Violin Lesson #40; Legato Bowing - smooth bow changes

Second attempt at this one!

Category:

Music

Tags:

• violin
• technique
• todd
• ehle

[shikharsrivastava7]

hey professor V.  I have been following your videos since about 2 weeks and they have helped me a LOT!. Thank you very much. I have now started to play my violin infront of the mirror to view my posture and playing style and i realised that my bow runs side ways quite a lot even though there dosent seem to be much effect on the sound as yet , should i try and fix it up or is it no major worry?

[professorV]

Hi shikharsrivastava7, I would definitely concentrate on the bow action. Even if you can't hear a difference now, you will in the future. As you start to use more bow, and use a heavier bow, the little noises created by a "slipping" bow will become more obvious to you. Good luck!

[Igneous01]

great video thank you for sharing this knowledge

i also noticed that when you do the smooth bowing at the tip your shoulder (or upper arm) does a circular motion (clockwise to my view)

i think that should be an important aspect to incorporate into this lesson.

[professorV]

Igneous01 - Hi and thank you. That elbow motion you mention can be part of a bow change with a very slow, broad bow stroke (watch Perlman to see this). If you reduce the bow stroke in length, you can still incorporate a very small amount of finger flexibility during the bow change, but there would be much less motion in the upper arm. So with short legato bows, it becomes an almost invisible finger motion (the fingers are not locked or rigid). Hope that makes sense.

[philcom3]

HIY PROFESOR, CAN I ASK WHAT THAT PIECE IS AT THE END ? it sounded so sweet and id like to try it myself, and it rings a bell, and everyone knows what ringing bells are like if not answerd..... anoooinggggggg lol

[professorV]

Hi philcom3 , it's Chorus from Judas Maccabaeus.

[LawrencetheMinstrel]

A heartfelt thank you, ProfessorV, for your videos. Your lessons have dramatically improved my pizzicato, vibrato, and bow changes. Now that I know the techinicalities of playing the violin, I can put more feeling and beauty into the music when I play for my family.

Once again, thank you!

[Aailyahcloud18]

Hey ProfessorV, so i tried with the a string and it works ! But what about the other strings C,G,D ( viola) ? is there any way i can do the same thing on the other strings

[ejpseudo]

@professorV

Btw, I'm also a bit confused about something else. I know you said to extend your thumb straight going down bow when doing Colle, but what about when just trying to accomplish smooth bow changes...? My teacher suggests my thumb always be curved. The reason I ask is because I was maintaining a curved thumb going down and up bow (for bow changes).

[ejpseudo]

@professorV

Hi Mr. Ehle, the last time I tried to flex my fingers like that, my pinky kept slipping off of the bow...

I retain very little tension in my bow hand, but since I'm not dropping the bow I don't think firmness of grip is a problem, I have a feeling it has to do with the way I'm flexing my fingers, especially the thumb. How should the thumb flex/curl...?

Also, I've heard smooth bow changes can also be accomplished from the wrist, is that true and if it is, how...? Best Regards!

[acolytes777]

ugh violin demands more technique than guitar u.u

but definitely worth it.

[ScalzaAmericana]

love the towel analogyr lol

[Jeeyo12345]

i've been thinking for hours what's wrong with my bowing then i thought of visiting your channel. thanks a lot professor, this video helped me a lot :D

[Yakujian]

Off topic: Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, 3rd movement in the background. (?)