Image of niccolo paganini carnival of venice

Song based on a Neapolitan folk tune

The "Carnival of Venice" is based on a Neapolitan folk tune called "O Mamma, Mamma Cara"^[1] and popularized by violinist and composer Niccolò Paganini, who wrote twenty variations on the original tune. He titled it "Il Carnevale Di Venezia," Op. 10. In 1829, he wrote to a friend, "The variations I've composed on the graceful Neapolitan ditty, 'O Mamma, Mamma Cara,' outshine everything. I can't describe it."^[2]

Since then, the tune has been used for a number of popular songs, such as "If You Should Go to Venice" and "My Hat, It Has Three Corners" (or in German, Mein Hut, der hat drei Ecken). ^{[citation needed]}

A series of theme and variations has been written for solo cornet, as "show off" pieces that contain virtuoso displays of double and triple tonguing, and fast tempos.

Since Paganini, many variations on the theme have been written, most notably those by Jean-Baptiste Arban, Niccolo paganini music!