ALONG THE STEPS OF A LIFETIME

22 - School of Nations

Back in Padua after the Prague years, Tartini resumed his work at the Basilica del Santo, and in addition he opened his violin school where he taught technique, elements of harmony, composition and counterpoint. The students came from many countries, so that, as the astronomer Joseph Jérôme de Lalande tells us, the Italians called him the Master of the Nations, an epithet that has endured to this day. Tartini's students were not beginners but professionals looking for technical improvements. They were often violinists at the service of various European princes, sent to Padua to improve their technique and then return - more expert - to their respective courts. Another group made up of students was formed by the nobles who went to Padua to study Law at the historic university, and used those same years also for musical study. The students spent one or two years improving their technique by going to lessons every day and for many hours at a time in the Master's home. This method of teaching was a novelty for that era when music masters generally welcomed young people to live in their own homes.

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