All Left Hand articles
-
Focus‘Take it, make it work and don’t hurt yourself’ - tips for small framed violists
Viola professor at Juilliard and Curtis Institute of Music Hsin-Yun Huang offers practical tips for petite musicians and teachers to avoid unnecessary pain and over-exertion
-
Focus
Trills and embellishments: exercises from Wilhelmj and Brown’s A Modern School for Violin
Violist Misha Galaganov recommends exercises from August Wilhelmj and James Brown’s out-of-print A Modern School for Violin, to accompany his Technique article in the October 2021 issue
-
Focus
3 simple trill exercises for players and teachers
Professor of viola and chair of strings at Texas Christian University Misha Galaganov offers technical advice on how to play and teach trills
-
Premium ❘ Feature
Technique: Trills and embellishments
How to develop finger strength and control for even, well-articulated ornaments
-
Focus
Left-hand agility in Dont Etude op.35 no.8
In this extract from the May 1999 issue, violinist Zakhar Bron shares tips on hand shape and intonation when playing thirds in Dont Etude op.35 no.8
-
Premium ❘ Feature
Violin Masterclass: Co-ordination and Trilling in Dont's Etude op.35 no.6
In the first of two articles, violin teacher Zakhar Bron provides tips for practising the op.35 no.6 etude by Dont
-
Focus
5 ways to build fourth finger strength
Tips from The Strad’s archive on avoiding a weak, collapsing left-hand little finger
-
Feature
6 ways to improve left-hand flexibility
Tips from The Strad’s archive on increasing suppleness of movement and reducing tension
-
Premium ❘ Feature
Technique: Cello warm-ups - the left-hand
Exercises and advice to help string players develop a left hand that is strong, balanced and agile
-
Focus
Violinist Elena Urioste on why a thorough warm-up regimen is a necessity for good practice
The US violinist explains why warming up is an essential part of a day's practice
-
Focus
How I warm up: violist Maxim Rysanov
The Russian-born viola player gives an insight into his detailed warm-up regimen
-
Article
Practising scales within a harmonic context can improve intonation
Chief conductor and Sydney Conservatorium associate viola professor Roger Benedict presents his scale system
-
Focus
7 tips for playing fast passages for string players
Guidance from The Strad’s archive on increasing left-hand finger speed and minimising tension
-
Premium ❘ Article
Ask the Teacher - Grigory Kalinovsky
The New York-based violin pedagogue explains why he advocates Galamian scales and a few sprints for students warming up
-
Focus
Technique: double bassist Alex Henery gives tips on controlling left-hand finger pressure
How to place down, lift and move your fingers in a way that minimises fatigue, by Alex Henery, principal double bassist of the Sydney Symphony and head of double bass studies at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music
-
Focus
How I interpret Bach: Tomás Cotik on Ornaments, Trills and Appoggiaturas
Ahead of his 2020 album release of Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas, the violinist continues his blog series, in which he discusses the contradictions between the opposing trends and traditions in Bach interpretation, and his personal solutions to them
-
Video
The Double Bass with Thomas Martin: Left Hand Ep 1, Position and Fingering Pt 1
In this series of episodes Thomas Martin takes a look at left hand technique, addressing a number of issues commonly experienced by players. This first episode covers the basics of positioning the left hand on the double bass in order to stop the string.
-
Premium ❘ Feature
How to develop left-hand finger strength
Up and down movement is the basis of left-hand technique and many pedagogues have invented fiendish exercises to improve it. Rok Klopčič takes a look at some of them
-
Premium ❘ Feature
Technique: chords
How to tackle multi-stopped passages with more confidence, musicality and alacrity with Pavel Berman, professor of violin at the Lugano Conservatoire in Switzerland, and Academy of Perosi in Biella, Italy
-
Premium ❘ Feature
Technique: left-hand finger independence
How to build strength and flexibiltiy for a truly agile left hand with Adriana Larosa Ransom, profesor of cello and string project director at Illinois State University, US
