5/7/2013 Lesson

Long Long Ago
Parts 1, 2, Circle, D, D, 2
Keep the bow out of the mud!

May Song review
Sounded the best when you slowed down and made sure the bow was out of the mud.

Allegro
Dr. Suzuki hid a little bit of "Tucka Tucka Stop Stop" and "Go Tell Aunt Rhody" in this song.
First time through practice fingering without the bow.

First Part--Staccato with the bowing short and crisp. E1, E2, E3, E1, E, E.  It starts at the bottom of the yard (or down bow). Did you hear the tucka tucka stop stop?

Second Part A3, A3, A2, A2 "old grey mare is dead" (part of "Go Tell Aunt Rhody").  Remember to play Legato--long and smooth in this part.

Third Part--CIRCLE

First Part again.

Elbow Position and Holding the Violin Correctly Review
When holding your violin keep the elbow forward so you can play on the inside corners of the fingers.  Make sure your elbow is about an inch in front of your tummy.  Remember keeping the nose, string, elbow, toe all in a straight line.

Incorrect--elbow is back--very uncomfortable.

Correct--elbow is forward allowing fingers to rest easily.

When mom moves the elbow forward take hold of the scroll with one hand and the elbow with the other so that the whole arm holding the violin does not move forward--just the elbow.

To Try to Help Remember Keeping Elbow Forward: tie a piece of yarn loosely around your elbow so and measure it to the ground and clip. Then, add a washer at the bottom. The washer should be touching your toe at all times when playing.

Aww the cute boys!  We love you! Thank you!!!

4/30/2013 Lesson

May Song Review

O Come Little Children

A major scale (strengthens 3rd finger so it does not collapse).

Really Watch Form!

Long Long Ago make papers and remember to mark tallies.  Should be at least 20 in 2 and D.

Another question. Is this photo a good example of a straight wrist?

Source

4/17/2013 Lesson

May Song--keep the wrist straight and the tone will improve.

Long, Long Ago-- "long, long ago; long, ago" 10 times a day.

Practice the hops from A1 to D1 and the movement into it.

Remember that the song in sections 1st ending (A); 2nd ending (B); Jumps (C); 2nd Ending (B). 

For warm-ups/exercises.

Each past song 1 time. Must be played well or it needs to be repeated.

Current piece--or the piece just finished--three times. Play May Song 3 times. 

10 bow circles--tip control is prime!

Stop rolls--short down up on each string. Stop/Roll. Down up on next string. Stop/roll. Repeat to G string and back to the E string.  Should sound short and not flowing or connected.

Violin Taps--hand goes all the way up the shoulders or beach of the violin. Thumb rests in the curve under the neck/shoulders connection.  Wrist reaches straight up and over and tap the beach on the furthest side of the violin. So the opposite of this photo on the violin.  Remember, this will keep the wrist straight and pointed away from like the photo below.

T--I was thinking it is really helpful to see you do some of the moves that are hard to explain, maybe the next time we get together I can Print Screen a few more shots to help us remember the right way to do things and we can post the photos here. :)

"Oh Come Little Children"

It's not perfect, yet. We're still working on getting it there.  We've started practicing "May Song."

3/26/13 Lesson

Warm-ups--Twinkles; Song of the Wind; Go Tell Aunt Rhody
Keep your eyes on your violin to focus.
Make sure the violin arm stays up.

A Major Scale--One Octave
Open A, A1, A2, A3, Open E, E1, E2, E3
Keep curly fingers--no squigglers

Oh Come Little Children
Do all practicing of this song with Mom so you can get all the bowing correct; using the words from the previous post.  When completely correct send video to Ms. Tiffany and move on to May Song.

May Song
A, A, E, E in the long, quick, long, long pattern.  Shoot the proverbial alien at the end of your bow into outer space.  Learn whole song.

In Washington D.C. at the Smithsonian they have several Stradivarius instruments.  Do you remember seeing this when we were there in college? :)--M

3/12/13 Lesson

Review all songs.

Song of the Wind
Keep fingers curly after circle--and the wrist straight.

Oh Come Little Children
Play whole song on E string while mom sings.
Double ups need to be distributed equally on bow.
Finger 3 on E string, clear as a bell on the last line of the song.

2/26/13 Lesson

Violin Lesson

Song of the Wind--circles. First 2 rhythms is slow; last one is fast during the 2 count breaks. All circles come off the E string.  Circles go slow like a snail.   Practice freedom (strumming) circles.  Remember the grasshopper jumping finger 3.  Play it slowly.

Oh Come Little Children--memorize all the words.  Practice sitting on the floor.  Only allow about 1/2 a foot above/below the bow so that the bow does not move all over.

Up down, up down, up is the way we begin.
Up down, up down, up helps our mo-ther to grin.
Up down, up down, up's how we start every line.
Up down, up down, up means you're doing just fine!

The key is to make sure she has a "double up" from the end of one line, to the beginning of the next. To do so, she stops her bow after one up motion, then simply does another up motion.

I am a Child of God--sing the counts. Play slowly. You get to play it in Sacrament Meeting.

2/12/13

No playing when teacher is talking!

Always keep twinkles in the yard otherwise they will sound like sloppy spaghetti.
Bow circles 9 a day on E string.

"Song of the Wind" find the 3 circles at the pauses.

"I am a Child of God"
Hold "God" and "Here" for 3 counts.  "Dear" and "Way" for 4 counts.  Practice the song in halves.  Five or less mistakes.

"Oh Come Little Children"--no violin this week.

Learn the words, but work totally on the bowing.   Practice bowing in the air and then on the tp whisper tube.  It starts with an up bow.

Thanks Tiff!

Lesson from Today

Hi T:

I realized that I wrote down meticulously all the directions from last week and then I lost the paper. This week I wrote it in my notebook and I'm posting it now so we don't lose them.

Grasshopper fingers 9 times daily.  Finger three jumping from A string to E string.
Bow Circles 9 times daily.

"I am a Child of God." phrase ending on an upbow, roll to "And he."

Thanks!  I'm setting an alarm on my phone for next week!

1/8/2013 Lesson

Thank you for the lesson today! S was so excited to play "Go Tell Aunt Rhody" and "Song of the Wind" for you today. She was really sad when her E string suddenly decided it had had enough.  I'm on the look out for a place to purchase strings (the places are  surprisingly few and far between--an hour drive/subway ride and no parking).   It is one of my main goals for the week.  

New Rule for the New Year

If someone is talking the other person does not play.  Student talking = teaching not playing. Teacher talking = student not playing.

Goals of the week:

1. Straight wrist!

2. Hover fingers. Helicopter right above string so you can play faster in the future. 10 "old grey mare is dead" phrases, specifically practicing hover fingers. Flying fingers take more time to move and look sloppy.

3.  10 no-muddy-tips per day, bow circles on A string.  Start at the bottom of the sticker on the bow and make sure the tip of the bow does not end up "in the mud."