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PEDAGOGY FOR YOUNG CLSSES CURRICULUM GUIDELINES
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Undergraduates are very absorbed in their own lessons and musical development and often need practice in making the shift to what works with young children. Master teachers and directors can work with them in the following teaching techniques:
Imagery. Any experienced teacher knows that sometimes the “buck-toothed bunny” can communicate the correct shape of the bow hold in a much more effective way than describing the: contact point of the fingers to the bow, the angle of the various fingers, the need for everything to be curved and relaxed. Directors and master teachers can share these tricks of the trade and undergraduates may also invent their own immortal strategies!
Repetition. Undergraduates often can underestimate a young child’s need for repetition. Any parent knows the joy (?) of reading a bedtime story ten (or twenty times). The same is the case in a beginning string class. Children are comfortable with what they know and they arrive at that point through multiple repetitions.
Reinforcement. Undergraduates quickly grasp the concept of a teaching cycle:
Introduce the material (only one new idea at a time!)
Allow the children to practice it
Give specific feedback based on the concept (don’t talk about intonation
when the most immediate request was to play with a long bow)
These following are basic guidelines for which teachers and students may strive to achieve.
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SKILLS FOR 1st AND 2nd YEAR STRING PROJECT CLASSES
SKILLS FOR 3rd AND 4th YEAR STRING PROJECT STUDENTS
SKILLS FOR 5TH AND 6TH YEAR STRING PROJECT STUDENTS
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SKILLS FOR 1st AND 2nd YEAR STRING PROJECT CLASSES
INSTRUMENT CARE
Be able to identify the principal parts of the instrument
Properly care for his/her instrument
The following equipment is recommended:
Violin/Viola
Shoulder pad for violins and violas
Proper tension for bow hair
Possess rosin and rosin rag
Cello
Rock stop
Bass
Rock stop
Stool
INSTRUMENT POSTURE AND POSITION
Violin/Viola
Sitting position
Front half of chair
Feet flat on floor
Cello
Sitting position
Front half of chair
Thighs parallel to floor
Instrument rests on chest
Correct cello height
Knees slightly below lower corners
‘C’ peg near left ear
Space between neck of instrument and neck
and shoulder of player
Bass
Sitting position
Shoulder of bass against left hip socket
Student should be able to balance instrument without holding it
LEFT HAND SKILLS
All instruments: Signal dots (dots on side of fingerboard for bass)
Violin and Viola at first and third; Cello at first, third, and fourth finger; Bass at first, third, and fourth and first finger in third position
Violin/Viola
-First finger base joint rests against neck
-Wrist is relaxed and straight
-Gravity is in the center of the hand
-Thumb is placed between first and second finger
-Contact point of the finger is between the fleshy pad and the tips
Cello
-Hand forms ‘C’ shape
-Fingers are perpendicular to strings
-Left thumb is behind second finger
-Left arm is suspended naturally
-The forearm and hand form a line without a bend to the wrist
Bass
-Hand forms ‘K’ shape
-The first and second fingers are spread
-The second and third fingers close
-Third and fourth fingers are slightly separated
-Thumb stays behind second finger
RIGHT HAND SKILLS
Violin/Viola
-Index finger rests on top of the bow near the second knuckle joint
-Second finger drapes over the side of the bow and touches the stick near the second knuckle joint
-Third finger drapes over the side of the bow and the finger print touches the concave side of the frog
- Little finger is curved and its tip rests near the inner side of the bow stick
Cello
-Traditional: All fingers draped over the side of the frog and bow stick
Side of thumb tip where frog meets bow
-Index finger draped over bow at or near second knuckle joint
-Second finger (long finger) will extend to ferrule
-Ring finger over dot (or center of frog)
-Pinky may be on frog or stick next to frog depending on the size of student and/or bow.
Bass
-French bow hold is recommended in a class setting, unless the teacher has experience in teaching or playing with German bow hold
-Tip of thumb will contact the stick next to the frog
-Second finger will extend to ferrule, curved and relaxed around stick
-Third and fourth fingers will lie on frog
-Fingers should be slightly curved
TECHNICAL SKILLS
Rhythm
Quarter notes, eighth notes, half notes, dotted half note, combinations of these notes, three quarter meter
Scales
D scale (1st year)
G and C scale (2nd year)
AURAL SKILLS
Students will be able to echo simple four beat patterns using the skills appropriate for their level.
MUSIC LITERACY
Know and recognize notes in the appropriate clef for the instrument as presented.
Know history of specific instrument
Terms
Beat
music staff
bar line
measure
notes
rests
sharp
clef
time signature
double bar
repeat sign
counting
ledger lines
down bow
up bow, arco
bow lift sign
1st and 2nd endings
allegro
moderato
andante
repeat sign
tie
slur
upbeat
D.C. al fine
natural sign
staccato
hooked bowing
multiple measures rest
forte
piano
rehearsal numbers
solo
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SKILLS FOR 3rd AND 4th YEAR STRING PROJECT STUDENTS
INSTRUMENT CARE
Demonstrates skills learned in years one and two
Is able to make tuning adjustments with fine tuners
INSTRUMENT POSTURE AND POSITION
The student will continue to demonstrate correct playing habits at all times
LEFT HAND SKILLS
(all instruments)
Review of D, G and C major finger pattern
B-flat on G string
C-sharp on G string
G-sharp on D string
E-flat on D string
Elementary shifting
Violin
F-natural on E string
Third position on D and A strings
Viola
Extended third finger F-sharp on C string
E-flat on C string
Third position on D and A strings
Cello
Forward and backward extensions
Fourth position
Second, third, half, and extended positions
Bass
Bass shifting to half position
Bass shifting to fourth position
RIGHT HAND SKILLS
Review of detaché, two note slur, staccato
Slur four notes to a bow
Bowing eighth notes
Bowing dotted quarter, followed by eighth note
Hooked bowing
Legato bowing
Understanding of bow distribution
Bowing two strings
TECHNICAL SKILLS
Rhythm
Dotted quarter note followed by eighth note
Four sixteenth notes in a beat
Two sixteenths, one eighth note in a beat
Triplets
Syncopation
6/8 time
Scales (and corresponding arpeggios)
F major
D minor
A major
B-flat major
G minor
AURAL SKILLS
Students should be able to echo patterns using the appropriate skills. Patterns may extend to two measure sequences.
MUSIC LITERACY
Terms
ritardando
intonation
allegretto
sightreading
fermata
andantino
legato
lento
a tempo
cantabile
accent
time signature
triplets
double stops
bariolage
improvisation
shifting
composition
PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES
-Cooperation
-Participation
-Enthusiasm
-Responsibility
-Reliability
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SKILLS FOR 5TH AND 6TH YEAR STRING PROJECT STUDENTS
INSTRUMENT CARE
Manipulates tuning pegs
Replaces strings
Performs minor adjustments
INSTRUMENT POSTURE AND POSITION
The student will continue to demonstrate correct playing habits at all times
LEFT HAND SKILLS
Plays familiar basic melodies in higher positions
Basic vibrato motion
Demonstrates control over whole and whole step finger patterns
RIGHT HAND SKILLS
Detaches slurs, spiccato, accents
Performs crescendo, diminuendo and other dynamic markings
Broadens dynamic range to include pp and ff
TECHNICAL SKILLS
Plays familiar basic melodies in high positions
Rhythm
Triplet rhythms
6/8 meter and rhythms
Scales
Violin/viola/cello/bass—two octave scales
Demonstrates control over half and whole step finger patterns
Plays one octave minor scale(s)
AURAL SKILLS
Distinguishes aurally between major and minor triads
Identifies melodic intervals
Bass/cello—Tune instrument by matching harmonics
Violin/viola—Tune instrument by fifths
Play simple double stops in tune
Identifies by ear all orchestral instrument families
Student can adjust faulty intonation by quickly changing finger patterns
MUSIC LITERACY
Reads 6/8 meter
Identifies 2/4, 3/4, and 4/4 conducting patterns
Defines vocabulary in music being learned
Writes major scales
Identifies written intervals of seconds and thirds
Terms
enharmonics
chromatic scale
louré
trill
con sordino
senza sordino
rubato
sharp
flat
intonation
simile
dolce
PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES
Socially cooperates in small and large ensemble settings
Demonstrates responsibility
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