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Violin Worship Song: How Deep the Father’s Love
Here is a new arrangement for violin and piano of the worship song How Deep the Father’s Love for Us, by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend. And when you purchase this violin arrangement you get both the intermediate violin part as well as an advanced violin part. The piano accompaniment can be played with both violin parts. So, depending on the level of the player you can choose either the intermediate or advanced level solo part. Or as the player develops, they can incorporate the harder techniques and play the advanced level. The different techniques required for each level are listed below each sample. Overall the hardest aspect for this arrangement in either of the levels is…
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Great Composers Note Reading Worksheet – Handel
Use this great composers note reading worksheet about George Frideric Handel with your beginners. The notes covered are only the A string notes. So you can download the note reading worksheet in treble clef or alto clef. Students will identify the note name and use the letter to fill in the blanks to complete the word. Then, they can read the story about Handel. Here is a great way to practice reading note names away from the instrument and learn about a great composer of violin music. You can also check out our other composer note reading worksheets here. Violin Download here Viola Download here Interested in learning more about Handel? Here are some audio books and audio stories that tell…
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Yoga App for Musicians
There’s a new yoga app for musicians! We spend a lot of time using small muscles with repetitive motions. Musicians like athletes need to stretch and care for their bodies. I know I am guilty of just picking up my violin and playing. Either I’m running late or just want to jump right in without warming up my muscles. My high school orchestra director used to tell us that we would get to an age where stretching and warming up was necessary. I think I’m there! I’ve recently started attending a yoga class at our local YMCA. First I want to say, yoga isn’t easy. It might look easy, but…
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Be A Composer Worksheet
Give your beginning students a chance to be a composer with this worksheet! To strengthen reading notes for the kinesthetic learner without the instrument we can have them write. Even if it’s not the student’s primary learning style, I have found that having them write music solidifies their understanding of what is on the page. We all have a learning style, whether it is visual, kinesthetic or aural. One of these ways that we absorb information more quickly than other methods. When teaching note reading, we rely heavily on the visual aspect. And rightly so, we are learning to read notes. The other learning styles are present especially as we play (kinesthetic, aural)…
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Listen
“Above all, listen.” Here at the beginning of another year of teaching, I’m rereading Dr. Suzuki’s book Nurtured by Love. I’ve been reminded of the value of each child. Also, I was again challenged to listen carefully. It’s one of the ways we can communicate care. Stephen Covey a modern time management coach says it this way, “Seek to understand, then to be understood.” –Stephen Covey As we begin a new year of teaching, may we strive to be good listeners, and to encourage our students to listen.
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Romance by Anton Stamitz
About Anton Stamitz Today’s post is the middle movement from a violin concerto, Romance by Anton Stamitz. It seems that a music gene ran in the Stamitz family. Violin virtuoso, Johann Stamitz, performed and composed at the dawning of the Classical period. “It is difficult to overestimate Stamitz’s influence” on the both the sonata form and the Minuet and Trio movement he added to the Classical symphony [1]. We also see his influence in his two sons Carl and Anton who followed in his footsteps. Both boys were violinist and composers. Johann Stamitz died in 1757 when Carl was 11 years old and Anton was only 7 years old. Found on…
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Violin Solo of The Star Spangled Banner
Here is an arrangement of the United States national anthem, The Star Spangled Banner for solo violin. This violin solo is arranged for the late intermediate or advanced student. The technique needed in the left hand for the double-stop and triple stops would place this at a Level 6. The player will need to be comfortable playing in first and third positions as this arrangement uses double stops to provide the harmony. Opportunities to Perform Use this violin solo of “The Star Spangled Banner” to bring your string program or studio attention at events where the national anthem is needed. There are school and community sporting events, plays and productions, school flag raising ceremonies are all occasions…
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Great Composers Note Reading Worksheet – Bach
Here is a great composers note reading worksheet on Bach for beginning violinists. I was listening to Beyond the Music podcast a couple weeks ago and their guest, Clair Allen, mentioned teaching her students about the composers of the pieces they are learning. Christine and Abigail mentioned growing up listening to cassette tapes of stories of great composers., and suddenly, it took me back to my own cassette tape collection. I loved these stories and listened to them over and over and over. The Music Masters Series – Johann Sebastian Bach So, this gave me the idea of creating a note reading worksheet. The notes covered are only the A string…
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Violin Teaching Podcasts
Looking for some teaching tips or ideas as the school year kicks off? These podcasts are filled with conversations that get your creative juices flowing.
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Parts of the Violin
One of the activities I do at the very first lesson is teach the parts of the violin or viola. Both the student and I sit on the floor and we place their violin on the floor in between us. I will point to the violin and beginning on the same pitch as open A, I’ll sing, “Here is the violin.” The student then points and sings the same thing. Then moving up a step to B, I’ll sing, “Here is the scroll.” Going through all the parts of the violin. When the pitch gets up to the next A octave, I will then step the pitch back down until…
