Bowing Wohlfahrt's Ettude Op.45, book 1, 1st. Ettude
I have been enjoying Franz Wohlfahrt's etude in Book 1, Op45; Etude No.1.
3rd Variations; in Comon time: first note bowed alone the next three slured.
4th Variation; Comon time: First three notes slured, last note on it's own.
Any sugestions about playing these two variations (either up bow or down bow on the first beat) where the lone note does not have much of an accent when played?
Replies (14)
Good question, Royce. The trick, as you've realised, is to use three times as much bow on the separate note without noticeably changing the volume. How do you do this? The bow moves naturally faster when you play further away from the bridge, and the sound produced is quieter. So when you play 3 slurred-1 separate, your bow should be closer to the bridge and slower for the first three notes, and then further away for the last one so you can get back to where you've started. For 1 separate-3 slurred, you just have to do it the other way around. Don't forget to let your arm weight reduce when you move away from the bridge - or you'll get rather unpleasant sounds...
EDIT: Marina beat me to it!
So would you say a Figure-8 bowing?
No, to me a figure-eight bowing is either a string-crossing pattern or something used for bow changes. It's something else here - more heavy-light/slow-fast.
If I'm reading you correctly, bow catty-corner? Tip to the left point of the bridge and the frog to the right point of the finger board, and vise-versa?
No, you won't get a very good sound that way.
Try this: do you know about the different sounding points that DeLay and Simon Fischer (among others talk about)?
We'll do 3 slurred, 1 separate first.
Play your three notes with a straight bow on about sounding point 2-3 (in the middle between fingerboard and bridge, or closer to the bridge). Stop. Move the bow onto sounding point 4-5 (fingerboard/close-to). Check that it's straight. Play your one note and return to the same part of the bow you started. Stop. Repeat.
You'll find you don't need to change the sounding point nearly as much as I've told you here, and that the transition happens only at the end of the stroke - that's why it's not such a good idea to practice bowing diagonally.
Does this help?
Yes it does help. I learned about the 5 contact points between the bridge and the fingerboard this semester and currently practice playing on them. I think that as of now it's just a matter of practice using your suggestion. I'll keep a mirror handy so I can check my bowing while I get the 'feel' to get 'the sound'. I can't thank you enough for your input! :)
An excellent sounding point video is here:
http://violinmasterclass.com/bowspeed_qt.php?video=spd_exer3&sctn=Exercises
Lisa- Thanks for turning me onto that sight!
May I follow this thread and ask questions from a beginner's perspective? I have found it pretty hard to get a even sound for these two bowings. So I wish to see if the junior players in my family can focus on just one thing at a time...
For a beginner (for 2 years or so), should one work on the bow pressure first first, or paying attention to the sounding point first? (I don't think they are able to do both yet...)
In the beginning stage, should one focus on putting more pressure on the slurred notes first, or try to reduce pressure on the lone one first, or if it is rather necessary to do both at the same time?
Greetings,
try plaing it on =one- sound point only. Start with no5 near the fingerboards. When you ahve the sound you want. Do it again on sp 4. Then three then, 2 and so on. You will have to chnage the temo and weight to produce the bets sound. Once you have mastered these the small movement across sound poiuntts shoudl be much more natural.
Cheer,s
Buri
But why would a piece be written with one note alone and then three slurred (or the inverse) if not to emphasize the lone note?
I'm working on the exact same variation now, and having a major migraine playing that. I am not too good with the sound point thing, and i'm trying not to play too close to the bridge right now as that's my problem, so I don't want to mess with bowing in different sounding point a this stage. Any suggestions of not making that long note not accented too much?
It's teaching you to bow one note the same as three slurred notes. The advice mentioned above is good. Move down a tad with the bow and use the same amount of bow as for the three slurred notes, but ease up on the pressure. Relax, relax, relax. Loose as a goose. Bow hand fingers nice and curved, ease up on the first finger pressure on the bow. Use you back muscles to ease the bow pressure. Notice when you breathe in
your arms and hands will rise as you breathe in,
those are the muscles to use to ease up the pressure.
As Drew Lescher says, everything affects everything.
This discussion has been archived and is no longer accepting responses.
Violinist.com is made possible by...
Dimitri Musafia, Master Maker of Violin and Viola Cases
Johnson String Instrument/Carriage House Violins
Subscribe
Laurie's Books
Discover the best of Violinist.com in these collections of editor Laurie Niles' exclusive interviews.
Violinist.com Interviews Volume 1, with introduction by Hilary Hahn
Violinist.com Interviews Volume 2, with introduction by Rachel Barton Pine
March 22, 2008 at 07:53 PM · The moral of the lesson is to play the one separate note of the passage with an equal amount of bow as the 3 that are slurred, without accenting it. Easier to do when it's upbow. More pressure for the 3 slurred, less pressure for the loner.