Violin Concerto No. 2 in B Minor

In Paganini’s Violin Concerto No. 2, written in 1826, many of the tricks and trills that made his First Violin Concerto popular seven years earlier are repeated to similarly ear-popping effect. The novelty is the small bell Paganini adds to the finale, whose periodic tinklings are imitated by the solo violin and give the concerto its nickname of “La Campanella”. Earlier, in the minor-key opening movement, Paganini strikes a more solemn tone than in the First Violin Concerto, with a bigger role for the orchestra than previously. In the slow movement, the solo violin line mimics the Italian vocal style known as bel canto (beautiful singing) in a fine-spun melody worthy of a Bellini opera. But it’s undoubtedly the finale, with its chirruping solo acrobatics, crackling pizzicatos and vertiginous note-swoops, which would have most excited the concerto’s early audiences, and continue to make it a highly entertaining listen today.