DESCRIPTION:
6 Polyphonic Studies: No.6 Concert Variations on 'The Last Rose of Summer' in G major (1864)
Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst (1812-1865)

Clara-Jumi Kang (violin)
2012

Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst was the most celebrated violinist of his time. Having modelled his playing on that of Paganini, he came to be viewed as a rival of the older master, although he was admired by contemporaries such as Schumann and Berlioz not only for his virtuosity but also for his musicianship. The list of his compositions is crowned by the set of Six Polyphonic Études for unaccompanied violin that he published towards the end of his life.
The last of these is based on ‘The Last Rose of Summer’, a traditional Irish tune which Thomas Moore fitted with words in his Irish Melodies in 1813, creating a song which became widely known through its use in Flotow’s 1847 opera Martha.
This etude is dedicated to Antonio Bazzini and is the most complex of the set and includes an introduction, theme, four variations, and a finale. The variations feature double-stopped sixteenth notes (quavers) (first variation); melody accompanied by fast arpeggios (second variation); double-stopped counterpoint, including simultaneous octaves and tenths (third variation); and melody played pizzicato or in harmonics accompanied by fast arpeggios. Rowe wrote that the finale is a summing-up of violin technique: "scales on one string, double harmonics, rapid artificial harmonics, and pizzicato chords."