Sonata in G minor for Violin Op. 1 No. 10Didone AbbandonataGiuseppe Tartini was an Italian teacher, theorist and composer, once one of the greatest violinist in the mid-18th century. His most famous work being the Devils Trill is regarded as technically demanding violin solo repertoire.Didone Abbandonata comes from a set of twelve violin sonatas. The two movements being played today are selected from Op.10, where both are in the key of G minor and are in binary form. It is one of his lesser known work but an extraordinary masterpiece. It is written for an aria featuring Dido and Aeneas, depicting the sorrows of Dido.The first movement marked Affettuoso, started with a sighing and pathetic sounding theme where the violin sings melancholy lines reminiscing painful memories which doubtfully gave the sonata its name. The second movement, Presto is a shorter movement portraying a brain lacerating fury of the abandoned Dido as she realizes that Aeneas is not coming back on departure. Thus arpeggiated sentences, ornamentation of trills and mordents imply resentments and anguish.