Comments

Karen this is interesting.  I never play my vibrato above and below the note, I was taught to oscillate on pitch and below, maybe I read your description wrong?

Hi Karen,

I have been told that the "correct"  way to play vibrato is to only vary the pitch down, not up. The reason being that the human ear hears the highest pitch as being dominant, or the defining pitch. Having said that, I will admit that I play mine incorrectly as a result of having played guitar, which, being a fretted instrument, uses a different technique.

Check out the lesson here:  http://violinmasterclass.com/vibrato_qt.php?video=vib_exer3&sctn=Exercises

P.S. I always enjoy your posts.

Dave

Karen - a very interesting and revealing post (as usual).  What I take from it, among other things, is what it tells adult beginners and re-beginners about the importance of finding a good teacher to guide you.  To those who would go it alone, your post is a good explanation of why that is not a great idea.

I was just never told anything one way or another about how you should vibrate relative to the pitch, and never thought about it at all, until recently.  And it was kind of an off-hand comment of my teacher's, that came about when we were talking about how to make some high notes in a Haydn quartet sound more beautiful.  She said  I was vibrating above the pitch, and that was causing me to go sharp.  I'm now not sure what she said as far as what to do about it.  I had thought she said that you should vibrate both ways, around the pitch, both above and below, but there is such unanimity here on this site that you only go below, that I'm thinking now I must have misheard or misunderstood.  

At any rate, it will good to have it clarified, because I think more attention to the matter on my part will make a big difference!  

Karen,

First, congratulations for all the progress you've made over the past two years and it sounds you've made a great deal of it.  A couple of things came to my mind when I was reading your blog and subsequent comment:

a) By Schubert Rosamunde, did you mean the quartet? If so, as I recall, it's not an easy piece as it seems. Schubert is always tricky I think.

b) With Haydn, my teacher and the chamber coaches I worked with all wanted me to focus on the bowing arm instead of vibrato if I want it sound good. In fact, I was told that when in doubt, play the open strings to get the sound I want and then apply the left fingers. This approach worked for me in general, not just Haydn. 

 No, I mean the overture, also known as "Die Zauberharfe."  It's opening our Nov. 8th orchestra concert.

I haven't hit a big snag yet with bowing.  I still seem to be able to do most of the different strokes that I need to do for the music I'm playing, staccato, spiccato, varying degrees of on and off the string, string crossings, bariolage.  Although I  bought a new violin this year (and in retrospect really needed one) I kept my old bow.  

Since  I've been taking lessons again, the big topics have arisen more or less organically out of the music.  I've started to focus on a particular topic when it seemed to be limiting me, when I would hit a snag or plateau with a piece and be unable to move forward except by meeting the issue head-on.  Intonation was the first big plateau, now it seems to be rhythm/subdivision.  Next year it might be the bow.