Book One purse for Strings A STRING CLASS METHOD (for Class or Individual Instruction) IN THREE BOOKS BY SAMUEL APPLEBAUM Published for VIOLIN BASS VIOLA PIANO ACC. CELLO ‘TEACHER'S MANUAL ACCOMPANIMENT CDS AND CASSETTES NOW AVAILABLEVIOLA THE BELWIN STRING BUILDER Book One by Samuel Applebaum FOREWORD. ‘The Belwin String Builder is a string class Method in which the Violin, Viola, Cello and Bass play together throughout. Each book, however, is a complete unit and may be used separately for class or individual instruction. In this Method, the quarter note approach is adopted not only because it is the unit of the beat, but because it encourages freedom of the bow arm at the outset. Starting from No. 15, the open string melodies and those that introduce the first finger serve as an accompaniment to well-known folk songs which are written for the piano. This provides musical purpose to the melodies and stimulates rhythmic interest. A small “p” after the number indicates that there is a piano part for that melody. After the first finger, F* and C* are introduced. This has proven to be most practicable from the standpoint of tonality and left hand finger placement. From this point on, the student plays the actual melodies. However, on Page 20, F natural and C natural are presented to develop intonation and to more readily prepare the pupil for the school orchestra. ‘The material in this book is realistically graded so that only a minimum of explanatory material is required. Each melody is interesting and will provide the basis for a fine left hand technic and bow arm. TECHNICAL PROGRESSION Page Picture Of The Viola and The Bow aa The Two High Strings 3 ‘The Two Lower Strings 4 ‘The Open Strings With Half Notes ..0..000.00000..0000 Boast ce 5 Whole Notes ceeeeee cee 6 7 8 9 More Melodies With Open Strings... A New Tone—The First Finger On The D String ..,... More Melodies With The First Finger On The D String : A New Tone—The First Finger On The A String je 10) A Higher Tone—The Second Finger On The D String . i A Higher Tone On The A String—The Second Finger ...... feeee 12 More Melodies With The First and Second Fingers ceeeeee 13 ‘The Third Finger On The D String .......... — : 4 The Third Finger On The A String ....... 15 Beautiful Melodies With The First, Second and Third Fingers pedeaag 0) Playing Two Notes In The Same Bow Stroke re 17 A New Low Tone—The First Finger On The G String ceeenees 18 ‘The Second and Third Fingers On The G String .... : : 19 The Second Finger—When It Is Not Sharped : : 20 Playing Three Notes In The Same Bow Stroke : 21 Melodies That Are Repeated .... eee 22 ‘Melodies Stressing The Second and Third Fingers. 7 fe a3) ‘The Second Finger Develops Flexibility : 24 Playing Beautiful Melodies With Dynamics : 25 Strengthening The Fourth Finger—Left Hand Pizzicato . 26 We Are Now Ready To Use The Fourth Finger . cee 27 Melodies Using All The Fingers .... : 28 Building A Major Scale foe 29 Eighth Notes : 30 Eighth Notes Combined With Quarter Notes 31 ively Melodies With Eighth Notes : : 32The Viola and the Bow he To the Student: This Method Book is the basic text for the BELWIN COURSE FOR STRINGS which is the FIRST carefully planned complete curriculum for string development. To get the most enjoyment from your string instrument activities and to assure a good mastery of musical fundamentals, what you learn in the Method Book should be applied to the playing of Solos, Ensembles, and String Orchestra pieces as your skill increases. This course includes these Solos, Ensembles, and String Orchestra Pieces. On various pages in this Method Book, these supplementary projects are suggested in accord with your developing musical ability. It is strongly recommended that these numbers be prepared as the various pages are reached. Material Correlated with String Builder Book 1 Technic Book for Page 15 EARLY ETUDES FOR STRINGS ...... starting on Page 10 Solos 1, SERENADE y Chates De Berior Program Book 2. TO A WILD ROSE. « seeeeeeeeees fOr Page 21 7 ee i eeaasoscan FIRST PROGRAM FOR STRINGS ..... starting on Page 12 3. GRANDFATHER'S CLOCK .........- for Page 90 Ensemble Book by Henry C. Work DUETS FOR STRINGS .......+++4 starting on Page 15, (© 1960 (Renewed 1988) BELWIN-MILLS PUBLISHING CORP. All Rights Administered by WARNER BROS, PUBLICATIONS U.S INC. ‘All Righs Reserved incinding Public Performance for PronitTHE TWO HIGH STRINGS Draw the bow straight out without touching two strings. Mm -means down-bow. Start playing at the frog or the bottom of the bow. y = means up-bow. Start playing at the tip. The D String ‘These are quarter notes. Each note receives one count. o v Count 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 Count 1 2 3 4 The A String The A is the highest string. Lower your right arm close to the body. fn v The D and A StringsTHE TWO LOWER STRINGS The G String 4 Three Strings High arm a bit lower still lower 5 = 5 Starting on A nv The C String The C is the lowest string. Raise your right arm. n 6 Each String Twice nov A 1 The Other Way n E.L. 1545THE OPEN STRINGS with HALF NOTES ‘These are half notes (J 4). Each note receives two counts. Move the how a bit slower for the half notes. ‘These numbers are called the 4 - The top number tells us there are 4 counts to each measure. ‘Time Signature 4 ~ The bottom number tells us a quarter note receives one count. ‘The bars |_| divide the staff into measures. ‘The D String mov A Count 12 34 The A String ‘The G String ‘The C String nh Playing with Our Teacher A down or up-bow is placed in the middle of each line to serve as a starting or stopping measure. mov A ‘Teacher Play Ball! o OoWHOLE NOTES (0) Each whole note receives 4 counts. Move the bow slowly. i A double bar ends the piece 1 Two Halves and a Whole ‘Move the bow a bit faster for the half notes. n i Count 1234 1234 Our Theme Song - Lightly Row A y F GERMAN FOLK SONG 13 ‘Teacher One Long and Four Shorts Move the bow faster for the quarter notes. hn a 4 Count 1234 1234 Four Shorts and One Long n nm THE WHOLE REST (on the 4th line) $= It is called a rest because we do not play. The whole rest receives 4 counts. Gaily the Troubadour Leave the bow on the string during the rest. A v A THOMAS H. BAYLY v 15°: Count 1234 1234 Mary Had a n v TRADITIONAL E.,.1545MORE MELODIES with OPEN STRINGS The Whistle n 5 NURSERY RHYME ie Pierrot n 7 FRENCH FOLK SONG 18° THE HALF REST (on the 3rd line) == The half rest receives 2 counts. Bobbie Shafto v n NURSERY RHYME 19° Baa! Baa! Black Sheep A v A NURSERY RHYME Hot Cross Buns 5 a NURSERY RHYME LIFTING the BOW Lift the bow when you see the two slanted lines (//). Who is Thumbkin? “in FRENCH DANCE SONG 2° Merrily We Roll Along v TRADITIONAL 23° Old King Cole n Fi TRADITIONAL mP In 2p, we lift the bow at the end of the phrase in order to start down-bow. In 24p, we lift the bow because the phrase ends on an up-bow approaching the frog. E.L.1545nut about 11/2 or 13/4 inches 1st finger open D E string —Ist finger 3 open string Istfinger n A NEW TONE The First Finger on the D String (It is called £) It sounds a whole step higher than the open D string. Place the Ast finger about 1 1/2 or 1 3/4 inches from the nut depending upon the size of the Viola. ‘Memorize the sound of the open D and the Ist finger. In Space F, MAZAS Our Theme Song n GERMAN FOLK SONG Etude A Funny Thing A ° ° The First Finger Game on D 26 Teacher n n 27° ° 1 28 fA ot ° 4 n 2° TRADITIONAL nMORE MELODIES with the FIRST FINGER on the D STRING Giant Steps n n 30 A Falling Star n : no t The Crunchy Cookies n n Student 31 fn Teacher Our First Stunt Keeping a finger down while you play another open string. n n 32 1 io 1 e Keep the 1st finger down on D until the end of this line. Playful Puppies n f 33 t 1 1 7 Bobbie Shafto Unser aavae n 34P 19 1 Skip to My Lou TRADITIONAL 5 at 35° = E.L.1545A NEW TONE The First Finger on the A String (It is called B) It sounds a whole step higher than the open string. Place the 1st finger about 1 1/2 or 1 3/4 inches from the nut depending upon the size of the Viola. Memorize the sound of the open A and the Ist finger. A B B n Zl A a n 36 The Tired Camel n v F, MAZAS 2 student © 4 Teacher Our Theme Song (on the A string) n fn fn GERMAN FOLK SONG 38° 7 T The First Finger Game on A a A n TRADITIONAL 39° Baa! Baa! Black Sheep n NURSERY RHYME 40° Now It's Easy 0 y n The class may now start the “Early Etudes For Strings’ by Samuel Applebaum. These interesting etudes with piano accompaniment will help to develop left-hand technic and the bow arm. E.L.1545WL A HIGHER TONE or 13/4 inches The Second Finger on the D String about 11/2 | (It is called Fi) aboyt 11/2 inches! When there is a sharp before F, it is called Fh F sharp is a whole step from the Ist finger E. Place the 2nd finger about a 11/2 inches from the 1st finger. When you play the 2nd finger —— the Ist must remain on the string. — The F# Finger Game A TRADITIONAL 43° At a Party When a note is sharped it remains sharped throughout the measure. no 44 Mary Had a Little Lamb Place the Ast finger down before you start. A v TRADITIONAL 45° 1 2 22 Skipping from the Open String to the 2nd Finger Place the 1st finger down with the 2nd finger. Skip a Step n Oo F. WOHLFAHRT 46 Cock-a-Doodle-Doo! i Teacher n NURSERY RHYME 41° o 2 p= ROTE PROJECT: The class may now learn to play the open strings in various rhythms by rote - quarter notes, eighths, and triplets. Hum or sing the rhythms before playing. Play above the middle, starting about two inches below the middle of the bow. Use only the lower arm from the elbow. E.L.1545,A HIGHER TONE on the A STRING The Second Finger on A (It is called CB) When there is a sharp before C it is called C sharp. C sharp is a whole step from the Ist finger B. Place the 2nd finger about 11/2 inches from the Ist finger. When you play the 2nd finger the Ist must remain on the string. Second in Line FRENCH FOLK SONG fn The C# Finger Game n TRADITIONAL 50° The Finger Mixer n n 5 28 oF The Family Gathering rR 52 A Happy Firefly n RUSSIAN DANCE 53° ‘The class will now become a string orchestra Applebaum. This is a collection of twenty-e concerts and assembly programs. Start the “First Program For Strings” by Samuel cht well known string orchestra pieces to be used for E.L.1545MORE MELODIES with the FIRST and SECOND FINGERS Theme (New World Symphony) a A A, DVORAK 22 2 20 Merrily We Roll Along 7 ‘i ‘TRADITIONAL 55° Gaily the Troubadour fn n TRADITIONAL Pp 56 2 A Chinese Garden F, WOHLFAHRT Student 57 ‘Teacher A Finger Mixer v 58 A String Mixer Au Claire de la Lune FRENCH FOLK SONG Aj Z 59°14 The Third Finger on the D String (It is called G) whole step The 3rd finger G is a half-step from the 2nd finger Ff Place the 8rd finger quite close to the 2nd finger. When this mark \ connects two notes, it is a reminder that they are a half-step apart. half step { tote step {| { D ‘The 1st and 2nd fingers must remainon the string when you play the 3rd finger. Melody on D E ee n Jumping Beans n n 6 ot 23 o Off to School Leave a steht pause at each comma (9) with the bow remaining on the string. wont rARRT 2 62 ‘Teacher GERMAN FOLK SONG ROTE PROJECT: This tetrachord or £% finger pattern with the 2nd and 3rd fingers ahalf step apart may now be played on all strings in various rhythms. Hum or sing this pattern before playing. E.L.154515 The Third Finger on the A String (It is called D) The Srd finger D is a half-step from the 2nd finger Ot. Place the 3rd finger quite close to the 2nd finger. AB oD Be te Fi T 2 9 Melody on A fF The Space Ship Teacher The Pet Shop ere: n 3 The Cuckoo A n O38 32 ° Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star . OLD FRENCH SONG o a n Each student may now play duets with another Violin or with a Viola, Cello, or Bass. In “Duets For Strings”” by Samuel Applebaum we have 26 lovely duets. Each student may now play his first Viola Solo with piano accompaniment for demonstration programs. Itis called “Serenade” by Charles De Beriot.16 BEAUTIFUL MELODIES with the FIRST, SECOND and THIRD FINGERS Now We Will Dance n on GERMAN DANCE : 69? o 2 aa aeeI 3 London Bridge is Falling Down 1 (ON, n ~~ v TRADITIONAL 70” 3 oy ° 7 o Old MacDonald Had a Farm , TRADITIONAL mn? A Thanksgiving Song ia n ENGLISH FOLK SONG An Octave Apart When two notes have the same name and are eight notes apart, they are called an octave. n n 2B Sea Shells a A F, WOHLFAHRT ‘Teacher ROTE PROJECT: The pupils may now learn the D Major scale. The class should hum or sing the scale before playing. ELL. 154517 PLAYING TWO NOTES in the SAME BOW STROKE When a curved line (—) connects two notes that are alike, it is called a tie. Both notes are played in the same bow stroke and counted as one note. The Tie a> 15 We play the same melody again. The dot after the half note adds one half of its value. The dotted half note will now receive three counts. Both lines will sound the same, The Same Melody n te- oe When a curved line connects two or more notes that are different, it is called a slur. Play these notes in the same bow stroke. The Slur Smooth Sailing F, WOHLFAHRT Note chen ere = —< eN 1 ‘Teacher Long, Long Ago THOMAS H. BAYLY A a <> 1 Jingle Bells n J, PIERPONT mn “7 B11A NEW LOW TONE The First Finger on the G String (It is called A) It sounds a whole step higher than the open G string. open G string det finger THE QUARTER REST This is a quarter rest (). It receives one count. n fo 81 ° 12 iene Thoughts of Christmas TRADITIONAL n z on 82° Good Morning! Orn tans A a 8319 The Second Finger on the G String (it is called B) lwhole wef whole step It is a whole step from the Ist finger A. half~step; The Tap Dancer The top 3 means that there are 3 counts to each measure. A a v n fn 85 The Third Finger on the G String {it is called C) It is a half-step from the 2nd finger B. Place the 3rd finger quite close to the 2nd finger. c ee Oe fn 86 ovr 2 8 Under the Sea IStedent 87 7 Watching the Sheep . oe BBP ° ROTE PROJECT: With some classes it may be possible to introduce the 4th finger at this point, on all strings except the C string.The Second Finger - When it is Not Sharped When the 2nd finger on Dor A is not sharped, it is a half-step whole step from the Ist finger. Place it quite close to the 1st finger. 4 - This is a natural sign which means that the note is not sharped B cD or flatted. Ga pEF By Nelly Bly TRADITIONAL n P= : £ go” i GERMAN FOLK SONG The Second Finger Slides from the Natural to the Sharp Position The Half Step March Leave the 2nd finger on the string during the slide. fn 92 EE Serer 22 3 Oa 282 rn ROTE PROJECT: The class will now enjoy playing the {2 finger pattern with a half step be tween the Ist and 2nd fingers. Play on all strings in various rhythms. ELL. 154521 PLAYING THREE NOTES in the SAME BOW STROKE Use one third of the bow for each of the slurred notes. bs ao pe 93 GERMAN FOLK SONG 7 —~ a= 7 ° Blow That Man Down ‘The count is subtracted from the last measure. SEA CHANTEY : — This note is called an‘‘up-beat' v 5 see | 95° ee : PLAYING on the C STRING The Ist finger on the C string is called D and is a whole step from the open string. The 2nd finger is called E and is a whole step from the 1st finger D. The 3rd finger is called F and is a half-step from the 2nd finger E. cp EF F eee aere tr TCT UO OSS 7 Each student will now be ready to play the next Viola solo with piano accompaniment. It is the famous ‘‘To A Wild Rose’? by Edward MacDowell. EL. 154522 Melodies that are Repeated Dream Waltz ‘The dots mean to repeat. You are to repeat the section between the two sets of dots. #2. te: ——~ : n te ta in tie > Pony Ride (Duet for Two Students) A al F, WOHLFANRT 100 Student ° 7 ROTE PROJECT: The {% finger pattern with the 1st and 2nd fingers a half step apart, and the 2° finger pattern with the 2nd and 3rd fingers a half step apart, may now be practiced three notes in a bow. E.L. 154523 MELODIES STRESSING the SECOND and THIRD FINGERS n n A Wise Old Owl v v y GERMAN FOLK SONG 103 The Lonesome Cowboy er v rat 104? Happy Go Lucky (Melody with Octaves) When there is only one set of dots go back to the beginning. nq n a 105 ROTE PROJECT: The scales of G and D Major may now be tried in the following rhythms. The notes marked with a dot and dash are played Détache Lancé - a slight pause between each note without the martelé accent.24 THE SECOND FINGER DEVELOPS FLEXIBILITY Above the Clouds C. HOHMANN Al 3 9 4 3 1 The Criss-Cross Fingering High Low igh | Low and 2nd High ond A n Caterpillar RUSSIAN FOLK SONG 109° ROTE PROJECT: We now have the (1 finger pattern with a half step between the open string and the 1st finger. It should be practiced on the three upper strings in various bowings. and rhythms. Avoid the C string temporarily. E.L.154525 PLAYING BEAUTIFUL MELODIES with DYNAMICS Playing in the Snow JF- means to play loudly - from the Italian word‘‘forte”* . 3 FRENCH FOLK SONG 110° The Clock Tower P- cao to play softly - from the Italian word “‘piano”’ . ALR. REINAGLE y % 1? p° Good King Wenceslas rit. or ritardando means gradually slower. __ TRADITIONAL CAROL 12 Ff 3 32 Old Hundredth v % ov LOUIS BOURGEOIS 113” = My Pet Pony GERMAN FOLK SONG ~ 114”. E.L.154526 STRENGTHENING the FOURTH FINGER - LEFT HAND PIZZICATO. ‘The notes marked with crosses (+) are to be plucked with the 4th finger of the left hand. The Fourth Does the Picking ++ + ‘ phee teeta t ft Ft tat 15 Chop Sticks A TRADITIONAL A Maypole Dance Lift the bow before you pluck the string. n 4 A att ENGLISH SINGING GAME A+ 17° f ° ° 1 ° Smooth Slurring =~ Snowflakes FRENCH FOLK TUNE 44 teen a 4 119° Ps s— 22 °. ar ae E.L.154527 WE are NOW READY to USE the FOURTH FINGER ‘The 4th finger on each string is a whole step from the Srd finger. It is placed about an inch from the 3rd finger. The 4th finger on C, G, and D should sound exactly like the next higher string. ‘*Pizzicato”’ (pizz.) means plucking the string with the first finger of the right hand. Place the tip of the thumb on the edge of the fingerboard under the A string. Right Hand Pizzicato The 4th on A is called E. ‘The 4th on D is called A. Poizs_o fT s pizz. The Happy Ghost 3 a € 7. ¢ The Puppet GERMAN LK SON! ‘*arco’’means to play with the bow. v ‘ 4 For ‘ v tet omit piez. P 1aiP «og 4 Come, Beautiful May nm arco f 2 oa RUSSIAN FOLK SONG aa 7 a P a ; The Wagon Wheel A 123 Blue Butterflies n 124 sae eee28 MELODIES USING ALL the FINGERS Yankee Doodle TRADITIONAL mn ra The Bean Stalk OLD DANCE 126° pizz, P fos a Vesper Hymn Prepare for the 4th finger by placing the lower fingers down at the same time. RUSSIAN AIR + ae Z 127? arco f24 4 ° a mm. ~\ n HENRY F, HEMY 5 — f ‘ rit. The Cobbler n RUSSIAN FOLK SONG E.L. 154529 BUILDING a MAJOR SCALE If we play eight notes going up a step atatime so that the 8th note is an octave above the Ist note, we have a scale. Ifthere is a half-step between the 3rd and 4th notes and a half-step between the 7th and sth notes, we have a Major scale. Let's divide the scale into two halves. Each half is called a tetrachord. The First Half of a Scale (in different rhythms) Notice the half-step between the 3rd and 4th notes. Ll n A a 130 So 1 2 ty F T halt-step an detave higher The Second Half of the Same Scale (in the same rhythms) ‘The 2nd half will stazt a whole step above the 1st half (nalf-step between the 3rd and 4th notes.) A o 131 s ° half-btep of an octave higher Putting the Two Halves Together (This scale is called C Major because it starts on C) Notice the half-steps between the 3rd and 4th notes and the 7th and 8th notes. Le 132 aE half-step half-step an octave higher The C Major Scale - Up and Down 133 ‘This is written in C Major. An Overnight Hike 7 F, WOHLFAHRT ee 134 Sf A Student's 1 1————_ To 2 7 3 A n maR30 EIGHTH NOTES (7) Eighth notes are played twice as fast as quarter notes. Two eighth notes receive one count and are equal to one quarter note. Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star (As we played it earlier in the book) OLD FRENCH SONG 135° ‘tf a St rit, Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star (in 8th notes) Each note is repeated in eighth notes and played twice as fast as quarter notes. nq 136° o Lightly Row (in 8th notes) Preparing the 4th finger GERI FOLK SONG 137° tf For the third Viola solo with piano accompaniment to be used for demonstrative have an old favorite - “Grandtather’s Clock” by Henry C. Work. E.L.154531 EIGHTH NOTES COMBINED with QUARTER NOTES n The Game Starts A 139 f mney Student The Fourth Finger on the G String (It is called D) It is a whole step from the Srd finger C. It should sound like the open D. The Spooks to student {_—_ a o32 LIVELY MELODIES with EIGHTH NOTES The Magician n Polka A Polka is a lively Bohemian dance with two counts to each measure. The top 2 means that there are two counts to each measure. rn n F, WOHLFART £ A ftudent 43 £ Student a n Bow to Your Partner n. 5 SWEDISH FOLK GAME