Biography of Paganini and personal life. Nicolo Paganini (photo)

For contemporaries, he was a mystery. Some saw him as a genius, others as a charlatan and a swindler. His name was shrouded in legends and secrets.

Birth of a genius

In late October 1782 in Genoa in the alley Black Cat in the family of Antonio Paganini and Teresa Boccardo was born the second child - the son of Niccolo. The boy was born weak and sickly. From an exalted and sensitive mother, he inherited fragility and susceptibility to disease. From his father he got temperament, perseverance, ebullient energy.

One day his mother saw in a dream a beautiful angel who foretold that being her second son a great musician. The father of the boy, a music lover, believed it. Antonio was very disappointed that the eldest son Carlo did not please his parents with success in music. That's why all his energy he directed to make his younger son constantly practice playing the violin. So began the biography of Paganini. He was practically deprived of his childhood. It took place in exhausting music lessons.

An unusual gift

Like compensating for the child's physical weakness, nature generously rewarded him with an ideal, to the limit, sensitive hearing. While engaging in music, Niccolo Paganini, whose photo you see in our article, discovered a new world painted with unusual colors. He tried to recreate it, playing a guitar, a mandolin and a little squeak, which was both his best friend and tormentor.

Father early examined the ability of his son. Every day he understood more and more clearly - his son is endowed with a huge talent, which in the future will lead to fame and big money. He knew full well that his time with his son was over and it was time to hire professional musicians. To practice almost constantly, the little musician was locked in a dark closet, and his father carefully watched the music flow continuously. For disobedience the child was deprived of food. Such activities have undermined the already fragile health of the boy.

First teachers

Niccolo Paganini felt music with all his heart. Despite the fact that the exercises exhausted him physically, in music he found peace and satisfaction. His first teacher was a poet from Genoa, composer and violinist Francesca Niekko. Biography of Paganini is full of interesting meetings with creative people.

Niccolo began to create music himself very early. Already at the age of eight he wrote a sonata for violin and several complex variations. Gradually, the rumor of a small brilliant violinist began to spread throughout the city and a famous violinist from the chapel of the cathedral of San Lorenzo drew attention to the talented child . His name was Giacomo Costa. He began once a week to study with Paganini, carefully watching his development and passing on to him the secrets of mastery. These sessions lasted more than six months.

The beginning of concert activity

After studying with Costa, Paganini's life changed. He was able to start playing live. This happened in 1794, when the young musician was only twelve years old. At this time he met with people who greatly influenced his future destiny. It should be noted that the biography of Paganini is full of meetings with people who helped young talents improve their skills.

The rich aristocrat and music lover Giancarlo di Negro from Genoa became not only a fan of the young violinist's work, he became his friend who took care of his future education. Gascolo Giretti became a new teacher of Niccolo, a good polyphonist, who managed to instill in the young man excellent composer technique. He taught Paganini to compose music without a tool, using the inner ear.

In just a few months, the musician composed twenty-four fugues for Piano, several plays, which, unfortunately, were lost and did not reach us, and two violin concertos. After a brilliant performance in Parma, the young musician wanted to listen to the Duke of Bourbon at court.

Father Niccolo quickly realized that it was time to receive money for his son's talent. He took on the role of an impresario and organized a tour of Northern Italy. In all the cities Niccolo was expecting a stunning success. A young man like a sponge absorbed new unprecedented impressions, continuing to train hard, improving his skills.

Capriccio of the great maestro

In this period, the famous capriccio is born, in which one can easily see the change in the principles and techniques that were introduced by Locatelli. The teacher of the maestro had technical exercises, while Niccolo had brilliant, original miniatures. Capriccio Paganini made a real revolution in violin music. He was able to achieve maximum concentration of expressiveness, collecting his artistic meaning in a compressed spring.

Beginning of independent life

The Italian temperament of Niccolo, the formed character began to lead increasingly to conflicts and quarrels in the family. Full dependence on the father becomes more and more tiring for the young man. He wants freedom. That is why, when he was offered the place of the first violin in Lucca, he accepted the offer with joy and gratitude. He became the head of the city orchestra. In addition, he had the opportunity to give concerts. He with great success stands in Milan, Pisa, Livorno. Enthusiastic reception of the audience turns his head.

Paganini: biography, personal life

Niccolo was passionate and ardent not only in music. It was at this time he meets the first love, and his name disappears from the posters for almost three years. There are several guitar compositions devoted to the mysterious "Signor Dide". In 1804, the musician returns to Genoa, where he only engages in writing. Then he again returns to Lucca, where Felice Bachocchi ruled, who at that time was married to Napoleon's sister - Princess Elise. The relationship of the composer with the princess soon ceased to be purely official.

Paganini writes and devotes her "Love Scene" for two strings ("La" and "Mi"). During the performance of the composition, other strings were taken. The work produced a furor. Then the princess wished that a play for one string was written for her, and Paganini accepted the challenge. He creates a sonata "Napoleon" for one string "Sol", which he presented with triumph at a court concert.

Three years later, relations with Princess Eliza began to weigh Niccolo Paganini. Biography, personal life, the maestro is full of loving adventures and scandals. However, such feelings that he felt for his first passion, a noble lady who was probably older than him, he no longer felt for any woman.

At the end of 1814 the maestro came with concerts to his homeland. All his speeches Pass with unprecedented success. In newspapers he is called a genius no matter if he is an angel or a demon. Here he met another woman, who passionately carried away - the daughter of a tailor Angelina Kavanna. He took the girl with him to Parma. Very soon it turned out that she would have a child, and Paganini secretly sent her to her friends in the suburb of Genoa.

In May of the same year, my father took Angelina and filed a lawsuit against Paganini. The trial lasted two years. Angelina gave birth to a child. Unfortunately, he soon died. The court decided to pay the girl three thousand lire.

Talent Price

Niccolo Paganini, whose biography is inextricably linked with music, unfortunately, paid very little time to his health. In 1821, his creative path was suddenly interrupted by shaky health. He began to suffer more and more often bouts of severe cough, pain in the intestines and kidneys. His condition was constantly deteriorating. Rubbing the mercury ointment, the strictest diet does not help it. There are even rumors that the maestro passed away. But these are only rumors. Biography of Paganini is not over yet.

The state has improved a bit, but even coming out of the gravest crisis, the great musician did not take up the violin.

Renewal of concert activity

In April, one thousand eight hundred and twenty-fourth year, Niccolò unexpectedly arrives in Milan and announces his desire to give a concert. Then he gives a concert in Pavia and Genoa. At this time, he renewed relations with former mistress Antonia Bianchi, who by that time had become a famous singer who had success in La Scala. They have a son Achilles. Paganini works a lot. At this time, new works appear - "Military Sonata", "Polish Variations", "Companella". The second concert for violin B minor is the culmination of the musician's creativity. After him, he created nothing more easy, exciting and joyful.

Biography of Paganini is composed of a mix of happy and tragic events. In the spring of 1830, the great musician performed in Westphalia, received there the title of Baron, which is inherited.

In October, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-nine, Niccolò Paganini visited his native Genoa for the last time in his life. He is already very unwell. The last five months of his life, he can not leave the house, his legs are swollen, and he is so exhausted that he can not pick up a bow. His favorite violin lay beside him, and he fingered her strings with his fingers.

A great musician, composer, virtuoso performer died in Nice on the twenty-seventh day of May, one thousand eight hundred and fortieth at the age of fifty-eight.

Today we introduced you to the life of Nikolo Paganini. The biography summarized in this article, of course, can not give a complete picture of this bright and unordinary personality.