Violist here- great video I’ve been looking for some new warm-up material. No. 4 in particular was new to me, what a great exercise! This collection reminds me of the Dounis daily dozen too- thanks for all of the detail!
Hey! Thank you so much for this video and every video you’ve posted. You helped me so much with my intonation and technique. I follow your pdfs in every practice I make! I’m so immensely grateful for your generosity, clarity and knowledge. While watching this video I wondered: how often should we do this exercises? Is it an everyday occurrence or it also makes a difference if we do it once in a while? Once again, Thank you so much! Wish you all the best, Mariana (Portugal)
Thanks, Mariana! I think the goal might be to get through all of the exercises within a week or so, doing 30 minutes a day. Then re-assess: what were the most difficult ones? What have these exposed about gaps in my technique? It'll be different for everyone, of course, but the goal is to hold on to the ones you feel are good for you and practice them every day or every other day. You should always take time to reflect on whether a strategy is working (not just with these exercises). I like to have periods of intense practice, and then a 'debrief' period where I assess what to keep/throw out/adjust going forward. Hope that helps :) best wishes from Boston
I don't know if this is just in my head but right off the bat I'm feeling a difference in my playing with these exercises. It's like I'm slowly getting more confident playing the harder pieces. This video is awesome thanks!
Hi fellow learners, in exercise II, I learned it by playing reversed starting from the higher E note, the one further away. It is easier that way. Then after a few practice, I do it the way Mr. Kruganov teaches here. Hope Mr. Kruganov approves. (Btw, sorry for my name. A good friend who knew not I play the violin and that this name was my favourite virtuoso, randomly gave me this name he picked up online because we give each other names).
Exercise 1: all seems clear though I'm wondering if you need a bit of a pinky callus to make it more comfortable to play a nice ringing tone. It feels a bit tender after a few repetitions!
No callous necessary, in fact it would make it less round and ringing. You don’t need strength and pressure, just correct positioning. It’s like plucking a guitar or harp string: you can try seeing which approach creates the most ringing sound. Using the soft flesh of the finger to ‘hook on’ is the best approach.
Joseph Haydn is the gold standard for basic violin. Mozart hardly knew the G and D strings. If you think Mozart and Bach are the be and end all that is your right. But no one no one wrote better for the violin than Haydn and he got a lot of it from Porpora.
I am working on some fiddle tunes that don't use the fourth finger, much. The problem is it tends to want to curl up and retract, which increases tension and disrupts the orientation of my hand. Has anyone else run into this problem? How did you fix it?
also this is one of the first videos where we can hear some mistakes from him in these exercises but he isn’t afraid to show to us and instead shows us how he fixes them, what a great teacher here.
@@ethanqiu1672 yes, watching great players make small mistakes when they are practicing and performing live, is very important for students because it helps prevent the (wrong notion) that at some point, a student will be playing perfectly and thus has become a professional, and they don't have to practice 😜. That's not how anything about violin works AT ALL.
Hi Daniel, I'm an adult beginner started just 10 weeks ago so probably way out of my league even watching your videos, but just want to let you know how much exercise 1 is helping me just getting flexibility in my left hand and releasing tension in my thumb, many thanks for your effort and time you put into your lessons you have a brilliant but very humble way of teaching. much thanks from Australia
I played for 20 years since high school amateurly. I play quite well but not good enough and I never had the time to find a proper teacher who can teach me in a systematic, scientific way. I wished I was like other kids who went through the whole Susuki which sets a good foundation. You’re now my teacher. Thank you
Hi, I'm a violist but your videos still help my technique so much!! I was wondering if you could possibly do a video on smooth bow changes/connecting notes to create a clean phrase. Thanks!!
I'd be interested to hear your feedback on what I learned from my Russian, former Leningrad Phil teacher, or, to make a slight circle of the bow hairs as you change bow directions. Not sure if that's very clear... will think, and edit if I can clarify better... You're wonderful btw. I wonder how you'd sound if you lightened chin pressure, not that I hear any issue at all!
I am a violinist of 7 years. Being a sophomore in high school, im realizing that the violin is my biggest passion by far, and I dont think I could ever see myself in another career. With 2 left of highschool, im working to be the best violinist I can be by high schools end, and I want to try and be the best violinist I can be. Im currently on vacation, so can't practice my violin, which makes me sad, but im excited to come back home, and try these exercises. I truly believe that these will be a huge help for me to correct any bad habits I have made in past years, and help me improve my technique massively.
having this exact same realization! beginning of last year i realized how passionate i really was about music and i decided to hone in on it because i knew i needed to in order to pursue a career in music. im currently about to be a junior and that mindset has gotten me much farther than I was before but i know i still have a long ways to go. i wish you luck on your musical journey!
@@mechanicalbrideez So happy to hear that! the musical journey is a beautiful one, and hearing the joy others feel in it brings about so much happiness within me! going into senior year now, and I've gotten so much better. it truly such a beautiful journey, and I wish you the best of luck!
Hi, I found your tips really helpful, I've been practicing only for a few weeks with some of the exercises, and my violin playing and confidence has already changed a lot. These are really useful and I can see how much effort You put in this video. Thank You so much. You may feel that it takes so much time and energy but we appreciate it and we really need your guide to improve a better violinist. I think this way never ends. 😀
Wow!!! Very, very useful for my students!!! Thank you!!!! (I also didn't know Michael Tree and Sam Applebaum were related. I know someone who knows Arnold Steinhardt very well. Small world isn't it?)
Excellent exercises! When I first went to study the viola around 1968 with the great violinist Oscar Shumsky at his home, these are exactly, the same exercises you are showing here. They are a wonderful reminder, and I will go through them again tomorrow. Thank you. Ronald Hurwitz
I love that you offer Tonebase videos to further support yourself, but I sincerely hope you keep uploading here to RU-vid because I cannot afford Tonebase. The whole reason I subscribed to you is because you offer for free (and with amazing quality) what I could not afford growing up as an underprivileged musician, and what I cannot afford today even as an adult. Please keep adding valuable content here and keep up the awesome work. As a self-taught violinist, your videos have helped me exponentially! Almost like having a private tutor.
Thanks Elise, I appreciate this! I record with Ribbon mics (primarily the Samar AL95's, which I fully endorse). I love the natural and rich sound of ribbon mics, though of course they can be less practical than typical condenser microphones. The violin is made by Andrew Ryan.
Easly the best video I have seen on RU-vid. May I recommend playing along with a Cello Drone? I found this wonderful playlist: ru-vid.com/group/PL-DyGoFkAJ1GRwBhUD4AOTewsr6l-x8qe I noticed the Indian Drones playlist on your Channel. That is very interesting too and could be a real help in relieving any boredom one might experience. For me I find playing thirds with just one and three up the neck, then repeating the exercise using 2 & 4 to find the next notes and moving up to them with 1 & 3, as a slow ornament might be played is helpful. If you could speak to the Overtones that are generated when playing thirds, that would be quite helpful. They are easily discernable in your audio. Quite evident, but I really don't know what they are. I hope I can figure them out. Almost no one speaks about this important point. Thank you! You are a very thoughtful Instructor, and you have a very good Right Hand as well. Let me just add that a Series on "the Way they Played" would be greatly appreciated. Fascinating books but seems they are getting rare and more expensive. I only found one volume that was affordable at around $33. Thanks Agin, Jack
Great video and some even better tips for best practice! I think I will make a game out of the 2-finger scale and pick randomly which two fingers to use each time haha, see how I do
I thank you so much for taking the time to make this video! Im going to start incorporating these in my daily practice! I need to get better at working on exercises to improve my intonation and posture, dexterity, etc. I usually just play a scale or too And get impatient and start working on my pieces. But I realize that doing these exercises will help me play my pieces and improve my overall playing! I must make the time and remember to be patient and trust the process just like wax on and wax off!☺️
Yes, it’s true. Never forget that technique and mechanics can’t survive for long without being implemented into music. That’s where the mechanics practice really gets internalized - when you practice it in a piece that you love.
Nicely done, Daniel. In my youth, my occasional recording session-playing stand partner was Marin Alsop, now better-known as a conductor. (Baltimore Symphony, Vienna Radio Symphony, others.) I was, and am, more of a jazz-rock-country player than classicist. We were neighbors, so I offered to trade lessons. I asked her once how I could play better in tune in higher positions. Hand position? Muscle memory? Sight? Ear? She answered, "Use everything." Some of the best advice I ever got.
As an adult nearly beginner I tried the one finger scale with pinky pizz. Great wonderexercise! In a few minutes another better stable feeling in left hand setting occured! Thank You so much for sharing Your wisdom and experience! Such successes keep me feel enthusiastic! ( Studied guitar and harp , which need much power. Violin doesn't need so much power. This is a very good feeling! And the long melody lines wich are possible. And much more....) I play a lot of gipsy style which needs flexibility and speed. Nevertheless playing in tune... 😉🙏
i have auditions for my city's symphony youth orchestra in a few weeks and i felt like i was stuck in my progress with my excerpts but i found this video and it helped me tremendously and my excerpts have been taken to the next level they needed THANKYOU!!
Hello, I liked your channel, I am interested in learning, but your channel is not providing subtitles in Portuguese which is my mother tongue and I don't know how to speak English. Here in Brazil learning violin is a lot of work, it is expensive and difficult to find.
I wonder if you could help me on how to Breathe while playing. Specially tension develops Unconsciously in the middle back...when one (me) know that a difficult passage is approaching. Or when I study high positions, there's NO WAY I can relax...I tried Yoga, everything. How can I during playing remain like I'm playing and open string. Is that possible? Or all Violinist suffer this same phenomenon? Thank you very much.
It’s sad that the publisher of The Way They Play (Paganiniana Publications) no longer exists (if I’m not mistaken?) and I haven’t been able to find new copies. Some independent sellers are selling them (used) at very high price…
Thank you daniel, I'll follow you for my violin study, ive studied violin for 10 years, but after my teacher passed in 2017, i stopped learning from a professional. After watching your video I'll start and follow you onwards
Hi, i have a question, if my 4th finger have a problem (from an accident), like its top staying closed all the time (from the second node), would that affect me alot playing the violin?
Does anyone know the piece Michael Tree is performing in the clip at 2:30? I’m a violist looking for some chamber/quartet music that inspires me and has character. I love this vibe. Thanks! 2:32
i totally agree with what you said about bowing accuracy in the case of artificial harmonics;most of time,especially on the e string,sound doesn t come out because of bowing and not merely fingering;anyway,you re a great,clear,and very skilled teacher;
Thank you for your elaborating. A demo of a violin tecnique without play by play commentary can leave something to be desired in terms of understanding. Like the spider crawl drill. I havent been keeping my thumb bent and now i have a muscle memory imbalance with a weak pinky. If you had demostrated it with explicit suggestions chances are i might be in a better place. I shouldnt complain because its my fault. I need to fix it but at least the problem is identified. Wish you could demo it with your unique style but clearly its violin teacher lesson time for yours truly.
Amazing video, thank you! Your channel has helped me immensely (even the advanced stuff despite me being a beginner - as a beginner, I find it important to know what I'm aiming for even if I'm nowhere near there yet). I know you have a few videos on Dounis' exercises. I recently came across a PhD thesis by Emily Stewart (Demetrios Constantine Dounis: the philosophy behind the methods). It was a fascinating read, especially chapters 2 (technique), 3 (teaching), and even chapter 4 (demonstrating his methods are pretty consistent with modern psychology - I'm a cognitive psychologist, and this aspect is what drew my interest in the first place). I would love to know your take on this. It would actually be amazing to have a video perhaps on what you might think are key points (cheeky request!), especially when it comes to technique and some of the discrepancies of his approach to those of Flesch, Galamian, and Suzuki in Chapter 2 (vibrato, bow hold - shockingly to me, he had nothing against a straight right thumb!). Thanks again for all you work and generous sharing of information.
