Fictional Portrayal
Tartini is mentioned in Madame Blavatsky's "The Ensouled Violin," a short story included in the collection Nightmare Tales.
Tartini, the great composer and violinist of the XVIIIth century, was denounced as one who got his best inspirations from the Evil One, with whom he was, it was said, in regular league. This accusation was, of course, due to the almost magical impression he produced upon his audiences. His inspired performance on the violin secured for him in his native country the title of “Master of Nations.” The Sonate du Diable, also called “Tartini’s Dream”—as every one who has heard it will be ready to testify—is the most weird melody ever heard or invented: hence, the marvellous composition has become the source of endless legends. Nor were they entirely baseless, since it was he, himself; who was shown to have originated them. Tartini confessed to having written it on awakening from a dream, in which he had heard his sonata performed by Satan, for his benefit, and in consequence of a bargain made with his infernal majesty.
The folklore of the "Devil's violin," classically exemplified by a similar story told of Niccolò Paganini, is widespread; it is a subset of the "Deal with the Devil." Modern variants are Roland Bowman's "The Devil's Violin"], the country song "The Devil went down to Georgia"; the PBS segment on violin in its series "Art" was titled "Art of violin: the devil's instrument."
Tartini's The Devil's Trill is the signature work of a central character in Daniel Silva's The English Assassin. Anna Rolfe, the daughter of a Swiss banker, is a famous violinist and the sonata features prominently in the novel. The story of Tartini's inspirational dream is told.
Tartini's "The Devil's Trill" is also featured in the Japanese Anime Descendants of Darkness (Yami no Matsuei). The three part story is also named after the song. In the episode, a young Japanese high school student has the ability to play the difficult piece after he becomes possessed by the devil after receiving a cornea transplant from the organ donor who was also himself possessed.
Read more about this topic: Giuseppe Tartini
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