A Month of Scales: Join me for 31 days of 31 different ways to approach scales. New posts go up every day in January 2023. Start from Day 1 here.
The idea with today’s scales is pretty simple:
stop just before each string crossing
cross over silently with both hands
then continue in tempo
For myself, I called that “stop mode.” I then followed up each part by playing it in “continuous mode” (no stops at the string crossings, but still being very aware of them).
It’s another familiar practice technique applied to scales. And to be honest, when saw this one today I was worried that it might not be enough of a “thing” to be worthwhile...
But I was relieved once I actually started going through my scales are arpeggios like this. It’s not my first time practicing this way, so for the most part it went pretty smoothly — no big surprises. But it was still working some kind of magic, because as I went along I noticed my playing gradually sounding smoother and more solid. Phew!
I say it went pretty smoothly, but there were still some interesting challenges that popped up.
First of all, there’s the challenge of being fully aware* of where the string crossings are, and stopping just beforehand. It’s surprising how challenging this can be!
Closely related to that is being fully aware* of whether open string notes are 0 or 4. A
Then there’s also the fun of making sure the finger and bow are ready on the new string before the sound of the new note begins (whether in stop-mode, or continuous mode).
* By “fully aware,” I mean not just knowing something in your mind. I mean having it accessible in the moment it’s needed. Some people think of the muscles, fingers, hands, arms, and/or shoulders knowing, too. Without this level of knowing, it’s hard to stop at the right places. But patiently practicing scales like this helps build that level of awareness.
If you’ve tried today’s scales, I’d love to know what your experience was like! Just post a comment below.
The notation below is only an illustration of how someone doing the given key and fingering would practice this scale approach. Fingerings are included only to illustrate what happens at the moment of the string crossing. You should practice this in whatever key you would normally do, with your usual fingerings, bowings, rhythms, turns, tempo, etc.
tomorrow:
I’m a violinist and private teacher in the Chicago area, and in a previous musical life I was in a professional string quartet. Teaching violin and chamber music are dear to my heart. Send me a note or leave a comment on a post — I’d love to hear from you.
If you’ve tried today’s scales, I’d love to know what your experience was like! Just post a comment below.