Graces and Embellishments—The Use of the Thumb—Extensions—Octaves.

Graces and Embellishments.

There are various embellishments in use, some of which are expressed in notation, such as the cadenza, the group of grace notes, the appogiatura. Others are expressed by signs. The most important of these are the trill, or shake (tr), the pralltriller, or short shake (), and the mordent, or turn ( or according to the variety). Besides the above, and not included in these two divisions, are numerous graces, or ornaments, which perhaps come under the head of effects, and both in their introduction and their manner of execution, are left entirely to the player. Under this head may be mentioned the close shake, or vibrato, and the vocal effect produced by changing the fingers on a stopped note, or playing two notes of the same pitch in different registers of the instrument.

Considering the largely increasing quantity of literature which deals with the elements of music, wherein most of the above graces are treated, it will be useless to again go through an explanation of them. It will be necessary, however, to deal with one or two matters relative to their execution on the violoncello.

It used to be customary for singers and instrumentalists to take more liberty in the introduction of graces and embellishments than is allowed in modern times, or is possible with modern compositions. The early Italian vocal school must be held responsible for many early extravagances in this direction. The representatives of this school, fitted as they were by nature, climate, language and training, for brilliant vocalisation, never lost an opportunity of displaying their wonderful feats of execution; in the opera even the simplest melody being overloaded with trills, turns, grace notes and especially by the introduction of long bravura passages, in the shape of variations on the melody, or as cadenzas. An amusing instance of this was the competition between Farinelli, the celebrated singer and a trumpeter (Rome, 1723), which took place before a large and enthusiastic crowd. I suppose each of these artists tried to outshine the other in the brilliance of their improvised cadenzas and coloratura passages. With the exception of added cadenzas in some concertos, it is not now considered good taste to embellish a composition—even the simplest melody, by the addition of anything to the written notes. The modern artist, especially the instrumentalist, must content himself with his individual treatment of what is before him, depending solely on this, and the beauty of the composition for his effect.

The Trill.

To acquire a good trill on the violoncello, the student should practice trilling with each finger, commencing very slowly at first, then gradually increasing the speed. Each finger should be perfected separately, the fourth being generally the weakest, will require more attention. The following exercise (Ex. 50) if properly practised, should be the means of perfecting the student in this essential and pleasing ornament.

To study this exercise properly a week should be devoted to each figure, that is to say, one figure must be fairly well perfected before the next is attempted; the student should devote several minutes at various times of the day to its practice. This system of dividing the time devoted to the practice of a mechanical study like the perfection of the trill, will prevent the muscles being over exerted. In slow movements, especially on a long sustained note, a good effect may be produced by commencing the trill slowly, then gradually increasing the rapidity of the beats. In quick movements the trill should be generally commenced and continued quickly.

The chief beauty in the introduction of the pralltriller and the various turns, consists in throwing them into the melody without disturbing the time or phrasing; to acquire this ability, the student may first play the passage without introducing the turns, etc., then when the structure of the phrase is clearly grasped, the embellishments should be added. As a good concert composition which may be of use both in acquiring a neat method of introducing the turn, or of displaying such accomplishment, may be mentioned the "Arlequin" by Popper. It is very pleasing and fits the instrument.

The Vibrato.

The vibrato or close shake is produced by shaking the left hand from side to side, the finger tip—which stops the note on which the vibrato is produced,—forming the pivot. The soft fleshy cushion which forms the tip of the finger, seems to grip the string, and should not on any account be allowed to slide out of tune; thus the effect must never be so exaggerated as to allow the beats to be varied in pitch, the result should merely be a kind of throbbing.

A good effect is produced in a sostenuto theme by commencing the vibrato slowly on a crescendo note. As the crescendo gathers in force, the throbbing of the vibrato is increased in rapidity; much practice is necessary to accomplish the gradual increasing or diminishing of the speed, without any break being observable in either the increasing of the tone, or the vibrato beats. The natural law with respect to the variety in vibrato effects may be given as follows. A note low in pitch, or a note played piano, requires a slow vibrato, a higher note, or a note played forte and passionately, requires a rapid vibrato. The student must be cautioned not to introduce the slow vibrato too freely, although he may see many players constantly wag the hand in sustained or passionate passages, this is not always done to produce a vibrato effect, but is often intended to give a thrilling tone by a clearly defined stopping of the note.

The Cadenza.

The cadenza may be said to range from the group of notes taken ad lib., to the brilliant virtuosic cadenza introduced, or added to concerto compositions.

The first form is generally used as a connecting link between one section of a composition and another, and although the time is marked ad lib., the student should always strive to correctly phrase these little solo passages in accordance with the character of the movement or composition, so that the desired effect may be given.

The latter and "big" form of cadenza, is generally given to allow the performer an opportunity to show his skill, although Schumann did not favour this idea; the cadenza to his 'cello concerto being merely a few bars of recitative leading into the brilliant coda (finale), in other compositions he adhered to the same idea, the cadenza being thoroughly and wholly "Schumann," without any attempt to serve as a means of display. In compositions where the cadenza is not written out, the player is expected to supply one; this should be constructed from motives taken from the work, the skill of the player being shown in the manner in which these motives are treated. As the composition of a cadenza will necessarily be of a free character, the introduction of brilliant arpeggios, double-stops and rapid scale passages all skilfully woven around and connecting the motives introduced, may be taken as the basis on which to work.

Grace Notes.

Grace notes expressed in groups of small notes are not essential in any great degree to the musical structure of a composition, they are supposed to add to its effectiveness; the success of their introduction and their chief charm, consists in throwing them into the melody with ease. Sometimes a ritard is made, especially in song-like compositions, so that the grace notes may be played quite deliberately; in other pieces where strict time is essential, the time must be stolen from the note which precedes or follows. It may be accepted as a general rule that the grace notes should not delay the enunciation of a heavily accented note, so that the rhythm may remain undisturbed.

Pizzicato.

Notes are played pizzicato by pulling the strings with the fingers, instead of causing their vibration with the bow; the player should grasp the bow firmly at the nut with the little finger, and perhaps the third finger, according to the requirements of the pizzicato passage.

In scale passages it is wise to use the first and second fingers alternately for the purpose of plucking the strings, the thumb resting on the edge of the fingerboard as a support for the hand. For arpeggios and chords, the thumb may be used for the lower string, and the fingers for the upper strings. Chords in rapid succession are best played by striking across all the four strings with the thumb and first finger alternately; when the thumb is used, the lower strings receive the first vibration, the higher strings being struck first when using the first finger; the chords should be struck so smartly that the four strings seem to vibrate simultaneously. The advantages of this method is that with each motion of the hand a chord is sounded, thus, when using the thumb, the hand moves from right to left, returning from left to right when using the first finger.

In all pizzicato passages the strings should be plucked in such a manner that they oscillate from side to side during their vibration; if they are allowed to snap against the fingerboard, the sound will be instantly checked. The student should remember that taste may be brought into play in the method of executing pizzicato passages. It is not necessary to play all the notes with one volume of sound; a crescendo on a series of notes can be produced quite as effectively as with the bow. In chamber music there is often a better opportunity for the display of taste in the execution of pizzicato passages than in solo compositions; pizzicato passages in the latter being generally introduced for display rather than accompaniment.

The Use of the Thumb.

A knowledge of the correct use of the thumb for the purpose of stopping notes on the violoncello, is of the utmost importance to any who wish to have anything like command of the instrument. It is quite certain that the 'cello would not be anything like the perfect instrument it is, if the player was confined to the neck positions. As already explained, the neck positions only extend to a couple of notes beyond the half-string. When it is necessary to go beyond this, the thumb is taken from its position behind the neck of the instrument, and firmly placed in a horizontal position across two strings, thus stopping a perfect fifth.

The student should attend very carefully to the hints here given respecting the part of the thumb which actually stops the strings. The first joint of the thumb should be slightly bent outwards, the higher string should pass across the side of the thumb just under the root of the nail, the strings being about half-an-inch apart, the lower string will be that distance nearer the tip of the thumb. On no account must the thumb be so placed that the higher string interferes in the slightest with the joint of the thumb: this would make it impossible to quickly slide along the strings without disturbing the relative positions of the two strings. Continued practice with the thumb will form two grooves on the under side of the thumb, exactly the width of the strings apart; when this comes about, no inconvenience will be experienced either in rapidly sliding along the strings, or in putting on sufficient pressure. A common experience with students first learning thumb positions, is the feeling that the fingers are too long. To remedy this and also to gain sufficient weight on the fingers, some young players will allow the knuckles to protrude and the finger joints to bend inwards. I have noticed this time after time in pupils, even when they have overcome the same difficulty in the neck positions. In a short time the hand will get accustomed to the change of posture, in the meantime the knuckles must be kept quite flat, and the finger joints bent outwards. When the muscles, which have hitherto remained idle, are fully developed, the player will be able to put sufficient pressure on the strings without any assistance from the weight of the hand.

With respect to the introduction of the thumb; it is not always necessary in the high positions to use the thumb to actually stop certain notes, occasionally certain scale passages occur which may be fingered as the ordinary scales—that is, with the thumb following behind at the distance of a tone. However, the most important reason for rejecting the thumb for speaking notes and "fingering" the passage, is that of phrasing. In expressive movements, exactly as one finds it necessary in the lower range of the instrument to leave out the use of the open strings, or play in a higher position than necessary, so in the high thumb positions the same unity of feeling must be observed by a nicely arranged system of fingering. The reason for an objection against the indiscriminate use of the thumb in slow cantabile passages, is that the tone produced when the note is stopped by the pressure of the thumb, is not of the same character as that produced when the tips of the fingers are used. Perhaps it takes a very fine ear to distinguish this difference. In quick movements it is not discernible, but on a sustained note the tone produced by the thumb is to a great extent colourless. That there should be a difference in tone is hardly to be wondered at, when one considers the acute sensibility of touch at the finger tips. It is possible that the necessary varieties of pressure, or more accurately, "touch," which are requisite to a soulful performance, may be more readily accomplished with the tips of the fingers, owing to a greater concentration of nerve matter there than at the side of the thumb, but this we must leave to physiologists; those whose ear is so delicately formed that they notice these slight varieties in tone colour, will perhaps be thankful for the hint whereby a soulful manner of fingering and phrasing in the high positions may be acquired. The fear of being thought dogmatical in this work, prevents me giving examples of this method of fingering in the thumb positions, as, of course, each player will naturally adopt the system which suits his style the best, but to the student I would advise that the passages are phrased exactly as one would sing them, entirely irrespective of strings or positions; using the finger tips in preference to the thumb for the speaking notes wherever possible.

In quick movements the use of the thumb is indispensable. In many cases one is compelled to use it even in the lower neck positions so that certain passages may be possible.

Extensions.

The use of extensions, that is, the fingering of certain notes which are foreign to the position in which the hand is placed, is of more frequent occurrence in the thumb positions than in the lower range of the instrument. To a great extent these have to be studied as special passages. However, each passage of this description thoroughly mastered, will make similar passages easier and assist in giving a greater command over the fingerboard. To acquire a general knowledge of these extensions, the student may practise a series of "running arpeggios" in the various keys, similar to those given by Coward Klee in his arrangement of scales for 'cello. The student may play them in three or four octaves according to the possibilities of the instrument.

Octaves.

Octave passages are usually played across two strings, with the thumb and third finger, the thumb stopping the lower note on the lower string, and the third finger stopping its octave on the higher string.

The most difficult progressions in octaves are those which are played in unison, that is, the higher and lower notes being sounded simultaneously—the slightest faults in intonation are here most painfully evident. Where the octaves are sounded separately, one part moving independently to the other, the difficulty of intonation is nothing near so great.

Occasionally one comes across octave passages which are either impossible to be played in the usual manner of thumb and third finger—or else sound better to be played with different fingering. An example of the former is met with in Popper's well-known "Elfentanz." This is an extremely brilliant descending passage in octaves, with the ninth used as a passing note. Here the octaves are played with thumb and second finger, thus leaving the third finger free for the added ninth. An example of the latter exception is the final octave passage in the Rondo of the favourite Beethoven Sonata for 'cello (No. 2). This passage, which remains in the lower range of the instrument, sounds much more brilliant if taken as an ordinary passage across the strings, than if attempted with the usual octave fingering.

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