legendary Italian violinist;b. Genoa, Oct. 27, 1782; d. Nice, May 27, 1840. Paganinis father, a poor dockworker, gave him his first lessons on MANDOLIN and VIOLIN. He then studied with Giovanni Servetto, a violinist in the theater orchestra. By this time the young Paganini was already composing. He also began to study harmony with Francesco Gnecco and subsequently studied violin with Giacomo Costa, who arranged for him to play in local churches.

Paganinis first documented public appearance took place at the church of S. Filippo Neri in 1794. It was about this time that he first heard the Franco-Polish violin virtuoso Auguste Frederic Durand (later billed as Duranowski), who was a brilliant showman. Paganini later incorporated many of Durands tricks into his own performance style.

Having made phenomenal progress in his studies, Paganini was sent to Parma in 1795 to study with Alessandro Rolla. Upon Paganinis arrival there, Rolla is reported to have told him that there was nothing left to teach him and suggested that he study composition with Ferdinando Paër instead. Paër, in turn, sent him to his own teacher, Gasparo Ghiretti. After study with both Ghiretti and Paër, Paganini returned to Genoa in 1796, appearing as a violinist in private performances.

With Napoleon's invasion of Italy, the Paganini family moved to Ramairone. By 1800 Paganini was with his father in Livorno, where he gave concerts. He also appeared in Modena. They returned to Genoa in 1801. That same year, in the company of his older brother Carlo, also a violinist, he made a brilliant and successful appearance in Lucca at the Festival of Santa Croce. He settled there, becoming concert-master of the national orchestra.

As a soloist, Paganini captivated his audience by his pyrotechnics. During an engagement in Livorno, he so impressed a wealthy French merchant that he was rewarded with a valuable violin. With the arrival of Princess Elisa Baciocchi, the sister of Napoleon, as ruler of Lucca in 1805, musical life there was reorganized. The two major orchestras were dissolved and replaced by a chamber orchestra. Paganini was retained as second violinist and then was made solo court violinist in 1807. After the chamber orchestra itself was dissolved a year later, he played in the court string quartet and also served as violin teacher to Prince Felix Baciocchi. Dissatisfied with his position, he broke with the court in December 1809 and pursued a career as a virtuoso.

Paganini came to national prominence in 1813 with a series of sensationally successful concerts in Milan. He subsequently toured throughout Italy, his renown growing from year to year. In 1824 he met the singer Antonia Bianchi, who became his mistress. She bore him a son, Achilles, in 1825, whom Paganini legitimized in 1837. In 1827 he was made a Knight of the Golden Spur by Pope Leo XII.

When Paganini left Italy for his first tour abroad in 1828, he immediately gained a triumph with his opening concert in Vienna. He gave 14 concerts during his stay in Vienna and was accorded the honorary title of chamber virtuoso by the Emperor and presented with the city's medal of St. Salvator. Paganini made his first appearance in Berlin in 1829, then played in Frankfurt, Darmstadt, Mannheim, and Leipzig. In 1831 he made his Paris and London debuts, then gave concerts throughout Great Britain from 1831 to 1833. Paganinis artistic fortunes began to decline in 1834. His long-precarious health was ruined, but he had managed to retain his fame and considerable wealth. He continued to give sporadic concerts, but he spent most of his time at his villa in Parma, making occasional visits to Paris. A critical illness in October 1838 led to the loss of his voice. In November 1839 he went to Nice for his health but died there the following spring. Paganini's stupendous technique, power, and control, as well as his ROMANTIC passion and intense energy, made him the marvel of his time. He also was not above employing certain tricks of virtuosity, such as tuning up the A string of his violin by a semitone. He was a highly effective composer for the violin and gave regular performances of his works at his concerts, with great success. Outstanding among his violin works are the 24 solo caprices (1805), 6 concertos, Moto perpetuo, and other works with orchestra, three string quartets (1800-05), 21 quartets for various combinations of instruments (1806-20), and sonatas.