Tag: Suzuki Method

New Booklet

- Elaine's Violin Studio 1 Comment

I made some revisions to my booklet, Elements of Music Theory/Improvisation, and gave it a new cover. I actually had two new covers made and would like to get some help in choosing which one I should keep. Other than the covers, all contents of each booklet are identical. Please download the version that has the more attractive cover, in your opinion. I will keep the one that gets the most downloads.

Elements of Music Theory/Improvisation
Version A
Elements of Music Theory/Improvisation
Version B

***Update***

While we received a lot of votes for both covers, we received slightly more for version B. I’m now adding new material and finalizing my Master booklet as well as one each for violin, viola and cello and these will be available for purchase soon!

Suzuki Talent Education and the Growth Mindset

- Elaine's Violin Studio
Salzburg Violin
© Jorge Royan

I so like this interview, and what Carol Dweck is describing as the growth mindset. It fits in nicely with the philosophy of teaching of Shinichi Suzuki. The use of appropriate praise is part of his teaching. Also, the idea of ongoing growth and development of technical skills, musical understanding and personal growth.

I like to show a student two ways of doing something, likely the way they just did it and a more effective way of doing it and then ask them if the two ways were different or the same and encourage and guide them to figure out the difference for themselves. Then we also look at how the new method is done. Then of course, the next question is, can you do it that way? I provide encouragement and guidance where needed for them to use their wits and abilities to work it out for themselves. This gives them a chance to be proud of themselves and learn the value of working their problem through for themselves.

I highly recommend both the interview and the book below; I find them congruent with the philosophy of the Suzuki Method.

 

What is a Cadenza?

- Elaine's Violin Studio

The baroque and classical composers included in their concertos a spot where the orchestra could stop, and the performer was on his own to improvise on the theme of the movement he had just performed, in order to show off his virtuosity, but also his ability to improvise. This was the Cadenza. Antonio Vivaldi wrote several student concertos, possibly for his students. On this video, my student, Ryan is playing the 1st movement of the Vivaldi A minor concerto, which is a student concerto. I took the liberty to designate a spot for Ryan to add in his own improvised cadenza. Ryan’s cadenza is a little different each time he does it.

This video was taken at one of my students monthly play-ins. We get together informally and play what has been prepared for the occasion, like an informal recital, at Everyday Joe’s, a local coffee house. There is background noise from the coffee house patrons, but do enjoy anyway!

Why Teach Improvisation?

- Elaine

In the booklet I recently prepared on music improvisation/applied theory, I related the following anecdote about asking a question of Dr. Suzuki.

The last year that Dr. Suzuki came to the American Suzuki Institute in Steven’s Point, Wisconsin, I was there. When we were given a chance to ask our questions, I asked about sight reading musical notation, as there was at that time, some question as to whether we Suzuki teachers should be teaching this skill. He inquired as to whether the children in my area learned to read musical notation at school. I replied that not always did they learn this skill at school. Where upon, he brightened and replied,

“Whatever the student needs to know, the teacher needs to teach.”

This has been my guiding principle in all of my teaching. So, because improvisation is more and more a required skill for young musicians, I propose that we need to introduce it early on, as we do the other skills that we need to develop. Let’s take on the challenge of the present!

Alice Kay Kanack has developed a very informative improvisation method for piano students and also extended it to violin (see Fun Improvisation for…Violin, Viola, Cello, Piano). She does a very good job of laying out the philosophy and method of creative development. I highly recommend her books! She also makes the very well placed point that the famous classical music composers such as Hayden, Beethoven and Mozart all practiced improvisation exercises as young students. It is self evident that improvisation feeds into composing skills. With all this in mind, what I am proposing is an approach more through the use of Theory of Music. As soon as the student can play the first one octave scale with ease, he/she can use those notes as building blocks, mix them up and make up/improvise something. At first the attempt may sound labored and inert, but the student is becoming aware of the sounds of different consecutive intervals and what he/she likes better and they start to develop and use their imagination and get adventurous. Things get interesting and fun.

Improvisation of an Accompaniment

- Elaine
Photo credit: Meredith Bell
Photo credit: Meredith Bell

To start working with the idea of harmonic accompaniment to tunes or improvisation, I start with “Twinkle Twinkle” in A major. I make sure the student understands the A major scale and arpeggio set.

Next, I give them a simple accompaniment pattern and show how to put it in all keys. Here is an example. Then I also give them a chord chart. The part marked “guitar” contains all the first position notes the violin player can choose from for the pattern. Of course not even the guitar plays all the notes given. The letter names above the chords indicate the name of the chord as the guitar player uses it. The roman numerals below the chords indicate their relationship to the A Major scale.

The first pattern on the “Patterns and Keys” document gives the chord patterns beginning on the open strings, G, then move to D and repeat, move to A and repeat. The second pattern starts with the A major chord pattern beginning on the G string. That gets out of the range of the written “Twinkle”. I use this set up until the student can play the accompaniment to “Twinkle” guided by his/her ear. I like for them to be able to do that in D major and G major also. At that point we can try another tune.

Improvisation and the Suzuki Method

- Elaine

I have been asked before

“How do you get started doing improvisation with the Suzuki Method?”

Well, I answer by explaining the steps I take with each student.
I have my young students learn to play the one octave A major, D major and G major scales, first in pizzicato, and then using rhythmic bow strokes. We sing a little song to learn the scale:

The little train goes up the hill. The little train comes down again.

Singing the notes of the scale to the words above, is quite easy and once they can sing it, they can play it. Once they play it on the violin, I tell them that they have just played the A major scale.

While they are learning the book 1 pieces, I have them use only the notes of one of these scales (they pick which one) to make up a little tune. I like to take advantage of the time and effort they are putting into playing the little folk tunes from the first half of the Suzuki Violin School Book 1. During this time, they are listening to the book 1 CD, also singing words to the tunes and then reproducing the tunes on the violin. I think that is a good time to let them start to make up their own tunes also. When we begin to improvise, we start by mixing up the notes of the scale we have chosen to make one phrase of music. There is only one rule:

“Start on the key note – the first note of the scale you have chosen – and end on the same note. Do whatever you want to in between.”

We keep doing that until it is easy. Then we add meter and when the student is ready, we can use the metronome for the beat.

Then as they learn the arpeggios, we can ease into the use of chords that fit under a tune, i.e. Twinkle. I plan to address these concepts a bit further in my next post.

Below is a another video of brothers Tristan and Zane, playing a fiddle arrangement found in a collection by Carol Ann Wheeler of the folk tune, Go Tell Aunt Rhody, plus improvisation around that tune.