Rolla lived during an exceptional period in classical music. Haydn, J.S. Bach, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert all lived and died during Rolla's long lifetime. He was well known at the time as a viola and violin virtuoso, composer and conductor. But today his reputation rests on the fact that he was the teacher of Niccolo Paganini, often cited as the greatest violinist who ever lived.
Much of Paganini's technical exhibitionism comes from Rolla who pioneered many of the astonishing technical feats that Paganini used in his works.

Given his outstanding virtuosity, it comes as no surprise that his works are technically difficult. This piece is the first of three grand duos. It starts with a calm melody which is played sul-G (on the G string) which is bad enough - but there's much worse to come... Fast octave passages, chromatic scales and arpeggios in an array of keys and very high notes make this devilishly difficult. And the second violin part isn't any easier either!
The second half of the piece travels through a labyrinth of different keys: D-flat major, G-flat major, B major, B minor, D major, B-flat major and then back to the original key of F major. It's very reminiscent of Mozart's harmonic wanderings, and Rolla does it beautifully.

I'm certainly no virtuoso, and this recording is far from perfect. But it's a wonderful piece and I hope goes some way to bring Rolla's work to a new audience.

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