Louis Spohr’s reputation as one of Germany’s leading violinists was at its height when he composed his Duets for Two Violins, Op. 39, and while it appears his intention was to finance an Italian concert tour with marketable duets, the publishers complained of their technical difficulty. Spohr defended this aspect by stating his ‘desire to give my duets more inner value, more richness of harmony’ than is usual in this genre. Indeed, a contemporary critic exclaimed that ‘it is no exaggeration to say that the ideas and artistry required for these works would be sufficient… to create three concertos.’