Have you ever been profoundly disappointed by a piece of advice or a bit of feedback? Not because it was critical, but because it made no sense to you at the time? If so, you need to read about my twenty-year relationship with Shlomo Mintz. Summer camp Caprices I’ve got a violist friend who I …
My violin hero told me to drink wine, but I heard “practice scales” Read More »
To download this arrangement as a PDF, scroll down to just above the video… During this time of trouble, hordes of unaccompanied pieces for every instrument have crawled out from under their hiding places as musicians have scrambled to find something, anything, to play by themselves! Even etudes have enjoyed a renaissance, something that warms …
Wieniawski “Alla Saltarella” arranged for 2 violins Read More »
It wasn’t so long ago, the pre-mobile-phone era. Back then, you prayed that your plans would come off without a hitch. And when a hitch found you, you had to find a pay phone. As I flew through Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station on the first day of Curtis’ 1996-7 school year, I hoped it wouldn’t …
From Kentucky to Curtis: first lesson with my violin “Yoda” Read More »
Here’s a secret they don’t tell you about joining a professional orchestra: over the years, your colleagues get younger and the jokes get funnier. When you start out as a bright-eyed 20-something, you cast a wary eye at all the gray-hairs in the locker room and groan at their one-liners, most of which you’d swear …
Master the ricochet stroke with the Way of the Fist Read More »
I have an ambivalent relationship with the metronome. We’ve had enough difficulties over the years that we eventually had to set some ground rules. Still, the metronome (or its modern cousin, the smartphone app) is never far from my hand in the practice room. It’s one of the most important tools in my kit, in …
Speed up Paganini’s Moto Perpetuo with Parallel Tracks Read More »
Sometimes you know without a doubt that your hands are out of sync on the violin. Other times, things seem just a bit… unclean. You’ll notice it most in fast passages with all separate bows, and particularly when those passages are strongly on the string. That’s because when you play quietly, or off the string, …