Wieniawski: Etudes Caprices (Viool)

The Op. 18 Études-Caprices for violin accompanied by second violin were written in St Petersburg before 1863, as didactic material. Henryk Wieniawski taught violin in the city for twelve years, initially as court soloist to the Tsar and subsequently (from 1862) at the St Petersburg Conservatory. In character, the Op. 18 Études lie somewhere between purely didactic compositions and concert works. Whilst the chief purpose of this collection is the improvement of violin technique, its artistic qualities are indisputable. They are written in such a way that they may be played without the second violin part.