By Laurie Niles: When violinist Curtis Stewart performed his incredibly imaginative violin caprice version of Stevie Wonder's "Isn't She Lovely" at the Grammys in 2022, he nearly brought the house down. People loved it. It's not an entirely new phenomenon: violinists have been arranging the popular songs of their day and creating versions for the concert stage for hundreds of years. But somehow Stewart's stood out in a special way. His caprice brought so much to the table: rhythm, vibe, melody, harmony -- and an unmistakably "American" feel. A little background: Stewart is a solo violinist, composer and Artistic Director of the American Composers Orchestra. A lifelong New Yorker, he is also a professor at The Juilliard School, and member of award-winning ensembles including the PUBLIQuartet and The Mighty Third Rail. His recordings have received seven nominations for Grammy Awards.

Violinist Curtis Stewart

"Isn't She Lovely" turned out to be the jumping-off point for a major creative project for Stewart, his 24 American Caprices. He wrote them in the tradition of virtuoso caprices such as those by Paganini, with the twist that they draw on Stewart's modern American experience and lifetime playlist for inspiration. The caprices reflect Stewart's wide-ranging musical tastes, drawing on the music of diverse genres and well-known popular artists such as Dolly Parton, John Coltrane, Bob Dylan, Taylor Swift, Kendrick Lamar, Billy Strayhorn, Nina Simone, Wayne Shorter, Aretha Franklin, David Bowie, Tito Puente, Celia Cruz, Joni Mitchell, Oscar Peterson and others. Stewart's recording of the caprices was released last month, featuring performances by himself as well as violinists Tai Murray, Deborah Buck, Melissa White, Njioma Grevious and Rubén Rengel.

Violinists Curtis Stewart and Njioma Grevious.

The recording also includes performances by seven students he has mentored at The Juilliard School, Special Music School and Perlman Music Program. And if you happen to be inspired to play any of these caprices, the sheet music is also available. (See the bottom of this article for sheet music links to each Caprice.) I spoke with Stewart about writing the Caprices - his creative impulse, his compositional process and what kinds of techniques he explores in these virtuosic works. Please enjoy our conversation! Laurie: How long did it take you to write the 24 American Caprices? Curtis: I have been working on these caprices since about 2019 - the first to be written was "Lift Every Voice and Sing" and "Hymn to Freedom," followed by "Isn't She Lovely" in 2020, and "Thalssaki" in 2022. The others I wrote over two years from 2024 through mid-2025 while I was in residence with The Kaufman Center in New York City. BELOW: Stewart's improvisation on "Isn't She Lovely" by Stevie Wonder, which became his Caprice #6. He also performed a version of this at the 2022 Grammy Awards Laurie: Which was the first Caprice that you wrote, and what inspired you to do it? Curtis: Initially, I was inspired to create improvised versions of the Paganini Caprices, which I explored with electronics on a previous album OF POWER. From OF POWER, Stewart's improvisation on Paganini Caprice No. 11: (the serious experimentation starts around 2:08) Then I thought, why not create Paganini-inspired works based on music I know and love music that has shaped my American ear. I love the idea of varying forms of virtuosity, from faster/louder/higher to using electronics and video in novel and intricate ways - these caprices were meant to fill out my solo programs with acoustic moments balanced with the amplified bits. Laurie: How did you pick the songs that you used? Have you talked to any of the artists about your take on their song - or have they spoken to you? If so, what did they say? Curtis: Each song feels essential to my own American musical experience - there is no time when I can remember NOT knowing Take the A Train (which inspired Caprice #17), for example. Or in the case of Kendrick Lamar's Complexion (Caprice #11), that album "To Pimp a Butterfly" was on repeat for the entirety of 2015 and beyond. I would love to meet one of the inspirations for these caprices and see what they think! Laurie: Anyone who has played their violin at a wedding (or funeral) has probably been faced with playing a pop tune and perhaps finding it "too easy" or maybe even "lacking in material," just the same chorus over and over. Obviously, you found WAY more than that to create very substantive pieces based on pops tunes. Can you tell me about that? Curtis: I had to leave many songs on the cutting room floor. The songs I used all had rhythmic underpinnings or a technical facet that I could see in multiple permutations and combinations, unfolding into a through composed work for solo violin. I could hear how the violin took up the energetic space of the whole band or track of the original material. If I couldn't find material to bend and break, or if the violin really didn't capture the energy of the original, I let that song go. Many times, I start by transcribing a loose version of the drum track and setting that for the violin, using various violin techniques to bring energy and color, capturing the vibe of the snare, kick and hihat primarily. From there, some of the caprices unfolded much like a Bach prelude: the initial figuration was set and available for realization through a set of new chord changes with rhythmic and melodic diversions interrupting the repetitive figures. Laurie: What was your compositional process? Did you improvise and then write down what you liked? Record it? Write out music by hand? On a computer? Curtis: At first I brainstormed with improvisation on the material, until I found figuration that felt exciting and engaging. From there, I recorded phrase by phrase most times phraselet by phraselet into Ableton to create harmonic nuance and textural interruptions. Once I had a first draft, I edited transitions and potentially added an introduction or fly-in material from the end to the beginning for formal clarity, etc. From there, I transcribed what I had written, and added as many markings as I could so a first-time reader of the music could catch the spirit for the music-making pre-notation, which is really just an estimate of the musical impulse that was crystallized through the process. Laurie: You work with students, and a number of them are featured on the album. Caprices have historically been written for pedagogical purposes. Is there a component of teaching or pedagogy to your caprices? Curtis: I tried to attack a different technical aspect in each caprice, like harmonics in #18 "Taps," double-stop grooves in #8 "Shake It Off," or barriolage in #10 "Big Yellow Taxi." BELOW: Caprice #4, inspired by Bob Dylan's Blowin' in the Wind: Laurie: These all sound very virtuosic! If someone wanted to play one (or all!!) of these caprices, which would be the best to start with? What techniques are needed? Is there an order to them, in terms of playability? Curtis: A good start might be #9, inspired by Oscar Peterson's Hymn to Freedom. Modern Love (#1) or Amazing Grace (#19) might be good follow ups, they have a lot of the general rhythmic techniques that set the violinist up for the other more complex caprices. Laurie: What is most stylistically challenging about playing your Caprices? Curtis: I would hope that the stylistic challenge is relying on the player's ear and feeling for the original inspirational material. The player can listen to the studio recording of the violin version, my home draft recording of the initial composition/rough mock-up, and the original inspiration. I hope players look for vocal inflection of the singer, the rhythmic drive and attitude of a drum set player and the flow of a bass player. There is a grit and edginess to the music with tons of moments for singing lines that most likely have a blues influence, so listening to how singers shape a p...

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