Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst was a Moravian-born violinist and composer of the Romantic era, born in Brno in 1812 who began his performing career in the 1830s and toured widely across Europe. He specialised in virtuosic solo violin repertoire and transcriptions, employing advanced polyphonic techniques, multiple-stopping and extended left-hand methods, and his compositions and arrangements reflect the technical and expressive priorities of mid-19th-century Romantic instrumental music.
