Violin Lesson 6

[Demeter Exekutor]

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Marco BrancalionMay 18, 2023, 11:31 AM In my opinion, "like an encyclopedia".

"Basics" is more progressive and maybe useful.I have both.

Andrew VictorMay 18, 2023, 11:51 AM I agree with Marco and also use Fischer's 'Violin Lesson" as a resource as I previously used Galamian.

I expect that when the 23rd century dawns Fischer's work will stand tall among the classic sources.

jean dubuissonMay 18, 2023, 3:13 PM For me, The Violin Lesson is really a self-study textbook, for someone who can already play the violin, but wants to go through a reboot, while Basics is more of an encyclopedia.

elise stanleyMay 18, 2023, 3:42 PM And I'm with Jean. I did exactly that - I found it the most accessible and the most informative of the series.

Adalberto Valle-RiveraMay 18, 2023, 6:40 PM "Consult as needed", but I have both and ended up preferring the Violin Lesson, as it's more exhaustive. It's excellent.

Paul DeckMay 18, 2023, 7:12 PM Personally I found "Basics" more practical -- a book for the music room, and "The Violin Lesson" more theoretical -- a book for the toilet.

Gabriel SoloffMay 18, 2023, 7:31 PM Paul - to read on the toilet or the book belongs in the toilet?

Adrian HeathEdited: May 21, 2023, 1:01 PM We teachers often transmit least well what is obvious or easy for us.

Simon Fischer kindly assumes that nothing is obvious, but everything can be made easier..

He uses all my own tips 'n' tricks..plus ten times more!(And I find it too enjoyable to be read where Paul suggests.)

elise stanleyMay 20, 2023, 9:27 AM Paul - do you also play the violin there?

All sorts of puns come to mind. But lets not go there....

Roy SonneMay 21, 2023, 9:23 PM The Simon Fischer books are head and shoulders above all the rest -- Galamian, Flesch, Auer, Menuhin, Havas, Gerle, Bronstein. I have studied them all. None comes close to Fischer. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1445120547957-0'); );

Paul DeckEdited: May 22, 2023, 9:25 AM Elise, I don't read books whilst practicing the violin. My multitasking bandwidth is not high enough. I find that "reference texts" like "The Violin Lesson" or "Chemistry of the Elements" by Greenwood and Earnshaw (one of the best chemistry books ever) are well suited for the short intervals of time the one normally has in the john, because you can learn one thing and then ponder it the rest of the day. To say that a book is well suited for the toilet is therefore a mark of considerable respect on my part.I agree with Roy, but of course Fischer had the advantage of having read -- and probably very closely studied -- all the others. Considering the volume of literature available, it was a Herculean effort of scholarship on Fischer's part.

Lydia LeongMay 22, 2023, 10:23 AM I've found Fischer's articles in the Strad to be very consumable, and so it makes sense to read The Violin Lesson in similar bite-sized chunks. I've never read the whole thing, though.I did read Basics cover to cover when I first bought it, years ago when I had more free time. But it's also a smaller book.

Adrian HeathEdited: June 1, 2023, 11:20 AM There is also "Practice", another weighty tome to place on the table near the music stand (rather than where Paul suggested).

Once again, all my own tricks'n'tips plus hundreds more.Warming Up, and Basics, fit on a standard music stand.

Not to mention Scales, and Double Stops.All so intelligently practical.

Tom HolzmanJune 1, 2023, 11:51 AM I assume much of what Fischer says is applicable to viola playing, but has he written anything specifically for us alto clef life forms?

Adrian HeathJune 1, 2023, 12:13 PM I have Warming Up, and Scales in viola editions.

Jake WatsonJune 1, 2023, 12:15 PM Tom, other than his "Scales for Viola" I don't think so. I have been using both Basics and The Violin Lesson exercises in my viola practise to great effect though recently!

Tom HolzmanJune 1, 2023, 5:33 PM @Adrian, @Jake - thanks. I have Warming Up. I don't have Scales in viola although I have Barbara Barber's Scales for Advanced Violists.

Geoff CaplanJune 8, 2023, 7:00 PM Good timing, as I'm doing one of my periodic reboots based on The Violin Lesson.For an adult self-learner, it is far and away the most useful and insightful resource I have found. It's a genuine masterwork that takes a holistic mind and body approach to the instrument while remaining practical and easy to understand.I particularly value his method of reducing all techniques to concrete proportions - it makes the intimidating difficulties of the instrument feel a little more manageable.The Lesson is more systematic than Basics, so better for a root-and-branch review, I feel. Basics is more of a loosely structured anthology.Fischer is actually pretty explicit about how it should be used - identify one or two priority areas of weakness to work on, and then dive into the relevant chapters to problem-solve the issues.Personally, I'm working through the sections on setup and relaxation to ensure I have my fundamentals on track, before digging into more focused areas of weakness such as trills, vibrato and spiccato.I am realising that the book is so dense that at my modest level I will undoubtedly miss much of the value on any one reading. So I plan to work with it pretty much continually on a cyclical basis. As Fisher says, all players have the same fundamental issues - it's just that they become more subtle and tricky to diagnose as you become more advanced.

Horace KiangJune 8, 2023, 9:15 PM The Violin lesson is an excellent book... however I don't think beginners could get a lot from it.

joel quiveyEdited: June 9, 2023, 1:06 AM Thanks to the positive reviews from you guys, I just received my copy in the mail ($$). After a quick glance, I already feel better about my teaching and playing.

Richard PairaudeauJune 9, 2023, 3:40 AM I'm interested, Joel. In what particular ways? I don't own either of Simon Fisher's books: maybe I should!

joel quiveyJune 9, 2023, 10:48 AM @-R.P. -- I should probably actually read some of it before replying, but it looks like his approach emphasizes mechanics, posture, ergonomics, which I like. For intonation he is clearly in the Casals/"expressive/Pythagorean/leading tone camp, which in my opinion can cause trouble sometimes.

Geoff CaplanEdited: June 9, 2023, 2:17 PM Richard - he's written a number of books. They are all truly excellent, as is his DVD on tone production.Basics, The Lesson, the scales book and the tone production DVD are valuable for players of all levels past raw beginner. I have them and use them regularly.The books on double stops, practice and warm-up seem to be aimed more at advanced players - they are still in the future for me...

Richard PairaudeauJune 9, 2023, 4:04 PM Thanks for the replies, Joel and Geoff. I shall look into this. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1548883144385-0'); ); This discussion has been archived and is no longer accepting responses.

Even some of the best players in the world can't really explain, in detail, what they are doing on the violin, how they are doing it or why it works. But when a student is struggling, or when a student wants to reach a new level of playing, this explanation can make all the difference. Fortunately for teachers and for students, UK violinist and pedagogue Simon Fischer has compiled an entire book of such explanations: The Violin Lesson.

The author of violin pedagogy books Basics, Practice, Scales and Warming Up, Simon has taught at the Guildhall School since 1982, and at the Yehudi Menuhin School since 1997. He writes a regular column for The Strad magazine and freelances in London.

We spoke over the phone last month about his new book, and the question that it begs: Why is it, that many violin students aren't taught the simple things that would immediately help improve their playing and boost their expressive abilities? "Their teacher might be a fantastic player and a fantastic musician, and they might give a fantastic music lesson," Simon said. "But the trick is to find the teacher who gives a violin lesson as well as a music lesson. The ideal violin lesson must be a wonderful music lesson and also a chance for the teacher to immediately identify what needs to be changed about how the student is going about playing the violin. And the change is always so simple to make."

Teaching technique and teaching music are two sides of the same coin, he said. Yet some teachers don't even try to teach technique. One teaching colleague even admitted quite happily that when the student has technical problems, she doesn't know whether to look at the left hand or the right. "So she just forgets about it and carries on teaching them music," Simon said.

In the UK, college students sometimes have to prepare a journal in which they describe the content of all of their violin lessons: what the teacher said, the points that were made, etc. "When you adjudicate a student recital, this journal is put down on the table in front of you, and you're meant to look at it and give that a mark, as well as grade the playing," Simon said. He remembers encountering one particularly exceptional journal: "It was beautifully handwritten, and the teacher's words were marvelous -- wonderful musical ideas and philosophical ideas. It was all about music and expression and contrast. I thought, you could publish this, it's beautiful! This is a real musician who knows about music, passing on his knowledge to his student with great dedication."

The problem was, the student couldn't play. "The student's bow was all over the fingerboard, he was holding the violin at the wrong angle to his body, he was playing not a note in tune," Simon said. "There was no music because he couldn't play the violin!" And those beautiful musical ideas? "All irrelevant, because the teacher wasn't giving a violin lesson as well as a music lesson. The teacher was telling him everything, except what he actually needed to know."

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