: from a repertoire consisting solely of his own compositions to spectacular tricks like a broken string, an out of tune violin and “hello from the village” - imitating the sounds of animals. Paganini learned to imitate the guitar, flute, trumpets and horns and could replace the orchestra. The audience in love called him "The Southern Wizard".
2. Paganini categorically refused to write psalms for churchmen, so good Catholics spitefully threw mud at him:
“All the best and the highest in the world is associated with Christianity. The best musicians of our century write church hymns. There is not a single classical composer who has not written oratorios and masses. Mozart's Requiem, Bach's oratorios, Handel's masses testify to the fact that God does not leave Europe and that our entire culture is built on the principles of Christian love and mercy. But then a violinist appeared and turned off this road. With all his behavior, insatiable greed, the intoxicating poison of earthly temptations, Paganini sows alarm on our planet and puts people into the power of hell. Paganini kills the baby Christ."
3. For some, Paganini was an undoubted genius, for others - a convenient victim for attacks. Mysterious "well-wishers" sent letters to his parents with descriptions of revelry and debauchery, in which their son was allegedly mired. Rumors swirled around him, one more surprising than the other. For example, only the lazy did not know that Niccolo Paganini honed his skills not with exhausting activities in childhood and adolescence, but entertained himself with music while sitting in prison. This legend turned out to be so tenacious that it even found its reflection in Stendhal's novel.
4. Newspapers often printed reports about the death of Paganini. It all started with an accidental mistake, but the journalists got a taste - after all, newspapers with a refutation sold out in double and triple circulation, and because of this, the violinist's popularity only grew. When Paganini died in Nice, the newspapers routinely printed his obituary with the postscript: "We hope that we will publish a refutation soon, as usual."
5. In 1893, the coffin with the maestro was dug up again, because people allegedly heard strange sounds coming from under the ground. In the presence of Paganini's grandson, the Czech violinist Frantisek Ondřicek, the rotten coffin was opened. Legend has it that the musician's body had decayed by that time, but his face and head were practically unharmed. Of course, after that, the most incredible rumors and gossip circulated in Italy for more than a decade. In 1896, the coffin with the remains of Paganini was dug again and reburied in another cemetery in Parma.
6. Paganini was a favorite not only of the masses, but also of titled persons. Every European monarch considered it his duty to invite him for a personal speech, and once he was called to sing a Masonic hymn in front of the Italian grand lodge. Of course, he received incredible fees for performances, but due to incontinence in gambling, he often found himself in situations where he did not have enough money for food. He had to repeatedly lay his violin and ask for help from friends. With the birth of his son, he became calmer and by his old age was able to accumulate a small fortune.
7. The maestro preferred not to write down his works on paper in order to remain the only performer (and those who could perform Paganini's melodies even with notes were negligible). Imagine the surprise of the master who heard his own variations performed by the violinist and composer Heinrich Ernst! Is it possible that the variations were chosen by ear? When Ernst came to visit Paganini, he hid the manuscript under his pillow. To the surprised musician, he said that after his performance, one should beware not only of his ears, but also of his eyes.
Elizaveta Okladnikova
