In his Etudes de concert . . . d'après des caprices de Paganini, Op. 10, Robert Schumann abandons the paradigm of relatively strict transcription he adhered to in his 6 Etudes pour le pianoforte d'après les caprices de Paganini, Op. 3, and instead seeks to capture the expressive qualities of Paganini's 24 Caprices, Op. 1. Schumann's poetic aesthetic results in freer treatments of Paganini's material than found in Liszt's transcriptions, which sought to transmit Paganini's virtuosity and more frequently preserved the idiosyncrasies of Paganini's violinistic idiom. Schumann's writings attest to his vision of Paganini as an ideal virtuoso, inspirational not only as a performer, but as a romantic hero.

Works: Liszt: Grandes Études de Paganini (9, 26-27); Robert Schumann: 6 Études pour le pianoforte d'après les caprices de Paganini, Op. 3 (12-15, 27), Études de concert . . . d'après des caprices de Paganini, Op. 10 (12, 15-25).

Sources: Paganini: 24 Caprices, Op. 1 (9, 12-30), Violin Concerto No. 2 in B Minor (9).

Index Classifications: 1800s

Contributed by: Virginia Whealton