Far Beyond Far

Far Beyond Far, Eric Nathan (2015)for solo violin “Far Beyond Far” was composed for violinist Jennifer Koh, as part of a series of new commissions to be paired with Paganini’s Caprice No. 24. This Caprice has long epitomized the ideal of “virtuosity” for the nineteenth-century violinist, and so for these new works, Koh asked composers to explore what “virtuosity” means for the violin in the twenty-first century. In addition, these new works were commissioned to celebrate Koh’s recent ownership of her 1727 Stradavarius violin. In composing this work, I was not directly influenced by Paganini’s music, but it was always nearby (quite literally – his Caprices remained on my piano throughout my writing of this piece) and it served as a lens for me to contemplate the notion of “virtuosity” in the twenty-first century. The most virtuosic live performances I have witnessed are those where the performer demonstrates complete abandon and commits his or her being – emotionally, intellectually, s