These arpeggios are audacious indeed as they move between different major and minor keys. Keep the string crossings nice and smooth and watch out for the accidentals!
These arpeggios are audacious indeed as they move between different major and minor keys. Keep the string crossings nice and smooth and watch out for the accidentals!
This lilting, lugubrious adagio in A minor is the second of de Bériot's 12 Petits Duos. The smooth, soulful tune sings above an unsettled, undulating accompaniment.
This delightful traditional song in the key of C, often known as 'Come Follow Me', can be played as a round, with each player starting at a different time.
Up the bank, doun the brae, and yon burn-side we gae, where the Water is Wide! Also known as ‘O Waly, Waly’, this is a lovely, yearning folk song that originates from Scotland.
Drill those scales with these punishing exercises! Get the metronome going and then lift and drop the fingers with energy and precision of timing and tuning.
Make sure there’s nothing makeshift about the way you make shifts! Glide smoothly between 1st and 3rd position on each string, landing perfectly in tune every time!
Cross paths through various keys in these convivial string crossing exercises! Keep the fingers of the left hand pressed down and navigate your way through the chords.
Juuuuuuump! You’ll need really agile, accurate shifting and string crossing for this exercise. If you miss, the Lazy Dog could very quickly become an Angry Dog!
Don’t be at cross purposes when it comes to crossing strings! You’ll need to agree on the what, where, when and how to move seamlessly from one string to the next!
There are lots of zebra crossings in this piece, helping you to move from one string the next. Make sure you know where they are and always cross at the zebra crossing!
Caution! Tread very carefully indeed as you manoeuvre in tones (whole steps) and semitones (half steps) up and down these treacherously slippery chromatic slopes!
Practise semitones (half steps) using different fingers and the same finger. Try to make the two versions of the exercise sound as similar to each other as possible!
Beware! If you don't get the half steps and whole steps in the right place in this chromaticky piece, you might fall through the cracks!
Make the journey as smooth as you possibly can, as you cross the open strings in a variety of different bowing patterns. Smooth sailing all the way!
If you always know how to improve then you'll always be getting better and better! And this Practice Menu helps provide a clear structure for your violin practice.
This useful checklist of practice techniques will help you to stay focused on what you need to do to make effective progress in your violin practice.
A 7-step approach to violin practice. Follow these steps to achieve continual improvement in your violin playing!
Each finger experiences the highs and lows of first position in this super-useful exercise! Listen really carefully to make sure you don’t go too high, or too low!
A cheeky little piece to flex your 4th finger! Fun fact: there are 119 notes in the piece and 62 of them are played with the 4th finger. Make each one count!
William Crawford Honeyman was a violinist, orchestral leader and teacher. He was also, under his pseudonym, James McGovan, a writer of police detective novels!
Are you a major or a minor? A perfect or an augmented? Find out if opposites really do attract in this excellent exercise … a great way to improve your intonation!
I like the flowers, the daffodils, the mountains, the rolling hills, and the fireside when the nights are cold and I’m singing, “Doo wappa doo wappa doo wappaty wop!
The Halling is a traditional dance hailing from rural Norway … brisk and highly rhythmic and often ending up as an acrobatic, athletic competition between the dancers!
