With the advent of the formal cadenza, the soloist suddenly took centre stage. But can these flashy displays of bravura be taken too far?

OK, so what is a cadenza?
A cadenza is a final virtuosic flourish that tops off an aria or concerto movement, akin to the decorative, piped icing on a cake. The unaccompanied soloist uses the main themes of the piece to ornament and delay the final chords. The cadenza tradition took off in the early 18th century with the rise of castrati in Italian opera and soon spread to become an important feature of concertos. Composers felt compelled to accommodate the soloists’ desires to be creative and show off their technical prowess. These embellished endings provided a small space in which performers could show off their showmanship (and thus be less inclined to ornament elsewhere in the composition).

Are cadenzas improvised?

Part of the essential character of a cadenza is to provide an element of spontaneity...