A modern violist is a team player, who at any moment must be able to jump in and take the lead rhythmically or melodically. Should you play viola? Well, the most important question to ask yourself is, Do you love the sound of the viola? As was mentioned earlier, the viola has less star power than the violin, cello, or bass, but its beautiful and rich sound quality sets it apart. Of course vibrato is purely personal, but a slower and wider vibrato achieves the darker tone that is more commonplace on a viola. They are often the mediator between the articulations of the cellos/basses and the violins (It is no coincidence that violists as people tend to be calm and stable!) Along with sound production comes vibrato! Again, vibrato on the viola is very similar to that of the violin, but it tends to be slightly slower and wider to match the larger size of the instrument. Violists have to be masters of articulation! Remember that the viola is the middle voice in the string section. The viola can be easily lost in the sound of an orchestra, therefore they need to be able to stop and start bow strokes clearly in order to be heard. Violists need to be mindful of this since we don’t want to be behind the violins in the orchestra! They also need to learn to play slightly shorter strokes than on the violin depending on the desired sound. That is, it actually takes a bit longer to hear its sound from the time the bow touches the string. Generally, because of its thicker strings the viola speaks slower than the violin. The last major difference between playing the violin and viola is in the production of sound. It should be noted that violists also get to use treble clef on occasion when they play in higher registers. The trombone and cello sometimes use tenor clef, which looks like an alto clef floating one line higher on the music staff. Although the alto clef was used quite widely in the Baroque period, it is rarely used by instruments other than the viola in modern times. Alto clef is easy to read (with a bit of practice) once you know that the center line on the music staff is middle C. The cello bow also has a rounded frog, but is shorter than both violin and viola bows and weighs around 10 grams more than a viola bow.Īnother major difference in playing viola is the use of the alto clef. The frog on a viola bow is rounded while the violin bow is pointed. One way to tell a viola bow apart from violin bows is by looking at the frog (the part of the bow that is held in the hand). Viola bows generally weigh anywhere from 69 to 74 grams-about 10 grams heavier than violin bows. Since the instrument is larger, is it also heavier and requires thicker strings and heftier bows. The main difference is that the viola is slightly larger, meaning that you must place your fingers slightly farther apart when playing viola than on the violin. Fortunately, there are several viola makers today that specialize in producing great violas, making for many happy violists.Īs I mentioned earlier, the viola and violin are played in a similar manner. Great old violas and bows are extremely rare and thus a viola made by Stradivarius or Guarnerius is worth many times more than a violin of the same condition. Because of their role as harmonic instruments, violas were not made in as large numbers as the violin and cello. This lack of star power has also contributed to something curious amongst violas and viola bows. Besides being visually hard to miss on stage, basses are regularly seen performing in various popular music groups such as jazz ensembles and pop/rock groups. The viola has less solo music written for it than the violin and cello, and while it does have more solo music written for it than the string bass, the viola is still less recognized than the bass. This is the main reason that people are less familiar with it than the violin or cello. The viola has been utilized as a harmonic (as opposed to melodic) instrument by composers for hundreds of years. In fact, some reports say that it is the oldest of the string family.
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