ABSTRACT
Ernst was clearly aware that his limited repertoire was causing problems and he made efforts to extend it. He performed one or two of his less familiar compositions - the E major Nocturne, the Variations on a Dutch Air - and he took the unusual step of including a piece by a living rival - Bazzini's Allegro de Concert - in his programmes. Bazzini may well have introduced him to the work in Leipzig. Ernst had become friendly with the Italian virtuoso, and Puccini - Bazzini's pupil - would later describe the two violinists' friendship as 'intimate'. Bazzini's gesture may well have been prompted, not only by their meeting in Leipzig, but also by the way Ernst championed the Concert Allegro throughout Europe. In addition, there were several popular works with names like Concert Allegro and Konzertstück - Bazzini's Concert Allegro, and Mayseder's Grosses Konzertstuck come immediately to mind.
