All Focus articles – Page 3
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Focus8 ways to vary your vibrato
Tips from The Strad’s archive for varying vibrato speed, width, pressure and direction to produce an infinite range of colour contrasts
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12 ways to encourage children to practise
Finding the right level of involvement in a child’s instrumental practice can be a tricky balancing act. Cellist and pedagogue Oliver Gledhill offers some strategic guidance
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Why do so many orchestras lag behind the beat?
Even under the best conductors and in the finest orchestras, players tend to drag behind the baton. Evan Johnson looks at the reasons for this universal phenomenon
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Baltimore Musicians postpone season-opening concerts as they continue strike
The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s season-opening concerts are postponed amid continued strike action
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'Every bow movement should be calculated' - Aaron Rosand
The American maestro discusses the need for relaxation and finesse for good tone production in a 2007 article for The Strad
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5 views on teaching and performance from William Pleeth
The late British cellist and teacher of Jacqueline du Pré spoke to The Strad in June 1996 at the age of 80
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Why record the music of Goya’s Madrid?
On the heels of ‘Heritage’, the Cuarteto Quiroga’s latest CD release, Cibrán Sierra, violinist with the ensemble, explains why they decided to delve into the music of 18th century Madrid
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Players of tomorrow: Anna Agafia Egholm
Following her win at the Tibor Varga Competition, the 23-year-old Danish violinist talks about her background, ice-skating, David Attenborough and practising with purpose
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Thomas Demenga on studying with Grimmer, Janigro, Rose and Rostropovich
The Swiss cellist compares himself to a quattro stagioni pizza of the combined influence of his teachers. From September 2008
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Players of tomorrow: Johan Dalene
The 18-year-old BBC New Generation Artist and winner of the 2019 Carl Nielsen International Violin Competition talks about his musical background, his idols and more
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Conductor Daniel Harding to take sabbatical to fly planes
The British conductor is to take a break from conducting and become a commercial pilot for Air France
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Lisa Jacobs’s top 5 practice tips
To tie in with the release of her Nielsen CD, the Dutch violinist shares her insight into getting the most out of your practice
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Can bowing-wrist suppleness improve intonation?
John Krakenberger has made a number of interesting connections between good tuning and loosening the bowing wrist in his teaching
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Stringtelligence by Thomastik-Infeld: vibrating string length and string tension
These factors can seem a bit too technical or just matter of preference, but it is definitely worth understanding what to look and listen out for
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10 tips for performing from memory
Guidance from The Strad’s archive from how to incorporate memorisation into your practice, what the benefits might be – and when not to bother
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10 views on dynamics for bowed strings
Advice on how to produce effective dynamic contrasts from 120 years of The Strad
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Michael Barenboim’s top 5 practice tips
The concertmaster of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra shares his insights into the art of practising the violin
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Alan Beavitt: how I became a violin-maker on a remote Scottish peninsula
The luthier shares his experience of living and working in Scorraig, a remote peninsula in the north-west Scottish highlands, recently featured in the news
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From the Archive: Why do so many musicians have long hair?
Whether as a mark of distinction or genius, the trend is embodied by Eugène Ysaÿe, according to The Strad's June 1897 issue
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Overcoming our addiction to tropical hardwoods: the latest alternatives
As ebony and rosewood become endangered, the likes of spruce, maple and boxwood are being scientifically modified to offer luthiers alternatives. Tom Stewart explores the brave new world of sustainable fittings
