Learning how to play modern music

I apologize for not posting sooner. Various things happened. The most important one was this:

I was just incredibly tired.

And yes it took two weeks to recover from that concert of the Clearfield premiere.[Also we went to Ottawa for the next weekend and my two-year-old son has turned into sticky tape (well he does love oranges....) due to the fact I went away for three days and three nights.]

But it was a great experience and got me to think about the reasons for that.The main one was that it really was a terrific piece. And terrifying in places. The mood (and hopefully not the playing!).The soloists and conductor were wonderful and you could tell that they loved contemporary music. And I think this is one of the main reasons for the success of the premiere. They were just so skilled and had the openness to work with the composer even to the point of changing articulations and rhythms at the last minute. And nary a grumble from the orchestra which was a nice change.

A thought:

Maybe with contemporary music the reason many musicians grumble is that we are simply not used to the new techniques. In a way we are a generation (or two) behind the composer and we have to be coaxed (or dragged) into the experience. With time the next generations of performers are used to it and have learned the techniques. Audiences maybe need time as well.

And also over the last couple of months, I've seen the result of young performers succeeding in learning and performing an entire concert of music of local women composers. And done with such a good attitude as well. We mid-career players could take a clue from these enthusiastic teenagers.

Of course I don't mind being dragged at all. I do like the challenge of trying new techniques. (I was an admittedly bad improviser in the mid '90s) However sometimes I wonder what if I had learned properly at 15 to do Bartok pizzicato (or a whole bunch of them) in a viola piece. Or a bowed glissando-have seen this in many orchestral pieces written in the last 10 years.Just thinking that we violists (and other string players) need some 21th century etudes so it's not as demanding to learn a contemporary piece every time we're faced with it. Maybe with lots of glissandi, tremolo, artificial harmonics. Wondering who are the Rodes and Kreutzers of 2007? Are there any violin/viola teachers who compose for their students? Anybody interested? Or maybe should I try?.......

The nice thing about viola studies....

is that you don't have to play them in public. :)

(Does that sound like a viola joke?)

Still working on the Mazas' Rapidity and liking it. But I figured I needed *another* study (yes, a sucker for self-punishment). So I went to my storage boxes and looked for something else.
Pulled out the Lillian Fuchs 15 Characteristic Studies. Sight read three of them. Decided I didn't like any of them. And finally realized why. (Short answer...I find them boring...even for studies. Long answer....well maybe later.)

So I went back to the box and pulled out the Gavinnes 24 studies. I had never worked on any of them. Could tell this by the lack of pencil markings. (I had bought the book probably around 1993....I hadn't been to this particular violin shop since then.)

After reading through a couple of them and decided I could benefit from them. First, they're really difficult. For some reason that's a plus for me. Second, there's a lot of fast shifting in the upper register. This is also a plus. So I decided to work on No. 4.

I think teaching violin and viola has changed my view on studies. For many years I thought that studies were something only to endure for the inevitable annual RCM exam. So naturally I balked when my grad school teacher not only wanted me to relearn the first twelve Kreutzer studies, but also analyze them. He believed that every study had a particular left hand and right hand technical focus. Of course I didn't do it-I was a rebellious student. (BTW-now I realize that he was right about everything. Maybe I need to write more about this....hmmm.)

Now fifteen years later after seeing new students come to me for lessons and seeing how they had treated their pieces as studies (with the resulting frustration that comes with that), I realize the true importance of studies. Granted they are boring. But better them than the repertoire the student will be studying. A study is a perfect vehicle to work on a technical focus without worrying about the musical ramifications. It's the bridge between technique and concert repertoire. And you do not have to perform it. Well maybe for your teacher, he he...

Now for something different.

Some enjoyable reading.....

The finale of Charles' audition story.... won't spoil it.

the Heifetz vs. Cher Gershwin contest.

and Jen is an amazing teacher!

Have a great day everyone...

Shoulder rests and other new fangled things

[First let me say this:

The low grade virus has stayed around....we're all under the weather...literally.
Snowstorm last night....and snow projected for the next five days.
Youngest son is still two.

Think I will ignore these facts for now. ]



On the Yahoo Viola List there is a *heated* (and entertaining!) discussion about the use of shoulder rests. If you are at all interested in the viola, go check it out. This is one of the email lists where there are world experts posting regularly. Very informative.

For the record I do use a Kun shoulder rest. However my viola does. not. like. it. I know this because in every rehearsal or concert, suddenly there will be a great CRUNCH coming from my general vicinity. The Kun will collapse against the back of the viola and then crash to the floor. Leaving me to play sans shoulder rest. This used to bother me. Not anymore.

Last night DH and I were watching the Great Violinists of the Bell Telephone Hour. I was fascinated with the part when Igor and David Oistrakh are playing the Bach Double Concerto. Not only they not use shoulder rests (actually no other violinist on the DVD did either), but also David Oistrakh kept lifting his jaw right off the chinrest at least once every 15 seconds. Didn't hurt his shifting or fast passages one bit.

This make me realize that I know *nothing* about the history of string pedagogy. Maybe you dear blog reader(s) can help me with this.

Was it Galamian who first advocated the use of the shoulder rest?

Maybe you can also help me with some other questions as well:

Why do most modern method books start off with D major? A hundred years ago it was C major (for the violin). Is it because of adapting to classroom use or is it Suzuki?

Why do many method books ignore the use of the bow in shifting? Every thing's always in a nice slur. Not really a real life situation in playing.

Why do people not use the Wohlfahrt, Dorflein, and Hohmann books more for beginners? Why have duets with your teacher gone out of style?

When I reached high school I started to use a Kun shoulder rest. Just because everybody else was using one. Never really questioned it until now.

Maybe it's time to examine the teaching practices of the past. They may still have some use. In our quest to be innovative we still have to respect tradition.

In my case, tonight I will play the viola with the Kun. (The violin....well, I don't have one anyway) Tomorrow though...will be a different story. Time to give it up.....