Breathe together, Move together, Play together
F - Repertoire Development - Arensky
Before diving into a new work, explore breaking down the piece into more digestible fragments providing an opportunity to develop an overall understanding and intention to the piece. This includes exploring various chord progressions. In this activity, an e minor chord progression (I,IV,V7,I) is utilized in preparation to read Arensky’s Variations on a Theme by Tchaikovsky. This engaging activity is also beneficial for ear training and theory, as well as chord voicing and intonation.
This activity utilizes the opening of Arensky’s Variations on a Theme by Tchaikovsky to explore the different colors that can be created with pizzicato. This activity encourages developing ideas of color and dimension and provides players with techniques to explore the pizzicato sections that occur later in the piece. Encourage transferring the discovery of the pizzicato colors and tones to the bow.
Each ensemble member picks a ringing tone and explores the resonance created. Ringing tones include any note that correlates to an open string - A, D, G, C, E. Encourage the members to continue to breathe together, move together and play together throughout the exploration of ringing tones.
In the ringing tone game, the ensemble plays only the ringing tones during a selected excerpt, all other notes are “played” as rests. Ringing tones include any note that correlates to an open string - A, D, G, C, E. This game encourages the ensemble to listen for resonance and sparkling intonation by drawing players' attention to the resonance and clarity produced through the ringing tones. Encourage the players to silently finger the non-ringing tones on the fingerboard that are to be played as rests for an additional benefit of connection of note to note and rhythm to rhythm.
Non-ringing tone pitches also produce a resonance, a “sparkle,” that can be discovered when all ensemble members build their awareness for centered intonation, balanced blend of voicing, and a beautiful tone. In the non-ringing tone game, the ensemble plays only the non-ringing tones during a selected excerpt, all ringing tones are now “played” as rests. Encourage the players to silently finger the ringing tones on the fingerboard that are to be played as rests for an additional benefit of connection of note to note and rhythm to rhythm. This activity encourages ensemble members to listen for the “sparkle” in their playing and serves as a useful transition into playing the excerpt as written.
The ensemble plays the excerpt of Arensky’s Variations on a Theme by Tchaikovsky listening for the combined result of participating in the pizzicato color game, the ringing tone game, and the non-ringing tone game.