Chats to 'Cello Students

CHAPTER IX.

Portamento—The Various Uses of Gliding—Some Exaggerations Exposed—How to Leap Great Intervals Without "Howling"—Combination of Glissando and Sforzando.

Portamento.

The subject of gliding, although referring more directly to phrasing, is so nearly connected with shifting and the choice of positions that one is insensibly led into its treatment. A melody should never depend on the characteristics of an instrument for its effectiveness, although much individual charm is given to a composition by such characteristics being allowed to assert themselves without spoiling the intentions of the composer. Thus the phrasing should never be marred just because it is convenient or inconvenient to introduce that connecting link, the glide. I shall in this chapter endeavour to explain a few of the many methods of gliding, and the reasons why one method is used in preference to another; their practical application will be learned, partly from a knowledge of phraseology and musical form, and also from experience. The human voice is supposed to be the most perfect musical instrument—if one may so term it; all instruments which are made by man having in comparison some imperfection. Thus, it is impossible on the pianoforte to commence a sustained note piano and gradually swell out to forte, nor is it possible to glide one note into another, although much may be done in this direction by causing the note to sing in such a manner, that one note seems to be sustained until the next has been tenderly approached. Each note has to remain fixed as far as pitch is concerned, the idea of gliding only applying to the "thickness" of the tone being varied when quitting one note and approaching the next. The latter remarks apply also to wind instruments. No matter how small is the break between two notes, or in what manner art is introduced to conceal or in any other way attempt to make up for this deficiency, it is yet there, and to a great extent must influence the interpretation of a composition. The violoncello resembles the human voice perhaps more than any other instrument. The character of the tone in certain portions of its register is very similar to that of the human voice, and without going too far, it may be said that it is possible to produce nearly all the varied effects of articulation of which the voice is capable, except actually speaking. Thus the variation in tone which singers produce by a clever management of the breath, the glide when two notes are sung to a vowel sound, the hard sound of an initial consonant, the vibrato, and numerous other effects are all possible on this most human instrument. However, as far as gliding is concerned, the 'cello has a big range, and far more is expected from the instrumentalist, in the way of leaping to and from notes at extreme distances, than is ever expected from a single voice. The vocalist performs similar skips by an unconscious, and to a certain extent, involuntary contraction of the various small and delicate muscles in the larynx. The 'cellist has sometimes to make a sweep of the whole length of the fingerboard, or to break the flow of the melody by leaping over one or more strings. This then will show the imperfections of even the most perfect instrument made by man when compared with the voice; the 'cellist must endeavour by the aid of art to overcome, or conceal, the bad effects which may be caused by the mechanical difficulties of his instrument, and taking the voice as an example endeavour to interpret a composition in the same manner as would a good vocalist, imitating as closely and truthfully as possible the phrasing and the various effects which one observes in singing.

Some professors of the strictly classical school condemn all gliding as faulty; the finest of these players are noted for their perfect intonation, but are also noted for their lack of sentiment. Any exaggeration in the opposite direction, however, tends to undue sentimentality, and to an unprepared audience will have most disastrous results. It is well known that the player may so accustom himself to glide on to the notes, that any amount of exaggeration in this respect seems quite right. The player should regulate his performance according to the manner in which the absence, or too great a prominence, of the glide in the playing of others affects him; this is the only safe way to judge, as the effect on the listener is always more pronounced than on the player.

In almost every melody there are places where every musician feels compelled to dwell on the interval between two notes, sustaining the one note, and retaining the advent of the other; this "expressive" kind of glissando, besides being the most pronounced in its effect, is consequently the most objectionable if incorrectly used. On the violoncello it is produced by playing two notes with the same finger, gliding slowly from one position to the other. This glide must never be used to connect two notes which are separated by a large interval, as a most unpleasant howling will be occasioned; the only places where it may be introduced are at a cadence, or at the full close of a musical composition, where the terminal note of the phrase is reached by a descending passage, and then it must only be taken on an interval composed of not more than one or two whole tones at the most.

Vocalists generally make the most of this glide to sustain a passionate delivery at the close of a vocal piece, and indeed it has a very disturbing effect on the listener. This effect may be described as being occasioned in the following manner; in accordance with the musical structure of the composition, the listener expects a certain note to be sounded, thus when the close of a composition is being approached, the listener naturally expects the tonic (key-note). Naturally therefore, anything which delays the tonic—whether it be a slight ritard, a sustained trill, or the seeming unwillingness of the player to quit the note preceding the tonic, although having an exciting influence over the listener, makes the appearance of the final note more acceptable and the consequent rest and satisfaction more complete. I must here caution the reader against gliding to the tonic from the leading-note, that is unless the identity of the tone is afterwards firmly established by being played again on an accented part of the bar. If the examples here given (Ex. 35) are studied, it will be seen that in each case the terminal note of the phrase thoroughly establishes itself on the ear by being twice sounded, first on an unaccented beat, then on the strongly marked portion of the bar. The ear requires this to give it the necessary assurance of the identity of the tonic. In ascending passages the approach to the tonic from the leading-note is by so small an interval (half-tone), that the arrival at the close must always be distinct, the introduction of the glide on so small an interval, would give the appearance of the tonic being played out of tune.

Ex. 35

The glide in each case (Ex. 35) is made on the two notes connected with a slur.

The glide of next importance is generally introduced in imitation of that produced by vocalists when two notes are taken on a vowel sound; the only difference to be observed by the 'cellist is that the interval, and consequently the glide, must not be so strongly marked. The same method of fingering as that given for the gliding previously explained may be used, but as this glide is sometimes taken on notes at extreme distances, the bow must be nicely managed, and the shifting done firmly and rapidly so that any unpleasant howling is not too much in evidence.

The introduction of this gliding is really a matter of taste, the only uses with which it can be credited in instrumental music, are to lend a certain amount of tenderness to a melody, and also to connect any wide intervals or isolated notes, which otherwise would spoil the phrasing. The two foregoing methods of glissando may be termed the only styles of gliding which are introduced solely for effect in an "active" sense, the remaining styles of gliding are merely passive in their nature, and are introduced to cover the defects of the instrument, in the way of bridging over any awkward leaps caused by the necessary length of string to be covered. Before proceeding, I would here caution the student against blindly following all the exaggerations in which even our best vocalists occasionally indulge. A short time ago I heard a well known tenor sing the song "Annie Laurie," the last line of which was given after this fashion.

Ex. 36

The glide to and from the top F was quite correct, and indeed very expressive, the objectionable part being the manner of dividing each word, and even introducing another syllable so that the following note may be anticipated. However by these exaggerations the singer succeeded in "bringing down the house," so I suppose he was satisfied.

This is almost akin to the method adopted by some instrumentalists to heighten the effect in a passage made up of detached notes. Instead of changing the bow-stroke at the moment the leap is made, during a slight break between the notes, the method is to change the bow-stroke before the first note is quitted, then glide rapidly to the next note, at the same time producing a sforzando; the effect is seen in Ex. 37.

Ex. 37

I mention this solely to caution young players against unconsciously forming a habit which is at once incorrect and vulgar, and although players of the first rank in the height of their passion may sometimes employ this artifice to more fully express their feelings, it would be unwise for one of lesser musical standing to attempt that which great artists only employ on sufferance. The most ingenious method adopted by stringed instrument players to cover a great expanse of string, without either chopping up the phrase or giving too much prominence to the glide, was, I believe, first given by Spohr; it may be explained as follows.

In an ascending passage, the player must always have at liberty one of the fingers to stop a higher note than that produced by the gliding finger, so that the gliding has not to cover the whole distance of the interval (see Ex. 38). In descending passages the reverse takes place, the glide being executed with the third or fourth finger, the first or second fingers being retained to stop the lower note on the arrival of the hand in position.

Ex. 38

The grace notes in the above examples must not on any account be heard. To prevent any possibility of this, the finger stopping the second note must be firmly placed almost before the gliding has ceased, the introduction of the grace notes in the above examples being merely to illustrate the method of carrying the glide up to the necessary position, then firmly stopping the required note.

Other methods of gliding have to be invented for special passages, or for the production of extraordinary effects. One of the most surprising effects is to combine the sforzando with a strongly marked glide, the sforzando being given on the second note of the slur, and the glide being of the most pronounced type. I have heard our great violinist, John Dunn, occasionally give vent to his feelings in a slightly exaggerated glide and sforzando combination of this description, and for waking up a sleepy or apathetic audience, I can strongly recommend it.

Beyond all these hints, and far removed from any explanation, there remains that delicacy of feeling which the artist alone can introduce into his playing—that subtle management of bow and fingers, so necessary to really fine playing. Even in the matter of gliding this is easily recognised; the varying speed at which the glide is taken, the pressure put on the strings or otherwise, accenting the commencement of the glide and lightly approaching the second note, or lightly gliding off the first note and strongly accenting the arrival at the second; the varying pressure brought to bear on the bow, etc., etc. All this must come from natural feeling, and cannot be taught, no matter how clever the teacher or how willing the pupil.

Clyx.com