Tag: Violin

Violog: #4

I worked on my sight-reading in the build up to this video and, as you will see, the bowing is not straight as I was not focusing on it. My new teacher, Emily, picked up on it straight away and has given me some exercises to improve it. These exercises involve…

Violin Journal: #4

I have now started taking violin lessons and it’s been incredibly helpful!

It’s been a few weeks since I last updated you on my progress, but the video in this post is from a couple of weeks back and was recorded after my first violin lesson. I worked on my sight-reading in the build up to this video and, as you will see, the bowing is not straight as I was not focusing on it at all. My new teacher, Emily, picked up on it straight away and has given me some exercises to improve it.

Mostly, these exercises involve taking things that I already know, such as scales or short pieces, and really focusing on long bow strokes that stay perpendicular to the fingerboard.

Emily was impressed with my intonation in general, but has really encouraged improvement on bowing technique as a whole. This has included trying to ensure that the correct amount of pressure is put on the bow and that the hairs of the bow are angled correctly (sometimes I don’t have my bowing wrist forward enough).

I’m very much looking forward to sharing my progress with you shortly, and showing the improvements that I have made with a professional violinist watching over my development.

Top Tip #5

Invest in a teacher!

As a pianist with a degree in music, I thought that it would be possible to learn the violin on my own, and it is… possible. However, picking up a few bad habits that I didn’t want to become ingrained, general lack of motivation, and the benefit of a little professional input made it obvious that investing in a teacher was the next step for me. I have already noticed a significant improvement.

Next Time…

I will be working on two pieces from Jessica O’Leary’s 80 Graded Studies for Violin: Book One for my next post. I’m going to get the performances to as high a standard as I can, so hopefully it will be an enjoyable listen.

Violog: #3

Violin Journal #3: This week, I have been working on arpeggios and minor scales. I have also put into practice much of the feedback received from the more advanced violinists following my progress…

Violin Journal: #3

This week, I have been working on arpeggios and minor scales. I have also put into practice much of the feedback received from the more advanced violinists following my progress...

If you have a keen eye, you may have noticed that my bow was less taught than in previous videos, and I now have slightly more bend in the bow. Thank you to the guys on the Violinist SubReddit who pointed this out to me.

I found transitioning from major scales to minor scales fairly easy due to the movements being largely the same, just with slightly varying intervals. Rather than learning as individual notes, I just worked with the interval rules for natural, harmonic and melodic minors.

Major – T, T, S, T, T, T, S

Natural Minor – T, S, T, T, S, T, T

Harmonic Minor – T, S, T, T, S, T+S, S

Melodic Minor (Ascending) – T, S, T, T, T, T, S

Melodic Minor (Descending) – T, T, S, T, T, S, T

* T = Tone S = Semitone

This way, a greater number of scales are available to me than with the traditional graded approach. Additionally, I am learning to play by feel and theoretical understanding rather than pure muscle memory, allowing for greater flexibility and control whilst playing.

Similarly, learning major and minor arpeggios from the interval rules makes for an easier learning experience.

Major Arpeggio (Ascending) – Major 3rd, Minor 3rd, Perfect 4th

Major Arpeggio (Descending) – Perfect 4th, Minor 3rd, Major 3rd

Minor Arpeggio (Ascending) – Minor 3rd, Major 3rd, Perfect 4th

Minor Arpeggio (Descending) – Perfect 4th, Major 3rd, Minor 3rd

Top Tip #4

Tighten the bow correctly!

“A rule of thumb that my teacher told me was to use the pencil rule; i.e. the middle of the bow should be about a pencil’s-width between the hair and the bow.” – Chadsomething (Reddit)

“It is only supposed to be able to barely fit your pinkie in-between the hair and the curve. (Curve down not up or straight).” – Popyetyty (Reddit)

Next Week…

I’ll be working on all of the things I’ve learnt so far; namely scales, arpeggios, bowing, and sight-reading. I’m looking to improve my technique and resulting sound so that the videos I’m posting are a bit more pleasant to listen to. I’ll be posting some sight-reading next week, recording the first play-through of each piece! I promise that it won’t be as bad as it sounds.

Violog: #2

This week, I have been working on my first violin piece: Scarborough Fair. I decided to learn this famous old English folk song by ear. By using trial and error, I was able to feel my way around the violin, which gave me a greater connection to it. I found that this approach also allowed for greater expression and exploration of the piece as the constraints of written notation were removed.

Violin Journal: #2

This week, I have been working on my first violin piece: Scarborough Fair.

I decided to learn this famous old English folk song by ear. By using trial and error, I was able to feel my way around the violin, which gave me a greater connection to it. I found that this approach also allowed for greater expression and exploration of the piece as the constraints of written notation were removed.

Disclaimer: I have set myself the challenge of recording only two or three takes for my vlog and using the best of those. This means that what you see and hear is a true reflection of my progress to date. As such, some parts are less… tuneful.

The piece itself makes for interesting development in terms of aural comprehension. Rather than being in a major or minor key, Scarborough Fair is in the Dorian Mode. This essentially involves flattening the 3rd and 7th note of the major scale, giving us a typical sound for many old English folk songs. Having to think about this when playing encouraged me to consider the different intervals and respond to what I was expecting to hear with slightly different finger placement. You can read more about the modes in this previous article.

For those interested in the historical background of the song, it does indeed tell us of ‘Scarborough Fair’. The fair did exist, and has its roots as far back as the 13th Century. The origins of the song are shrouded in mystery though, and it’s likely that it actually came about much later. One suggestion is that it is a descendant of a Scottish ballad, ‘The Elfin Knight’ (17th Century). While the traditional fair unfortunately no longer exists, there are still frequent celebrations in its memory. Recently, one of these celebrations involved a jousting competition!

If you’d like to know more about the piece, this article covers it in a little more in depth: The History and Romance Behind Scarborough Fair.

Top Tip #3

Play in time! Work on timing by using a metronome or accompaniment. In this week’s video, I played along with my own pre-recorded piano accompaniment. It added a new dynamic to my practice and you can hear in the recording that I struggled to get to a few notes in time. It’s easy to gloss over this when there is nothing keeping strict time.

The more you practice with a metronome or accompaniment, the less you need them.

Next Week…

I will be working on minor scales and looking at arpeggios for both major and minor keys. I’ll be trying to improve intonation and sight-reading too.

VioLog: #1

This is my first progress update since starting my violin journey. After a week or so of practice, this is where I am… I aimed to simply get used to the instrument; stringing it, tuning it, getting a feel for it, and listening to it.

Violin Journal: #1

This is my first progress update since starting my violin journey. After a week or so of practice, this is where I am…

This week, I aimed to simply get used to the instrument; stringing it, tuning it, getting a feel for it, and listening to it.

I learnt the pitches of the open strings and worked on simple bowing technique to achieve a smooth, continuous sound. Correct bowing technique (not demonstrated in my video!) relies on keeping the bow perpendicular to the strings and making contact with the strings midway between the bridge and fingerboard, as shown below:

Next, I practised playing one octave major scales off of each open string. I found the key here to be listening carefully. Working out the correct interval by ear and training the fingers to make the correct positions without looking takes some patience and perseverance but I wholly recommend it. It allows the musician to better understand their instrument and make an aural connection with it.

When I was comfortable with this, I moved on to reading very simple violin music. I have the advantage of already being able to read the treble clef as a pianist, but for those with little or no experience, it would be helpful to learn the notes of the stave (particularly those of the open strings; G ,D, A, E) and begin to understand intervals in relation to the fingerboard. I found The Sight-Reading Sourcebook useful as it approaches reading music in a very gradual but thorough way. Importantly, it starts with rhythm alone, and this is where any new musician should begin.

I found that I was able to advance through the book at a decent pace. The placement of fingers came naturally due to the practice of the major scales on every open string. Rhythms were not demanding at this stage, and the bowing was largely alternating up/down for each note.

I have to admit that the sound wasn’t the most pleasant, but as I practised through the week, the intonation definitely improved and it almost started to sound like music!

Top Tip #2

Listen to your instrument and try to hear if your intonation is correct.

It is important to know how the scales that you are practising sound so that your ear is trained to recognise errors in intonation. Therefore, listen to what you are going to play (use a recording or play it on a keyboard if you have that luxury). Actively listening and having a good reference point will really help you to develop good intonation.

Next Time…

Over the next week, I will be learning my first simple violin piece and I’m very much looking forward to sharing it with you. Until then…

Violin Journal

In short, I’ve always liked the sound of the violin, so I’m going to learn how to play it and I’m going to share my progress with you.

Introduction

In short, I’ve always liked the sound of the violin, so I’m going to learn how to play it and I’m going to share my progress with you.

To keep me motivated and show what is possible with a bit of dedication, I’ve decided to give myself an initial target of practising regularly for 6 months, recording my progress along the way. As well as sharing videos, I’ve decided to also write a journal of what I am trying to achieve each week. In the journal will be links to articles that I’ve read and tutorials that I’ve used, as well as discussions with more accomplished violinists on what they believe is important for developing good technique.

I hope it proves valuable to anyone who wishes to learn a new instrument (particularly the violin), and I already can’t wait to look back in six months time and see how it went.

Top Tip #1

Nothing can hinder the development of a musician quite like the fear of making mistakes. You will not get things perfect the very first time you try, so allow yourself to get things ‘wrong’ and learn from them. Embrace your mistakes.

I begin this journey knowing that I will make countless mistakes along the way, and while they may well give us some laughs (and occasionally hurt our ears), acknowledging and exploring them simply helps us to improve.

See you in a week!

(If you have any comments, questions or tips for me throughout this journey, please do share them below.)