April 2009

V.com weekend vote: Have you found the bow of your dreams?

Last week we talked about finding the fiddle of your dreams, and this week, we'll talk about bows. (BTW Thanks to V.com member Adam Clifford for the suggestion. I welcome everyone's suggestions for the weekend vote!)

Bows are tricky and individual; as your technique advances, you'll likely find that your taste in bows will likely change. For example, at some point you'll want a bow that bounces, a bow with which you can play a nice sautille stroke. However, there's a catch: you need the proper bow to develop that stroke in the first place.

A bow that seems to draw a nice tone from your fiddle might simply be a heavy bow, and the heaviness can make the bow less nimble. A very nimble bow could be lacking in power. And how much weight should be at the tip, how much at the frog? How big is your hand?

A bow needs balance, and in fact it is an object with innate tension and its very own "balance point."

Have you found the bow that works for you? What were you looking for? Did you play with any bum bows along the way, and what did you learn?

22 replies | Archive link

V.com weekend vote: Are you still looking for the violin of your dreams?

This morning I was talking to someone who was not completely happy with his violin, but as an adult beginner, he's a bit daunted by the idea of looking for one that he likes better.

Karen Allendoerfer has been writing about the same thing: The Big Search.

For some of us, the search is over. I bought my Gagliano three years ago, and I've never looked back. I love the my violin completely. But I'd also been through a number of others, a German violin, a modern American...and nearly 30 years of playing...before I met my match.

There are big-name violinists who have found their partner and stuck to it: Hilary Hahn springs to mind, with her Vuillaume, which she has played for some 15 years. And there are others who love to look, who are constantly trying out something new.

Where do you fall, when it comes to your main violin? Are you happy together? Or are you still looking? Or are you just always looking? Vote, and then tell us about your journey, finding a violin.

18 replies | Archive link

V.com weekend vote: How many hours a day do you practice?

Yes, I'm going to go there: I'm going to ask you about your devotion to the violin.

I think that James Ehnes said it best: after talking about the incredible amount of time, effort, sweat, money, heartache, possibly even blood...(okay not really) that went into finding the instrument that he found, he said:

"Looking back, there was a lot of time and effort and struggle that went into the process of getting an instrument, but in a way that was the easy part. I mean, the practicing was much harder!"

The practicing was much harder -- those words stuck with me.

It's not easy for anyone. Practicing is the hardest part. Life does not simply set aside two or three hours for practice. It's not easy when you are young, and it's not easy when you are older. There is school, exercise, the basic fact that one must eat and also put bread on the table, there is work of all kinds. And there is procrastination, distractions, children, parties, holidays, falling in love...

But some people find the time, and it usually requires sacrifice: saying "no" to certain things, having discipline. You have to create the habit and then keep it alive.

How are you doing with your practice? How many hours a day are you devoting, these days?

20 replies | Archive link

V.com weekend vote: Which are your favorite etudes?

I must confess, I never much liked etudes.

Nor did I dislike them; I just learned them with the same kind of interest I associate with multiplication tables and algebra. Interesting? Certainly, in that left-brained, analytical way. Rewarding, too, when you see the pattern and get it right.

Musical?

Er. Often times, not so much. But I'm reminded of math again: if you can master your tables, you will be rewarded when you get to higher math. Etude mastery gives you the technical tools to apply when you get to the "real music."

If you had to pick one set of etudes, which are your favorite, and why? Which gave you the best foundation? Which best keep your chops going post-teacher? Which help your students best? Which are simply fun to play? Please share your thoughts on various etudes, which you feel are best, and why.

19 replies | Archive link

More entries: May 2009 • March 2009