Merry Christmas!

Hello, next to me is the picture a few readers have been waiting for for some time. Wait ‘til you see my Chaconne video…when I’m fully prepared!

And my thought for the day.

‘To come full circle is to return to the state of not knowing with the wisdom of one who knows all.’

That occurred to me as I watched performances on YouTube of both Hillary Hahn and Nathan Milstein – after I’d practiced.

The both of them display that consummate mastery that comes with years of constructive practice. They have studied the material from every possible angle they can think of; as well as from a few somebody else thought of.

Then, on stage, they let it all go…or so it can seem to the true beginners eye. Yet the more developed the eye the more observant of a common, shared truth is present in both.

And once the truth is evident, the departures of fancy are all the more beautiful and illuminating.

Lesson of the story, observe with every faculty you possess
and you stand a good chance of coming that full circle yourself. In violin playing or whatever else you make it your business to consider.

All the best,

Clayton Haslop

P.S. The time of the Holiday Sale grows short. The violin instructional courses you crave won’t be at these prices the next time I bring you here!

Mind-lock with Your Listener

So, the holidays upon, which sometimes has folks feeling their purpose is to get frenzied and stressed out.

Not here, they don’t. And if you’ve been a practicing with my instructional DVD materials I bet you’ve got a pretty good handle on things as well.

Now, this is a gem today so pay attention. When you play for an audience you MUST see yourself mind/hear/soul-linked with them. And for the time you’re playing you are nourishing them with the developed contents of your being.

The Etheric contents, that is. You know, airy-fairy stuff. Stuff that many don’t like to use words for, in some cases, because the naming of this stuff has been the fuel for conflict from time immemorial.

Especially when talking about the spiritual realm; the meat of the matter.

Point is, it’s real, however you talk about it, and as a human being playing an inherently soulful instrument you’d better deal with it.

Now, those of you working with me are on the right track. The reason I can say this is, in order to make a connection you must have technique. It’s like the radio signal coming into a radio receiver. When it’s obstructed or distorted you’ve a problem getting a message anywhere.

Course technique is about a lot of things. Not too many to number, perhaps, but too many to write here, that’s for sure. Yet I can name the Biggest constituent of a fluent technique.

Abundant consciousness.

You can only play with utter conviction that which flows through your consciousness in each moment. You must be, in a real sense, channeling and translating the Truth in real time.

There cannot be a greater argument for the visualization, relaxation, and consciousness-increasing practice strategies I bring to the violin.

Relaxation is the key to projection, rhythmic awareness is the key to clarity of signal, and visualization is the way-station of content.

So, keep it up with the belly-breathing, counting and visualizing. This winter can be the Spring of your Creative Life.

All the best,

Clayton Haslop

P.S. VERY IMPORTANT, I am leaving the Holiday Sale open just a couple more days. This IS the best time in the 3 year life of Violin Mastery for investing in one of my instructional DVD courses.

Why I’m Out of Breath

Afraid I don’t have much time to chat these several days, so I thought I’d send out a note explaining why you haven’t and won’t be seeing another newsletter from me, least through the weekend.

The thing is, I’m enthusiastically working on month 9 of the ‘Allegro Players.’ This month the focus is on two Very Important aspects of technique; shifting and fingering selection.

The latter is something that falls by the wayside in a lot of teaching studios. Many teachers are just too occupied with getting notes in tune. Well, I’ve got news for you. It’s a Whole lot easier to play in tune when you’ve organized your hand well; that is, when the fingerings facilitate good intonation instead of working against it.

My second interest this month is in the mechanics of shifting, particularly shifting to and from the higher positions.

I’ll be shedding quite a bit of light on this one.

The trick is to understand the moments of the whole left arm, not just the fingers, wrist, and to a lesser extent the forearm in the upper positions. The upper arm and shoulder are involved too, and if left out of the equation will limit your effectiveness big time.

We’re going to look closely at how to nit them together into a smooth, seamless platform for your digits spring from.

So this is new, and I believe highly illuminating territory we’re getting into this month.

Oh yes, you might be interested in this as well. While in creation mode I’ll be just too occupied to bring down the great Saleabration currently on. That means you can still run over and get a whopping 40% discount on the normal tuition for this one-of-a-kind instructional violin program. Here’s what you need.

Act now, and what I’m burning onto DVD in the next couple days will be in YOUR living room in no time – along with 8 additional months of cutting edge violin instruction.

All the best,

Clayton Haslop

P.S. Beginners to the violin path are taken care of in spades with the ’Beginners Circle’ program, where you’re taken from out-of-the-case-for-the-first-time to real proficiency in the lower 3 positions – the ‘money positions’ as veteran studio cats call them! This musical adventure is ALSO reduced 40%, but only for a short time more.

Can YOU Have an Up Bow Staccato?

Many years ago I brought ‘Introduccione et Rondo Capriccioso’ to a lesson with Milstein. About 40 or so measures into the Rondo there are a couple of passages calling for up-bow staccato. Many a violinist – and at the time I was one of them – have found these a source of great frustration.

Sure enough, when I got to the passages my staccato was anything but brilliant.

Milstein stopped me. ‘The point is to make a brilliant effect here,’ he said. ‘I do not get on well with up bow staccato, so I do this.’ He then proceeded to play the passage using broken arpeggios, detache, rather the written scales.

The effect was thrilling AND virtuosic.

After that, I virtually stopped using up bow staccato for many years. I thought, if Milstein didn’t have a good one I could be excused from possessing one myself.

Then, about three years ago, I set about learning the 5th Caprice of Paganini with the original bowing – three notes down, Sautille, one note up. It isn’t a staccato bowing, yet it was a bowing I’d previously thought impossible for me to do.

It took some 6 weeks of daily practice using the mental and physical techniques I’d developed to combat the effects of focal dystonia in my left hand – I spent some 20 minutes a day on it.

Today I can play that Caprice with greater velocity and ease than ever before. And I use that bowing.

This accomplishment led me to return to up bow staccato. And sure enough, I’ve found that it too has given way to the same kind of approach.

The secret to it is this. There are two things that must be combined. The motions of the right arm must be absolutely free of extraneous movements – in this case the technique can be reduced the technique to a single muscle.

And you’ve got to get consummate control over the firing of that muscle – your timing must be impeccable. Once you have muscular efficiency combined with fine motor control you’re assured success.

But only if you KEEP these in tact as you build velocity.

This is the last stumbling block. Many folks think that once they put out a certain amount of mental effort they should be able to ‘just do it.’

It doesn’t work that way. You can only play Reliably as fast you can think.

Now, if you think that is a drag, well, you’re going to find the violin and a whole lot more in life a frustration. And if you step back and say, ‘Wow, I really CAN DO anything I set my mind to,’ you’re going to feel blessed indeed.

And that, my friend, is how to live the violin.

All the Best,

Clayton Haslop

P.S. So many folks have been taking advantage of the Holiday Sale we’re having that I’m going to leave it open for a couple of more days. There isn’t a better way to learn the violin, but you’d better hurry on over before it’s too late to take advantage of this great prices!

When Warming Up Is Pointless

This morning my practice session began with scales, progressed to Wohlfahrt, and finished with Bach. An excellent, balanced, artistic and violinistic meal.

Along the way I reminded myself of something very important; to take plenty of pictures.

Yep, it’s one of the biggest secrets of violin playing. Next to problem solving, that is.

In a way, though, it’s part of problem solving too.

To take good, detailed mental pictures one has to stretch out with the mind. It’s no good waiting for the music to come to you – empty repetition. Active engagement, becoming completely immersed mentally is imperative.

Today I encountered some tough challenges; my left hand continues to let me know that things aren’t going to come easy, just for the asking.

For quite some time I was in problem solving mode, trying this or that tempo, this or that fingering, etc.

At the same time I realized that my ability to visualize exactly what I wanted and place it right on the beats labeled in my mind was essential to success.

Eventually my body and mind began to sync up. The gap, though initially large, was bridged. And that is to say my reluctant hand loosed its grip, reached forth, and was met by the directive energy of my mind.

The music – in this case Bach – began to sound exactly as should; energetic, virtuosic, and purposeful. Just the way the old man would’ve played it.

Yep, I think in this instance I can congratulate myself.

But I’ll also say this; I won’t take it for granted. And that is precisely why I titled this email as it is. If I don’t continue to exercise in just the manner I’ve been talking about, right into and through performances that might come along, well, all that movement of energy passes without notice.

So what I reminded myself of was this. Take Good Pictures, ones that can be remembered and upheld in the most difficult of conditions. Make them rock-solid. Continue to Verify what you think you know.

In my courses I am continually trying to illuminate the process of playing from two sides; physical and mental. I think the combination is what makes for violin success.

And just so you know, the Holiday Sale has been such a resounding success I’m going to leave it open for a couple of more days. This is THE time to change your experience learning the violin forever.

All the best,

Clayton Haslop

P.S. …in a most positive way. Holiday Sale

How to Smooth Out that Bow

A couple days ago I mentioned having made my debut as a unicycling violinist. For the event I’d worked out my own arrangement of ‘Jingle Bells’ – complete with harmonies and counterpoint all the way through.

Yet during the event I found myself connecting more with the audience when I simply played the ‘Greensleeves’ melody, without adornment – I did manage a little choreography as I ‘strolled’.

The point is, while fast, complex music can surely impress, it is one’s Adagio playing that most directly reaches the hearts of an audience.

A few times I got the feeling that people were so into the beauty of what they were hearing that they momentarily ‘forgot’ that I was riding a unicycle in front of them.

In any case, I just received a couple emails asking about the most important aspect of adagio playing. Namely, how to draw a smooth, beautiful tone.

You’ve heard me say many times that violin playing is a horizontal game. And this is very true. To a great extent the more conscious you are of moving your right hand and arm through space in one plane of motion the more successful you will be at drawing the pure tone you want.

Along the way it is important to remember that the wrist flexes forward at the frog and does not rise up like a cork bobbing to the surface of a pond.

Equally important is the quality of one’s breathing. Got to breathe from the belly so those shoulders stay relaxed and down.

Now, I recognize that some folks have a greater challenge achieving the fine motor control necessary for smooth bowing than others. Nervousness can produce the same loss of control even amongst the normally steady of hand.

When I find myself in this condition – it can happen to anybody – I will do two things. I will go back and forth between drawing the bow as slowly as I can, whilst breathing and consciously directing myself to relax, and drawing fast, vigorous full bows.

The former is a form of meditation, the latter a way to increase blood flow, warm up muscles, and dump adrenaline. Again, while I do both I am breathing from my belly and Consciously moving the bow in one two-dimensional plane – the wrist flexes forward at the frog, not up. Ridding myself of the ‘shaky bow syndrome’ can take half an hour or so. Sometimes more.

If you are challenged this way you must tell yourself three things.

One, my body is fully relaxed. Two, I am in control of my own body. And three, I will not give up.

All the best,

Clayton Haslop

P.S. Now, if you would like some more insight and help into the mastery of the bow arm as a beginner player I believe you could do yourself no greater favor than invest in my Beginners Circle which is currently on Special along with every other course and program I have produced. But you’d better hurry over Right Now to take advantage of this great deal.

Are You an Open-hander Player?

There are two types of violinists in this world; closed-handed players, and open-handed players. And you’ve gotta watch those close-handed players.

They’re shifty.

I jest, of course. Yet I do think that we are roughly divided into two camps. When close-handed players set their hand to the violin, and I’m assuming all four fingers are out over the string, they will be most comfortable with the digits close together, perhaps all touching.

On the other hand – figuratively – an open-handed player will be very comfortable with space between the digits. Open-handed players like to stretch and reach around the violin. They are very comfortable with extensions.

Close-handed players have tighter drawn muscles and connective tissue. And as some of us acquire a few years under our belt we can tilt more and more toward this condition.

Not to worry, however, this is merely a call for us to become more shifty.

Of late I have been taking a very fresh look at fingerings with just this in mind. Yes, I am tending toward close-handedness now, yet the company is good. I think many of the greatest violinists, including Milstein, adapted themselves to changes in their physiques as they aged.

Those that didn’t either suffered injury or a gradual loss of fine motor control.

So this whole concept is particularly important for adult learners; many come to the instrument with inherent stiffness. This certainly doesn’t mean it is impossible to play effectively, it merely means you can’t play in the way a young thoroughbred will.

And if you ask me I’d say the close-handed have a greater potential to ‘pull heartstring’ than the open-handed for the simple reason that a ‘shifty’ approach to playing keeps the hand more in contact with the string from note to note.

What IS critical to know, and I am really going into this in a BIG way this month in the ‘Allegro Players,’ is how the left shoulder and UPPER arm play a huge roll in becoming a Shifter of consequence.

Once you’ve integrated these simple concepts you will feel infinitely more confident getting around the violin. And you’ll sound like a million to boot.

So if you’ve gone to your fiddle and confirmed what you already suspect – that you are naturally close-handed – this information is going to be extremely useful to you.

And as it happens, there’s a whale-of-a-big-sale going on at my website right now. On the ’Allegro Players’ course you can take advantage of a 40 purr-cent discount off the annual membership.

This situation won’t last long. I’d hop over there NOW and check all the savings out.

All the best,

Clayton Haslop

P.S. And stay tuned for a couple of great courses coming this January. Mendelssohn Concerto, Kreisler pieces, it’s going to be great fun indeed. Meanwhile, don’t neglect to take advantage of what’s available right now.

Now See What I’ve Gone and Done

The last of the Thanksgiving leftovers disappeared at supper last night. And having let out a notch on my belt this morning I’m anxious to burn some calories packing up and shipping hot-off-the-press, life-altering DVD courses on violin playing – to You.

Indeed so anxious am I to perform this work that I’ve put together my most dramatic Holiday Saleabration ever. We’re talking 35 to 40 purr-cent off my usual ‘tuition’. Yes, on Everything I’ve created.

I strongly urge you to take full advantage of this opportunity.
There will not be another like it for a good many moons.

All the best,

Clayton Haslop

P.S. I know that things have gotten tight for many people of late. Folks are increasingly looking toward home and hearth to provide meaning and focus in these uncertain times; the same venue in which the magic of the violin bestows its richest rewards. So whether you’re a beginner, an intermediate, or a truly advanced player I hope you will allow me to share with you, in your own abode, the insights of