Viola players sit in a group left or right centre of the conductor. Their strings are tuned to C G D A. The upper two are plain gut, the others wound wire; some players prefer all wound strings.

The viola has a somewhat melancholy timbre which has been little exploited in either solo or orchestral music. By early tradition the viola was ‘of little importance in the musical establishment’ (Quantz, 1752) and viola players were ‘always taken from among the refuse of violinists’ (Berlioz). Fingering for the viola is the same as for the violin but because the instrument is larger it requires a stronger hand with a bigger stretch. The bow is also larger and heavier than that of the violin.

There have always been different sizes and types of viola, as well as different names — violino, violetta, cinquième, quinte de violon and so on. But the orchestral viola is an abbreviation of viola da braccio (arm viola) and it is still called Bratsche in German. At the time of the great Cremonese makers of stringed instruments, Amati and Guarneri were making violas with a body length of i64 inches. Later violas were made between 17 to i84 inches long, but by Mozart’s time a mere 14 to 15 inches. The Lionel Tertis version, first made in 1930, is 164 inches long. In the opinion of many makers and musicians the problem of the relationship between size and volume of sound of the viola has not yet been satisfactorily resolved. This can be seen to be true because in no one orchestra are all the violas of the same dimensions.

The story of the viola is a sad one from which historians can wring little excitement. Interest in it in the first half of the 18th century was so feeble that there were hardly any violas made at all and it was not until string quartets became popular that the better performers began to brush up their technique.

Champions of the viola have admittedly emerged from time to time, the Bohemian Karl Stamitz (1746-1801) in particular. The Stamitz family were celebrated in the 18th century; in fact, the town of Mannheim, where they lived, was a strong contender with Vienna for importance in the development of classical music. Karl, who was a viola player, rescued the instrument from its obscurity by writing independent parts for it in his symphonies and by writing a viola concerto. Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert had all played the viola and recognized its potential, but mainly for chamber music for which they were more or less assured of skilled performers. In symphonic works, wrote Berlioz, ‘it was unfortunately impossible .. . to write anything for violas of a prominent character, requiring even ordinary skill in execution.’ It was due to Berlioz that, after some years of wrangling, a viola class was established at the Paris Conservatoire.

That was not until 1894, when half the world’s great symphonic music had already been written, and Lionel Tertis, the outstanding protagonist of the viola, was already eighteen years old.

More than anyone else it was Tertis, a great player and a fine musician, who brought the viola respectability. He badgered composers to write for him, and himself transcribed violin and cello concerti for the viola. In an attempt to overcome the weakness of the volume-to-size ratio of the instrument, Tertis redesigned the viola, but without ultimate success. Tertis was succeeded by other players, such as Bernard Shore, who also achieved international reputations. The viola section of the orchestra is today equal to any other string section in technical ability, and this is demonstrated by the quality and difficulty of the music now written for it.

Paganini played the viola, and it was for him that Berlioz wrote the extended solo in Harold in Italy — although Paganini never actually performed it. By the time of Elgar’s Enigma Variations (1899), the sound of the viola peeps out quite boldly in the sixth and twelfth variations. The third movement of Kodály’s Hary Janos Suite begins with an extended viola solo. Bartok, whose string writing is never less than interesting and sometimes outrageous, wrote a viola concerto (1945). So did Walton (1929, revised 1961) and Copland (1957). Hindemith, a distinguished viola soloist as well as a composer and teacher, wrote for viola and orchestra including a concerto (1935). Walton dedicated his concerto to Hindemith. For good measure, the first movement and the finale of Copland’s First Symphony both begin with viola solos.

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dodoClassical Music, Violin18 Jul, 2008