Having the Fewest Moving Parts

One of the reasons that air travel became relatively safer in the later half of the 20th century was due to the adoption of jet engines as the power source of choice for airlines.

‘So what has that to do with violin playing,’ you ask.

Plenty, as it turns out.

You see, the reason a jet engine is inherently safer is due to the fact that there are fewer moving parts – fewer moving parts, less opportunity for failure.

Perhaps now the picture becomes clearer. The purest fundamentals, and the ones you will find me coaching you toward, simply contain the fewest moving body parts.

Earlier today I happened to be browsing through another violin website – one of those ‘talking kind’, as a matter of fact. Anywho, the hostess began going on about how to move the body while playing – I found myself reaching for the mouse with great haste.

Quiet body, active mind, is my way of thinking.

Recently I spoke of the ‘4 theatres of movement’. If you recall I reduced violin playing to left-hand finger movements, left forearm movements, right forearm movements, and right upper arm movements. That’s it, unless you want to count the movement of your diaphragm, which should be working in any case!

Now, I’m not saying there isn’t a certain degree of complexity and subtlety to violin playing. After all, with four elements you can construct the human genome.

What I am saying is that when all else is relaxed and merely responding to the movements of the above, you will have the makings of excellent violin playing.

So next time a violin ‘authority’ tells you that you must use a very elaborate combination of fingers, wrist, and arm to change bow directions smoothly, you can respond with Joseph Silverstein’s quip, ‘I just play up bow until I play down bow.’

All the best,
Clayton Haslop

P.S. Milstein was regarded as ‘a violinist’s violinist’ particularly for the efficiency with which he play. If you want to cultivate more of this beauty in motion into what you do on the violin then ”Kreutzer for Violin Mastery” is for you.

P.P.S. You say you’ve covered Kreutzer and are ready for something more ambitious? Come reserve a copy of ”Paganini for Violin Virtuosity, Vol. 1”. A geneticist would be envious of the wonders you’ll create.