![\"\"](\"https:\/\/blog.henle.de\/de\/files\/2011\/12\/hummel.jpg\")
<\/a>J.N. Hummel, 3 Sonatas op. 5, title page of the first edition <\/p><\/div>\n
In the 18th century we know of individual attempts by instrument makers to \u201cupgrade\u201d the hitherto rather neglected viola, allowing more soloistic and virtuosic opportunities. Thus around 1800 the French violinist and composer Michel Woldemar wrote a concerto for a five stringed \u201cviolon alto\u201d, basically a viola with an added high e\u2019\u2019 string. Joseph Nicolas made a particularly fancy double \u201calto violon\u201d that can be seen in the Musical Instrument Museum in Paris<\/a>. A much later invention was Hermann Ritter\u2019s \u201cviola alta\u201d<\/a>, made in the 1870s: this has an especially large scaling and was highly valued by Richard Wagner on account of its full and sonorous sound.<\/p>\n All in all, these are actually just single examples that have had little or no impact on general musical practice. Thus the term \u201calta viola\u201d on the title page of Hummel\u2019s sonatas could be simply explained by a lack of knowledge of French (as one can see from the numerous other spelling and grammatical mistakes on the title page shown).<\/p>\n On title pages from this time it very often says \u201calto viola\u201d, a simple combination of the French and Italian instrument names. For instance the viola concertos by Carl Stamitz (see our edition HN 758<\/a>), Ignaz Pleyel or Carl Maria von Weber all have the double term \u201cpour l\u2019Alto Viola Principale\u201d in the title. Thus Hummel\u2019s sonata can and may be played on a normal viola \u2026<\/p>\n