Violin Sonata No. 12 in D Minor

Any list of the greatest pop hits of all time should really include “La Folia”—a 15th-century Portuguese folk song. For more than four centuries, the tune (whose title translates to “folly” or “madness”, a nod to the frenzied dancing it inspired, and is more recently better known in its Italian form “La Follia”) held Europe in its thrall, inspiring more than 150 composers (including Vivaldi, Bach and Handel) to write their own adaptations. In 1700, Corelli gave “La Follia” pride of place in the last sonata of his Op. 12 collection: the big finale. After a simple statement of the theme, with its distinctive dotted rhythms, the sonata unfolds in a single, continuous movement—a sequence of no fewer than 23 variations, each drawing out a different colour or character from the original. There’s elegance (Variation II’s simple arpeggios), a rough dance (Variation X), virtuosity (those skidding semiquavers in Variation XIII) and a starring role for the continuo, both in Variation V as well as the dazzling ending.