In this video segment, 13-year-old cellist Jonah Ellsworth plays an especially challenging piece, Niccolo Paganini's Variations on One String on a Theme of Rossini. While utilizing only the A string, Jonah produces a wide variety of sounds, including changes in pitch, volume, speed, and special techniques such as slides (glissando) and oscillation of pitch (vibrato).

Niccolo Paganini was a brilliant Italian violinist, violist, guitarist, and composer. Born in Genoa, Italy in 1782, he died in Nice, France in 1840. An unconventional person in many ways, he was recognized for his musical ability at a very young age and, by the time he reached 18, was appointed first violin of the orchestra of the Republic of Lucca. He performed throughout Europe to great acclaim and influenced an entire generation of violinists with his unusual techniques. He also inspired a younger generation of virtuosi, including Franz Liszt and Robert Schumann, to push the limits of instrumentation in their works.

Paganini's technical innovations included non-standard tunings, left-hand pizzicato (in which the strings are plucked with the fingering hand), double-stopped harmonics and trills, and original bowing techniques. He sometimes played on a violin after cutting three of the four strings to amaze his listeners with his technical prowess. His playing was so dazzling that it was rumored throughout Europe that he had entered into a pact with the devil!

To listen to Jonah perform chamber music with the Vivace Trio when he was 11 years old, check out From the Top.

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