Tartini, Giuseppe

Giuseppe Tartini (1692-1770) was an Italian violinist and composer and is best known today for his Devil’s Trill Sonata which includes many technical challenges featuring demanding double stop trills, and legend has it that he was inspired to write it after a dream in which the devil appeared at the foot of his bed.

In 1728 Tartini founded his violin school in Padua, ‘Scuola di Nazioni’, whose fame became acknowledged across Europe. He established a systematic method of study which was popular and attracted students to Padua and many of his students became well known violinists, such as Pugnani and Nardini.

Tartini’s playing was said to be remarkable for its technical and lyrical qualities. He was regarded with universal pride by the inhabitants of Padua and died there on 26 February 1770. Over the years he had published experiments in acoustics, instructional material, and many music compositions.

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