All playing articles – Page 2

Focus

There is no such thing as a piano 'accompanist'

2017-02-13T10:00:00Z

String players and pianists are uniting to end the perception of piano accompanists as lesser musicians. Elana Estrin delves into the emerging field of collaborative piano

Focus

5 views on playing the perfect harmonic

2015-11-15T17:00:00Z

Learning how to do harmonics properly is invaluable to a player’s left hand, bow arm and intonation – as the following tips from The Strad's archive demonstrate.

Article

Double bassist François Rabbath demonstrates his crab technique

2015-09-21T00:00:00Z

François Rabbath demonstrates his crab fingering system as an alternative to traditional shifting. The double bassist explains in greater detail how to use his left-hand pivot and crab techniques in The Strad’s October 2015 issue – download through The Strad app . Read Rabbath's thoughts ...

Focus

Left-hand pivots and the crab fingering system with bassist François Rabbath

2015-09-21T00:00:00Z

The French soloist and teacher advises on how to improve intonation and dexterity on the double bass. From the October 2015 issue 

Article

Violinist Jascha Heifetz imitates bad playing

2015-09-10T00:00:00Z

Violinist Jascha Heifezt gives a wincingly accurate impression of a bad performance he once heard of Vieuxtemps' Fourth Violin Concerto - proving not only his gifts as a performer, but also as a sharply observant comic. Read former Heifetz pupil Sherry Kloss's article: Studying the violin ...

Blogs

Cellist Lynn Harrell on the art of playing up high

2015-07-20T00:00:00Z

The American musician tells Pauline Harding that many tuning problems stem from a lack of exposure to the upper registers

Article

Violinist performs while suspended upside down from bridge

2015-03-12T00:00:00Z

Félix Analís performs his violin while suspended upside down from a bridge in Xalapa, Mexico. Subscribe  to The Strad or download  our digital edition as part of a 30-day free trial. To purchase single issues click here .

Blogs

Pizzicato technique is often neglected, says violinist Jennifer Pike

2014-09-29T00:00:00Z

There are many ways to vary sound and colour, but beware the perils of playing forte for sustained periods

Premium ❘ Feature

How to use bowing angle to vary articulation by cellist Colin Carr

2014-09-21T00:00:00Z

How to vary the attack and timbre of a note by modifying the angle of the bow to the string

Premium ❘ Debate

Personality is no longer encouraged in musical performance

2014-09-16T00:00:00Z

Not too long ago mass audiences and critics alike revered overtly personal performances, yet today superimposing one's personality over that of the composer is regarded as poor musicianship, writes Henry Roth

Blogs

Performing from memory has given our string quartet new life

2014-09-10T00:00:00Z

After twelve years together, playing and recording from memory were key to an exciting rebirth for the Chiara Quartet, writes cellist Gregory Beaver

Article

Great teachers on film: Bernard Greenhouse

2014-08-31T00:00:00Z

Do you know what happens when a person is frightened? He pulls back, and shrinks . This destroys the sense of beauty' Cellist Bernard Greenhouse gives a masterclass on the first movement of Haydn's Second Cello Concerto in Kronberg. Buy the August 2011 issue , ...

Article

Steven Isserlis on using the right amount of vibrato

2014-08-25T00:00:00Z

You do need vibrato to emphasise phrasing and emotion, but not as an automatic part of your sound' Cellist Steven Isserlis puts former BBC Young Musician of the Year winner Guy Johnston through his paces in Rachmaninov's Cello Sonata at the International Musicians' Seminar Prussia Cove, and ...

Blogs

12 words of wisdom on practice and performance by Burton Kaplan

2014-08-20T00:00:00Z

The Manhattan School of Music pedagogue offered the following guidance to violinist Ariane Todes when she attended his Magic Mountain Music Farm Practice Marathon Retreat in upstate New York this summer

Article

Cellist David Finckel on smooth bow changes

2014-08-13T00:00:00Z

'Dorothy DeLay said, 'I never saw a bow change that I couldn't hear'. And she's right.' Cellist David Finckel talks about how to achieve smooth and fluid bow changes. Read The Strad's 6 tips for smooth bow changes and David Finckel's 10 ...

Blogs

Playing with less emotion can create more beautiful music

2014-07-29T00:00:00Z

Putting in more effort does not necessarily mean greater improvement, writes violin professor and soloist Andrej Bielow

Blogs

5 pieces of advice for playing Bach by violinist Lisa Batiashvili

2014-07-24T00:00:00Z

The artist shares her ideas about performing works of the great Baroque composer

Article

Paul Tortelier gives masterclass on Elgar's Cello Concerto

2014-07-17T00:00:00Z

French cellist Paul Tortelier gives a televised masterclass on Elgar's Cello Concerto in 1974. Subscribe to The Strad or download our digital edition as part of a 30-day free trial. To purchase single issues click here .

Article

Cellist David Finckel on vibrato

2014-07-16T00:00:00Z

Cellist David Finckel introduces the subject of vibrato as part of a series of video demonstrations on cello technique. Vibrato, he says, 'connects the listener to the player's innermost feelings about the music. It should be something that reinforces the music, not something that is painted ...

Focus

Teaching a stringed instrument you have never played before

2014-06-12T00:00:00Z

What do you do if you're asked to teach a stringed instrument that isn't the one you play? ‘Don't panic!' That's the first rule, according to the experts that Ariane Todes asked