The Project Gutenberg eBook of Violin Mastery, by Frederick H. Martens.The Project Gutenberg EBook of Violin Mastery, by Frederick H.
MartensThis eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and withalmost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away orre-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License includedwith this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.netTitle: Violin MasteryTalks with Master Violinists and TeachersAuthor: Frederick H.
MartensRelease Date: April 4, 2005 EBook #15535Language: EnglishCharacter set encoding: ISO-8859-1. START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK VIOLIN MASTERY.Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Peter Barozzi and the OnlineDistributed Proofreading Team. NEW YORKFREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANYPUBLISHERSCopyright, 1919, byFrederick A. Stokes CompanyAll rights reserved, including that of translationinto foreign languagesFOREWORDThe appreciation accorded Miss HarrietteBrower's admirable books on Piano Masteryhas prompted the present volume of intimateTalks with Master Violinists and Teachers,in which a number of famous artists and instructorsdiscuss esthetic and technical phasesof the art of violin playing in detail, their conceptof what Violin Mastery means, and howit may be acquired. Only limitation of spacehas prevented the inclusion of numerous otherdeserving artists and teachers, yet practicallyall of the greatest masters of the violin now inthis country are represented. That the lessonsof their artistry and experience will beof direct benefit and value to every violin studentand every lover of violin music may beaccepted as a foregone conclusion.Frederick H.
Martens.171 Orient Way,Rutherford N.J.CONTENTS. Arthur HartmannCharacteristic of Mr. Hartmann's hospitality(the writer had passed a pleasant hour withhim some years before, but had not seen himsince), was the fact that he insisted in brewingTurkish coffee, and making his caller feel quiteat home before even allowing him to broach thesubject of his visit. And when he learnedthat its purpose was to draw on his knowledgeand experience for information which wouldbe of value to the serious student and lover ofhis art, he did not refuse to respond.WHAT VIOLIN PLAYING REALLY IS'Violin playing is really no abstract mystery.It's as clear as geography in a way: onemight say the whole art is bounded on theSouth by the G string, on the North by the Estring, on the West by the string hand—andthat's about as far as the comparison may becarried out.
Polish Dance Costumes
The point is, there are definiteboundaries, whose technical and esthetic limitsmay be extended, and territorial annexationsmade through brain power, mental control. Tome 'Violin Mastery' means taking this littlefiddle-box in hand and Mr. Hartmann suitedaction to word by raising the lid of his violin-caseand drawing forth his beautiful 1711Strad, and doing just what I want with it.And that means having the right finger on theright place at the right time—but don't forgetthat to be able to do this you must have forgottento think of your fingers as fingers. Theyshould be simply unconscious slaves of theartist's psychic expression, absolutely subservientto his ideal. Too many people reversethe process and become slaves to their fingers.THE PROBLEM OF TECHNIC'Technic, for instance, in its mechanicalsense, is a much exaggerated microbe of Materiamusica. All technic must conform to itsinstrument. The violin was made to suit thehand, not the hand to suit the violin, hence itstechnic must be based on a natural logic ofhand movement.
The whole problem of technicalcontrol is encountered in the first changeof position on the violin. If we violinists couldplay in but one position there would be notechnical problem. The solution of this problemmeans, speaking broadly, the ability toplay the violin—for there is only one way ofplaying it—with a real, full, singing 'violin'tone. It's not a question of a method, butjust a process based on pure reason, the workingout of rational principles. This is the idea which underlies my system for ear-trainingand absolute pitch, 'Arthur Hartmann's System,' as I call it,which I have published. What is the secret of this singing tone?Well, you may call it a secret, for many of mypupils have no inkling of it when they firstcome here, though it seems very much of an'open secret' to me.
Precursor Of The Tango
The finished beauty of theviolin 'voice' is a round, sustained, absolutelysmooth cantabile tone. Hartmanntook up his Strad, I'll play you the scale ofG as the average violin student plays it. Yousee—each slide from one tone to the next, abreak—a rosary of lurches!
How can therebe a round, harmonious tone when the fingersprogress by jerks? Shifting position must notbe a continuous movement of effort, but a continuousmovement in which effort and relaxation—thatof dead weight—alternate. As anillustration, when we walk we do not consciouslyset down one foot, and then swing forwardthe other foot and leg with a jerk. Theforward movement is smooth, unconscious, coordinated:in putting the foot forward it carriesthe weight of the entire body, the movementbecomes a matter of instinct. And thesame applies to the progression of the fingersin shifting the position of the hand.
Now,playing the scale as I now do—only two fingersshould be used—.
Edmund Severn (December 10, 1862 – May 14, 1942) was an composer. Born in, in, he moved to the United States at four, settling in and studying violin with his father; he later studied music in. There he studied the Joachim bowing technique. As a composer he wrote mainly music, as well as many pieces for his instrument, including a; he also wrote three. His most famous work is his 'Polish Dance' for violin and piano, composed in 1918.Edmund Severn's work is often reflective of, and genres of music. Severn continued composing into the mid-20th century until he died in 1942.References.
Howard, John Tasker (1939). Our American Music: Three Hundred Years of It. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company.External links. at the (IMSLP).