The Infant Paganini (Cello & Piano)

Mollenhauer The Infant Paganini (Cello & Piano)

Born in Erfurt, the composer Edward Mollenhauer (1827–1914) achieved success in America as a soloist and teacher.  His best-known pieces for young violinists are The Infant Paganini and The Boy Paganini. Both appear here in their original version for violin and piano and, for the first time, in a transcription for cello and piano by Christoph Sassmannshaus.

The Mollenhauer fantasia The Infant Paganini is a charming introduction to early virtuoso techniques. It calls for bowing techniques such as detaché, legato, spiccato and arpeggios over three strings. Players are also expected to play harmonics and pizzicato.

It (BA 10693) can be mastered by young cello students who are working with volume 4 of the Sassmannshaus Early Start on the Cello and can manage first to fourth position.

The Boy Paganini is an impressive concert piece which is more demanding. Its two movements call for changes of metre, harmonics and pizzicato.  Other challenges include chords on all four strings and simple passages in octaves.  On the cello (BA 10694), the student must be able to play in first to fourth position.

Both violinists and cellists should have completed volume 4 of Early Start on the Violin and Early Start on the Cello respectively in order to master this work. 

- Popular recital pieces for young violinists and cellists.

- Both works form an ideal continuation of the Sassmannshaus Early Start methods.

- Pieces originally scored for violin now also available for the first time for cello

Violin editions:
The Infant Paganini | BA10691
The Boy Paganini | BA10692