Nils Mönkemeyer: Vivaldi - Paganini - Tartini

Nils Mönkemeyer has chosen two wonderful Vivaldi concertos for this recording with the Ensemble l'arte del mondo under Werner Erhardt, which were not written for the viola but for cello or bassoon: the bassoon concerto in G minor RV 495 and the violoncello concerto in G minor RV 416, both brilliantly laid out and their lyrical timbres perfectly suited to the viola's richness of expression.

Mönkemeyer also plays music by Vivaldi as a soloist - and chose the solo cadenza from Vivaldi's Violin Concerto in D major, RV 208 "Il Grosso Mogul", which now sounds like an interesting composition in its own right on the viola.

There are also two world premiere recordings on the album: two solo pieces for viola by the now unjustly forgotten Paganini teacher Alessandro Rolla (1757-1841): "Romanza nell'Otello" and "Arpeggio E flat major".

The 23 variations on a gavotte by Arcangelo Corelli, originally written for the violin, come from Gíuseppe Tartini (1692-1770), the forerunner of Niccolò Paganini, who revolutionized playing on the four violin strings.

The three-movement "Sonata per la Grand 'Viola" by Paganini (1782-1840) is also seldom recorded. Mönkemeyer also adds a special note to this work: between the movements he has inserted his own improvised cadenza and a fragile viola solo entitled "Di volo" by Italian and Paganini fan Salvatore Sciarrino. As a result, this new album is an interesting encounter with well-known Italian composers, but in an unusual form.