Principles of Violin Playing (I)

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

Post a Comment

Required fields are marked *
*
*
Your email is never shared.

Bahma Rajabi Passed Away!

Bahman Rajabi, the renowned tonbak (Persian goblet drum) player and educator, passed away at his home at the age of 86 due to a heart condition. He was the founder of a distinctive school of tonbak playing, and his teaching methods have been widely used by instructors of the instrument for decades..

Reza Vohdani; Unveiling unpublished works, preservation of Iranian classical music

Reza Vohdani is a renowned name among tar (traditional Iranian instrument) players, especially within the Iranian music community that values the meticulous practice and teaching of traditional music. While Vohdani honed his skills in music theory and tar playing under the guidance of masters like Ali-Naghi Vaziri, Ali-Akbar Shahnazi, Hossein Dehlavi, and Ahmad Forutan-Rad, it is his unwavering dedication to studying, documenting, and teaching the Iranian classical music repertoire that has solidified his prominence in the field. Recently, Vohdani’s family decided to make his preserved works accessible to the wider art and music community. In this regard, The Persian-language newspaper ‘Iran’ spoke with Sadjad Pourghanad, a musician, university instructor, and music researcher, who shared his opinion into the project, as detailed in the interview below.

From Past Days…

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.

Bahma Rajabi Passed Away!

Bahman Rajabi, the renowned tonbak (Persian goblet drum) player and educator, passed away at his home at the age of 86 due to a heart condition. He was the founder of a distinctive school of tonbak playing, and his teaching methods have been widely used by instructors of the instrument for decades..

Is the Iranian National Anthem a Copy? (I)

The alleged similarity between the Iranian and South Korean National Anthems has been a matter of discussion among musicians in Iran for several years. Earlier in 2021, the issue was taken to the media again with not only claims that the anthem is very similar to another song but also the suggestion that its musical content should draw more on the Iranian national music. Some even went to the extent to suggest replacing it with the song “O, Iran” composed by the late Rouhollah Khaleghi. Before delving more into the main issue, it would not go amiss to consider some technical characteristics of the song “O, Iran” composed in 1944.

Principles of Violin Playing (II)

Since for playing violin, it’s necessary that the player’s palms and fingers be inclined toward the fingerboard, therefore, the player, while bringing up his hand, should turn it toward the fingerboard.

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

Tajvidi thought of studying harmony and orchestration with Houshang Ostvar (who was eight years younger than him) at a time when he had gained a reputation among musicians. His humbleness, making him willing to kneel before the scholars at any age and position, became the key to his scientific success. After this period, Tajvidi made some of his works polyphonic, the most prominent of which is “Burn” set to a poem by Abdullah Ulfat. However, his ability to make his works polyphonic was not so great to make him self-sufficient; so he depended on musicians such as Farhad Fakhreddini, Fereydoun Naseri, Kambiz Roshanravan, Fereydoun Shahbazian and Morteza Hananeh for the arrangement of his compositions.

The Legacy of Khosrow Jafarzadeh

This year marks the fifth anniversary of the passing of Khosrow Jafarzadeh (Khosrow Djafar-Zadeh), a distinguished architect and pioneering researcher of Iranian music, whose contributions to the magazine “Harmony Talk” have left an indelible mark on the field. The absence of this remarkable individual has significantly impacted the expansion and advancement of his theories, which are heralded as some of the most progressive in the history of Iranian music

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

Gholam Reza Khan Minbashian, a.k.a Salar-Mo’azez, was a pioneer in several domains in the history of the Iranian music. He is recognized as the first Iranian musician who was educated in classical music. He is also the first Iranian the score of whose works were published in Europe. He is the first Iranian to have launched courses on Western classical music and was also the first Iranian teacher of classical music. Moreover, he is the first founder of a string orchestra in Iran, the first author of the Iranian Radif which was available in oral form. Minbashian is also the first Iranian who studied music in Europe.

Principles of Violin Playing (VIII)

1.5.1.3.sometimes, a player, due to different reasons, may decisively want to play continuously two notes with a half-step by means of the same finger, in such a case, it’s necessary to open the interior curve of the finger like a spring. Naturally coming back, the curve of finger should be closed and the finger should become curved shape again (see paragraph 3.1.2.1).

Principles of Violin Playing (IX)

4.3.1. To practice playing of doubles of notes involving two different fingers, each note is played at separate bows with slow tempo, each note is played perfectly regarding its bass and tenor sounds and then the considered double is played at another bow while considering the resulted sound of the double.

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).