[Violin] A curated selection of beloved classic masterpieces and popular pieces that continue to be cherished across eras
The violin, an instrument beloved since the Baroque era—the very roots of classical music.
At times graceful, at times passionately expressive, the violin’s richly nuanced tone continues to soothe our hearts.
In this article, we introduce classical masterpieces that let you fully enjoy the charm of the violin, adored both as a solo instrument and as the star of orchestras and ensembles.
We’ll also share tidbits about the historical context of their composition and the composers themselves, so even newcomers to classical music can enjoy with ease!
Playlist
| [Violin] A curated selection of beloved classic masterpieces and popular pieces that continue to be cherished across eras | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| show_chart | Title | Playlist | Review |
| 1east | CantabileNiccolò Paganini |  play_arrow | Not only as a composer, but also as a violinist… |
| 2east | Caprice No. 24Niccolò Paganini |  play_arrow | The greatest violinist in the history of the violin world… |
| 3east | Introduction and Rondo CapricciosoCamille Saint-Saëns |  play_arrow | The musical maestro born in France, Camille Sa... |
| 4east | Love’s GreetingEdward Elgar |  play_arrow | Edward Elgar, a composer who represents the United Kingdom, Edw... |
| 5east | Violin Concerto No. 2Henryk Wieniawski |  play_arrow | A passionate and technically rich violin concerto is... |
| 6east | Romance in E-flat majorLudwig van Beethoven |  play_arrow | The piece whose striking opening goes “Da-da-da DUM!” is a... |
| 7east | ZigeunerweisenPablo de Sarasate |  play_arrow | Dramatic, often used in TV shows… |
| 8east | Dance of DeathCamille Saint-Saëns |  play_arrow | “Danse macabre” is by the French composer, Cam… |
| 9east | CsárdásVittorio Monti |  play_arrow | “Csárdás” is a genre of Hungarian music... |
| 10east | Prelude and Allegro in the Style of PugnaniFritz Kreisler |  play_arrow | Known for a sweet, richly expressive performance style... |
| 11east | Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64Felix Mendelssohn |  play_arrow | One of the composers who represent the early Romantic period is F... |
| 12east | La CampanellaNiccolò Paganini |  play_arrow | Nico, the master violinist born in Italy... |
| 13east | HumoresqueAntonín Dvořák |  play_arrow | The warmth and ethnic resonance of Czech music… |
| 14east | Like a melodyJohannes Brahms(Jascha Heifetz) |  play_arrow | Johannes Brahms, who was born in 1833, ... |
| 15east | Meditation from ThaïsJules Massenet |  play_arrow | The opera Thaïs by the French composer Massenet... |
| 16east | Violin Sonata No. 9 in A major, Op. 47 “Kreutzer Sonata”Ludwig van Beethoven |  play_arrow | A violin sonata that evokes passion and innovation... |
| 17east | Fugue from the Sonata No. 1 in G Minor, BWV 1001, for Solo ViolinJ.S.Bach |  play_arrow | Johann Se..., a composer who represents the Baroque era, |
| 18east | Violin Concerto in A minorAntonio Vivaldi |  play_arrow | Baroque, which emerged in 17th-century Venice… |
| 19east | Violin Sonata (1954)Miyoshi Akira |  play_arrow | In 1954, the 20-year-old Akira Miyoshi created... |
| 20east | TziganeMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Alongside Debussy, a leading figure representing modern France… |
| 21east | Violin Sonata in A major, FWV 8 – Movement IVCésar Franck |  play_arrow | Franck’s violin sonata composed in 1886… |
| 22east | Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 77Johannes Brahms |  play_arrow | A master of German Romanticism weaves a powerful melody... |
| 23east | Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 61Ludwig van Beethoven |  play_arrow | Among its long history, particularly important musicians and… |
| 24east | Concerto for Two Violins in D minor, BWV 1043J.S.Bach |  play_arrow | In the 18th century, the composer who was hugely active in Germany, Joha... |
| 25east | Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35 – First MovementPyotr Tchaikovsky |  play_arrow | Hailing from Russia and known for captivating audiences with lyrical melodies... |
| 26east | Grand Polonaise No. 1Henryk Wieniawski |  play_arrow | One of the leading violinists of the 19th century... |
| 27east | ChaconneTomaso Antonio Vitali |  play_arrow | Vitali was a composer active during the Baroque period, the 17th–... |
| 28east | Air on the G StringJ.S.Bach |  play_arrow | Among classical music, it’s one of the top contenders for first or second place… |
| 29east | Violin Concerto No. 4Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart |  play_arrow | Next is Mozart’s violin concerto… |
| 30east | Violin Partita No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004: I. AllemandeJ.S.Bach |  play_arrow | A musician who is indispensable when talking about Baroque music, ... |
| 31east | Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35Pyotr Tchaikovsky |  play_arrow | Probably the most frequently performed at today’s concert… |
| 32east | Rhapsody in the Style of a Concerto for Violin and OrchestraIfukube Akira |  play_arrow | Akira Ifukube, one of Japan’s most renowned composers, has 19… |
| 33east | VocaliseSergei Rachmaninov |  play_arrow | Rachmaninoff’s “Vocalise,” composed in 1915… |
| 34east | Violin Sonata No. 1 “Rain Song”Johannes Brahms |  play_arrow | We will introduce two of Brahms’s violin pieces… |
| 35east | Carmen FantasyPablo de Sarasate |  play_arrow | A piece by Sarasate. From Bizet’s opera “Ca…” |
| 36east | Violin ConcertoCamille Saint-Saëns |  play_arrow | Saint-Saëns is known for works such as The Carnival of the Animals, and… |
| 37east | Overture and Tarantella, Op. 43Pablo de Sarasate |  play_arrow | The Spanish composer Sarasate made his debut at the age of eight... |
| 38east | Violin Concerto No. 3Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart |  play_arrow | From here on, it’s Mozart’s Violin Conc— |
| 39east | Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minorMax Bruch |  play_arrow | Bruch’s Violin Concerto... |
| 40east | Scherzo-TarantellaHenryk Wieniawski |  play_arrow | Wieniawski was one of the leading figures of the 19th century po... |
| 41east | Violin Sonata “The Devil’s Trill”Giuseppe Tartini |  play_arrow | Composed by Tartini after dreaming of the Devil; a piece characterized by prominent trills. |
| 42east | Chaconne from Violin Partita No. 2 for Solo ViolinJ.S.Bach |  play_arrow | Johann Sebastian Bach, the so-called “Father of Music,” needs no introduction… |
| 43east | Scherzo from the F.A.E. SonataJohannes Brahms |  play_arrow | The opening violin somehow gives a sense of fate... |
| 44east | Violin Concerto No. 3 in B minorCamille Saint-Saëns |  play_arrow | Saint-Saëns was a composer and organist in the 19th century… |
| 45east | Violin Sonata No. 2Sergei Prokofiev |  play_arrow | A representative figure of 20th-century Russia and the Soviet Union... |
| 46east | Fantasy BalletCharles-Auguste de Bériot |  play_arrow | The violin professor with whom Vieuxtemps studied… |
| 47east | Moses FantasiaNiccolò Paganini |  play_arrow | ...had a tremendous influence on later violinists. |
| 48east | Violin Concerto No. 22Giovanni Battista Viotti |  play_arrow | The composer who left a profound mark on the history of classical music... |
| 49east | Memories of a Nostalgic Land · Overture 42 · TH116: III. MelodyPyotr Tchaikovsky |  play_arrow | From March of 1878, Tchaikovsky… |
| 50east | Violin Sonata No. 18 in G major, K. 301Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart |  play_arrow | One of the greatest genius composers of the 18th century, Wo... |
| 51east | Sorrow of LoveFritz Kreisler |  play_arrow | A world-renowned violinist from Austria... |
| 52east | Sonata in a minor for Violin and Piano: Allegro ben moderatoCésar Franck |  play_arrow | Franck’s violin sonata composed in 1886… |
| 53east | Violin Concerto in E major, Op. 64, MWV O 14: I. Allegro molto vivaceFelix Mendelssohn |  play_arrow | The V... that Mendelssohn composed in 1844 |
| 54east | Hora StaccatoGrigoraş Dinicu |  play_arrow | Lu..., who is famous as a composer of contemporary classical music, |
| 55east | Violin ConcertoJean Sibelius |  play_arrow | Sibelius was a composer from the Nordic country of Finland... |
| 56east | Violin Sonata in D majorJean-Marie Leclair |  play_arrow | Leclerc has several songs that use the violin... |
| 57east | Caprice BasquePablo de Sarasate |  play_arrow | “Zigeunerweisen” and “Carmen Fantasy”... |
| 58east | Skylark AscendingRalph Vaughan Williams |  play_arrow | British-born composer, Ralph Vaughan ... |
| 59east | Violin Concerto No. 5Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart |  play_arrow | Finally, Mozart’s Violin Concerto... |
| 60east | Beautiful RosemaryFritz Kreisler |  play_arrow | Including “The Joy of Love” and “The Sorrow of Love,” F... |
| 61east | Ballades and PolonaisesHenri Vieuxtemps |  play_arrow | Vieuxtemps was a Belgian who was active in the 19th century… |
| 62east | La FoliaArcangelo Corelli |  play_arrow | Among string ensembles and Baroque orchestras, this piece is extremel... |
| 63east | Violin Sonata No. 2 in A major, RV 31Antonio Vivaldi |  play_arrow | Vivaldi, famous for composing The Four Seasons… |
| 64east | Barcarolle from The Tales of HoffmannJacques Offenbach |  play_arrow | French composer Jacques Offenbach… |
| 65east | ChaconneTomaso Antonio Vitali |  play_arrow | From the 1700s to the mid-1740s... |
| 66east | Violin Partita No. 3 in E major, BWV 1006: III. Gavotte en RondeauJ.S.Bach |  play_arrow | Especially among Bach’s works for unaccompanied violin... |
| 67east | 12 FantasiesGeorg Philipp Telemann |  play_arrow | A composer who enjoyed the greatest popularity in the German Baroque period… |
| 68east | Zigeunerweisen, Op. 20Pablo de Sarasate |  play_arrow | Speaking of Sarasate, this is the piece—violin and a... |
| 69east | Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Minor, for Solo (Unaccompanied)Eugene Ysaye |  play_arrow | A phrase from Bach’s unaccompanied Partita, at times… |
| 70east | Violin Concerto No. 1 in C majorFranz Joseph Haydn |  play_arrow | The court musician Haydn composed a violi… |
| 71east | After the DreamGabriel Fauré |  play_arrow | This piece was originally a song composed by Fauré… |
| 72east | Violin Partita No. 3 for Solo ViolinJ.S.Bach |  play_arrow | Let me introduce one more piece by the same Bach as above… |
| 73east | Habanera Opening No. 83: AllegroCamille Saint-Saëns |  play_arrow | In 1885, Saint-Saëns wrote for the violin... |
| 74east | If aren’t necessary soGeorge Gershwin |  play_arrow | This piece is by the American composer George Ger... |
| 75east | Violin Sonata No. 5 “Spring”Ludwig van Beethoven |  play_arrow | Next up is the violin of the “Master of Music,” Beethoven… |
| 76east | Melancholy SerenadePyotr Tchaikovsky |  play_arrow | One of the few violin works by Tchaikovsky... |
| 77east | Violin Sonata No. 21 in E minor, K. 304Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart |  play_arrow | Mozart’s early violin sonatas. Piano-centered structure. |
| 78east | Joy of LoveFritz Kreisler |  play_arrow | A world-renowned violinist from Austria... |
| 79east | Concerto for Four ViolinsAntonio Vivaldi |  play_arrow | A composer from the Baroque era, well known for works such as The Four Seasons, … |
| 80east | Sonatina, Op. 100Antonín Dvořák |  play_arrow | Dvořák was a Bohemian composer active in the 19th century… |
| 81east | Violin Sonata in E minorFrancesco Maria Veracini |  play_arrow | This person was a violinist around the same time as Vivaldi… |
| 82east | Violin Sonata No. 5, Op. 1 No. 14Georg Friedrich Händel |  play_arrow | Handel's violin sonatas are almost in major... |
| 83east | Recitative and Scherzo-Caprice, Op. 6Fritz Kreisler |  play_arrow | Fritz, a violinist born in Vienna… |
| 84east | Like a melodyJohannes Brahms | play_arrow | Expressing warm, delicate emotions through music |
| 85east | Polonaise Brillante No. 1 in D majorHenryk Wieniawski |  play_arrow | The Polish violinist, Henryk W... |
| 86east | Duo No. 2 for Two ViolinsLouis Spohr |  play_arrow | Spohr, who was acquainted with that Schumann, composed... |
| 87east | Italian SuiteIgor Stravinsky |  play_arrow | It’s a modern/contemporary piece, but it’s based on a Baroque-style mood... |
| 88east | Violin Concerto No. 22Tomaso Antonio Vitali |  play_arrow | This concerto is what you might call a student-oriented con… |
| 89east | Violin ConcertoAleksandr Glazunov |  play_arrow | A Russian who was active during the same period as Tchaikovsky… |
| 90east | Violin ConcertoAram Khachaturian |  play_arrow | An Armenian from Georgia who was active in the 20th century... |
| 91east | Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 61: Rondo – AllegroLudwig van Beethoven |  play_arrow | Among the violin concertos written by Beethoven... |
| 92east | Three RomancesRobert Schumann |  play_arrow | Throughout, Schumann's ‘Träumerei’… |
| 93east | Violin Concerto No. 1 in D major, Op. 19Sergei Prokofiev |  play_arrow | Prokofiev was active from the era of Imperial Russia through the Soviet period... |
| 94east | Concerto for Violin in minor and minor, Major RV 269 “La Primavera”: II. LargoAntonio Vivaldi |  play_arrow | “Spring” from The Four Seasons composed by Vivaldi… |
| 95east | Violin Concerto in D minor, MWV 03: I. Allegro moltoFelix Mendelssohn |  play_arrow | Felix Mendelssohn in 1822… |
| 96east | Sonatina in A minorFranz Schubert |  play_arrow | Schubert, who is known for his songs, but... |
| 97east | Violin Concerto in E majorJ.S.Bach |  play_arrow | It begins with an arpeggio in E major, and as it goes toward the end… |
| 98east | Violin Sonata No. 2 in A major, Op. 100Johannes Brahms |  play_arrow | Johannes, known as a master of Romantic music... |
| 99east | The Maiden with Flaxen HairClaude Debussy |  play_arrow | With free-form composition unconstrained by preconceptions, the world... |
| 100east | Hungarian Dance No. 7Johannes Brahms |  play_arrow | Brahms’s Hungarian Dances are... |
| 101east | PaganinianaNathan Milstein |  play_arrow | I’ll pick out a few of Paganini’s well-known pieces… |
| 102east | Swan Lake · Opening 20a · TH219: Russian DancePyotr Tchaikovsky |  play_arrow | In Tchaikovsky's ballet music, "…" |
| 103east | Piano Quintet in A major, Op. 114, D. 667 “Trout” – I. Allegro vivaceFranz Schubert |  play_arrow | Schubert’s bright and powerful chamber works |