œ œ œ œ # œ œ œ œ œ 2 œ œ œ nœ œ œ # œ œ œ œ œ

Transcription

1 0 A Few Repertoire Based Examples for Use n addition to designing a useful general daily technical practice routine, excerpts from this guide may be tailored to help polish specific passages from a cellist's repertoire. A piece in the standard cello concerto repertoire commonly studied by cello students in their teens through undergraduate years - the Haydn C major Cello concerto - offers passages with challenges in technical areas that might be supplemented by selections from the following exercises... Consider the first page of Haydn C major Concerto - st movement - Moderato Students who are relatively new to thumb position melodies and passage-work are usually challenged by measures Specifically beauty of sound and intonation in the melody and facility and intonation in the passage-work. m B c # F p 4 ٠#.. f. # n n measure 6-8, there are two finger spacing sets that should be practiced for security, intonation, and sound with the goal of freedom, confidence, and ability to shape the phrase. One of the spacing sets without alteration is actually included in the "Chromatic Thumb Position Exercise" on page 5 of the exercises. One can extract the pattern from the "Chromatic Thumb Position Exercise" first to work the basic finger spacing for intonation as in the 5th set # # f cresc. # # B # # 4 cresc. p f # ٠F. Π8 6 Add a couple of new patterns (in this case the inversion)... # # # #

2 Use the same pattern to work the unusual spacing on the D string portion of the melody. This pattern does not exist in the standard combinations offered in the "Chromatic Thumb Position Exercise", but that shouldn't keep one from using the same techniques or finger sequence patterns to achieve the same goal of familiarity... Since the passage requires the performer to alternate the finger spacing as it moves to the D string, The next step would be to isolate practice of alternating from one spacing set to the other. Simplifying that function by removing the string crossing is a good intermediate step. n this way, the spacing could be practiced on the A string and the D string individually at first... And finally mix and alternate the spacing on both the D and the A strings to gain competence with both... n Measure 9, similar techniques may be used with the finger spacing required for the nd and rd beats of the measure. Using techniques from the daily exercises, one can compose a useful etude that focuses specifically on the challenges presented by the melody Haydn composed in measures 6-8. ts not much of a stretch to realize that the same process could be used for measure 9. Following are two examples of etudes composed for the specific purpose of working the intonation of measures 6-8 and measure 9...

3 m. 6-8? 4 4 Ó # 8 6 # 0 n # # # # # # # # N # N # N # N # N # N # N # N # N # N # N # N #

4 m # # 4 # Ÿ # # # # # # 4 4 # # 4 # # 4 4 # # 4 4 # # # 4 # # 4 4 #

5 4 Hopefully, now that it has been demonstrated that an exercise or etude can be built around a specific passage by using portions of the exercises in this guide, one can see other possibilities. For example; in measures 4-4 many of the same techniques can first be used to build familiarity with the finger spacing. Measures 4-4 On the st beat of measure 4, the "Cromatic Thumb Position Exercise" can again be used as a model for the finger spacing, this time with the 6th set on both the D and A strings. Beat three would use the 8th set. The st beat of measure 4 would again use a combination of two sets with the 6th and 5th sets on the D and A strings respectively to secure the intonation. However, further steps may be taken in this case to build facility, velocity, and coordination between the left and right hands to make the notes of the passage even and consistent. One may select rhythms like the ones included in the "Rhythmic Practice Chart" section on page 59 of this guide for this purpose. n selecting rhythms for use in practice of passagework, it is important to use several rhythms from the chart to emphasize different groups of long and short notes. This allows one to discover sluggish or tight combinations that might occur typically with extensions, shifts, awkward combinations, and string crossings, but might also expose other technical anomalies. However, some care should be taken to choose the rhythms and combinations most appropriate to each individual passage. Measure 4 is a passage that features separate bow strokes in detaché or spicatto. Simple two note combinations are often a good starting point, but not in this case. The two note combinations with separate bow strokes would place repeating longer strokes in one direction with no compensating longer strokes in the opposite direction requiring some recovery on the short notes to maintain the same placement in the bow. Long st note Long nd note Note Rhythms Though the simple two note rhythms are not the best choice, their combinations can be better used. By alternating the long st note and long second note patterns, the innate working out to the tip that would occur in the long first note pattern or its inverse in the long nd note pattern remove the distraction of having to jab at certain notes to maintain bow placement. st plus nd note nd plus st note Note Combinations Though the simple three note patterns dont fit the rhythmic grouping of the passage, they are inherently useful in a passage with all separate bows if one is capable of conquering the hemiola like effect of imposing three note patterns on a four note passage because they naturally solve the bow displacement problem by alternating long upbow and downbow strokes. Long st note Long nd note Note Rhythms Long rd note

6 5 Following is the passage at measure 4 with the simple three note patterns... Long st note Long nd note Long rd note n using combinations of rhythmic patterns, one should also follow the same guideline of picking combinations that allow for alternating downbow and upbow strokes to keep the bow in the best place for detaché. For example; combining a long st note with a long nd note would create the same distractions as the simple two note patterns in a detaché passage - two long downbows and no long upbows to recover. Long st note plus long nd note However, the combination of long st and rd notes yields a usable pattern... Long st note plus long rd note long notes 4 short notes We may use this combination of rhythmic patterns as a starting point. The identifying feature of this combination is two long notes next to four short notes. By starting with the two note - four note kernel and then moving the pattern over by one note again and again, we can practice all the possibilities for an appropriately thorough exercise for the passage.

7 6 There is a new technical element in the final passage of the first page worthy of some special attention. Measures The move from 4th position up to thumb position as in the st beat of measure 46 is a particular technical event is sometimes awkward and cumbersome when students are new to moving above the bout of the cello. This is an area that concerns many young cellists and even a few seasoned professionals. For a concentrated look at that specific area of the fingerboard, one may play the 9th page of the "Hexachords" exercise (page 4 of this guide) through the end of the exercise. "Hexachords" has a text reference at the end of the exercise on pages This reference shows the the different pattern combinations possible possible before and after the shift as well as ascending and descending in six note patterns, but the passage in measure 46 ascends in a seven note pattern on the D string with a 4 in 4th position up to a 4 note combination with the thumb on D natural. With some slight alterations to accomodate the upper 4 note pattern, one can adapt any of the ascending/descending possibilities. Here are four examples from the finger patterns list on page 49 of this guide... (Note parenthesis for altered combinations) ha 4 s ϙ izj ϙ s 4 h() 4 s ϙ i(t) ϙ s 4 hzd 4 s ϙ il ϙ s 4 hq 4 s ϙ i(o) ϙ s Once the intonation and finger spacing security are acheived, One could continue to develop the facility of the passage with rhythm work as shown for measures 4-4. Hopefully, the preceding examples from Haydn's C major Cello Concerto will give you enough ideas to begin forming exercises from your own repertoire that can be enhanced by using elements of this guide.