Viola Spiccato
Last week, I told you about my long, viola-free vacation and the impact it had on my playing. For me, spiccato is one of the first skills to degrade when I take time off.
I already know this, and I created my a daily maintenance schedule for spiccato years ago. I can't tell you what a difference it makes in my professional life!
But I don't just practice a generic spiccato. There are three primary spiccatos that we use as orchestral players. They are distinct in terms of the character of the articulation and the of the tempo:
Mendelssohn Scherzo - 84 beats per minute
Brahms Haydn Variation V - 120 beats per minute
Mozart Haffner Movement IV - 144 beats per minute
As you know, spiccato is complicated, but keep in mind that there are two things that can potentially throw off a spiccato—the first is string crossings, and the second is shifting. These two things happen with greater frequency in an arpeggio as opposed to a scale.
I have found that the best “vehicle” for practicing spiccato at these tempi is the Carl Flesch arpeggio series, and I have developed a highly effective, daily spiccato routine that takes 10-15 minutes.
Can I share my spiccato routine with you? Click on my schedule to find a time when we can have a short chat, and I'll be happy to share my routine for free!