notable violin solos

7/28/2019 notable violin solos

1/274


2/274


3/274

NOTABLE VIOLIN SOLOS.HOW TO PLAY THEM,


4/274

Reees f Selection of Works on the Violio.etc.VIOLINIST'S ENCYCLOPAEDIC DICTIONARY: Explana-tions of about 4,000 Words, Phrases, Signs, References,etc., English and Foreign, used in the Study of the Vio-lin, and by String Players gem rally, by F. B. EMERY,M.A. Enlarged edition, doubled in size 246 pp., crown8vo. Cloth, 6s., paper covers, 4s. 6d. (or on India paperand bound in red pegamoid, 6s. 6d.).CONCISE METHOD OF INSTRUMENTATION. How toWrite for the Orchestra and Arrange an Orchestral orBand Score. With Musical Examples, large foldingCharts and Index. By EDWIN EVANS. 8vo, ol. Vol. I.How TO WHITE FOR STRINGS. Arrangement of Scoringand Preparation of Parts. 7s. 6d.THE VIOLIN, ITS HISTORY AND CONSTRUCTION. Il-lustrated and- Described from all Sources. Together witha List of Tyrolese and Italian Makers. With 29 Illustra-tions and Folding Examples of the First Music issued forthe Lute, Viol and Voice. From the German of ABELEand NIEDERHEITMANN. By J. BROADHOUSE. Fresh issueprinted in larger size. Crown 8vo cloth, 4s. 6d.(paper, 3s.).

BOW INSTRUMENTS, their Form and Construction. Prac-tical and Detailed Investigation and Experiments re-garding Vibration, Sound Results, and Construction.By J. W. GILTAY. Issued into English by the Author inCo-operation with E. VAN DER STRAETKN. Numerous Dia-grams. 8vo, oloth, 8s. 6d. (paper, 6s. 6d.).IMPORTANT LESSON TO PERFORMERS .ON THEVIOLIN. By the Celebrated TARTINI. Cloth, 3s.OLD VIOLINS AND VIOLIN LORE, Famous Makers ofCvemona and Brescia, and of England. France and Ger-many, Dictionary of Violin Makers, Famous Players,and Chapters on Varnish, Strings and Bows, with 13full-page Plates. By H. R. HAWEIS. Thick crown 8vo,cloth, 7s. 6d.THE VALUE OF OLD VIOLINS. By E. POLONASKI. BeingA List of the Principal Violin Makers, British, Italian,French and German. With Approximate Valuations oftheir Instruments and Occasional Notes on their Var-nish. Facsimiles of Labels and Violins. Crown 8vo,cloth, 4s. 6d.HOW TO REPAIR VIOLINS and other Musical Instru-ments. By ALFRED F. COMMON. With Diagrams. Crown8vo, oloth, 3s. (paper, Is. 6d.).INFORMATION FOR PLAYERS, Owners, Dealers andMakers of Bow Instruments, also for String Manufac-turers. Taken from Personal Experiences, Studies andObservations. By WILLIAM HEPWORTH. With Illustra-tions of Stainer and Guarnerius Violins and Gauge ofMillimetres and Centimetres, etc. Crown 8vo, cloth,3s. Gd.UKKVES' DICTIONARY OF MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY:Noteworthy Men and Women (Past and Present). Ed. byE. DU.VCAN and Others. Crown 8vo, cloth, 4s Gd (pap-?r3s. 6d.).

', All prices net.Many useful and valuable work* will be found in cur('ntnlngue B, sent post free.WILLIAM


5/274


6/274

Van der Straeten.


7/274

The Complete Work.(Three Series).

NOTABLEVIOLIN SOLOSHOW TO PLAY THEMWITH UNDERSTANDING, EXPRESSIONAND EFFECT

BY

E. VAN DER STRAETEN

Containing 44 Articles dealing with works ofALARD, BABELL, BOROWSKI, BRAGA, BRIDGE, BURROWS, CARSE,CENTOLA, COLERIDGE-TAYLOR, CONTIN, DEVRIENT, DUNHILL,DUSSEK, GOUNOD, HUMPERDINCK, MOFFATT, MOSZKOWSKI,MOZART, PAPINI, PURCELL, RAFF, RANDEGGER, JR., REINECKE,RURT, SAINT-GEORGE, SCHUBERT, SITT, VAN DER STRAETEN,

SVENDSEN, TEN HAVE, THOME AND WIENIAWSKI.

WILLIAM REEVES 83 CHARING CROSS ROAD,BOOKSELLER LIMITED LONDON, W.C.2


8/274

Printed by The New Temple Press, Norbury Crescent,London, S.W.16, Great Britain.

MIv/


9/274

CONTENTS.PAGE

ALARD, DELFHIN, " Valse Graeieuse 56BABELL, WILLIAM, Sonata in B flat major, arranged byA. Moffat.

I. Preludio and Giga 87II. Air, Hornpipe a Plnglese and Gavotte 94

BOROWSKI, FEILIX, " Mazur " (Mazurka) 130BRAGA, GAETANO, "La Serenata " 101BRIDGE, FRANK,

" Gondoliera " 136BURROWS, B., " On Shadowy Waters" 106CAUSE, A. VON AHN, Minuet and Trio in A sharp major ... 166CENTOLA, E., "Spanish Waltz," Op. 2, No. 2 77COLERIDGE-TAYLOR, S., '''Lament," Op. 9 IllCOLERIDGE-TAYLOR, S., "Merrymaking," Op. 23, No. 2 ... 157CONTIN, GUISEPPE, " Berceuse," Op. 10 ... ... ... 58DEVRIENT, F., "Berceuse" in G major, arranged byWillemsen 160DUNHILL, THOMAS F., " Trois Valses Miniatures" ... 152DUSSEK, J. L., " Menuet," arranged by Burmester ... 14GotrNOD, CHARLES, " Serenade," arranged by F. Mullen ... 01HUMPERDINCK, ENGELBERT, " Evening Prayer," arrangedby Goltermann

MOFFAT, ALFRED, "At Court," Minuet 129


10/274

viii Contents.PAGF,

MOFFAT, ALFRED, " Scottische Weise" (Scottish Air) ... 23MOSZKOWSKI, M., "Spanish Dances," Op. 12, No. 1, ar-ranged by Scharwenka 170

MOZAIIT, W. A., Sonata in G major.Allegretto .147Allegro con Spirito 141

PAPINI, GUIDO, " Ronde Champetre," Op. 66, No. 6 ... 42PURCELL, HENRY, Air and Hornpipe, arranged by Reed 124RAFF, J., " Canzona," Op. 85, No. 5 187RAFF, J., " Cavatina," Op. 85, No. 3 4RANDEGGER, JUNE., ALBERTO, "Bohemian Dances,"Book3, No. 1 181

REINECKE, CARL, "Romance," Op. 43, No. 1 39RUST, F. W., "Sonata Seria " >. 65

I. Allegro Moderate e Maestoso ... ... ... ... 66II. Adagio, Sostenuto e Religioso ... ... ... 69III. Fantasia

;... 72

SAINT-GEORGE, GEO., "Chant san Paroles" 117SCHUBERT, FRANZ, " L'Abeille " ("Bees' Wedding") ... 45SCHUBERT, FRANZ, Sonatina in A minor, Op. 137, No. 2.

I. Allegro Moderate ... ... ... ... ... 28II. Andante 31III. Menuetto 33IV. Allegro ... 36

SITT, HANS, "Romanze," Op. 97, No. 1 48STRAETEN, E. VAN I>ER, " Gavotte and Musetta " 51SVENDSEN, JOHANN S., "Romance/' Op. 26 9TEN HAVE, WILLEM,

"Allegro Brillant," Op. 19 80THOME, FRANCIS, " Andante Religioso," Op. 70 173

WIENIAWSKI, HENRI, "The Minstrel," Mazurka, Op. 19,No. 2 19


11/274

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

Van der Straeten ... ... frontispieceE. Humperdinck ... ... facing page I"Le Mercure" Strad ... ... 8Joachim, Ernst, Wieniawski ... 17Franz Schubert ... ... ... 33Guide Papini ... ... ... 41W. Ten Flave ... ... ... 80Henry Purcell ,,121Mozart ... 144Thomas F. Dunhill .. ... ,,152Moszkowski 168


12/274

E. Humperdinck.


13/274

1 ." Evening Prayer '* (Abendsegen).

From the opera, " Hansel and Gretel," by EngelbertHumperdinck, arranged by G. Goltermann.

LET us begin with the children for that is for everthe starting point of all human existence onearth. These particular two children had lost theirway in the wood, and after wandering about allday they were overtaken by darkness. Worn out byfatigue they encounter the little sandman who fillstheir eyes with sand till they can no longer resist theirsleepiness. Before lying down under the roof of thegreen trees they kneel down to pray for the protectionof the guardian angels, and perhaps never has the trueand fervent devotion of children in their pureness ofsoul and simplicity of mind been more convincinglyexpressed than in this truly inspired music. Thepathos of the melody is even brought into strongerrelief by Gretel reminding Hansel before they praythat when mother at any time gives way to despair thefather tells her that in direst need the Lord is nighest,

2


14/274

2 'Well-Known Violin Solos.and the above is the melody to which the Germahwords are set. This gives us the cue to the meaningof the piece; it is the cry to God for help in great dis-tress, and must consequently be played in a simpledevotional manner carefully avoiding anything ap-proaching affectation. After the two bars' introductionbegin softly but yet with a rich and round tone. Usethe full length of the bow, which must travel fairlynear the finger-board. The time is about fiveseconds to the bar. The fifth bar calls for specialnotice, the-fall from : D to A and A to F sharp and fol-lowing bar to the third beat (E) expressing a ferventsupplication. The D must therefore receive specialemphasis while the tone recedes in strength veryslightly and gradually as the phrase drops down tothe D in the following bar. The last quaver in thatbar F sharp leads to a new two-bar phrase in whichthe children enumerate the guardian angels. Thisphrase repeats four times with slight modifications, eachtime appearing on a higher degree of the scale. TheA in the ninth bar must be stopped by the fourth fin-ger on the D string taking full bows. The B flat inthe eleventh bar is taken by the first finger on the Astring, and from here the tone must gradually increasein strength to the E in the fourteenth bar which mustbe taken by the fourth finger as the open string wouldhot blend with the preceding and following D. Thefourth beat in this bar (E-F sharp) must be diminu-endo and the G in the following bar must enter very


15/274

"Evening Prayer" 3softly. We meet here with an inversion of the open-ing figure which occurs for the first time in the thirdbar of the melody. In this instance, however, it ap-pears in the key of the subdominant (key "of G) andis accompanied by the opening figure in its originalrising-r form. The inverted descending figure is re-peated a tone higher in the following two-bar phrase;and from here a slight crescendo must be made whichincreases for four bars. Take the E in the fourth barwith the fourth finger. The A in the following barstarts forte with the open string and taking full bowsto each crotchet the tone must be increased to fortis-simo on the following minim G. This must be heldout slightly more than its full value, while a ritard-ando and diminuendo marks the second half of thebar which sinks to a very soft piano commencing thefollowing bar. Here we reach the "coda" or finalsection of the piece which must be very calm andpeaceful. The second A in the third bar of this codamust be played witji the fourth finger on the D string.Two bars later we come to a minim G followed by aquaver figure which commences a slight crescendo ris-ing to the minim A, and is followed again by a de-crescendo on the quaver figure in that bar. The twoquavers, F sharp and A, in the following bar com-mence the final phrase which must be of a rockingsomnolent character indicating that the children arefalling asleep. A gradual ritardando should bemade from this point. The following bar should


16/274

4 Well-Known Violin Solos.have a slight crescendo starting the last, note mezzoforte and holding it out quite a bar and a half with avery gradual diminuendo^ letting it die right out. Al-though the piece is arranged to be played in the firstposition it will be more effective to play the third barfrom the end on the D string on account of the moresombre tone colour.

2. J. Raff's "Cavatina."OP . 85, No. 3.

RAFF has given to the world in this Cavatina amelody of never-fading beauty. It is an in-spiration so essentially violinistic as if it hadsprung into existence from the very soul of the in-strument. It brings out all its finest qualities so that itwas played for more than half a century by every vio-linist of note, and still keeps a favourite with all whocan master it and those who try to. The technicaldifficulties are not exacting, but it requires a poeticalrendering combined with great breadth and beautyof tone. It is advisable as a preparatory study topractise what Viotti calls "filer le son," the spinningof tone, as the thread is drawn out and spun on thespinning wheel. This should be done by letting thebow travel about an inch from the bridge in an abso-


17/274

/. Raffs '> Cavatind." 5lutely straight direction, and without any pressure onthe bow stick. The slightest deviation from thestraight line interferes with the equality of the vibra-tions, and a very steady hand is required to carrythe bow along the string without the least variationof pressure, or rather preventing it from resting on thestring either with more or less weight than it doesat the start. -, In that manner each vibration of thestring is nourished by the preceding and followingone, and thus acquires that fullness and roundnesswhich is the essence of a beautiful singing tone.

It is necessary that the student should acquire per-fect control over the length of time to be given toeach bow, which must travel right from the nut to thevery point,-' not leaving the smallest fraction of itslength unused. This can only be done by watchingthe hands on a second dial of a watch or clock, start-ing, say, with ten seconds to each bow, then fifteen,and so on until one can make one bow last for a fullminute. The time, of course, must not be left tochance but determined beforehand, and each downbow as well as up bow must occupy exactly thatlength of time. This digression appeared necessary,as the Cavatiria requires long bows of various degreesof strength, and after acquiring the ability to let ittravel for a minute without increase or decrease oftone, the crescendo and decrescendo during one strokewill be soofi mastered. The Ereitkopf and Harteledition indicates the use of G and D string for the


18/274

6 }VTell-Known Violin Solos.first period, whereas it is generally played entirelyon the G string by concert players, which enhancesthe effect and shows off the fine quality of that stringon a first-class instrument. As this way of playingthe piece increases the difficulty by employing thehighest positions on the G string, we adhere to theeasier way of fingering. The time should be aboutfour seconds to a bar. The opening phrase, of course,commences on the G string, stopping the G firmlywith the third finger on no account use harmonicand the following F sharp (dotted minim) with thesecond finger. The crotchet F sharp take on the Dstring and remain on that string, stopping the D inbars six and seven firmly with the third finger. The lastbeat of the following (eighth) bar introduces a repeti-tion of the opening theme, this time pianissimo. Bringthe bow nearer to the bridge, using its full length foreach slur but without any appreciable pressure, sothat the 'tone retains its roundness but receives asombre, somewhat mysterious character. The secondslur begins with a very slight and gradual crescendoending on the dotted minim G, which is still to betaken on the G string, while the following crotchet Gshould be taken in the second position on theD string. Astrong crescendo leads up to the D, which must beplayed on the D string as well as the following bar,which contains a diminuendo which dies down to apianissimo for the repetition of the last two-barphrase. At the end of this a crescendo commences


19/274

/. Raffs "Cavatina." 7leading up to forte on the second F sharp, which isthe first crotchet in the next following bar. For theA following the G sharp take the open A string andcontinue on this, with the exception of the first fivenotes of the sextuplet, to the end of the phrase, thelast notes of which must die away very softly. TheA of the next bar (open string) introduces a slightcrescendo leading up to the second subject. Thiscommences with A on the D string, to be taken witha decrescendo by the third finger on the D string.The beautiful melodious strain that follows is of alonging, emotional character, and has to be playedsoftly but with great expression, giving a little em-phasis to the B, and still more to the following Dwhich takes its place in the repetition, commencing atone higher, of this two-bar phrase. The followingfigure commencing with C sharp repeats the preced-ing phrase commencing with B. It appears twice insuccession marked crescendo^ and emphasises its long-ing, suppliant character with increasing ardour,coming to a climax on the D in the fourth positionon the E string, whence it descends, finishing withthe C sharp on a dominant cadence. The whole ofthis section is now repeated a fifth higher, commerc-ing with E in the second position on the A string,rising at its culminating point to A, the fourth fin-ger in the seventh position descending to the openA string, after which the first subject appears againpianissimo on a pedal A (in the piano part) in the


20/274

8 Well-Known Violin Solos.key of G minor modulating to G major, and aftereight bars it repeats in double stopping. This is oneof the most effective sections. It must be played withfull power and great breadth as if triumphant athaving obtained all that was so ardently sought forin the previous section. The double stopping lieswell under the hand, and is fairly easy, but great caremust be taken to get the intervals well in tune, es-pecially in the fifth bar. Do not drag this sectionand increase in speed on the octaves D-D, returningto the previous time at the a tempo. The last bar ofthe double stops decreases in strength to a piano,dwelling a little on the notes without making a dis-tinct ritardando. From the following D to the endeverything is to be played on the G string. The notesmarked > must be played with a full bow accentu-ating every note. The final D must gradually de-crease in strength until it dies right away.


21/274

Le Mercure " Strad.


22/274


23/274

Johann S. Svendserfs "Romance"

3. Johann S. Svendsen's " Romance/'OP . 26.OVENDSEN, who ranks among the greatest Scan-^ dinavian composers, became first known to themusical world by his beautiful Octet, Op. 3, forstrings, which was a favourite at the old Monday andSaturday Popular Concerts, where it experienced ex-cellent performances under Joachim's leadership. Ofhis many fine subsequent compositions none has at-tained such widespread popularity as his Romance inG, for violin. It was originally written for violin andorchestra, but the composer himself arranged the veryeffective pianoforte accompaniment, and in that formit is more frequently heard, and more valuable for theuse of amateurs. It begins with an introduction ofnineteen bars marked andante with the metronomemark: J^6o. Those who have not a metronome athand may take it at the rate of ten seconds for threebars. The piece, distinctly Scandinavian in character, islike a tale of the mystic and romantic past of the Norse-men, with all the pensive tenderness and all the vigourand passion of that sturdy race. And in that spirit itshould be played as if unfolding one of those wonder-ful tales of love and adventure as we find them in the


24/274

io Well-Knoivn Violin Solos.old epos of " Gudrun '' and the bardic songs in"Ossian."The player should remember this well and exercise

his imaginative faculties when performing the piece.The enchanting opening melody must be given out ten-derly with great breadth and freedom. Freedom, bythe by, does not mean playing havoc with the time, assome people. seem to think when they lose every feel-ing of rhythm and time, but it means a proper accen-tuation and sometimes a slight leaning on importantnotes, which imparts the interpreter's conception ofthe piece to his listeners. At the beginning of thetenth bar from the entry of the solo instrument (letterA in Breitkopf and Hartel edition) a " poco animate "is marked, and the tempo must be slightly increased,carefully observing the crescendos and decrescendosas well as the -poco rit. and decrescendo in the lastbar before the "piu mosso" in G minor, which formsthe middle section. The metronome mark for this isgiven as ^ 116, but for those without a metronomeit might be fixed at five seconds to four bars. Theabove-mentioned edition gives no bowings for this sec-tion, which is left to the individual artist, whom thecomposer evidently would not fetter by strict indica-tions, rather leaving it to his own genius to adopt thebowing best suited to his own style to arrive at thedesired effect, which is that of restless, excited long-ing. In order to assist those who might experience

difficulty in settling the bowing for themselves,


25/274

Johann S. Svendsen's "Romance" nwe give it here for the first twenty-two bars of the"piu mosso," which will enable players to bow theanalogous phrases for themselves. We only give therhythmical values of the notes, without taking noticeof their pitch, which does not come into considerationfor this purpose :Flu Mosso, MM. J ~ 1 60.

I 4 I I I ! -I I 1 Ljj

Ld UJ Ld I 1 LJ l I! I H I : I I I!. -I 1 ! I ! 4

LJ LU jFrom the twentieth bar (letter C) make a very

gradual crescendo to the end of the twenty-fourth bar,then let the piano come in quite suddenly and withoutany preparation (previous diminuendo'}. This pianokeeps on for four bars, when the F sharp of the foK


26/274

12 Well-Known Violin Solos.lowing bar is taken with a sudden mezzo-forte, which,by a gradual crescendo, leads to the forte (letter D)four bars further on. The .next eight bars, introducinga new motive, which appears, first in the introduction,must be played with a powerful tone and steady in-crease in time to give that period a passionate and ex-cited character, leading up to the E flat (a tempo'],which must reach a fortissimo climax. Dwell just alittle on that note, then begin to relax the tension ofthat excitement by gradually reducing speed andpower, sinking down to a pianissimo when the tempoprimo (ten seconds for three bars) is reached. Themotive of the " molto animate " section appears now onthe dominant chord of E flat, modulating back to thekey of G minor, when the middle section, " piu mosso,"reappears in a shortened form, the second subject of this(letter E) leading after four bars to a fortissimo andfalls in a cadential figure to the dotted minim B flat onthe G string, without reducing the power of tone. Herecommences the " lento molto," which, played very slowlywith powerful, well-sustained tone, shows off the Gstring to best advantage, and the following bars up tothe Tempo /, which returns to the original key of Gmajor, must all be played on that string, and thosewho are not afraid to use the higher positions on itmay obtain a fine effect by playing the first four bars,which bring the first subject to the opening theme,in the lower octave likewise on that string but pianis-simo, yet with roundness and fullness.


27/274

fohann S. Svcndsen's "Romance." 13For the D in the fifth bar take the open D string

and remain on it until you come to the B, last note inseventh bar, which is to be taken on the A string, onwhich you remain until the G, last note in tenth bar(second bar after letter F) is reached, which is to betaken on the first string. Everything explains itselfnow till we come to the animato e crescendo (letterG), where the accents ">" must be well observedwhich shift the natural accents of the beats. The timehere becomes gradually quicker to the fortissimo notes,which are to be played very broad and with full bows,decreasing the tempo to a very marked ntenuto. Inthe last section,

''

lento," the melody appears very-piano > calm and serene, lifted, so to speak, beyond thespheres of strife and passion through which it haspassed in the course of the piece. Use about fourseconds to the bar and a trifle more for the following" piu lento," where the tone is increased to forte onthe upper G, which can be taken either on the D or Astring. The former sounds best, and in fact it is bestto use the D string right to the end, though of coursethe D six bars from the end might be taken on the Astring and the rest on the first. Let the last D dieright out.


28/274

14 Welt-Known Violin

A. J. L Dussek's " Menuet"(1761-1812), arranged by Willy Burmester.

THE composer of this graceful little gem was aBohemian by birth, whose name in his nativetongue was pronounced " Doosheck," though nowit is only known in its French version. He was a truechild of the Czeckian woods and mountains, full ofmusic, romanticism, and a restless, roving spirit. Oneof the greatest pianist-composers of his age, highlyeducated and of courtly manners, he was a favouriteamong the great, and especially at the French court,where he became a favourite of that unfortunate QueenMarie Antoinette. There, in the luxurious surround-ings of Versailles, was the home of courtly graces, andthat stately, elegant dan.ce, the minuet. It is well toremember this when playing this piece, to imbue it withthat spirit of fanciful quaintness and daintiness whichlends it that particular charm upon which its success-ful rendering entirely depends. It should be "told"like a little story full of amiable grace and serenepeacefulness.The first subject opens in a quiet and stately man-

ner, about five seconds for two bars is the right tempo.Look at the second hands of a watch or clock and see


29/274

/. L. Dussek's "Menuet* 15'that you fill out five seconds as nearly -as possiblewith two bars, without binding yourself slavishly tothat time. A little freedom for the sake of properexpression must always be allowed, otherwise the ren-dering becomes mechanical and uninteresting. As theedition before me now (Schott and Co.) has no dynamicsign at the beginning of the violin part, let it be saidthat the minuet should be commenced mezzo-piano,that is, a little louder than piano and less than mezzo-forte, with a round and singing tone. Start with adown bow as marked, and though you will naturallyget a down bow on the second crotchet of the first bar,you must take another down bow on the third beat,which receives also a little emphasis. The same hap-pens in the third bar, where the D sharp is "slightly ac-centuated, and likewise the G in the fifth bar. Thetwo staccato notes, A B, in bar seven must be playedvery lightly in the middle of the bow, avoiding anyaccent which falls on the G in the next bar the finalnote of the first sentence which repeats in the follow-ing eight bars. After this repeat we come to a secondcontrasting sentence. Although built up upon thesame bass as the first one, its contrast is marked inevery other respect Firstly, the time is increasedfrom a quiet "allegretto" to a " piu mosso," allowingonly five seconds for three bars instead of for twobars, as in the first sentence. Secondly, the rhythm isaltered by breaking up the two crotchets or one minimfollowed by two quavers or dotted quavers into figures


30/274

16 Well-Known Violin Solos.of six quavers. Thirdly, the piano of the first sen-tence changes to a sudden forte at the beginning ofthe second sentence, but only for the first or fore-phrase (four bars), while the after-phrase returns to asudden pianissimo. This second sentence must, .as-sume an air of gaiety without losing its stateliness.The first three bars must be played in the middle partof the bow, using half a bow to each note, which mustbe attacked firmly and played with a full and vigor-ous tone.

Burmester's bowing for the fourth bar is the same,but with due deference to so excellent a master, thisappears to me just a little too much of that bowing,rendering the phrase somewhat dry and stilted, where-fore I should prefer to bow this bar in the followingmanner :

whereby it becomes more graceful, and also makes anicer introduction for the after-phrase, which is playedpianissimo with a very light spiccato in the middleof the bow, which must be well suspended over thestring by the thumb, first and second finger of theright hand. At the third bar the bowing is changedto a slur for the first two quavers, while the followingfour quavers are played staccato, making a crescendofrom the beginning of this bar to the beginning of the


31/274


32/274

Joachim. Ernst WienawskL


33/274

/. L. Dussek's " Menuet" \jnext one, marked sostenuto, This latter bar com-mences with a decrescendo, and sustaining the notesa little, slackening down to the time of the first sub-ject. Notice that in this case the first, beat, comes on a..down bow, and consequently, every beat of that barmust be taken on a down bow, right at the heel of thebow, using very short bows and lifting the bow. upfrom the string between the strokes, using the wristonly. The second (four-bar) phrase appears now in afresh form, rising to D'" on the first string, which note,of course, is taken by the fourth finger in the secondposition. The A and G in the following bar fall tothe first finger, as indicated, and the G in the follow-ing bar is taken by the fourth finger en the A string.The pp at the end of this episode must die out in amere breath. We come now to a middle section, in Gminor, which calls for little comment except that itsrendering requires great breadth, expression and asinging tone. Let the player b.e warned here not toconfound expression with maudlin sentimentality.

Expression means the right rendering of the com-poser's ideas, which are uttered in a clear sentencethough they cannot be explained- in words, the musicallanguage commencing there where the language ofwords has come to the end of its power.A great factor in an intelligible rendering is., theclear definition of fore-phrase and after-phrase,.. justas it is important to define the parts of a sentence inspeaking. Animation and feeling, of course, play an

3


34/274

1 8 Well-Known Violin Solos.essential part in all musical rendering, but they mustnot sink to the level of mere sensuousness, which leadsto stupid sentimentality.

After two sentences of eight bars each, both of whichare repeated, we come to a little bridge portion whichis a simplification of the minor subject, and must bephrased in that sense.

It commences here on the subdominant chord in-stead of en the dominant as in the first sentence.This will be seen in the following :

In first sentence :

In bridge portion :Vn

The phrase in the latter case is divided between thetwo instruments, the violin taking the first part andthe pianoforte the second part with the inverted quaverfigure. This bridge portion cf eight bars, finishes ona cadence in G minor, after which the first part of theminuet is repeated.


35/274

Henri Wieniawskts "Mazurka. 19

5- Henri Wieniawski's " Mazurka"(Le Menetrier), Op. 19, No. 2.

THIS is the second of two gems, the first being thefamous mazurka, " Obertass/' by the same com-poser. Both are favourite items in the concertrepertoire of every violinist. The " Menetrier," or"Minstrel," is to some extent a piece of programmemusic of a rhapsodical kind. At the beginning wehear the minstrel tune his fiddle by sounding the fifthbetween the third and second and second and firststring with the left hand pizzicato. Then he tries thefifth between the four strings with the bow, and forth-with commences his spirited mazurka tune at a briskand vigorous pace (molto vigoroso), allowing aboutfive seconds for three bars. There is a pedal "A"running right through the opening melody whichappears sometimes above and sometimes below that Aas of voices answering each other.As the double stopping is thus obtained by the use

of the open A string, the brilliant effect of these phrasesdoes not involve any particular difficulty, but let themsound merry and bright, and, above all, do not- forgetthat the mazurka is a dance, and that the rhythmmust be well accentuated. The "molto vigoroso" be-


36/274

2O Weil-Known Violin Solos.gins with a chord of D major, forte, with round andfull tone. Give a strong accent on the octave "A."The first two-bar phrase is answered by a second phrasein which the melody appears at first below the accom-panying pedal "A," which therefore must not predom-inate so as to obscure the melody. On the other hand,the "A" must be heard sufficiently to give a rich andfull harmonic background to the melody, which therebyshould be put into proper relief. At the fourth barwe come to a cadence on the dominant. The firstperiod is then repeated with a full cadence on the tonic.The whole of the eight-bar sentence is also repeated,and followed by another eight-bar sentence, which isdeveloped from the second phrase beginning piano,and increasing in power at each repeat of the two-barphrase until a fortissimo is reached at the fourth re-peat A sudden diminuendo on the full bar " D " leadsto the second subject. Whereas the first subject is ofa stormy and rugged character, the second subject pre-sents a flowing melody of tender playfulness andgrace. It must be rendered with a singing, mellowtone, soft, yet full and rich. It is of a pleading natureand brings at the fifth bar a reminiscence of the open-ing motive mellowed down to the gentler nature ofthe second subject, repeated in the next bar commenc-ing a third higher by way of emphasis, and followedby two bars which lead to a repetition of this periodending on a chord of G minor. The whole of this sec-tion is then repeated, and followed by a repetition


37/274

Henri \Vieniawski's "Mazurka? 21of the first subject, finishing fortissimo and a strongritardando on the detached notes leading to thecadence. There is nothing to be added with regardto the fingering, which is perfectly plain, and fullyindicated where any possible doubt might occur. WTithregard to the bowing, let it be pointed out that the upbow on the slur from first to second beat of the " moltovigoroso" ^_^ should be observed. The secondphrase ^==t= starts with an up bow at the nutof the ^F I bow, and for thrs phrase we ven-ture to give a second version for thebowing which would impart more vigour.

!

We are aware that it is unorthodox to detach thethree quavers at "a," but that is no reason why theperformer should not do so if he feels it that way. Therest is so clearly and rationally marked that nothingremains to be said about it.The middle section of the mazurka is in G minor,

marked "Tranquillo con melancolia." This suddentransition from gaiety to sadness, from laughing tocrying, and vice versa, is quite a characteristic of thePolish nation, and the "mazur," or "mazurka" is oneof their favourite national dances which emphasisesthe emotional side of their nature. The fine, flowingmelody of this section is thoroughly- Polish in char-


38/274

22 "Well-Known Violin Solos.acter. The first eight bars, of a languorous character,are repeated pianissimo and answered by a four-barphrase in the dominant key which is intensely emo-tional and must be played with great expression anda strong crescendo, which finds its climax on the minim"G," thence gradually descending to a piano. Thesefour bars are then repeated and followed by a codettaof three bars, diminishing in strength until they dieaway on the high " D," which is taken as a harmonicby the third finger in the first position on the D stringand held out fairly long. After this the first sentenceof the "Tranquillo" is repeated pianissimo for thefirst-bar phrase, the second phrase being played mezzo-forte and gradually slackening in time and breakingoff abruptly at the end of the third following bar,making a short pause on the last semiquaver rest. Thisbar is then repeated very softly and slowly in G major,resting, like the former, on a dominant pedal. Fromthe second part of this bar a four-bar cadenzi isevolved with the alternate use of the B flat and Bnatural, two bars bringing one half of that bar re-peated, the last two bars only using the third beat ofit as first beat, followed by two crotchet rests. Theminstrel now tries the fifths of his open strings againwith a left hand pizzicato, as in the beginning, andthen follows a repetition of the first section, but thistime fortissimo and more stormy than before, until wecome to the ninth bar of the subject, when a suddenpiano sets in, which must not be anticipated by a dim-


39/274

Henri Wieniawskts " Mazurka? 23inuendo. From this piano


40/274

24 Well-Known Violin Solos.which the violin enters, taking up the strain softlywith a singing tone and with great expression. In-tensity of feeling without exaggeration is of the great-est importance for an effective rendering of this kindof melody. The time should be taken at about fourseconds to the bar. The first two notes G, F sharpshould sound like a sigh or a wail, and emphasis shouldbe given to the first crotchet "E " of the following bar.Great evenness in the slurs is essential. The secondbar commences with the notes C, B, A, G, the "A"here must be taken by the fourth finger on the D string,as the open string, being of a different quality of tonefrom the stopped notes, would give it a disturbingprominence.

In the seventh bar we have a semiquaver followedby a dotted quaver, and then a dotted quaver followedby a semiquaver. This is a characteristic rhythm inScottish music, and must be carefully observed. Playthe first semiquaver crisply and give the dotted quaverstheir full value; there is often a tendency to cut thesenotes 'short, which entirely mars the intended effect.The : last beat in this bar is marked.rttardando, which,however* must not be taken too. slow..; In the follow-ing eigfat bars we have a second sentence answeringthe first eight bars. This works gradually up to thebeginning of the fourth bar, where we come to a moltorit., where the first B should receive great emphasis,giving about five seconds to the three beats. On thefourth beat we return to the original time, until we


41/274

Alfred Uoffafs " Schottische Weise." 25come to the second following bar. The third beat inthis is D sharp, on which we dwell a little, and thencommences another ritardando, which holds on to theend of the melody. A certain amount of freedom inthe rendering of this phrase must be used without,however, destroying the feeling of rhythm. It is im-possible to describe the rendering of such phrases inwords in such a manner that the reader should be en-abled to do exactly what the writer intends to convey.The best thing for him to do is to go and hear a first-class artist sing a Scottish song of the same characterand observe closely and carefully the manner in whichhe or she renders it. That proceeding has been fol-lowed by many of the greatest instrumentalists, andit teaches more about production and dynamic grada-tion of tone, as well as of phrasing, than any verbalexplanations possibly could do.The melody of the second section, marked "pocoanimate," has the character of placid happiness,which

gives a happy relief to the former strain. The timeshould be about two seconds to a bar. The thirdcrotchet "E" in. the first bar must, of course, be takenby the fourth finger on the A string and the "A" inthe third bar by the fourth finger on the D string. Thesame applies to the analogous occurrences of thesenotes except where the open strings are indicated. Itwill be noticed that the cadential bars are alwaysmarked poco rit., and the leading note which generally


42/274

26 Well-Known Violin Solos.precedes the tonic is omitted in the cadence, a circum-stance based upon the nature of the Scottish scale.After the first eight bars, which are marked piano,we come to a crescendo^ which must, however, not betoo sudden, as the forte which occurs at the beginningof the fifth following bar would otherwise be reachedtoo soon; neither must there be a diminuendo beforethe piano of the cadential bar. The transition fromforte to piano must be quite sudden.The last four-bar phrase is now repeated, the piano-

forte taking over the first two bars and the violin thetwo latter bars with the cadence. A second sentenceof sixteen bars follows, which reaches its climax inthe third bar. The "B" in that bar must be playedwith all the power of tone the executant is capable ofproducing without harshness. Great emphasis must begiven to this phrase, and to give it the necessary pathosand importance it is to be played slower than the pre-ceding bars, as indicated by the poco rit. A gradualdiminuendo and further ritardando leads to a repeti-tion of the first eight bars of the melody, followed bya codetta of twelve bars commencing pianissimo, whichagain increases very gradually to a forte in the seventhbar. Great steadiness of the bow is required in thesebars. There is always a full bar "E" slurred to asecond bar, E, F, G. On the first bar "E" we have adiminuendo from piano to pianissimo which must bevery soft indeed, the bow being carried very lightlyover the strings near the fingerboard, keeping the string


43/274

Alfred Moffal's " Schotiische Weise" 27vibrating very evenly without pressure. The bow musttravel in a perfectly straight line, only just touchingthe string, the fingers of the right hand holding it wellsuspended. The slightest unsteadiness of the handwill at once mar the tone which must be issuing fromthe instrument with great sweetness and sustained uponan absolute level, increasing quite evenly and gradu-ally as indicated. This is one of the most difficultfeatures in the whole art of bowing, and to do thiswell one must study the art of "spinning" the toneas a thread is produced from a spinning wheel, run-ning out uninterruptedly and with perfect evenness.Viotti laid great stress on this study, which he alsocalls " filer le son" (spinning the tone) and recom-mends to practise it by letting the bow travel fromnut to point and vice versa very steadily at a givenspeed, commencing with, say, ten seconds to a bow,then fifteen seconds, and so on until one can make itlast for a full minute without a flaw in the evennessof the tone, which, of course, must be an absolutepianissimo or else it would not be possible to makethe length of the bow last out for so long a time.The codetta leads to a repetition of the first melody,

which appears unaltered for sixteen bars. At the endof these a coda is evolved from the opening phrase.This must be played with great expression and breadth,and though piano, the tone must be round and full.Where the leap occurs from the open G string to thehigher octave we are confronted with two possibilities.


44/274

28 "Well-Known Violin Solos.The first is to play the upper " G " with the third fin-ger on the D string, as indicated, thus keeping thepiece entirely in the first position. Another way is totake that "G" as harmonic with the third finger onthe G string, using the second and first respectively forthe F and E in descending. This will give a muchfiner and sonorous effect and greater uniformity in thetone colour of the final passage.

7. Franz Schubert's"Sonatina in A minor."OP . 137, No. 2,

I. ALLEGRO MODERATO.OCHUBERT'S wealth of melody was inexhaustible,S^ he could have set the

"Daily Telegraph

"to

music, and beautiful music, too, for every line ofit. The number of compositions which he produced inso short a lifetime is unparalleled, and the more im-portant of his works rank among the greatest master-pieces of all times.The sonatina, of course, suggests a lighter vein than

that of the sonata, and Schubert's Three Sonatinas,Op. 137, partake of Mozart and Haydn's amiable joiede vivre, yet even here he has something more impor-tant to say, and his musical language is clothed in that


45/274

Franz Schuberfs "Sonatina in A minor." 29wealth of harmonic colouring which is quite his own.The first movement, "allegro moderate," in A minor,opens with a subject in minims, of noble grandeur,given out softly by the piano, sinking to a pianissimo.The time is about five seconds /for two bars. In thetenth bar the violin enters forte, taking up the minimsubject in a modified form, the wide skips adding tothe power and energy with which it must be played,using a full bow to each minim. The F in the firstbar must be taken with the third finger on the A string,the following D sharp in the half position on the Dstring- not on the G string, as I saw a student attemptto do. The crotchets in the third bar cut off this entryabruptly then with a little two-bar codetta as if say-ing something in parenthesis, quite softly he returnsto the minim movement in bold double octave skips,increasing in power to the end of the fourth bar, when,with a sudden piano, the minims leave their bold skips,moving in gentler lines and sinking down to a pianis-simo the violin finishes on a cadence in C major. Ona gently flowing triplet accompaniment the pianofortenow introduces the second subject, a graceful and ten-der melody, which, after eight bars, is taken up bythe violin to be played very legato and singing. Inthe eleventh bar after this entry we come to a ripplingtriplet figure, which must be played pianissimo andstaccato with a lightly-thrown bow in the upper partof it. In the seventh bar after this we come to a de-scending figure which is announced forte by the piano-


46/274

jo \Vell-Known Violin Solos.forte and imitated by the violin, which enters on thethird beat of the bar, and must be played with fieryenergy, gradually calming down a little and increas-ing again in strength for the fourth repeat, which, cul-minating on the minim F, brings us to a gentle remin-iscence of the opening minims, leading on to thedominant cadence of the first section. This is in thefirst place evolved from the minim subject, and theviolin has a number of long notes and slurs held outquite pianissimo. It is an instance where the studyof "spinning the tone" is of great value. We havegiven some particulars of this kind of bowing whendealing with Mr. A. Moffat's " Schottische Weise," andrefer the reader to that for further information. Aftertwenty-one bars from the double bar (letter D in Petersedition) we come to a repeat of the first subject in Dminor, followed by the second subject in F major,while the pianissimo staccato triplets (letter G) appearin the key of A minor, from now predomin-ating to the end, which dies away in a ppp. Bevery cautious to obtain this effect well on the finaldouble stop, C-E, avoiding carefully the preponder-ance of either of these two notes.


47/274

Franz Schubert 1s " Sonatina in A minor'

8. Franz Schubert's "Sonatina in A minor."OP. 137, No. 2.II. ANDANTE.

THIS is a movement in Schubert's finest mood, flow-ing gently along in grace and beauty of melodyas well as symmetry of form. Pure and simple in nature,this piece must be rendered with great delicacy of feel-ing. To bring its beauty into proper relief the shad-ing must be as delicate as the lines in a silver pointdrawing. Any attempt at strongly emotional effectswill mar an effective rendering. The right time isabout five seconds for two bars. An even legato andsinging tone must be maintained throughout the piece.

In the second bar after the entry of the violin wefind a crescendo and dccrescendo, which consists, how-ever, only of a slight swelling and decreasing of thetone. The second sentence of eight bars plus four barsof the first sentence is repeated. The violin enterswith a repeated motive :

B D C B A B A G

which should be marked by a very slight crescendo anddecrescendo, as indicated above, but this must be no


48/274

32 Well-Known Violin Solos.more than the heaving and sinking of a breath, andslightly more in the third bar where the crescendo anddecrescendo is indicated in the part. The notes F, A,G, the lait beat in the third bar, as well as the two first

* crotchets in the following bar are, of course, to beplayed on the A string, returning into the first posi-tion on the third beat, C.

In this position we remain until the next followingbar, in which the A is taken by the first finger in thethird position. In that position we remain to the endof that sentence, taking the semiquaver G in the fol-lowing bar with the fourth finger on the A string, onwhich we remain until the double bar is reached.

In the following section we have a free inversion ofthe first subject without adherence to intervals. The" dolce " stands here as a gentle reminder of what wehave said at the beginning about the rendering of thismovement. The first notes of each bar should receivea slight accent by dwelling on them a little withoutactually lengthening their value. The following semi-quaver passages must run along with absolute even-ness, so that riot one single note should stand out fromthe rest except the first of the bar, which receives aslight accent.At the seventh bar the first motive of this section

is inverted again, beginning pianissimo with a gradualcrescendo from the third bar until a forte is reachedat the reappearance of semiquaver passages which com-mence with a forte, the next bar being piano, alter-


49/274


50/274

Franz Schubert


51/274

Franz Schubert's "Sonatina" 33nating thus three times, the last two bars being pianis-simo. These changes must be made quite suddenlywithout any preceding crescendo or decrescendo. Atthe end of these passages the first subject in F majorreappears, this time in the key of A flat major, in whichthe second sentence of twelve bars is likewise repeated.The following eight bars are repeated in the key of Dflat, modulating to the dominant of D minor, gradu-ally returning to the original key of F major.Here we find a repetition of the first twenty bars witha coda of nine bars concluding the movement. Therendering of these latter portions is analogous to thatof the first part and therefore calls for no specialcomment.

9. Franz Schubert's " Sonatina."III. MENUETTO.

THIS movement, as generally known, originates witha dance form which was in great favour duringthe seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. From theold sonata di camera and the suite which absorbed anumber of these dance tunes, it found its way into themodern sonata and all instrumental music based on thesonata form, such as trios, quartets and even the sym-phony, where it took its place generally after the slowmovement.

4


52/274

34 \Vell-Known Violin Solos.By degrees it was looked upon merely as a form of

instrumental music which lost more or less every con-nection with the graceful dance from which it derivedits name. This was particularly noticeable when themenuet as a dance was gradually falling into disuetudetowards the end of the eighteenth century. WithFather Haydn and even with Mozart we still see thecavaliers and ladies with high, powdered head-dressesmoving about in measured stateliness. With Beet-hoven, and still more with Schubert, the menuet be-came a graceful movement which followed the seriousslow movement with a smiling face. Yet it retained acertain amount of its stately grace, even in the quickertime, and composers carefully retained the name tomake it clearly understood that the movement shouldnot be confounded with the more exuberant scherzo,though the latter was similar in form.The present menuet is marked allegro, yet it reflects

distinctly the "Landler" which was a favourite dancein Schubert's time, and must therefore not be playedtoo quickly. One second to the bar is about the righttime. Start with an energetic forte, taking the minim" F " with the fourth finger in the third position on theG string, letting the rest of the phrase from the shakeon the C sharp follow with more playfulness. Thesame holds good for the answering phrase which fol-lows. The minim B flat in this should be taken withthe fourth finger on the D string. The four bars aremezzo forte with an even legato. Start the A with an


53/274

Franz Schuben's "Sonatina." 35up bow, stopping it with the second finger in the thirdposition, on the D string, the first on the following Gsharp, thence returning into the first position.The second part begins forte with an up bow fromthe point to the middle, followed by a light spiccatoin the middle of the bow for the quavers of the sixfirst bars, the seventh being legato. Next we have arepeat of the first phrase, the second bar of which runsup on the D string with the first finger on G sharp,and the third on the minim B flat, returning into thefirst position on the F sharp. The following bar maybe played in two ways at the option of the executant ;either remaining in the first position (taking the Awith the fourth finger on the D string) or running uptaking the D at the end of the bar in the fourth posi-tion on the D string. The opening A of the follow-ing should in either case be stopped on the D string,and the following C sharp (shake) with the secondfinger in the second position on the G string. The fol-lowing explains itself.The " trio " has to be played in the same time as themenuet. Very legato and commences with the secondfinger in the third position on the A string, keepingon that string to the last beat of the fourth bar, whenthe A is taken by the first finger in the third positionon the E string. The end quaver G in the followingbar is marked second finger in the Breitkopf edition,which necessitates shifting on an odd beat for a singlenote, which is an awkward proceeding. It is prefer-


54/274

36 Weil-Known Violin Solos.able to take that G in the position with the fourthfinger on the A string, or if the E string is preferred,shift with the second finger from B flat to A, takingthe G with the first finger and the following B naturalwith the third. Observe the crescendo on this passage.The rest explains itself.

10. Franz Schubert's " Sonatina."IV. ALLEGRO.

THE last movement of this Sonatina in A minor isin rondo form, which was in great favour between1750-1850, especially for the finale of any worksin sonata form, be they for solo instruments, chambermusic or symphonies. The present movement openswith a flowing melody of Mozartian simplicity. Itflows like the rippling brook through floweringmeadows, nothing disturbing its serene happiness. Thisfeature must guide the executant in his performance.A quiet and unaffected rendering is that which bestexpresses the composer's ideas. All attempts at par-ticular effects are utterly out of place. One second tothe bar is a good time, and very straight, full lengthbows are required to produce a round and singing tone.The opening is marked piano, but though soft the tonemust not be thin. A four-bar phrase is three times


55/274

Franz Schubert's " Sonatina." 37repeated in the opening section on various degrees ofthe scale. The dynamic indications for the third repeat,bars nine to twelve, as given by Fr. Hermann in theBreitkopf edition, does not meet with our approval.There is a heaving and falling in the lines of the four-bar phrase which reaches the highest point at the centre.The natural feeling is that the tone should rise andfall in accordance with the lines of that curve, in fact,there is a double movement which indicates thatgradual rise, one within the four-bar phrases, the otherin the repeat of the phrases which appear each time ona higher degree of the scale. It may be likened to arepetition of a few words in speaking to give themgreater emphasis, which involves a slight raising ofthe voice, that should find. its corresponding expres-sion in the case of these musical phrases. We shouldtherefore prefer a slight crescendo from the beginningof bar nine to the beginning of bar eleven, and a slightdecrescendo to the end of bar twelve, followed by amezzo forte at the commencement of the second sec-tion, in which the marks of expression as given in Her-mann's edition should be strictly followed. At theend of this section, which is repeated, we come to thesecond subject, which is introduced by the pianoforte,and after fourteen bars taken up by the violin, finish-ing with a spiccato triplet run. This supplies thematerial for the passage-work accompanying a freshmotive of a brisk and lively nature, which must be ren-dered with energy, detaching the crotchets well, using


56/274

38 Wrell-Known Violin Solos.about half bow length in the middle of the bow. Afterthirteen bars the violin takes up the triplet movement.These triplets must be played with a firm, short de-tache, under no circumstances spiccato. Seven barsof these violin triplets lead to a combination of thequaver and crotchet motives in imitation between thetwo instruments, commencing piano with a sudden cres-cendo in the ninth bar, leading to forte at the beginningof the tenth bar, and returning to piano three barslater. Four bars later we have a crescendo leadingto mezzo-forte, decreasing again to an absolute pianis-simo, which must be played very lightly and delicately,using very little space in the middle of the bow for thetriplet notes, and the upper half for the crotchets.After this the first subject reappears in the originalkey of A minor, as usual in the rondo form. Afterthat the second subject, which at first stands in themajor key of the submediant (F) is repeated in the keyof the mediant, viz., C major. The third motive orepisode with the triplet accompaniment, which at firstappears in D minor, is now repeated in the key of thetonic (A minor), finishing on an inversion of the dim-inished seventh (pause bar), a cadencial bridge por-tion of six bars brings us to the final repetition of thefirst subject. As we have already spoken about therendering of this portion there is no need to dwellagain upon it.There is nothing out of the ordinary way in the fin-

gering of this piece, but we might draw attention to the


57/274

Carl Retnecke's "Romance." 39little passage of five bars (five bars after letter T inthe Breitkopf edition), at the end of the first returnof the first subject, which has to be played on the Dstring. Then again to the pause "minim F" whichhas to be taken by the fourth finger in the third posi-tion on the G string, taking the following B naturalwith the second finger in the same position on the Estring, returning for the shake on F into the first posi-tion and playing the following bars on the A string.

1 1. Carl Reinecke's " Romance/'OP . 43 No. 1.

EINECKE, who for over forty years, to the timeIA of his death a few years ago, was closely con-nected with the Leipzig Conservatoire, counts amongthe most prolific composers of his time. He has pro-duced numberless works in every branch of music, fromlittle pianoforte pieces for children to grand opera.He cannot be said to possess any marked individu-ality, as the influence of Mendelssohn and Schu-mann, with whom he was personally acquainted, isvery evident, yet he possessed a facile flow of melodywhich was pleasing if it was not of great depth.The piece under notice is in the style of a musicaltale or narrative, such as the romance really should


58/274

40 Well-Known Violin Solos.be, and in that style it must also be rendered. Ima-gine when playing this piece you are telling yourfriends a little tale about lovers' romantic adven-tures. Do not try to fix a definite programme or storyto it the language of music is of an abstract and in-definite character, and so is all which it expresses, yetit expresses something something which words can-not express nor earthly forms depict. This somethingmay be felt and understood by musical people to whomthe language of sound has been revealed by nature,and they can speak it through the medium of the voiceor instrument in such a manner that they are able toconvey its inner meaning to their audience. It is thatwhat people mean when they say of an artist that heor she sings or plays convincingly. Therefore reciteto your friends the piece as you feel it.The long, harplike arpeggios are well suited to setoff the short melodic phrases of this musical tale.Take about four seconds to the bar, and though com-

mencing piano do not overlook the " e cantando "and singing which implies fullness of tone combinedwith the softness to give the phrases the necessaryweight and importance. The first phrase of three bars;culminating on the first crotchet F of the second bar,is answered by a second phrase reaching its climax onthe G, which stands in the relative position to the F.These two three-bar phrases are followed by two re-

peated one-bar phrases which take the place of shortlines in the stanza of a poem. The first is : B flat, C |


59/274


60/274

1

Guide Papini.


61/274

Carl Reinecke's "Romance." 41F, B flat D, B flat, C | F, B flat. The repeat markedpf (piano forte) must be a little louder than the first,with the second : F F

|E flat, C, A flat, B flat, G, EF F

|E flat, C, A flat, B flat, G, E flat, both repeats re-

main dolce. The following phrase, marked " largamente,"must be played very broadly, slackening the time justenough to give the necessary emphasis on the risingquavers, increasing the tone until a good strong forteis reached in attacking the A flat, decreasing again onthe minim F which leads to the final phrase, com-mencing with the three quavers, A flat, A flat, B flat.This phrase is marked dolce (soft and pleasant), andntardando from the second beat of the following bar.This ritardando must be gradual, becoming more pro-nounced in the second half of the bar. We have nowreached the second or middle section, containing newand contrasting matter. The first half of this is to beplayed forte, but without losing its meditative, dreamycharacter; the second half is again piano, with oneslight increase in tone at the pf, and a crescendo inthe codetta, which leads to the repetition of the firstsubject. Notice that the F on the top line is alwaystaken by the third finger in the third position on theA string in this section. In the third section the firstsubject re-enters, but this time with a more assertiveforte. A little bridge portion, during which the tonegradually sinks down to piano again, brings us to a


62/274

42 W'ell-Known Violin Solos.short reminiscence of the second subject, followed bythe coda, which gives a good opportunity to show offthe resonance of the G string, especially in the fifthforte bar from the end.

12. Guido Papini's "Ronde Champetre."OP . 66, No. 6.THE ronde or rondeau (Italian, rondo; English,round) has its origin in a dance form of greatantiquity. In this the dancers formed a ring, andjoining hands accompanied their dance by a song, thechorus singing the first verse, a solo voice taking upthe second verse, after which the chorus would repeatthe first verse. Another solo voice then would sing athird verse which was again followed by the refrain ofthe chorus. In this manner solo voices who sang the"couplets," and the chorus alternated as long as thedance lasted. The couplets were of a different melodyfrom the refrain. During the Troubadour times in thetwelfth and thirteenth centuries this dance was the ori-gin of many fine compositions both in poetry and song.In later times when instruments were chiefly used toaccompany the "round" (as well as other dances) theform of the refrain alternating with couplets varying innumber and melody was still retained, and when the


63/274

Guido Papini's " Ronde Champetre" 43dance fell into desuetude it became a recognised formof instrumental music. The rondo in this primitiveform was extensively used, especially by the Frenchcomposers of the seventeenth and early eighteenth cen-turies, and eventually developed into the modern rondofamiliar to all musicians of the present day.The ronde champetre of the old French composersbears the character of quiet happiness often suggestingthe peaceful sound of the chalumeau accompanied bythe persistent monotony of a drone bass and the quietpulsation of the rhythmical beats of a tabour.While retaining some of these characteristics, Papini

has infused his composition with greater sprightlinesswhich is more akin to his Italian temperament. In-stead of the peaceful, flowing allegretto, he takes forthe time of his rondo a "quasi allegro con spirito."The syncopated rhythm of the melody adds stillfurther to the atmosphere of gaiety which pervades thewhole piece. Papini was essentially a composer forthe violin, and all his compositions are written in thenature of that instrument, which renders them particu-larly effective, and the present instance is no exceptionto the rule. A good tempo is five seconds to four bars.Begin with a light spring bow (spiccato), using a flyingstaccato for the group of four quavers from the secondto the third, and third to fourth bar, playing mezzopiano (mp), that is a little louder than piano and lessthan mezzo-forte.

Eight bars before the first a tempo we have two bars


64/274

44 Well-Known Violin Solos.of groups of two quavers followed by an accentedcrotchet, which occur again two bars later on. Takethe first two quavers in the middle of the bow with acrisp, short detache, pulling the bow right to the pointon the crotchet, and playing the next two quavers witha short detache right at the point, push the bow backto the middle on the crotchet, repeating the same inthe next bar. In the second half of the second bar,before the a tempo, commence a slight ritardando,taking the two quavers at the beginning of the pausebar right at the heel of the bow, lifting it up betweenthe notes.At letter A in Hans Wessely's edition of twenty pro-gressive pieces (Schott and Co.) we come to the first

episode based in its first part on a tonic pedal. Thisis to be played a shade slower than the first subject,taking about two seconds to the bar. This finishes onthe harmonic A in the third position on the D string,and now we come to the middle section in F major.Cut off sharp, without shortening, however, the

quavers slurred to a crotchet, followed by a quaverrest. They really represent a second minim followingthe first, the shortening of a quaver's length detachingit in a marked manner from the following minim, thusindicating the grouping in twos. In the sixth bar be-fore the return to the first subject we find a pause onthe last quaver, followed by a repetition of that bar ata little slower pace. A short cadenza of four bars, tobe played quite free, according to the player's intuition,


65/274

Giddo Papints " Ronde Charnpetre" 45leads us back to the first subject in A major. In theeighth bar we come to a fresh episode, which forms thesubject-matter for the coda, and has to be played atan increased time, say, about one second to the bar,and still quicker from the fortissimo chord and fol-lowing shakes. Give a good accent on the first noteof the shakes where marked, bring out as much toneas you can produce without roughness from here tothe end.

13 -Franz Schubert's " L'Abeille."Revised by Aug. Wilhelmj (Schott and Co.).

THIS piece, generally known as " The Bees' Wed-ding," has always been a favourite with violin-ists as a brilliant little solo piece. The com-poser's name has caused many people to imagine it tobe the work of the famous Schubert, whereas theauthor of this piece was an excellent violinist who suc-ceeded Lipinski as first " Conzertmeister " at the courtat Dresden in 1861. He undertook several concerttours through Germany with the great violoncellist,F. A. Kummer, with whom he played brilliant duetswhich were their joint compositions, each writing hisown part.


66/274

46 Well-Known Violin Solos.The " Bees' Wedding," as we shall call it by its ac-

cepted name, "L'Abeille" being the French equivalentfor the bee, is a piece of the "moto perpetuo" type,the rapid triplet movement continuing uninterruptedlyfrom beginning to end to imitate the buzzing of a bee.To emphasise this buzzing character it is sometimesplayed with a mute, but the use of the latter was notindicated by the composer, and it is certainly betterwithout it. At first sight it gives one the impressionof being a fairly easy piece, as it touches only twiceupon nigher positions, and even then they offer nodifficulties by intricate fingering, but as soon as youbegin to study the piece you will find that it is not sosimple as it may appear at a first glance.To render it effectively the executant must possessgreat agility of the left hand. The fingers must notonly be loose and nimble, but also under absolute con-trol, so that a perfect evenness of the notes and trip-lets is maintained throughout the piece. Imagine thebuzzing of a bee, which was avowedly in the com-poser's mind when he wrote the piece, and think of thealmost drowsy monotony of the even vibrations, whichonly now and again rise to a higher pitch when the beebecomes excited, and the wings move at a quicker pace.This has been delightfully depicted in Schubert's littlesketch. A good speed would be to play four bars infive seconds, though at the rate of a bar a second wouldnot be too fast.


67/274

Franz Schubert's " L'Abeille" 4;To attain this speed, yet playing with perfect even-

ness, and without any scampering merely to cover thespace in a given time, you must begin at a much slowertime, say, three bars, or even less, in five seconds. Prac-tise it at this pace until you can play it at a perfectlyeven speed from beginning to end, without hesitatingat any particular place, and paying the closest atten-tion to all marks of expression. When you can dothis, begin to increase your speed systematically bytaking half a bar more to the five seconds each time.Of course with each increase of half a bar you mustpractise it again until you can play as well or evenbetter than before you increased your speed. In thisway you will gradually be able to play it at the propertime, and benefit the technique of your fingers andbow simultaneously.The fortes, pianos, crescendos and diminuendos areso carefully marked that nothing could be added ex-

cept the advice to follow them strictly. Rememberthat a sf. only applies to the note to which it is affixed,and also that a piano following a forte should entersuddenly and without preparation unless it is precededby the diminuendo sign or word. Where dotted notesalternate in regular succession with slurs they must, ofcourse, be played alternately in the upper and lowerpart of the bow. One cannot speak of heel and pointin this case, as naturally the length of bow to be used


68/274

48 Well-Known Violin Solos.is determined by the speed of the piece, and not morethan half a length would be required at most in thiscase.The spring bow arpeggio which follows has, of

course, to be played in the middle of the bow, the ex-act spot being determined by the balance of the bow-stick, which the player must find out by experiment,as it varies a little in almost every bow.

14 Hans Silt's " Romanze," Op. 97, No. 1.Breitkopf and Hartel, Popular Edition, No. 3144.

"PHE romance is either descriptive of mediaeval ad-venture, and in that case more epic, or it dealswith episodes of love and friendship, entering the

domain of the lyric. The famous Leipzig violin-ist-composer gives us in this instance a romance of thelatter type, for it does not resound of the clashing ofswords and the valiant deeds of heroes, but remindsus more of lovers' longing, and scenes of hillbrow atsunset, with the cool breeze gently rustling in the tree-tops.

Play the piece through and see if it conjures upsome such picture in your mind, then try to produce


69/274

Hans Sitfs " Romanze" 49its general atmosphere without attempting to carrythe comparison any further, for music can only expressthe abstract, not the individual or material. But ifyou are able to imbue yourself completely into theatmosphere of some such picture, until it takes posses-sion of all your thoughts and feelings, you will beable to convey these in a convincing manner to yourlisteners by means of your music, and thereby exer-cise the true charm which leads to success.

In the above Romance (Romanze is the Germanspelling) we have to deal with a piece of the " SongWithout Words" character, of fairly simple construc-tion.The first subject of sixteen bars divides into two

phrases, the second of which supplies the material fora later episode. At the "poco animate" we come tothe second subject of eight bars, of which the firstphrase of four bars is repeated, while the secondphrase is altered and prolonged to seven bars. Afterthese we come to an episode which is a free develop-ment of the second subject. After ten bars this leadsto a repetition of the first eight bars of the first sub-ject, of which the first four bars are again repeated onthe dominant, while the second phrase brings a freshmotive developed from the second sentence (barstwelve and thirteen) of the first subject, bringing usback to a coda evolved from the episode which fol-

5


70/274

5o W'ell-Known Violin Solos.lows the second subject, finishing pp on the harmonicsE, A. The tempo is andante, and two bars should oc-cupy about five seconds, which should be increased tothree bars in the same time at the " poco animate," whileabout seven seconds should be given to two bars atthe " tranquillo." Fingering and bowing are againvery carefully marked, as one might expect from amaster with Sitt's reputation as a teacher at the Leip-zig Conservatoire. The student must carefully observethe accents on some slurred notes, which must be madeby slight but sharp forearm movements, while thewrist is kept loose. The " poco agitato " in the epi-sode after letter B must be worked up to about asecond a bar at the forte, going back to about a secondto a beat in the bar before the "a tempo," whichof course returns to the andante of two bars in fiveseconds. When you come to the high A, G sharp, Fsharp, marked

"largamente," you must use full bows,holding back the time just a trifle to give sufficient

emphasis, and starting with a full forte, make alittle diminuendo to the beginning of the next bar anda crescendo on the next half of it, which gives a fullforte to the next A again, and the same is repeated inthe following bars. The technical part of that whichfollows requires no comment except a reminder thatthe end harmonics are to be taken in the third positionon the A string, and the more gently you touch thestrings the clearer they will sound.


71/274

E. van der Straeterts " Gavotte and Musette" 5 1

1 5, E. van der Straeten's " Gavotte andMusette."

HPHE gavotte and musette are both very ancientdances, the former deriving its name from the

Gavots the inhabitants of the Pays de Gap in v theFrench Dauphine (see J. Pulver's " Dictionary of Musi-cal Terms," Cassell and Co.) dates back as far asthe sixteenth century. It was originally a simple rus-tic dance of two sections of four or eight bars of a gayand sprightly nature. In its oldest form it was usu-ally written in 2-4 time, but the accent only fell onevery second bar, so that in reality it was in commontime commencing on the half bar, and thus it waseventually written when it became a favourite dance atthe French court. The gavotte became so popular thatit found its way into the sonata da camera already inCorelli's time, and in the eighteenth century it was fre-quently used in the suite where it found its place be-tween the sarabande and gigue. In that place itgradually developed into a form of instrumental musicwhich was no longer connected with the actual dance.The same was the case with the musette, a dance whichderived its name from a kind of small bagpipe used


72/274

52 W'ell-Known Violin Solos,for playing the tune to it. The musette became afavourite with French composers of the time of LouisXIV to Louis XVI, and it retained the characteristicdrone bass from those bagpipes. It was likewise in-troduced into the suite generally as a contrastingmovement to the gavotte or the menuet. In the pre-sent instance it takes the form of a little solo piece,and has therefore been extended by the addition ofcontrasting periods. The key is F major and the timeaccording to the metronome J = 80 or about threebars in five seconds. The characteristic mood is gayand sprightly, a little wayward but always graceful.Start with an up bow in the lower half of the bowusing a thrown staccato on the first two notes and afairly long bow on the slur. Bring the bow back tothe middle on the following G, and keep it there forthe two quavers, bringing the bow to the point againon the first slur in the third bar, and proceed in thismanner as from the beginning on the following notes.The staccato notes in the fourth bar come on a downbow so as to get a down bow on the accented quaversin the fifth and sixth bars. The third quaver F in thesixth bar must be taken in the third position, returningto the second position on the G in the eighth bar. Nowfollows a bridge portion of four bars. The mf. A, Bflat, you take with short firm detached bows whereasyou must play them the second time (in the third bar)


73/274

E. van der Straeten's " Gavotte and Musette* 53with a light thrown or flying staccato in the middle ofthe bow as if gently answering the previous sternerphrase. After the pause on A we have a repetition ofthe first eight-bar subject with a full close on the tonic.This may be used as the end or final cadence when re-peating the gavotte after the musette in case the wholeof it appears too long in the repetition. We come nowto the middle section in D minor which consists ofnew matter. The second half of this phrase, markedif must be played with breadth and weightiness. Thesecond phrase repeats the first half of the former inthe higher octave while the second half brings a newmotive repeated a sixth lower, the two bars then beingrepeated in modified form. The whole sentence isfollowed by another sentence which is prolonged bya sequential development of the quaver figure whichmust be played very lightly with a spiccato bowingand a gradual crescendo working up to a forte in theeighth bar of this passage. A two-bar codetta bringsus to a repetition of the first subject (sixteen bars) towhich a coda of seven bars is added. The fingeringis so simple that it requires no further comment exceptthat in the second bar of the coda you take the Enatural in the third position, going back into the firston the last quaver C in the following. In the last barbefore the final chord take the first finger on the Dand the fourth will cover the G.


74/274

54 'Well-Known Violin Solos.A very good effect is to take the second finger on

the G, playing the final notes in the higher octave,omitting the first chord and either playing the final Fsingly or together with the lower sixth on the A string.The "Musette" in C major is marked "piu tran-quillo," metronome J =72, or about two bars in fiveseconds. It must be of a peaceful, flowing nature.Take the first D with the first finger on the A string,and again the first on G, on the same string. Thefollowing notes, including the high G, will then beunder your hand. The fingering for the rest of thissection requires no further comment. The next sectionis in the dominant (G) minor. The open G string ishere used as a " drone," and consequently the upperpart must be played on the D string, and when thedrone changes to the open D string, the upper part isplayed on the A string. As these upper parts neverexceed the fourth position over the open drone stringsthe fingering will offer no difficulty.The third note in the fourth bar should be C, not

B flat, viz., B flat, A, C, E flat. The figures of a trip-let followed by two semiquavers in the second andthird bars should start brightly with a mezzo forte,with a decrescendo from the third figure to the repeatof the first phrase with the open G. Wherever thedrone is used the bow must rest with an even balanceon both strings, so that the sound of neither predom-


75/274

E. van der Straeten's " Gavotte and Musette" 55inates. The melody part must stand out clearly whilethe drone is distinctly audible.At the end of the "Musette" we have a gradual

ritardando, after which a little bridge portion, begin-ning with a foftissitnOi commences with the tempoof the " Gavotte," with a gradual diminuendo andrallentando from the end of the second bar to the re-peat of the " Musette." The fingering of the firstfigure (third position) is already determined by thechord. In the next bar use the fourth finger on B andthe second on G, and the fourth again on E in thefollowing bar. The rest of the "Musette" requireslittle comment, except that you can, if you wish to,make a cut from the a tempo to the last repeat of thefirst subject, eight bars from the end. The fingeringfor the last bars is as follows : start the G in the thirdbar before the last chord in the second position, inwhich you play the two quaver figures, as the open Emust not be used here; then begin the spiccato tripletswith the open E string, playing the first two tripletsin the first, and the rest of the piece in the secondposition. The " Gavotte " is then repeated, finishingon the second pause, unless the executant prefers torepeat the whole " Gavotte."


76/274

56 WTell-Known Violin Solos.

16. Delphin Alard's " Valse Gracieuse."Twenty Progressive Pieces edited by Hans Wessely.

(Schott and Co).

A LARD was one of the greatest French violinists ofthe nineteenth century. He was not only agreat virtuoso but also the chief representative of themodern Paris school of violinists, and as a professorof the Paris Conservatoire he became the master ofmany celebrated violinists of the present day. Thegreatest among his pupils was no doubt Pablo de Sara-sate. The son-in-law of the famous Vuillaume, Alard be-came the fortunate possessor of one of the finest Stradviolins, described in Messrs. W. E. Hill and Sons' well-known book on Stradivari. He was a prolific com-poser for his instrument, more elegant than deep, andhis duos and studies remain great favourites for theirmelodiousness and suitability for concert purposes (see"Celebrated Violinists, Past and Present," StradLibrary). The "Valse Gracieuse" is taken from his"Pieces Caracteristiques en forme d'Etudes." It hasbeen provided with a suitable pianoforte accompani-ment by Mr. F. Corder, and revised and fingered bythat excellent professor of the Royal Academy ofMusic, Mr. Hans Wessely. In this form the "Valse"


77/274

Delphin Alard's " Valse Gradeuse" 57makes a most effective little solo piece for beginners,especially as it remains in the second position.The piece has the true swing of the waltz, and a

second to a bar is the average time throughout thepiece. As it does not leave the second position andthe fingering and bowing is so clearly indicated, thereremains nothing to be added to this part of its render-ing. It is in a joyous mood, as a waltz ought to be,but do not, in the exuberance of your spirits, lose sightof such delicate touches as are essential for an effec-tive performance. Commence piano, that is with a softand round, but not a thin tone. There is a great dif-ference between the two, though they be both pianos.Observe the crescendos and decrescendos carefully.After the dominant cadence in the sixteenth bar thefirst phrase of eight bars is repeated, while the secondphrase is modified, returning to the dominant. Thenfollows a middle section with a more incisive rhythmof two quavers, followed by a minim on the first beatof the bar. Do not forget that in such cases thequavers have to be played alternately at the heel andthe point of the bow, full bows being used for theminims. Notice the crescendo in the fourth bar of thissection, which reaches its climax on the B flat with notmore than a mezzo forte, to return gradually to a pianoat the repetition of the second subject. In the fourthbar after that it rises again, to a mezzo forte and re-mains so until another crescendo leads to a forte, which


78/274

58 Well-Known Violin Solos.marks the beginning of the bridge portion, with a dim-inuendo from the third bar, and a calando in the fifth(three crotchets) leading to the repetition of thefirst section. The last three bars of this bridge por-tion are unaccompanied, and therefore give the violin-ist full opportunity to show the quality and sonor-ousness of his tone. After a repetition of the first sub-ject we come to a coda, which is developed from thesecond subject by a rhythmical alteration, changingthe minim, followed by two quavers to a dottedcrotchet, followed by three quavers, which give it theappearance of a new feature

17. Giuseppe Contin's " Berceuse," Op. 10.(Edition Chanot.)

THE composer of this charming piece, the Italian,Count G. Contin de Castel Szeprio, was a trulyremarkable man. Brought up in the lap of luxuryas the scion of an ancient noble family, he de-veloped remarkable musical talent, and studied theviolin under Mayseder in Vienna, where his family re-sided, though their estates were in Istria. Of an ami-able and gentle nature, he became the friend of manynotable people of his time, especially in musical circles.Rossini, Meyerbeer, Berlioz, Liszt and many others he


79/274

Giuseppe ConMs "Berceuse" 59counted among his friends. He founded the LiceoBenedetto Marcello at Florence, and lent the use of itsconcert room to Wagner for the performance of hisearly symphony on the occasion of Wagner's seventiethbirthday. Misfortune overtook Contin, and about theeighties of last century he came to London to earn hisliving by that instrument which hitherto he had cul-tivated merely for art's sake. His talents soon pro-cured him the leadership in an important London or-chestra, which he held to the time of his death, aboutten years ago. He had already composed a good dealbefore he came to London, where he wrote a very effec-tive concerto for four, violins, and a number of solopieces, of which several were published in the "EditionChanot." The charming " Berceuse," which, as an in-timate friend of his, I often heard him play, forms partof these.

It is a cradle song in the true sense of the word.There is a meditative pensiveness in this piece, as ifa mother is conjuring up pictures from her own child-hood, and telling them to herself while she hushes herbaby to sleep.The melody is one of simple charm, and so com-pletely devoid of all technical difficulty that there is

little to be said about it. The great thing is warmthof feeling without sentimental exaggeration. Somemay like the use of a mute for the piece; although thatis not ineffective, I, personally, prefer it without.


80/2

Documents

notable violin solos