Score here.

Programme note:

This Caprice for solo double bass is a response to Paganini’s famous set of 24 for violin. As with many of Paganini’s Caprices, this piece focuses on only a pair of virtuoso techniques throughout. It expects virtuosity not only of the performer, but also of the listener to appreciate the microtonal inflections in the central section. Although the double bass can rival even the violin in terms of agility and elaborate melodic pyrotechnics, I wished to underline the bass’s identity as a bass instrument. As such a cycling ground bass forms the compositional basis for the piece.

That's a bit of a dull note, really. The fun thing about this piece is that it is mostly made of slow gentle double stop harmonics singing over a ground bass. Because I love Dido and Aeneas. The outer sections have the more traditionally virtuosic writing, but they're really much easier.