THE INFLUENCE OF THE ITALIAN TRADITION ON THE FORMATION OF FRENCH VIOLIN PEDAGOGY IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY

Abstract

The article examines the influence of the Italian performing and pedagogical tradition on the formation of French violin pedagogy of the eighteenth century, based on the works of leading French violinist-pedagogues of the period. The relevance of the research lies in the need to clarify the mechanisms of intercultural interaction in the development of European violin schools of the early modern period, as well as to reconsider the role of the French tradition within the broader context of European violin performance history. The focus of the study is L’Abbé’s treatise “Principes du violon” as one of the earliest systematic pedagogical sources of the French violin school, reflecting a complex synthesis of Italian models and national aesthetic principles. The article analyzes key aspects of the treatise related to right-hand technique, bow hold, articulation, bowing patterns, and sound production. Particular attention is given to the concept of motor freedom of the finger joints, which, while rooted in Italian performing practice, contributes to the formation of the refined sound quality and vocalized type of musical thinking characteristic of the French violin school. The study traces how Italian performing ideals – cantabile playing, flexibility of phrasing, and attention to the natural quality of sound – were adapted within the French cultural environment and transformed in accordance with the aesthetics of the galant style. It is demonstrated that L’Abbé’s work does not represent a mechanical borrowing of Italian pedagogical models but rather a process of creative reinterpretation that later played a decisive role in shaping French violin pedagogy and performance practice of the nineteenth century. The results of the research expand current understanding of the evolution of violin pedagogical thought in the eighteenth century and may be applied in further studies on performance history, as well as in educational courses on the history of music and violin performance practice.