This collection of unaccompanied duets and studies offers intermediate violinists an imaginative and exciting way to improve their technique. Each piece focusses on a particular skill and together the studies provide a concentrated course in developing vibrato, double-stopping and shifting. Double-stopping pieces can be played both as a duet (for tuning purposes) and as a solo version with double stopping. In addition, practice and performance tips help to outline the musical goals and guide students on to the next stage.
Titles: Intrada (duet) * Intrada (solo) * Asleep in the Hammock (duet) * Weaving Song (duet) * On the Spot (duet) * A Passing Passacaglia (duet); Quite a Character (duet) * Quite a Character (solo) * Sarabande and Double (duet) * Clouds of Blossom are Mirrored in the Lake (solo) * Forget-Me-Not Rag (duet) * Far Distant..(duet) * Far Distant..(solo) * Catch (duet)

In A Notebook for Viola Players, Ivo-Jan van der Werff offers a guide to playing the viola with the greatest freedom, dexterity, and ease. It includes right and left hand exercises to build a sound technique, sections on how to practice them, how to hold the viola and bow, how to think about good posture, how to create a good sound, how to play with the least amount of tension, how to deal with anxiety, and thoughts on wellness and practice techniques. Alongside these are photographs and a companion website of video demonstrations of the exercises played by the author, as if in a lesson. Interspersed throughout the book are lively and illuminating anecdotes of van der Werff's own experiences as a student and as a professional musician, as well as a number of blank pages and staff paper for the student to literally 'make notes' and write down their own ideas, offering a space for creative expression using the skills they learn in reading and playing along with the text. Bringing together decades of teaching and performance experience from one of the most respected figures in viola pedagogy, A Notebook for Viola Players is a master class in viola ideal for any player hoping to perfect the fundamental areas of their practice.

15 hits from the King arranged for instrumentalists and including a great full-accompaniment play-along CD so you can sound just like a pro. Songs include: All Shook Up * Blue Suede Shoes * Hound Dog * Jailhouse Rock * Love Me Tender * Return to Sender * (Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear * and more.

This is the first book to address the full range of performance issues for the cello from the Baroque to the early Romantic period. The development of playing techniques and stylistic transitions are traced regionally through a comparison of Italian, French, German, English, and East European performance traits. Through a close study of contemporary violoncello methods, music, early instruments, periodicals, diaries, letters and pictures, Walden provides a cohesive overview which examines construction methods for instruments and bows, fingering and bowing techniques, special effects and ornamentation, accompanying skills and the stylistic preferences of the most famous soloists. Richly illustrated with over 300 music examples, plates and figures, this book provides playing instructions which can easily be applied by modern players to their own performance of period music.

(Reference). Veteran musician and educator Mick Goodrick presents practical information for guitarists who want to improve their playing technique and style and simply become better musicians. Rather than a step-by-step method book, the information is presented in a general essay format, discussing ways that the various techniques covered may be applied by the advancing guitarist to enhance his/her own style of playing, some of the areas discussed include: basic fingerboard mechanics * modes, scales and chords * contemporary harmony * harmonica and overtone influences * being self-critical * improvising short pieces * different playing situations.

This is a performing edition of Walton's String Quartet in A minor, based on the edition published in the Walton Edition Chamber Music volume. The work was first performed in 1947 and later revised as the Sonata for String Orchestra.

This survey of the string quartet by ten chamber music specialists focuses on four main areas: social and musical background to the genre's development; celebrated ensembles and their significance; and string quartet playing. It reviews aspects of contemporary and historical practice, including "mixed ensembles." Informative appendixes and a full chronology of the mainstream repertory complete this compact guide.

A monumental accomplishment from the age of Enlightenment, the string quartets of Joseph Haydn hold a central place not only in the composer's oeuvre, but also in our modern conception of form, style, and expression in the instrumental music of his day. Here, renowned music historians Floyd and Margaret Grave present a fresh perspective on a comprehensive survey of the works. This thorough and unique analysis offers new insights into the creation of the quartets, the wealth of musical customs and conventions on which they draw, the scope of their innovations, and their significance as reflections of Haydn's artistic personality. Each set of quartets is characterized in terms of its particular mix of structural conventions and novelties, stylistic allusions, and its special points of connection with other opus groups in the series. Throughout the book, the authors draw attention to the boundless supply of compositional strategies by which Haydn appears to be continually rethinking, reevaluating, and refining the quartet's potentials. They also lucidly describe Haydn's famous penchant for wit, humor, and compositional artifice, illuminating the unexpected connections he draws between seemingly unrelated ideas, his irony, and his lightning bolts of surprise and thwarted expectation. Approaching the quartets from a variety of vantage points, the authors correct many prevailing assumptions about convention, innovation, and developing compositional technique in the music of Haydn and his contemporaries.
Going beyond traditional modes of study, The String Quartets of Joseph Haydn blends historical analysis and factual information with critical appraisal in a way that will engage all Haydn enthusiasts.

Featuring thirteen essays covering different traditions, styles, and instruments, this study is written by influential players, teachers and guitar historians. Its coverage allows the guitarist to learn the analogies and differences between traditions and styles. The genres range from baroque, classical, country, blues and rock to flamenco, African and Celtic.

The viola da gamba was a central instrument in European music from the late 15th century well into the late 18th. In this comprehensive study, Bettina Hoffmann offers both an introduction to the instrument -- its construction, technique and history -- for the non-specialist, interweaving this information with a wealth of original archival scholarship that experts will relish. The book begins with a description of the instrument, and here Hoffmann grapples with the complexity of various names applied to this and related instruments. Following two chapters on the instrument's construction and ancestry, the core of the book is given to a historical and geographical survey of the instrument from its origins into the classical period. The book closes with a look at the revival of interest in the 19th and 20th centuries.

This book contains nine pieces from ABRSM's Grade 3 Violin syllabus for 2020-2023, three pieces chosen from each of Lists A, B and C. The pieces have been carefully selected to offer an attractive and varied range of styles, creating a collection that provides an excellent source of repertoire to suit every performer. The book also contains helpful footnotes and, for those preparing for exams, useful syllabus information. Inspiring recordings of the nine pieces featured in this book, plus piano accompaniment tracks, are available. These can be purchased as part of the Violin Exam Pieces with CD package or as audio downloads (see https://shop.abrsm.org/audiodownloads for more details).

Blues Ukulele is a collection of 16 blues standards arranged for the ukulele by Fred Sokolow. Each song comes with two arrangements: The first one gives you lyrics, melody and uke chord grids to strum while singing. The second is a uke chord/melody tab arrangement, so you can play the song's melody and chords simultaneously with a lot of blues licks thrown in. Includes a CD with arrangements of each song played and sung by Fred Sokolow. Includes: Beale Street Blues * C.C. Rider * Limehouse Blues * Midnight Special * St. James Infirmary * St. Louis Blues * 'Tain't Nobody's Biz-ness If I Do * and 9 others.

(Music Sales America). Step-by-step pictures take you from first-day exercises to playing along with a backing track Absolute Beginners has been designed to tell you everything you need to know from the very first time you play your ukulele. In one great book you get: a look-and-learn course that uses clear pictures instead of long explanations; practical advice and tips covering everything you need to know to get you playing, fast ; CD audio tracks to show you how things should sound, plus full-length accompaniment tracks to play along with ; and more. It's simply everything you need An owner's manual approach to your ukulele that makes learning easier than ever before

This handbook provides a historical account of the development of the violin, viola and their close relatives as well as a practical guide to playing techniques and principles of interpretation. It aims to help performers to play in a historically appropriate style and to guide listeners toward a clearer understanding of the issues that affected string performance during this series' core period (c.1700-c.1900). Its six detailed case studies, which include Bach and Beethoven, will assist readers in forging well-grounded, period interpretations of major works from the repertory.

The most comprehensive resource available for beginning and experienced guitarists alike, whether acoustic or electric. Completely redesigned and with many more full-color photos than the original, this new edition surveys recent models and profiles current masters, includes an expanded lesson section, and encompasses 10 years of technological change in recording and amplification.

(Bass Recorded Versions). 18 bass transcriptions, including: Another One Bites the Dust * Bicycle Race * Bohemian Rhapsody * Crazy Little Thing Called Love * Killer Queen * Under Pressure * We Are the Champions * You're My Best Friend * and more.

This new edition contains all the scales and arpeggios required for ABRSM's Grade 5 Violin exam. Includes all Grade 5 scales and arpeggios for the revised syllabus from 2012, with bowing patterns and suggested fingering, along with a helpful introduction including advice on preparing for the exam.

The Violin Play-Along Series will help you play your favorite songs quickly and easily. Just follow the music, listen to the CD to hear how the violin should sound, and then play along using the separate backing tracks. With the melody and lyrics included in the book, you may also choose to sing along. Chord symbols are provided should you wish to elaborate on the melody. The audio CD is playable on any CD player. For PC and Mac computer users, the CD is enhanced so you can adjust the recording to any tempo without changing pitch! This volume includes the songs: Foggy Mountain Breakdown * Gold Rush * John Hardy Was a Desperate Little Man * Orange Blossom Special * Panhandle Rag * Salty Dog Blues * Tennessee Waltz * You Don't Know My Mind.

80 Graded Studies for Violin Book 2 is a must-have resource for teachers and students. Studies are an established part of every instrumentalist's training. They place technical problems in musical contexts, and can be invaluable aids for development. 80 Graded Studies for Violin brings together, in two books, a broad selection of repertoire in a variety of styles, including well-established technical studies, folk, jazz and contemporary works plus some original compositions. The studies in Book 2 are arranged in order of increasing difficulty, according to a carefully planned technical progression from Grades 6-8.

(Fretted). Play your favorite Christmas songs Hawaiian style with expert uke player Chika Nagata. This book/CD pack includes 12 songs, each played 3 times: the first and third time with the melody, the second time without the melody so you can play or sing along with the rhythm-only track. Songs include: Mele Kalikimaka (Merry Christmas to You) * We Wish You a Merry Christmas * Jingle Bells (with Hawaiian lyrics) * Angels We Have Heard on High * Away in a Manger * Deck the Halls * Hark The Herald Angels Sing * Joy to the World * O Come, All Ye Faithful * Silent Night * Up on the Housetop * We Three Kings.

176 Tage verbrachte Wolfgang Amade Mozart in der kurpfalzischen Residenz Mannheim. Von den insgesamt vier Aufenthalten war der zwischen November 1777 und Marz 1778 der langste und fur sein weiteres Leben zugleich entscheidende. Ohne Vater Leopold, der von Salzburg aus die Geschicke seines Sohnes zu lenken versuchte, fand der damals gerade 21jahrige in Begleitung seiner Mutter Maria Anna rasch Anschluss an den Hof des Kurfursten Carl Theodor sowie zu den Musikern der Hofkapelle und deren Familien. Doch die ersehnte Anstellung als Kapellmeister und Compositeur zerschlug sich. Auch die Liebe zu Aloysia Weber, einer 16jahrigen talentierten Sangerin, zerbrach; Mozart heiratete spater in Wien deren Schwester Konstanze. Mannheim - eine Kette von Enttauschungen, von begrabenen Hoffnungen, von Niederlagen? Gewiss! Doch Mozart wuchs an ihnen und durch sie als Mensch, als Kunstler und als Komponist: notwendige Stationen des Reifens und des Erwachsenwerdens fur ein zukunftiges musikalisches Genie. Der Tagungsband versammelt Beitrage zu Kunst und Kultur des Hofes und seines beruhmten Orchesters, zu Analyse, Deutung und Auffuhrungspraxis der in Mannheim entstandenen Werke, zur Korrespondenz als wesentliche musikhistorische Quelle des Aufenthaltes, zur kompositorischen Rezeption sowie zwei Aufsatze zu Mozarts Prager Beziehungen.