OLE BORNEMANN BULL  

Norwegian violin music dates back to the national instrument, the Hardanger fiddle. It was created in the early 1650's, it construction differing significantly to the normal violin. Almost two hundred years later it inspired the violinist, Ole Bull, to write works based on the melodies he learnt from the folk musicians playing the instrument. Amending a conventional violin, he developed a technical brilliance that many thought rivalled Paganini. It was this virtuosity that took him around the world, bringing Norwegian music to international attention. He was to be the inspiration that led to the delightful, and often extremely demanding works included on this disc. The best known of Ole Bull's composition, Saeterjentens Sendag (The Herd-girl's Sunday), is a work that originally formed part of a Fantasy for strings composed in 1848. Sadly Bull's Violin Concerto from 1841 was of such technical difficulty that it deterred subsequent violinists, the only movement remembered being the central Romance, which the composer arranged for violin and piano. La Mélancolie has existed in many different formats, so popular did it become in Norway. Here the delightful score has been arranged for violin and piano by the soloist.