All Improve your playing articles – Page 10
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FocusMasterclass: Christian Tetzlaff on Beethoven’s Violin Concerto – first movement
How to bring out the mystery and joy of one of classical music’s longest opening movements
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FocusMinimalism for strings: An overview with performance advice from the Kronos Quartet and others
Following the emergence of minimalist music in 1960s America, some of the style’s most enduring works have been written for strings, among them Steve Reich’s Different Trains. Pwyll ap Siôn finds out how performers overcome the technical and psychological challenges of playing this music
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BlogsLearning how to lose control is Paganini's gift to violin music
With his new album of music by and inspired by Paganini out today, Michael Barenboim writes that the great violinist’s legacy as a composer is the invention of a specific kind of headlong virtuosity
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FocusJan Vogler on performing Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations
For the German cellist, imagining how Tchaikovsky might have viewed the rococo period was key to reinterpreting his Rococo Variations
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FocusTechnique: Viola vibrato, and how flexible joints and a keen ear can enhance your expressive range
Roger Tapping, violist of the Juilliard Quartet, on the faculty of the Juilliard School, and formerly New England Conservatory, gives a lesson on improving vibrato, particularly for violists
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FocusKlezmer violin technique masterclass with Sophie Solomon
The violin is a vital ingredient of the klezmer sound. In this Masterclass from January 2007, Sophie Solomon, founding member of klezmer fusion band Oi Va Voi and artistic director of London’s Jewish Music Institute, explains that embodying a vocal quality in the instrument is the key to performing this ...
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FocusConquering performance nerves: starting well and keeping tempo on track
Brian Hodges answers student questions on coping with stage fright
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Premium ❘ FeatureMasterclass: Maxim Vengerov on the Caprice D’après L’étude En Forme De Valse
Being a good musician is like being a great cook, according to Maxim Vengerov. In this Masterclass first published in the November 2005 issue of The Strad, he gives his recipe for playing a fiendish Saint-Saëns waltz arrangement by Ysaÿe
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FocusMasterclass: Leonidas Kavakos on the Sibelius Violin Concerto
The Finnish composer put all his knowledge as symphonic writer and frustrated violinist into this great, elemental work. First published in The Strad’s January 2008 issue, Leonidas Kavakos’s masterclass explains how to do it justice
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FocusProfessional string players reveal their favourite accessory
We asked six string musicians to name the one most treasured addition to their kit – though for some it was doing without something which made the difference
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FocusDouble stopping on the cello: How to play passages of 3rds and 6ths with more fluidity
Technique advice, exercises and repertoire examples from Lionel Handy, cello professor at the Royal Academy of Music in London, Birmingham Conservatoire and Winchester College, UK
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BlogsConquering performance nerves: sweaty hands, losing bow grip
Brian Hodges answers student questions on coping with stage fright
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FocusNatural playing on violin and viola, inspired by the Alexander Technique
Exercises to release tension and improve ease of movement when playing the violin by Tomas Cotik, violin professor at Portland State University
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FocusIrvine Arditti's sentimental work: Helmut Lachenmann's Grido
For the Arditti Quartet’s founder and first violinist, Helmut Lachenmann’s String Quartet no.3 Grido contains unorthodox challenges and an unusual sense of passion
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VideoLawrence Power performs Salonen's Pentatonic Étude for solo viola
In this video from the Philharmonia Orchestra, British violist Lawrence Power plays Esa-Pekka Salonen’s Pentatonic Étude. Salonen wrote the piece for Power, who premiered it in 2015.
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FocusContact points: controlling your sound through the position of your bow on the string
New England Conservatory and Juilliard School cello faculty member Natasha Brofsky introduces a set of exercises for exploring the tone, colour and expressive potential of a well-controlled bow, plus three videos showing the techniques in action
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VideoBridge position adjustment with Edgar Russ
In the first of a new series of YouTube videos, Cremona-based luthier Edgar Russ talks about the importance of proper bridge adjustment and how to check if yours is maintaining the correct angle
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VideoAleksei Kiseliov – Massenet's Élégie arranged for cello and string orchestra
Aleksei Kiseliov, principal cello of the Royal Scottish Symphony Orchestra, plays his own arrangement of Massenet’s Élégie. The orchestra is conducted by RSNO music director Peter Oundjian.
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FocusAdvice I'd give my younger self: Nadia Sirota
Collaboration and idiosyncrasy are focuses for the American violist who advises musicians to ebrace what makes their sound unique
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Blogs10 tips for buying a new bow
Are you considering upgrading to a better bow but not sure where to start? Violinist and bow maker Mariia Gorkun gives practical advice on how to go about choosing the right bow for you and your instrument – Register for free to read
