Tomaso Antonio Vitali (1663 – 1745) was an Italian
composer and violinist from Bologna, the eldest son of
Giovanni Battista Vitali. He is known mainly for a
chaconne in G minor for violin and continuo, which was
published from a manuscript in the Sächsische
Landesbibliothek in Dresden in Die Hoch Schule des
Violinspiels (1867) edited by German violinist
Ferdinand David). That work's wide-ranging modulations
into distant keys have raised speculation that it could
not be a genuine baroque work....(+)
Tomaso Antonio Vitali (1663 – 1745) was an Italian
composer and violinist from Bologna, the eldest son of
Giovanni Battista Vitali. He is known mainly for a
chaconne in G minor for violin and continuo, which was
published from a manuscript in the Sächsische
Landesbibliothek in Dresden in Die Hoch Schule des
Violinspiels (1867) edited by German violinist
Ferdinand David). That work's wide-ranging modulations
into distant keys have raised speculation that it could
not be a genuine baroque work.
It is not clear exactly how this demonic and exacting
series of bravura variations came to be attributed to
Italian Baroque composer Tommaso Antonio Vitali
(1663-1745). There can be no doubt at all that Vitali
had no hand whatever in the writing of this Chaconne,
since scholars have found nothing even remotely similar
to it within Vitali's catalog of authenticated works.
Moreover, any suggestion that this might be a lost
Vitali composition can be similarly dismissed, for
there are not even any demonstrable stylistic
affinities between the Chaconne and other pieces that
have been reliably ascribed to Vitali, in particular a
series of 12 sonatas for violin and keyboard. The
Chaconne first came to the attention of violinists when
it was published as Vitali's work in a collection of
pieces (Die Hoch Schule des Violinspiels) edited by the
virtuoso and close friend of Mendelssohn, Ferdinand
David, and issued in 1867. What is known is that the
stern and majestic G minor theme was extensively
revised and made progressively more difficult in each
successive variation, transforming it into a gripping
tour de force of staggering technical difficulty. For
this reason, it was selected as the opening work on the
bill when Jascha Heifetz presented his debut recital at
Carnegie Hall, and indeed, one could hardly imagine a
more impressive curtain-raiser. It is just as unclear
whether David (who was highly regarded for his advocacy
of Baroque music, largely ignored throughout the
nineteenth century) wrote the Chaconne himself or
possibly assembled it from a variety of motifs by
obscure figures of the high Italian Baroque. But this
convoluted puzzle doesn't end there. Another violin
virtuoso, Frenchman Léopold Charlier, produced an
alternative -- and if possible, even more taxing --
edition in 1911. Charlier not only enhanced the
technical demands of the violin part, but also made
significant improvements and added new harmonizations
to the piano part, whilst reordering the sequence of
the variations so that they become progressively more
complex as this astounding piece unfolds.
Although this work was originally written for Orchestra
(featuring Violin), I created this arrangement for
Flute & Concert (Pedal) Harp.
SHEET MUSIC