50 I AMERICAN
A teacher's choice of method book will also affect the while simultaneously introducing the bow, "because the
order in which skills are taught. Some methods begin by
using pizzicato; others begin with the bow Some educa-
tors teach by rote at first and don't use a method book.
Others prefer to draw from several books to create their
own style of teaching.
Bob Gillespie, co-author of Essential Elements and pro-
fessor of music at Ohio State University, advocates teach-
ing beginning instrument position/left-hand skills and
bowing skills separately because they are very complex,
different skills that require sophisticated physical coordi-
1
nation to combine the two. Once separate skills of hold-
ing the instrument and bow-hand shape are mastered,
then fingered pitches are learned. According to Gillespie,
"Research results suggest that the more the students' aural
skills are developed, the easier it is for them to combine
both hands while playing. This is an area of research
called ear-to-hand coordination. Therefore, while students
are learning to develop independent hand skills they
should also be developing aural skills. That is why the lis-
tening skill echo exercises are included in Essential
Elements, both in the teacher manuals and the student
books."
Andrew Dabczynksi, co-author of String Explorer and
professor of music at the University of Utah, begins vio-
lin students in banjo position.i His rationale for doing so
is to set the students' left-hand block and to enable stu-
dents to see the instrument. Dabczynski then moves to
some basic pizzicato exercises in regular playing position,
students are likely to pick it up anyway at home, regardless
of whether or not I direct them to do so!" Dabczynski
further explains, "I start with the basic bow hold at the
balance point of the bow (as illustrated in String E:>..plorer).
Early instruction toggles between pizzicato and this bow
hold at the balance point."
The String Builder method by Samuel Applebaum
3
begins students by playing with the bow. As taken from
Frank W Hill's article, "Developing a Good Bow Arm in
Class Teaching," reprinted from the School Musician,
Applebaum writes, ''At the very first lesson, we teach the
youngster how to hold the bow correctly?" And in subse-
quent lessons, much emphasis is placed on the right
thumb placement while drawing the bow across the string.
When dealing with school groups, quite frequently the
child's instrument is the incorrect size because he or she is
using one already owned by the family. Incorrect instru-
ment size will affect the child's total positioning in all
aspects, such as posture, holding the violin, bowing, and
placement of the left-hand fingers. The child's ownership
of the violin will allow for home practice, which some
educators view as being detrimental, because bad habits
may form when not under the educator's supervision. In
Teaching Stringed Instruments in Classes, Elizabeth Green
states that "we earnestly advise no home practice until
after these first ten lessons are completed in the super-
vised classes/" When instruments are provided for the
class and remain at school, then home practice will not
occur. Home practice reinforces techniques and concepts
learned in class and provides an opportunity for parental
involvement and support. At the same time, home prac-
tice may cause frustration when the violin is in need of
tuning and the child has not yet mastered this skill.
The age of the students and size of the group lessons
must be taken into consideration because more time may
be spent on individual issues when the classes are small
and allow a good student-teacher ratio. When students are
young, concentration on plucking and the left hand may
require patience on the teacher's part during the refine-
ment of small-motor skills. In a multi-age situation, the
younger students may add a pizzicato accompaniment
while older students bow the melody.
Scheduling and time restrictions are major contribut-
ing factors as to which route of teaching is preferred.
According to Elizabeth Green, "Two or more classes a
week are imperative in beginning work." Time restraints in
public schools often do not allow for the luxury of meet-
ing more than once a week. If lessons occur once a week
for 30 minutes with a large number of students, then the
music educator is forced to take the shortest route to cul-
tivate a pleasing sound for the upcoming December con-
cert. The quickest point from the very first lesson to the
first performance is necessary without sacrificing proper
techniques. If a less-pressured schedule exists-such as
lessons occurring twice a week for 40 minutes with a small
number of students, and the winter concert taking place
in January-then the best teaching method may be one
that allows more time on both pizzicato and arco tech-
nique. Time may be used solely on developing the proper
technique of holding the violin. In separate lessons, bow
hold and strokes may be learned while playing bow games
with no contact between the violin and bow:
Personally, I begin my second grade violin class at the
Conners/Emerson School in Bar Harbor, Maine, using
the bow: In order for the child to draw the bow parallel to
the bridge, an egg carton is used, as illustrated in the pho-
tos. The upside-down egg carton is held similarly to a vio-
lin, and the upside-down bow is placed in the farthest
away "valley" and drawn through, using the whole bow
and making certain the bow stays in the valley. Another
teaching technique to ensure a proper left-wrist position is
to have the student pretend to pick an apple and then
look at it, resulting in the proper left-arm violin position.
I introduce pizzicato as motivation in January, after
the winter concert excitement is over. Either pizzicato or
arco may be used for motivational purposes when the
novelty of the winter concert has worn off. At that point,
introducing a new way of playing the violin may spark the
student's interest.
In an article titled "The Elementary and Junior High
School Orchestra and String Program," Robert Klotrnan
states, "The most effective means of securing variety and
maintaining interest on repeated material in the early
weeks is to vary the bowing and utilize the various parts
of the bow: Slurs may be introduced early by practicing
the crossing of open strings with various combinations of
two and three on a bow:,,6 Klotrnan advises music educa-
tors to employ imagination and ingenuity to maintain the
students' interest for learning the violin. Above all, as long
as an educator is enthusiastic about his or her approach,
either way produces the same end result though the paths
may differ.
Young musicians and the standard bred horses used in
harness racing have much in common. Both are deep
wells of untapped raw talent. A colt, or a student, wants
to stretch his young legs and run, either literally or
metaphorically. He wants to please his trainer. Motivated
by a natural desire to achieve, the student looks to the
teacher for technique.
The responsibility falls to the teacher/ trainer to har-
ness and nurture that talent and focus it upon an end
result. The teacher must be fully prepared and enthusiastic
in his or her approach to teaching strings. Hesitation and
self-doubt will undermine the most important asset in this
pursuit: enthusiasm. Self-confidence serves to motivate
those who wish to learn. Combining student motivation
and educator enthusiasm creates a mixture that will pro-
duce positive results. With proper training, a foundation
that will last a lifetime is established. (j)
Resources
1. Michael Allen, Robert Gillespie, and Pamela Tellejohn Hayes, Essential Elementsfor
Strings (Milwaukee: Hal Leonard Corp., 2000).
2. Andrew Dabczynski, Richard Meyer, and Bob Phillips. StringExplorer(Van Nul'S,
Calif.: Alfred Publishing Co., 2000).
3. Samuel Applebaum, Stting Builder (Miami: Belwin I'vlills/Warner Bros., 1988).
4. Frank W Hill, "Developing a Good Bow Arm in Class Teaching," in Building Better
Sltingsand Orchestra, ed. by Samuel Applebaum, 5th ed. (Miami: Belwin Mills Publishing Co.,
1965): 7.
5. Elizabeth A.H. Green, Teaching Stringed Instruments in Classes (Fairfax, Va.: American
String Teachers Association, 1999): 3.
6. Robert H. Klarman, "The Elementary and Junior High School Orchestra and
String Program" in Building BetterStrings and Orchestra, ed. by Samuel Applebaum, 5th ed.
(Miami: Belwin Mills Publishing Co., 1965): 3.
Rebecca Edmondson teaches orchestra,
band, vocal, and general music to stu-
dents at the Conners/Emerson School in
Bar Harbor, Maine, and is an active per-
former of Celtic, classical, and sacred
music, She received her B.S, from
Indiana University of Pennsylvania and
her M.M.E. from the University of Maine.
FEBRUARY 2005 I AMERICAN STRING TEACHER I 53