Education Publications, Piccolo Paganini, Volume 2

Following on from the success of the first volume of Piccolo Paganini, editors Gedrun Jeggle and Christiane Schmidt now bring us Piccolo Paganini, Volume 2. Featuring original pieces by lesser-known composers, and requiring only first position, the first volume offered early-stage students the opportunity to master a selection of musically sophisticated pieces. Piccolo Paganini Volume 2 includes another thirty original compositions for violin and piano, of which only four have been arranged.

The pieces in this second volume are more difficult than those in the first book. Featuring intermediate-level compositions, the pieces are mainly in first and third position, with some going up to fifth position. Additionally, more demanding techniques are introduced with strokes such as spiccato, martelé, staccato, and sautillé, as well as double-stopping and finger pizzicato. These techniques are ideal for developing fluency, bowing technique, and basic double-stop playing.

Piccolo Paganini differs from other collections for violin and piano thanks to the compositions contained within the anthologies. These rarely performed concert pieces provide appealing, accessible, and musically rewarding repertoire pieces, with works by César Cui, François-Joseph Gossec, Carl Bohm, Pam Wedgwood, Charles Auguste de Bériot, George Frideric Handel, Edward Elgar, Pauline Viardot-García, Grazyna Bacewicz, Moritz Moszkowski, and many more. The second volume in particular aims to contribute to lively music-making, to the development of expressive playing, and to motivational teaching. Performance notes and short biographies are also included within the book.

You can find both volumes of Piccolo Paganini below.