Trivia
Violin masterpieces: Concertos II
Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64
This violin concerto is the most well-known of Mendelssohn's works. It truly demonstrates the charm of the violin, and the entire piece overflows with beautiful melodies and poetic sentiment. An innovative cadenza is found in the middle of the first movement, and the first performance of the piece was a massive success. Many other composers were inspired to use the same structure. Along with pieces from Brahms and Tchaikovsky, this piece is well-loved by many music fans as a romantic violin concerto masterpiece.

Mendelssohn
Brahms: Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 77
This piece, along with works by Beethoven and Mendelssohn, form the so-called "three major violin concertos." This piece is particularly well-known for requiring an exhausting performance from violinists. This is because the music being played by the backing orchestra features the symphonic elaborateness typical of Brahms' work, and the solo violinist must play loud enough that he or she can be heard over the orchestra. Regardless, this historic and brilliant masterpiece combines the grand and subtle themes characteristic of Brahms' work.
Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35
One could make a convincing argument to include this masterpiece as the fourth "great violin concerto." However, when Tchaikovsky finished the piece and sent the full musical score to Leopold Auer, the great violinist replied that it was "unplayable." Making matters worse, the influential critic Eduard Hanslick harshly criticized the piece when it was first performed in Vienna. Auer later realized the beauty of the piece and began playing it, and now it is well-regarded as a violin concerto masterpiece. This masterpiece is also famous for serving as the final piece played during the International Tchaikovsky Competition, which serves as the gateway to success for young violinists.

Tchaikovsky
Many other composers including Paganini, Schumann, Bruch, Sibelius, Bartok, Stravinsky, Berg, Prokofiev, and Shostakovich have left behind famous violin concertos.
The fact that most of the great composers wrote music for the violin speaks volumes of how charming these instruments are. We hope that this brief introduction will inspire you to listen to a great deal of music and gain an appreciation for the violin's charms.
Musical Instrument Guide : Violin Contents
Origins
Structure
How to Play
How the Instrument is Made
Choosing an Instrument
Care and Maintenance
Trivia
- The f-hole used to be a C-hole or S-hole
- Why the f-hole?
- Violinists must bow to the horse
- Steel strings or gut strings? That is the question
- Is the chinrest the unsung hero of the violin?
- Most violin varnishes are also medicines
- Violin masterpieces: Solos I
- Violin masterpieces: Solos II
- Violin masterpieces: Solos III
- Violin masterpieces: Concertos I
- Violin masterpieces: Concertos II
- Viola masterpieces: Chamber music
- Viola masterpieces: Concertos
- Cello masterpieces: Concertos I
- Cello masterpieces: Concertos II
- Cello masterpieces: Solos
- Contrabass masterpieces: Concertos
- Contrabass masterpieces: Chamber music
- Orchestral masterpieces featuring the contrabass
- What do you call the part on the bow that you hold?