Principles of Violin Playing (I)

1 September 2014 – 4:20 pm Posted in Articles' List, Instrument & Playing

The present series of training articles, “Principles of Violin Playing”, seek to help students, to appropriately understand this field, by gradually introducing, categorizing, and teaching the myriad relevant points. One of the principles of playing violin, which must be always kept in mind, is that the selection of the most natural position for the body parts while playing is the best and most appropriate solution. As a matter of fact, any unnatural body part position which requires lots of energy or unusual stretching to maintain, is wrong.

Practicing the above-mentioned principles eases violin playing and decreases problems associated with phrases the playing of which is impossible by taking wrong unnatural positions. Moreover, correcting wrong playing styles makes playing less exhausting and more fun.

Pattern 1/1

Holding the Violin

Generally while playing violin three parts of the body are involved: chin, shoulder and the left hand. Each of these parts shoulders a part of the burden of holding the instrument. However, the player should be able to hold the instrument with only the neck and the shoulder without using the left hand.

1/1/1- Shoulder and neck:

The player should not raise the left shoulder in order to hold the violin. On the contrary, his shoulder must remain in its natural position. In case the player’s neck is long, he may bring up his shoulder or bend his neck both of which are wrong.

Because for maintaining the former, the player should waste extra energy to raise his shoulder in vain which not only makes him exhausted but also distract his attention as he must focus on keeping this position. The latter, puts extra pressure on cervical vertebrae and cartilage as they are stretched more than usual.

Two solutions can be applied to solve this problem. Firstly, the player can fold a piece of fabric and put it under the violin. As a second solution, however, the player can buy a shoulder rest. Picking a shoulder rest is very important as it can play a significant role in making violin playing more comfortable.

The desired type of these shoulder rests are those with double adjustable legs so that the violinist can attain the most appropriate fit. Moreover, shoulder rest joints make it possible for the shoulder rest to move so that it would be flexible and help the violinist keep the instrument in proper place.

An important point to consider in regard to shoulder rests is the design of the padding and its bending so that the shoulder rest could be placed both on the shoulder and on the collar bone and the chest. The padding should be covered with foam or thick-enough sponge-like material. Using shoulder rests which are not made of foam or those whose material quality is low is not recommended. Shoulder rests of quality are adjustable in sideways; therefore, they can be used with violins of variable sizes. This characteristic makes it possible to change the position of the rest at the back of the violin to make its holding and controlling easier.

An important advantage of using shoulder rests is that they do not influence the quality of sound and violin volume. Shoulder rests prevent the volume transmitted through the lower block of the violin to be taken away by violinist’s clothing; hence, its pure volume (interestingly enough various fabrics leave various influences on the volume of the violin. The interested players might examine this fact.)

1/1/2-How high to raise the left hand:

The violinist should raise his left hand so high that the instrument and its neck acquire a horizontal position with the ground. It is preferred to hold the instrument in a way to avoid its being directed downward or upward. In the former position, the spine bends down because of unnecessary stretch causing breathing problems and in the latter the cervical vertebrae are pressurized in the reverse direction.
Viol.ir

This entry was written by Ali Nourbakhsh
Tagged: violin.

Nasser Masoudi: The Voice of Gilan and a Legacy of Iranian Music

In Iranian music, certain singers have become emblematic of their homelands through their distinctive voices. Historical figures such as Eghbal Sultan, who epitomized the grandeur of Azerbaijani music, and Taj Isfahani, who conveyed the authentic essence of Isfahan, serve as notable examples from the Qajar era. Nasser Masoudi occupies a similar position; his voice emerged as a symbol of Gilan while also achieving national acclaim. Before him, Master Ahmad Ashurpur represented Gilan’s musical landscape, but his extended residence outside Iran limited his continuous engagement in the music scene. In contrast, Masoudi’s consistent presence allowed him to introduce the voice of Gilan to audiences across Iran.

Farhad Poupel: The Voice of the Shahnameh in the Orchestras Around the World

In an era when almost no trace of contemporary Iranian music can be heard in international concert halls, except (so-called!) avant-garde works that owe their existence solely to the fashionable slogans of the “pseudo-intellectual” crowd who have seized the already meager resources for performing classical music from the true artists of the field, the numerous performances of Farhad Poupel’s works shine as a ray of hope for lovers of sincere musical art. Without resorting to trendy slogans, he has kept the flame of Iranian classical music alive purely through the power of his artistry.

Latest posts

From Past Days…

Women and the Music Environment in Iran

The life territory of the female-male relations in the Iranian cultural context is basically a domestic territory and not a social-living one in the labour and leisure domains. To prove this, it only suffices to consider the Iranian men’s viewpoints about women. For the Iranian men, there are three perspectives regarding the women: mother, sister and wife. Mother represents the emotional territory; sister represents the logical territory at home while wife represents the sexual territory.

A Look at Ali Tajvidi’s Manifold Musical Activities (I)

Ali Tajvidi (1920 – 2004), one of the most prominent Iranian musicians, passed away sixteen years ago. He was one of the most distinguished Iranian artists. To specify one of the fields in which he was unique, one can refer to Tasnif composition. A brief review of his manifold musical activities is presented below.

“Symphonic Poems from Persia” Released in Germany

While the name “Persia” (Western historical name of Iran) has attracted tens of thousands of people from around the world to London’s British Museum to visit ancient Persian artifacts, the Nuremberg-based music company, Colosseum, invites Europeans to listen to eight masterpieces of Persian symphonic music.

Polyphony in Iranian Music (I)

Despite the fact that Iranian folk music (regional music of Iran), like the Radif of Iranian traditional music, is monophonic and follows heterophony in principal, we experience polyphonic forms, albeit, majorly unconscious.

Principles of Violin Playing (X)

Creating sound continuity between two notes in the source and destination positions when left hand position changes and “two different finger numbers” are involved is called portamento. Portamento can be performed on single string or two neighboring strings and with hand moving on fingerboard either upward or downward.

Polyphony in Iranian Music (IV)

Two choirs alternatively perform Veŝ Tavaré Na avaz (Transcription 5). The second group starts the avaz before the first group finishes it; consequently, two different voices coincide (Transcription 5, staves 2 and 5).

Principles of Playing Violin (V)

3/1/2/5: When the first finger lands next to the nut, continuation of first phalange of this finger, on back of the hand, should be in line with continuation of the back of the wrist and the left hand; moreover, it should not pass them and bend at knuckles. Otherwise, an uncommon stretch is created in first finger’s knuckle also reducing the freedom of other fingers (especially the fourth finger) in finger placement.

Tehran Flute Choir Established

Tehran Flute Choir was established in 1394 (late 2015) by Firouzeh Navai. Tehran Flute Choir, Iran’s first largest flute choir, recruited its members mostly from young talented flutists of Iranian Flute Association. Featuring piccolo, flute, alto flute and bass flute, Tehran Flute Choir, directed by Firouzeh Navai, premiered under the batons of Saeed Taghadosi on January 7-8, 2016 at Roudaki Hall in Tehran.

Gholam Reza Khan Minbashian: a pioneer in Iranian music (II)

Gholamreza Khan Minbashian taught courses such as organology, orchestration of military music and harmony based on the books which were translated from French into Persian with the help of Aliakbar Mozayyan-o-Dolleh (1846-1932).

Developments in Iranian Music Since Qajar Era (III)

Developments in Composing

Along with developments in the Iranian instruments, composition of the Iranian pieces developed as well. As a matter of fact, the developments of the two, mutually affected each other. In other words, instrumental developments led to developments in composition and vice versa.