We have thousands of human-written stories, discussions, interviews and reviews from today through the past 20+ years. Find them here:

How to: Portato Bowing | Violin Lounge TV #247

August 17, 2016, 12:37 AM ·

In this video you will learn how to play portato.


Portato is the bowing technique you apply when you see slurred notes with a line below or above them.



The trick is to not do too much.


Just stop the bow for a split second, like it would look like if you press a pause button in a movie and press play right after that.

Nothing changes, no accent, no funny things with your bow, nothing special, don't give the bow a push with your index finger to create the stop... just stop the movement shortly and continue bowing in the same direction.


The stop should be hearable, so it doesn't sound like slurred notes, but there shouldn't be a rest.

First practice to play portato with two notes on one bow stroke and build it up from there.

Is this video helpful to you? Please let me know in the comments below! If you like it, share it with your friends!

Love,

Zlata

PS: Do you have questions or struggles on violin or viola playing? Post a comment below or send an e-mail to info@violinlounge.com and I might dedicate a Violin Lounge TV episode to answering your question!