About this Piece

Joseph Bologne (Chevalier de Saint-Georges) probably composed his violin concertos initially for his own use, although their later publication ensured their wider dissemination. Their reputation is further attested to by the existence of manuscript copies of the works most of which appear to postdate their publication. There are also several concertos of uncertain authenticity that are preserved in manuscript parts that possibly represent works composed later in Saint-Georges’ career but to date no detailed investigation of these works has been carried out. Saint-Georges remained active as a performer after the French Revolution, albeit in different circumstances to those under which he worked in the 1770s and 1780s, and it is possible that he continued to compose.

The present work probably dates from the mid-1770s and was doubtless composed by Saint-Georges for performances with the Concert des Amateurs. Unusually for Saint-Georges, who typically issued his concertos in pairs, the work was published alone, by Henry, as Concerto No.9, Op.8.  –Allan Badley

Allan Badley is co-founder of the Hong Kong-based publishing house Artaria Editions and holds the post of Associate Professor of Musicology at the University of Auckland.