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The Viola
The viola is a little bigger than
the violin, and its sounds are lower and warmer than that of the violin.
Berlioz
wrote "Herold
in Italy" for the viola (by Paganini's
invitation, who in fact never performed it), and in "Don
Quixote", Richard
Strauss
presents Sancho Panza,
Don Quixote's blabber-mouth assistant.
The viola's source is the viola
da-gamba,
that was a common instrument during the Renaissance
and Baroque.
The later's source is the vielle,
a medieval
instrument whose playing is characterized
by a constant note sounding versus the tune.
Bach
composed a number of sonatas
for the viola da-gamba, and so did Handel.
Structure
|
Relative size
|
bass viol
|
Paganini plays the Violin
|
|
Composers
Berlioz
Strauss
Bach
Handel
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