Star Teacher #3: Paul Rolland

Over the holiday break from teaching, I finally completed a resolution for 2021: to rent and watch the Paul Rolland video series titled “The Teaching of Action in String Playing.” This influential pedagogue died prematurely in 1978, but we are fortunate that he preserved his teaching approach on video, and now it’s accessible to all on Vimeo.

Paul Rolland’s methods form the basis for Mimi Zweig‘s “Suzuki Synthesis,” taught at her summer workshops at Indiana University and at sister-programs around the country. Having attended her workshop, it was fantastic to watch Paul Rolland’s original teaching videos on the same topics, as demonstrated in 1974. I was about the age of the kids in the video, in my second year of playing the violin too, when these films were produced! (I even think one of the little girls in the back row is wearing a Sears Catalog dress that was one of my favorites.)

When these videos were available only on DVD, it would set you back several hundred dollars to buy the set and watch them. Now for only $49, you can have access to all the videos (3½ hours of content) on Vimeo for an entire year. While I binge-watched them over the holidays, I’m sure I will return to them at my leisure to look for specific exercises that I can use with certain students. The biggest takeaway is how to establish “freedom from tension” in beginning and remedial violin students. The short, easily-digestible videos are almost all under 10 minutes long. Beginner’s topics include Establishing the Violin Hold – Learning to Hold the Bow – Developing Finger Movements – Extending the Bow Stroke. For more advanced players, there are segments on Martelé, Staccato, Spiccato, Shifting and Vibrato.

So for a very affordable price, you can access gold-nuggets of teaching wisdom that you would otherwise spend hundreds of dollars at a workshop to acquire (not to mention the airfare and hotel). If Rolland’s videos whet your appetite, he published a companion book. There is also an annual Paul Rolland String Pedagogy workshop you can attend, and certification you can complete.

Put “Watch these videos” on your list of New Year’s Resolutions, and you will also be a better teacher by the end of this year!

Star Teacher #2: Nathan Cole

Where Mimi Zweig offers invaluable advice for students coming up from the very earliest stages, Nathan Cole has mastered the art of teaching advanced players up to professionals preparing for orchestra auditions. He has offered a premium online Virtuoso Master Course to pros in the past. The second edition of his Violympic Games took place during the summer of 2021, a 12-week course for intermediate to advanced players, with structured video lessons combined with performance challenges. A lively online community of mostly adult students engaged with one another on a private Facebook group, with members from all over the globe.

Nathan is First Associate Concertmaster of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and could clearly spend all his time just performing. But his passion for teaching has turned him into a YouTube pro. While joining his private student cohort is limited and pricey, he has posted many excellent free teaching videos, including a series on the complete Bach Unaccompanied Sonatas and Partitas for Violin. (He calls it Bach on the Road, an indication of his love of the pun!) Technique videos you’ll want to bookmark for your students include Effortless Vibrato, Mastering Spiccato and Pinky Power: Strengthening the 4th Finger. Check out the full menu of videos on his YouTube channel, or see what online courses are available at Natesviolin.com.

I just purchased a copy of his new book and video series on Scales: The Road to Repertoire and am looking forward to freshening up my scale routine — not to mention my students’!

Posted in Book Reviews, Method Books, Pedagogy, Repertoire, Sheet Music

Violin Method Books: A head-to-head comparison

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Cut to the Coda: The method book comparison chart printable!

Method books for music readers

I teach young beginner violin students to read music from the start. I use method book series to teach concepts in a logical sequence, but have yet to find “the perfect” method book that exactly matches my preferred teaching progression.

Most published violin method books in the U.S.A. were written for elementary-age mixed-instrument school music classes. So sometimes the sequence for violin students delays the introduction of the E-string notes (Essential Elements Book 1), because the cello and viola students in the class don’t have an E string. Some books advance more quickly than others, with fewer pages and examples between introductions of new concepts. Some Level 1 books leave out skills that other Level 1 books cover, like low second finger. All seem to be written for group instead of individual instruction. And most haven’t been updated for 20 years or more. Witness “String Builder,” unchanged since the 1960’s and the book used in my 3rd grade orchestra class!

An old favorite…  Continue reading “Violin Method Books: A head-to-head comparison”

Posted in Star Teachers, Videos

Star Teacher #1: Mimi Zweig

string pedagogy websiteA “star teacher” is one that I would like to emulate in my teaching approach. Having attended Mimi Zweig’s Workshop for Violin Teachers, I got to learn firsthand from this master teacher and her colleagues. Mimi has generously made videos of her teaching available, for free, online. All you have to do is sign up at stringpedagogy.com, and hours of content, plus teaching progression outlines and more, are yours. Enjoy!