Quick Practice Tip: The Power of the Stopped Bow

Over the years of teaching the Suzuki method, I have come to appreciate the power of the stopped bow. The Twinkle Variations that Dr. Suzuki put together are brilliant in terms of what the pieces teach the student about impulse control and the proper use of kinesthetic energy. The more I teach, the more I discover or uncover all the gems that Dr. Suzuki has included in the Suzuki repertoire. Nothing is more powerful to me than the lessons learned concerning the stopped bow.

I teach many students who play other violin music, such as fiddling or mariachi. I frequently encounter students who literally cannot stop their bow. The bow dribbles from one note to the next without ever clearly defining the end of one note and the beginning of the next note. Wait! Who am I kidding? The bow is not dribbling, it is moving 100 m.p.h.! This constant movement issue results in several problems:

• Messy bows and unclear articulation
• Rushing tempo or a tempo that pushes the “toe-side” of the beat rather than the “heel-side” (the energy is forward directed rather than “sitting in the saddle”)
• Inability to play staccato well
• Tight joints, especially the right elbow
• Squeezed back muscle, especially below the right shoulder
• Poor tone production: either a pressed sound because the student is squeezing the notes or a wispy sound because the student is so tight in the right elbow and back muscles, that the bow can put little weight into the sound
• Poor practice habits: inappropriate practice tempos and a failure to consider the actual sound made

Sometimes it may take me a few years to teach a student with the stopped bow problem how to get a good stopped bow staccato. If only I could take these students back to square one and the Twinkle Variations! The Twinkles are the foundation of all the necessary stopped bow combinations that the student will encounter in the later Suzuki repertoire.

Here are some beneficial uses of the stopped bow:

• It gives the student an opportunity to consider whether the bow will make a good contact point with the string in order to produce the next note.
• It gives the student a chance to place the bow properly on the appropriate string level (or string levels in the case of a double stop chord).
• It allows the student to consider how his or her body should pivot the bow quietly from one string level to the next without lifting the bow off the string.
• It allows the student an opportunity to “check in” with muscles and joints to unlock any unnecessary tension.
• It allows the student to “ping” the beginning of the next note to start the vibration of the next note, which helps the student to generate good, strong tone.
• Most of all, it allows the student to actually consider what sound the student makes when playing.

I also work with the student to uncover any unnecessary tension in the bow arm, right shoulder, or back. If I am working with a high energy level student, then this issue alone will take a long time to address. I may have to spend a considerable amount of time addressing posture issues, including how the student directs his or her physical energy in a playing stance.

If I work with an advanced student, I might ask them to play Perpetual Motion so that we can work on these issues, but anything will do, even a basic scale. My goal will be to get the student to slow down and actually stop playing after one note so that the student can prepare the next note. In some cases, I need to actually address the student's playing stance in order to encourage a more successful outcome.

I used several terms above that might require further explanation. When I talked about the "toe-side" and "heel-side" of the beat, I referred to the front side versus the back side of the beat. If you lean forward on your toes, you will feel the inevitable pull forward. Did you know that we walk by falling forward and then catching ourselves? This is how the front-side of the beat works. We fall forward when we play, so that the tempo surges forward and speeds up. When we put our weight in our heels, we add the sensation of grounding to our playing.

For anyone who is familiar with horses, the concept of toe-side and heel-side energy dissemination makes sense. Horses are very sensitive creatures. If you want to start moving, all you have to do is think about it. You bring your energy level "up" and "forward" and the horse starts moving. How much energy you send forward will direct how fast the horse will comply. When you want to slow the creature down to a stop, you turn your energy "off," let your breath out, and settle back into the saddle. The horse stops.

Students can relate to "toe-side" and "heel-side" as descriptions of playing stances. We experiment with both so that students understand how each stance feels. Then we practice "sitting back in the saddle" so that students learn the physical sensations of relaxing and grounding. The students learn how to shift their weight to the heels of their feet and to tilt their pelvises under so that the torso weight shifts backwards (they tuck their "kitty cat tails" under and between their legs). For good measure, I might suggest that they also practice letting all the air out of their lungs. Being the high energy person that I am, I often practice breathing out my air in a slow whoosh. I find that I can calm my energy level down to a stop when I practice this technique.

The most recent student that I worked with to learn how to play a stopped bow (it took us four semesters to master this skill at the university level), had to learn how to curb his energy level and his expression of energy while playing. In other words, he had to learn how to turn things "on" and "off." My long time readers know how much a fan I am of the "Dog Whisperer" show with Cesar Milan. I learned a lot about using energy properly from watching this show on the National Geographic channel. I have a dog pack of six adult dogs and one youngster. Currently I also have three puppies about 5 weeks old. Anyone who has that many dogs will know what I mean about how one uses one's physical energy. I can rile up or calm down my pack of sweethearts in two seconds just by how I turn my energy level "up" or "down." I have even taught this skill to several of my students in order to teach them how to improve their posture or to learn leadership skills. But this is another blog post for the future.

For now, look to yourself and your students. Observe how you and your students are doing with their stopped bows and staccatos. If you find problems, consider whether you or your students are too energetic in your playing and then work out a step-by-step program to "slow" things down.

This blog post began as a quick practice tip and quickly became a long discussion about the physical manifestation of energy while playing. No, I am not an alien. I really do think about these things -- a lot. I apologize that the "quick" practice tip was anything but quick. This week, think about the power of a stopped bow and check whether you are providing yourself and your students with the opportunities to create good stopped bows. If you or one of your students has difficulty in this area, consider whether the student is physically standing and playing in a way that would discourage or encourage a good stopped bow.

Happy practicing!

Quick Practice Tip: Inside Out Muscles

Life is stressful, but violin playing and making music should not be. We should enjoy the beauty of creating music and expressing emotion without having to suffer the ill effects of a glitch in our posture or muscle use. To help us be more aware of the dangers of stress due to improper muscle usage, let me suggest that we pay attention to inside and outside muscles.

Have you ever seen a muscle "pose down" in a weight-lifting competition? This is the portion of the body building competition when the competitors strike various poses and tense their muscles in order to produce the optimum tensed muscle for the presentation. Notice that I said the competitors "tense" their muscles. If you watch such an exhibition, you will note that the contestants tend to pull their poses "inward" in order to add the tension necessary to stimulate the muscle formation for the pose.

Try this experiment. Form fists in both your hands. Now, facing both fists toward each other in front of your body, pull your elbows outward to the side. Hunch forward a little in your shoulders and squeeze your arms and the backs of your shoulders, while you try to tighten and lift your pectoral (chest) muscles. Notice how your muscles form. Notice also how much stress and tension you created by turning on the "inside" muscles of your arms.

Now turn on the "outside" muscles of your arms. Notice how the tension completely lifts and dissipates, leaving your arms light and feeling like they can float away. This is the release of tension.

Now pick up your instrument and bow. Set the bow on the A string (if you play violin). Feel the tension of the inside muscles in your right bow arm. Now alter your bow hold or position so that you can turn on the outside muscles instead. For most violinists, turning on the outside muscles involves weight distribution in the right hand toward the pinkie side of the bow hold, which will release the tension in the right arm and ultimately the right shoulder.

Aaaaah! Doesn't that feel great? Let's just sit with that feeling for a bit. Keep your bow on the A string, and move your right arm up and down a few times to make sure that your right shoulder is loose. Tip your bow hold silently from the G string level over to the E string level and feel the looseness in your right fingers.

Remember: inside muscles were designed to create tension, and outside muscles release it. Learn to recognize when you are using inside or outside muscles, and look for opportunities to release unnecessary tension.

Teaching Lightly Row

Lightly Row is the first song in Suzuki violin book 1 that comes after the Twinkle variations, which are a tough act to follow. Therefore, Dr. Suzuki must have given this song special importance in his mind to have placed it in such a prominent place. Let us take a closer look at the treasures to be found in this song.

Left Hand Skills

• "skipping" fingers: the new finger pattern employs the fingers alternately rather than consecutively
• same finger pattern as in Twinkle variations (half step between 2-3 fingers)
• A-A1-B-A1 form (1st part is similar to the 2nd part with a different ending; the 2nd and 4th parts are identical)
• "walking fingers" at the end of part 1 resemble Twinkle variations but in reverse sequence from Twinkles

Right Hand Skills

• If you teach this song with open E string (rather than 4th finger playing E on the A string), the student learns how to drop the bow arm to the E string level and get a good ringing tone
• open E string teaches good string crossings
• later as the student advances in ability, the teacher may introduce bow distribution (using longer, slower bows for longer, slower notes, and quicker bows for shorter, faster notes); e.g., quick, quick, slow for the opening quarter note, quarter note, half note at the onset of the song

Previews

• teach the different endings to parts 1 and 2, measures 3 & 4 and 7 & 8
• walking fingers: A-B-C#-D-E-E-E (measures 3 & 4)
• skipping fingers: A-C#-E-E-C#-C#-C# (measures 7 & 8)
• doorbells or cuckoos in measures 1 and 2:
• E-C#-C# (measure 1)
• D-B-B (measure 2)
• expanded doorbells or cuckoos in measures 5 & 6:
• E-C#-C#-C# (measure 5)
• D-B-B-B (measure 6)
• Once the student learns the different endings to the first and second parts of the song, we play the song together.
• I play the beginning of the song (first two measures) on the student's violin and then quickly flip the violin around to place it under the student's chin.
• the student plays the walking fingers section that ends the first line of the song.
• I quickly grab the violin and then play the opening measures of the second line of the song.
• I pass the violin to the student to play the skipping fingers ending of line two of the song.
• We continue passing the violin back and forth with a sense of urgency so that together we partner playing the entire song.
• As the student learns the doorbells or cuckoos, the student expands the number of notes that he or she plays when we play the song together.
•  Third part of the song: I employ the student's aural and kinesthetic senses when we learn this part.
• I play the first four notes of the third line (B-B-B-B of measure 9) and ask the student to imitate me. I do not tell the student how many notes B I play. I want the student to hear and repeat the same number back to me.
• I ask the student to take a step to the side and then play B-C#-D (measure 10)
• Once the student can play both measures 9 and 10, we play them together;
• B-B-B-B
• take a step to the side and play B-C#-D
• I then teach the student measures 11 and 12 in the same way:
• I play C#-C#-C#-C# (measure 11) and ask the student to imitate me
• We take a step and then play C#-D-E (measure 12)
• I carefully instruct the home practice partner (mom or dad) to reinforce the way I taught the song, with the various steps to new positions for each measure.
• I am careful NOT to teach "play B five times then C#-D" of measures 9 and 10 because this does not reinforce the natural rhythm of the song.

Later Problems

• The student forgets elements of the song:
• walking versus skipping finger endings to parts 1 and 2
• mixing up the doorbells and cuckoos between the beginnings of parts 1 and 2
• forgetting the correct number of repeated notes in part 3
• left hand falls down on the E string
• the student tends to imitate the left hand motion with the right hand bow, dropping the left hand to mirror the dropping bow to the E string level
• this is a good opportunity to teach independence between the right and left hands
• some teachers prefer to have the student prepare the C# at the beginning of the song before playing the first E string note of the song to counteract this tendency
• Bow use becomes messy
• messy string crossings, sometimes due to a bow hold that becomes too loose and falls apart

Group Class Ideas

• play the song as partners: divide the class into two parts, and each part of the class plays a different part of the song
• students pluck E strings with left hand pinkies and bow the other notes
• walk around the room or step to the song while playing

Advanced Students

• use fourth fingers to replace open E string
• bow distribution: longer, slower bows on half notes
• use bigger bows as preparation for book 2 bowing skills
• book 3 students learn duet part
• as students learn higher positions, incorporate alternate fingerings
• incorporate vibrato

I use Lightly Row to teach various skills, which I will expand upon in later songs. To summarize:

• I begin working on ear training:
• by asking the student to distinguish between notes a step apart and notes that skip an interval of a third
• I use Lightly Row to develop the child's memory skills. Note that many string orchestra books include Lightly Row but that the version employs a simpler form (A-A-B-A). Dr. Suzuki's version requires the student to employ more mental energy to remember the slightly altered form. I prefer Dr. Suzuki's version.
• I use Lightly Row to reinforce the different string levels with the bow between the A and E strings. Later I will ask the student to use fourth finger in the song as another opportunity to strengthen the pinkie.

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!

Intonation, part II: Ringing Notes and Super Ears

In my last discussion, I talked about improving intonation by improving tone. Today I want to talk about awakening the student's ear and kinesthetic sensations related to pitch. I do that by using the 9 natural ringing notes of first position and helping the student to hear tone and sympathetic vibrations. Along with seeing and hearing, I try to incorporate references to touch and sensation as well.

There are nine notes on the violin that naturally ring with a little extra sparkle in first position. They are those notes that bear the same names as the open strings: G, D, A, and E. These notes are:

©Paula E. Bird 2010

Use the fourth finger to play the D, A, and E. When I ask my student to play each of these notes, we note that the open string that bears the same name will sympathetically vibrate at the same time. If the student plays with a full, warm tone, the open string will vibrate with a greater width to match the depth of tone quality. This all presumes that the student is using the left hand properly and holding it in a way that allows the open strings to ring freely. A student who holds the left hand too low for the string to sound, will not hear the extra sparkle in the note's timbre.

Students of all ages seem to enjoy this exercise, even my really young elementary students. All students have been capable of seeing and hearing the sympathetic ringing of the open string.

This exercise can also be accomplished using octaves, e.g., the third finger G on the D string sounded alongside the open G string, the third finger D on the A string sounded alongside the open D string, and the third finger A on the E string sounded alongside the open A string.

I put together a simple exercise that displays various combinations of these notes and fingerings to give the student an opportunity to learn about these ringing notes through a systematic exercise or etude:

©Paula E. Bird 2010

I also use various finger patterns as drones, but I'd like to save the drone exercises for future discussions about using finger patterns, because drones are just one example of the types of benefits that one derives from the use of finger patterns.

Although the purpose of the exercises described above is for the development of the student's ear, the exercises also serve another purpose in that they awaken the student to the kinesthetic qualities of the sound as well. When a string sympathetically vibrates alongside a note of the same name, the extra "sparkle" that the student hears is also felt as an extra "umph" of physical vibration to the student's body. When we hold the violin, we are subject to several points of contact between the instrument and the body, and these are points that will connect the vibrations of the pitch to the student's body. I try to alert the student to these other sensations as well as to the pitch so that the student becomes more aware of the kinesthetic feeling of the correct pitch. There are many times in big symphony works when I cannot hear my high note pitches well above the fortissimo brass blow across the orchestra from me. I can still feel the kinesthetic sensation of the pitch vibration in my body through my contact with my violin, and I can still tell that I am in tune with the brass (although perhaps not heard as well).*

One last note relates to something I call "headphone syndrome." I was first alerted to this problem through a publication called Brain Gym: Simple Activities for Whole Brain Learning by Paul E. Dennison, Ph.D. and Gail E. Dennison, published by Edu Kinesthetics (June 1992). You can still find this book on Amazon.com and other places. In a footnote under one exercise, the authors mentioned that some students might have a particularly difficult time hearing well if they have been relying on headphones to a heavy extent. I'm not going into the reasons for this phenomenon, but I will state that I have observed similar difficulties in my teaching experience. Students frequently spend large amounts of their day with headphones or ear buds over or in their ears, so this "syndrome" is more than likely.

I find that one of the exercises mentioned in the book helps to awaken the ears. I call it wakening up the "super ears." Hold your hands out in front of you, palms facing forward. Then while holding that palms-forward position, bring your hands back behind your ears until the hands are behind the ears and the thumbs are in front of the ears. Then gently rub the ears' edges and lobes between the thumb and the other fingers. Start at one end of the ear and work around to the other edge, trying to roll out the curled edge of the ear. The ears will tingle. They will also "come to life." Students seem to hear better, perhaps because they are more aware of their ears. It's a simple exercise, but the ears really get a workout.

If you study the book, you will learn that this exercise has many other added benefits to it in terms of integration between the brain and various other body systems or parts. I highly recommend this book. There are many interesting exercises that would work well in group class settings.

We are coming to the end of the year 2010 although we are only at a midpoint in the school year. Still, I enjoy this time of year when I get a few extra moments to relax and ponder my upcoming year of teaching and playing. I'm sifting through various ideas about goals and enjoying the planning process for addressing my goals.



If I don't have a chance to continue our discussion in the next three days, let me wish "Merry Christmas" to everyone. I'm off to play another "Nutcracker" ballet with the Austin Ballet.
______________________________________
* I'm referring to a few moments that occur in Respighi's "Pines of Rome."


©Paula E. Bird 2010