Song of the Wind, part 1

Song of the Wind is the third song in the Suzuki Violin Volume 1. The song is full of teaching gems, and I have found the song to be a useful teaching tool for younger students, a review song for more advanced students, and a great song for group class activities. Here is an overview of the skills contained in Song of the Wind.

Left Hand Skills

• Song of the Wind is in A major and uses the same finger pattern as the Twinkle Variations and Lightly Row (close 2-3 finger pattern).

• The song begins with ascending "walking fingers" as previously introduced in Lightly Row (exactly the same except for an additional E string).

Walking Fingers + E

• The song introduces a "jumping finger" section in measures 3 and 5 to teach the student the spatial relationship between the first and third fingers, which:

• is the basic foundation for the general shape or frame of the left hand.

• supports good intonation by strengthening the "feel" of the distance between the first and third fingers.

• teaches the student to hold down the first finger as a "corner fence post" to set up future finger patterns and combinations.

Jumping Finger

• The song generally moves stepwise throughout the song except for the jumping finger section.

• The song uses the descending scale pattern as learned in the Twinkle variations with the added complexity of changing pitches in a different rhythmic pattern in measures 7-9, 11-13).

Descending scale

Right Hand Skills

• I prefer that my students use the staccato bow stroke.

• Using staccato in the beginning of book 1 skill learning will set the student up for the creation of good tone production because staccato teaches good articulation (beginnings) of the notes.

• Staccato, which is a stopped bow stroke, helps the student to use the brief "thinking pauses" between notes to set the bow properly to make good clean string crossings.

• The song provides additional string crossing practice.

• The song introduces down bow circles (4 circles on the first pass through the song and 3 on the repeat).

• Down bow circles teach the student to stop and set the bow before proceeding, which will set the student up for later practice with double stops and chords.

• Down bow circles afford the teacher an opportunity to check whether the student is retaining tension in the right shoulder.

• Down bow circles teach the student about the importance of maintaining a good bow hold, since the student might lose control of the bow during the circle if the bow hold is not maintained well.

Other Skills

• The song builds up the student's ability to move the right and left hands and arms independently of each other.

• The right bow hand drops down to the E string level when performing the jumping finger section of measures 3 and 5, but the left hand must retain its position on the A string level. Students tend to lay down their left third fingers when making the "jump" because they are trying to mirror the motion of the right side of their bodies.

• The student has to fight the temptation to drop the left hand down a string level to match the right hand motion.

• The song introduces the concept of holding down pivotal fingers. In this particular song, the first finger F# on the E string becomes the "corner fence post" or "superglue finger" with which the third finger can use to stretch into position on the A and E strings. In later songs, Dr. Suzuki will introduce other such sustained finger placements.

• I live in a rural community, and most of my students are very familiar with the construction of fences.

• We dig a hole for the corner fence post and put it in cement. Once the corner post is secure in cement, we are able to add additional fence posts and to stretch the fencing wire in between the posts.

• I use the corner fence post analogy when discussing the sustained F# finger for my slightly older students, and I use the "superglue finger" idea with my younger students.

There are a lot of previews to the skills that a student will learn in Song of the Wind, and I will address those previews and my teaching methods in part 2 next week.

Happy Teaching!

Quick Practice Tip: Swing, Plop -- finding the 3rd finger on the A string

Many teachers put some sort of tape or marker on the beginning student's violin fingerboard to indicate where to place the violin fingers. Most teachers think that we do this in order to make it easier for the student to find the correct pitches for the beginning finger patterns. Then the issue later becomes, when do we take the tapes off?

I have noticed in my teaching that many students really do not pay much attention visually to where the fingers go on the fingerboard, which leads me to ask, who needs the tapes at that point? I get my answer when I talk about removing the tapes. "No!" moans the mom, "I won't know where the fingers go!"

I ask the student, "Will you know where to put your fingers?" The student is a lot more confident than the mother usually is.

I have found a fairly accurate way to place the third finger (ring finger) on a descending scale, such as the one found in the Twinkle Theme in the third measure. Here is how we do it:

• Make sure that the first finger and left thumb are set up in the correct place to play the correct pitch for the first finger. In the Twinkle song, the first finger needs to be ready to play F#.

• Swing the left elbow under the violin toward the inside (toward the E string side).

• Plop the third finger down onto the A string.

If the elbow swing is done correctly, the third finger will usually land precisely in the correct place on the fingerboard. The problem later is that the student does not remember to swing the elbow under and instead chooses to reach the third finger, often falling short of the mark.

I have seen pre-twinkle exercises that involve playing the E string and then the third finger note D on the A string, but I have had little success just playing this two-note skill alone, as the students tend to leave their elbows under the violin during repetitions. Instead, it might be more fun to practice the skill as part of another song, such as Mary Had a Little Lamb in D major:

With this little version, there are three opportunities to practice the swing-plop. This would be a great chance to practice learning a song by ear, and I would do this in a group class setting. The song can later be practiced in the key of G major beginning with the first finger note B on the A string.

As for tapes, I use them but I try not to rely on them. I remind myself of the time I watched a young student in a master class at a Suzuki Institute. The master class teacher pointed to one of several (!) tapes on the student's bow and asked what the particular tape was for. When the student did not remember the reason for the tape, the master class teacher then observed that perhaps it was time to remove the tape. I put tapes on and off a student's violin throughout the early learning stages. Some students really do not need the tapes. Sometimes students need tapes for just a few weeks when switching to a larger instrument or learning a new finger pattern. I try to remember the Institute lesson and remove unnecessary tapes whenever possible.

Happy Practicing!

NEW! Fingerboard Workbook Series! (Interview)

Diane Allen
http://www.myviolinvideos.com

In this post, I would like to introduce you to my friend and Suzuki colleague Diane Allen from Central Oregon. Diane has recently published a series of fingerboard workbooks, which she has developed and successfully used in her studio for over 20 years. I am excited about the possibilities of this new series. I was fortunate to get an advance copy of all the workbooks, and I know exactly which students I want to begin working on this series. I wanted to give Diane a chance to discuss her new workbook series in more depth. First, let me introduce Diane to you.

PBird: Diane, welcome to "Teaching Suzuki." You are a regular reader of the blog, I know, from the frequent comments that you make. Tell us a little about your experience as a Suzuki teacher. How long have you been teaching?

Diane: Yes Paula! I love your blog. You are such a prolific writer. You make blogging look easy! (I know it’s not.)

workbook 1 for violin

I’ve been teaching for 25 years. Life as a Suzuki Violin teacher has been an amazingly rich and rewarding experience. When a student gets through the beginning steps of just learning how to hold the violin and bow as well as play some songs, it’s just short of miraculous. Around the time Minuet 1 comes along I start looking for the magic -- the moment when a student connects with their violin music and their musicality shines through. It always brings a tear to my eye! And that’s just the beginning.

PBird: You mentioned to me that you had been using your workbook series in your studio for over 20 years. Something that I really relate to is that the workbooks approach the fingerboard mapping issue by using all the learning styles: visual, aural, and kinesthetic. Please tell us how you came to develop your workbook system.

Diane: Two profound experiences that occurred during my college years were the impetus of writing the Fingerboard Workbook for the First Position. The first stemmed from my studies with Burton Kaplan. He introduced me to fingerboard visualization through his book The Complete Music Sight-Reader Series. Until that time I was a “blind” violinist. I could imagine how the notes sounded and had great muscle memory. Learning to visualize the notes on the fingerboard completed what I had been missing. It truly enhanced my violin playing in a BIG way. The charts that you’ll find in The Fingerboard Workbook Series are not that much different than his.

The second experience came from attending a weekend workshop about neurolinguistic programming. In the middle of the workshop I had an epiphonal moment. We had been working with different learning channels: visual, aural, and kinesthetic (eyes, ears, touch). I suddenly had a complete flashback of my entire school career and everything fell into place. Why I played the violin. Why in grade school I felt dumb. Why in high school I would always chew on the crunchiest foods possible when reading. Why Burton Kaplan’s fingerboard visualizations filled the gap. I’m predominantly an aural and kinesthetic learner. My visuals were quite weak.


PBird: How are your visual skills now?

Diane: My visuals now? Fantastic! I’ve since done some specific therapies. But let’s save that for another blog post. I co-mingled my neurolinguistic programming information with Burton Kaplan’s charts. While Burton Kaplan introduced me to using fingerboard charts, he only used them as a visual reference. In the fingerboard workbooks you will use the charts to aid you visually, aurally, and kinesthetically.

PBird: Would you describe what the fingerboard workbook series is? How are the workbooks organized?

Diane: The Fingerboard Workbook Series: Map the Violin for Good Map the Viola for Good is exactly what the title implies. It’s a workbook series that teaches where the notes are on the fingerboard in a way that really sticks. First position all the way through eleventh position is covered. Think of the workbooks as a catalog of all the possible combinations within an octave hand frame. Students will first identify notes, plot them on a fingerboard map, and then experience them by singing and playing.

The most common reaction students have with filling out a workbook is that of making many connections. Instead of having the light bulbs go off over your head, plan for fireworks!

PBird: How would you incorporate the workbook in your teaching situation? Do you have a system for when you introduce the workbook series or a particular position workbook? How long does it take a student to typically finish a particular workbook?

Diane: Most beginning violin books begin with teaching a specific finger pattern: 0 1 23 4. That would translate to mean:

• a whole step from the open string to the first finger
• a whole step from the 1^st to 2^nd fingers
• a half step from the 2^nd to 3^rd fingers
• a whole step from the  3^rd to 4^th fingers

Workbook 1 for viola

As soon as students lower the 2^nd finger to C natural on the A string, I start them with The Fingerboard Workbook for the First Position Map the Violin for Good. In the Suzuki literature that would be Etude [song #12 in violin book 1]. My experience is that students typically finish the workbook by the time they get to Gavotte by Lully in Suzuki Volume 2 [#10]. Just in time to learn 3^rd position! Learning all the new notes introduced in Suzuki Violin Volume 2 is pretty smooth sailing with the background my workbooks provide.

Although I’ve used The Fingerboard Workbook for the First Position: Map the Violin for Good for 20 years, all the other workbooks in all the other positions are brand new. Therefore I haven’t incorporated the new books into my teaching style yet. I do have some ideas though.

PBird:   I hope you will share your ideas with us in future posts. Who can use the workbooks now?

Diane:

• violin students
• viola students
• violin students learning viola
• viola students learning violin
• parents
• music education majors

I have had students age 5 – 65 effectively use the workbooks. Parents love the workbooks because it gives them an enormous amount of background. It keeps them out of the dark and in touch with their child’s violin playing. When they hear a note that sounds “off,” they will now have the tools to help troubleshoot.

PBird: What kind of student or parent reaction do you typically have about the workbooks?

Diane: I’ve had a mixed reaction with students and always a positive reaction with parents. Some students sail through and thoroughly enjoy the workbooks. Some drag their feet but I stick to my guns because I know the results are well worth the effort.

PBird: I notice that your website for the fingerboard workbook series is quite resourceful. Tell us more about the site.

Diane: The website has a few functions:

• to introduce folks to the books and act as a storefront to make purchases
• to provide free information in the form of videos and charts
• to offer a subscription to 10 mini fingerboard lessons and a monthly newsletter

I very much want to meet your readers! I will be doing a live streaming video event where they can either watch and/or participate. All they have to do is watch and type in their questions. I’ll then answer the questions, offer a demonstration, or find some fun way to help the learning. Part of the session will include a drawing to win a workbook! Your readers will want to become email subscribers to stay informed about the events and become eligible for the drawing.

• Tuesday 8/16 @ 7:00 am Pacific Time
• Sunday 8/21 @ 3:00 pm Pacific Time
• www.fingerboardworkbookseries.com
• The link to subscribe form can be found at: http://eepurl.com/c0PwQ .

PBird: Thanks, Diane, for visiting with us. I really look forward to using these workbooks in my studio and at the university. Thanks so much for taking the time to put all this material together. These workbooks look terrific!

Diane: Thank you Paula! For hundreds of years people have been trying to find where the notes exist on the fingerboard. It’s time to put an end to this problem!


PBird: Thanks for taking the time to visit my blog today and talk to my readers and me about your new workbook series. I'm excited about the teaching possibilities. I am sure that my readers will want to find out more about this.


Visit the Teach Suzuki Resource Store to purchase the workbooks. Click here.

I am also looking forward to seeing you next week in Bend, Oregon, at my masterclass on Wednesday, August 10 at 1:00 p.m. at the Cascade School of Music, 200 NW Pacific Park Lane. See you then!

Book 5: What's the point?

I received a great comment that asked me about book 5, and I thought I would share my thoughts about how I use book 5.

I remember hearing once that several teachers were opting to skip portions of book 5, because the students could "learn G Minor in other repertoire." I myself have experienced difficulty with students in the past and getting these students through the "slump" of book 5.

There may be several possible reasons why book 5 is so difficult. Although I have heard that many Japanese families strive to complete all ten Suzuki violin books by the time a student enters junior high, in my personal experience, most of my Suzuki students seem to hit book 5 about the time that they are in middle school. I wish that all my students would be out of book 5 by the time they turn 13, but alas, that has not been the case.

Why 13? Once upon a time, my educator husband showed me an article that talked about a child's development and the phenomenon of the odd-numbered years. (Occasionally a student will hit one of these developmental periods in an "even" year, but the signs are still the same.)  From what I recall of that article, it discussed the child's brain synapses pulling apart about every two years as the child's body underwent several physical developmental changes. As a teacher, I would have to turn up my "patience" quotient as I worked with such a student. A student going through one of these developmental phases would appear a little goofy and unfocused. Ages 9 and 13, in general, were the most difficult periods. The student would appear to be using just the right hemisphere of the brain and relying on physical motion rather than using logic or reasoning.

When a student hit Vivaldi's Concerto in G Minor at the age of 13, things seemed to progress at an excruciatingly slow pace because of the student's seeming inability to enter into a productive, rational discussion about the piece, the skills to be developed, and evaluation about effective practice techniques. I would get pretty discouraged during these periods. These types of lessons used up a lot of my teaching energy with little return from the student to be expected. I think the parents of such a student suffered even more than I did, as they watched their formerly bright child behave as if aliens had abducted the child's mind during the night. Learning book 5 seemed to take a very long time when a student was in the middle of one of these developmental phases.

Perhaps other teachers have experienced this same "slump" by the time a student would begin learning the Concerto in G Minor. I understand the desire to skip this piece and to approach the G Minor issue in another fashion, but I believe there are definite benefits to Dr. Suzuki's book 5 structure.

Generally, I view book 5 as the middle book of the "intermediate" portion of the 10 Suzuki violin books. I use the book to teach several basic things for a student's development:

• how to see intervals "across" the strings and the violin fingerboard
• what reasons to choose particular fingerings
• how to play off-the-string, i.e., spiccato, collé, and flying staccato
• how to cement the proper left hand position for upper positions and the G minor key

Intervals Across the Fingerboard

Book 4 pretty much wraps up a student's education about intervalic relationships between the fingers on the same string. The Bach double at the end of book 4 explores all finger patterns and combinations. Book 5 then leads the student into learning how to view intervals across the violin strings and fingerboard. For example, in first position, a minor second is played by putting one finger next to or very close to an adjacent finger. Minor sixths feel like half steps as well, since generally one finger is adjacent to another, albeit on another string. However, students do not quite "see" that interval when reading music.

Starting with the first song in book 5, Dr. Suzuki presents material that includes passage work that involves intervals across the string. Measures 8-16 and 40-48 are good examples of such passage work. The first movement of Vivaldi's Concerto in G minor has several obvious examples of string crossings and intervals: measures 41-43, 85-90, 119-126, and 167-169. The third movement has several such places as well: 101-106 and 172-186.

One of the best ways to introduce this concept of seeing intervals across the fingerboard is to approach these passages as an exercise in double stops. Certainly I point out to the student how easy it can be to determine whether a particular interval is like a half or whole step by showing the student how to see the interval of a fifth across the violin fingerboard and in the music and then building the interval upwards from the fifth.


How to Choose Appropriate Fingerings

With the second piece of book 5, the second movement of Vivaldi's Concerto in G Minor, I begin discussing the appropriate reasons to choose particular fingerings. The subject of choosing fingerings is a particularly dense subject and probably a subject best left to one or two (maybe even three) blog posts of its own. However, briefly, I will just say that I introduce the student to five basic reasons for choosing a fingering, and we discuss various fingerings within the piece and how they relate to those five basic reasons. There are many other reasons to choose particular fingerings, but I focus on five reasons in this piece:

• shifting over the closest distance (preferably a half step if possible)
• avoiding a shift on a slur, unless the portamento sound is desired
• maintaining the same string/tone color or avoiding string crossings
• maintaining a fingering pattern
• providing a stronger finger for vibrato (or avoiding an open string)

I do not always use the fingerings as suggested in the revised book 5 Suzuki book. The revised edition provides several choices in some places, and I use these suggestions as starting points for discussions about fingering choices.

I would like to remind you that I set up the discussion of fingering choices beginning in book 1. In my earlier posts I frequently mentioned songs in which I asked my students to learn a particular fingering sequence in order to build up a fingering habit that would be comfortable throughout book 2, 3, 4, and now 5. So book 5 is basically the continuation of a fingering discussion that I have silently had with my student since book 1. I now use book 5 to have an open discussion about fingering with my student.

I have also provided my student several places in the Suzuki books where I have given my student a chance to pick a particular fingering over another in some places due to personal preference. For example, I have a very small hand, and I find it very useful to use my "lazy pinkie" or flat 4th finger to play some fingering passages rather than stretching my 3rd finger. I have suggested both fingerings to students in book 2 and have accepted the student's personal preference for one fingering or another.

Off the String Bowing Skills

As preparation for the off-the-string bowing opportunities presented in book 5, I incorporate off-the-string playing in review of earlier books. We might do this in group class or just as a general review assignment, when I introduce spiccato. For example, book 4 and the Seitz concertos all include several places where the student can begin practicing off the string in the lower half of the bow. In addition, I also focus on places where the student can use the collé bowing, such as the first Seitz concerto in book 4, the Long Long Ago variation in book 2, Minuet in G trio, Martini's Gavotte, Becker's Gavotte, and any earlier repertoire piece that used the "up-up" bowing, such as Minuet 2 in book 1. This bowing practice incorporated within earlier repertoire then culminates in the first piece of Bach's Gavotte and the later Country Dance in book 5. These bowing skills do not become perfect in most cases at the time the student learns these pieces but later during group class activities or as the student progresses into later Suzuki or other "outside" repertoire.

When the student gets to German Dance in book 5, I wait until the student has learned the notes before teaching the airborne bowing (remember Dr. Suzuki's suggestion: "Finger, Bow, Go!"). Then we play the two-note slur and single note up bow of measure one as a lifting, in-the-air bowing. It may take the student a few lessons to master this skill. Note that this bowing pattern leads to the faster, mixed spiccato and slur bowing of Veracini's Gigue.


Left Hand and Upper Positions


I mentioned before that I have a tiny hand. When I first learned Vivaldi's Concerto in G Minor, I noticed a persistent ache in my left hand. Since I have been playing for 47 years, I thought it was strange. As I analyzed the situation, I happened to be considering left hand issues in general, and I noted that my usual left hand attitude seemed a little low in relation to the fingerboard for the kind of finger passage work that I needed to accomplish in the G Minor concerto. I tried raising my left hand a little bit higher (steeper) so that my left pinkie was curved more rather than straight, and I found that the problem disappeared. The intonation and the tone quality also improved, as I was using more of my finger skeleton than I was using my finger pads. (Yes, there is a place for finger pad playing too). I also use Kreutzer's 5th etude (the one in Eb) to help my university students make that same discovery.

Dr. Suzuki's inclusion of the G minor key of Vivaldi's Concerto in G minor provides the teacher with several opportunities to monitor the student's left hand position. If you'll recall from earlier posts, I've pointed out several other places in which Dr. Suzuki included repertoire that provided opportunities to correct falling left hand positions: Minuet 2 and the problem of "pocket fingers,", Two Grenadiers, Gavotte from "Mignon, Seitz 3, Vivaldi's A Minor concerto movement 3, and so forth. Now he has included more such opportunities in book 5. In addition, Dr. Suzuki has included repertoire that requires the student to learn the higher 4th and 5th positions, which I have found to be places that the student may lapse into a falling left hand position.

This blog post was intended as a general introduction to some basic issues that I focus on in book 5. Needless to say, each repertoire piece included in book 5 has its own list of detailed issues to be considered, and each student brings his or her own list of possible issues to each new repertoire piece.

The learning process is never cut and dried. The process of learning, and of teaching, continually expands. As I journey alongside each of my students in book 5, I gain additional insight into Dr. Suzuki's brilliant repertoire structure. Each student teaches me something new about the book 5 repertoire, and I then pass it along to the next student. As I pass along this basic information to you now, I will also be adding to my current understanding of the book within the next semester, as I have several young students embarking on the book 5 journey. I hope to share more thoughts about book 5 in the coming year.

I hope you will leave me more comments about particular issues in book 5 repertoire, or any other Suzuki repertoire.

Quick Practice Tip: Using the Fourth Finger

I like to teach my students how to use the fourth finger as soon as I can under the belief system that "it's just as easy to use the fourth finger as it is to use the other fingers." I find that if I do not make a big deal out of something, then the students will approach the new concept with little trepidation. The students will respond as if it is just another thing that we do.

In earlier posts about starting a beginner, I have mentioned the left hand pizzicato exercise as a way to get all fingers involved in the learning process from the beginning. I do not, however, introduce the use of the fourth finger formally until Perpetual Motion (song #9 in Suzuki Violin Volume 1). Although I have introduced the fourth finger in the very beginning, and the student and I have practiced using it, I formally include it later at the half way point of book 1, beginning with the fourth finger previews in Perpetual Motion in measures 2, 4, 10, 12, 14, and 16, and in subsequent songs in book 1 and thereafter. Sometimes a student will voluntarily go back to earlier songs in book 1 and add the fourth finger. I think that is great, and I encourage it.

My main reason for waiting to introduce the fourth finger formally in book 1 is that it gives me half of the book to teach the student how to cross carefully and correctly between the A and E strings. Another reason is that the student's playing the open strings leads to a strong development of warm, clear, and ringing tone. Later when we introduce the fourth finger "again," the student automatically strives to make the fourth finger sound as vibrant as the open E string.

Dr. Suzuki worked quite extensively on the development and progression of the Suzuki repertoire teaching materials. He carefully introduced certain fingering and bowing concepts at certain times after particular concepts had already been developed and mastered. I want to honor and respect his choices, because I have found from personal experience how wise Dr. Suzuki was in the formation of his method. The students learn to use the fourth finger very nicely later on in the Suzuki repertoire, so nothing is lost by waiting until Perpetual Motion. However, I do not advise waiting beyond this point.

As I progress through the Suzuki repertoire, there are many opportunities to introduce the concept of fingering choices and philosophy. I am mindful of when it is a good idea to introduce a particular fingering sequence to make it a habit for the student now for later use. I found that Perpetual Motion was a good place to build that fourth finger habit in the measures I indicated earlier.

The next piece, Allegretto, uses the fourth finger in a different way than Perpetual Motion, and it also introduces the idea of using the open string when going up to the next highest string. Andantino reinforces this idea with the different fingering for measures 1 and 3, for example. I definitely use the fourth finger options contained in the Minuets and thereafter because I believe that Dr. Suzuki was building the skill of extending the left hand, which continues from the mid-point of book one and throughout book 2.

I wrote a post earlier about the case for having a system for things. How one is to teach the usage of the fourth finger is just such a concept that a wise teacher will take the time to develop a system for teaching.

Happy Practicing!