The Main Aspects of Giuseppe Tartini’s Influence on the Violin Sonatas by Ivan Khandoshkin

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The outstanding Russian violinist Ivan Khandoshkin has comprehended profoundly the traditional Italian musicians who exerted an influence on his music and performance. The greatest amount of interest was demonstrated by him in the achievements of Giuseppe Tartini. The author of the article, examining Khandoshkin’s sonatas, demonstrates their closeness to Tartini’s aesthetics and compositional techniques. Along with the general tendencies of the bow technique, interpretations of the timbre of the violin, expansion in the range of the instrument, the more essential aspects of Tartini’s influenced are accentuated: gravitation towards the Italian style of сoncitato (in particular, the usage of dissonant instruments); a reliance on the peculiarities of the operatic recitative; manifestation of the specificity of the operatic style of lamento; transmission of the vocal nature of folk melodicism; balancing between concise structural organization (with profound contrasts between the respective sections) and a through type of development; expansion of the technical possibilities of the right hand (the enrichment of the strokes). Special attention is given by the author of the article to Khandoshkin’s cadences, perceiving an adherence to the methods of Tartini in this sphere as well. Thus, Khadoshkin’s indication of the fermata (or a sustained note) at the end of a musical phrase or section presumes the improvisation by the performer, carrying out both a decorative and a formgenerating function. Deepening the violin’s expressive capabilities and bringing in new performance techniques, Khandoshkin was the first to develop the genre of the violin sonata in Russia. This became possible as the result of his unique talent of unifying his own practical habits with Western European performance innovations. Keywords: Ivan Khandoshkin, Giuseppe Tartini, the Russian violin school, the Italian violin school, the solo violin sonata, technique of violin playing.