Practice long tones – usually the preserve of woodwind and brass players, they can also pay dividends for string players. The best violin exercise is to play a whole note on an open string. The open string will be more responsive to any changes in your bow speed, and you’ll hear inconsistencies quickly. Practice this exercise on first position notes as well, and with equal attention to up-bows as well as down.
Still looking in the mirror, take a good look at your bow hold – is there enough flexibility in your grip to enable you to play freely? Once you’re sure that you’re holding your bow properly, the best violin exercises for tone involve an even mix of scales and long notes. Try these two:
Another one of the best violin exercises you can do for finger strength in both hands is to practice your rhythm exercises pizzicato. Scales will train fingers and ears simultaneously – practice changing strings, and also changing positions on the same string. Pay careful attention to your hand position; singers will usually practice in front of a mirror to make sure they aren’t doing anything to cause tension or upset their technique, and this is a good habit for you as a violinist to adopt, too. Flat fingers will not only lead to messy string changes, but will make it harder for you to depress the string enough to get a crisp sound. Keep your nails short, and make sure to use the tips of your fingers.
One of the best violin exercises doesn’t even require your instrument: Take out the music you are practicing, and read through the notation, paying special attention to any difficult areas. Identify whether the notes fall on the beat, on off-beats, or if they are syncopated or otherwise complex rhythms. Take a pencil and mark where the beats are directly on your music.
|Over the years there have been many violin practice programs developed by violin teachers. One of the most organized and successful programs was created by Galamian. This program has been refined and developed into the Belknap Violin Practicing System with an added focus on tracking progress and learning. The Beknap system also includes simple explanations and video examples for each exercise. The future of teaching and learning is held in the recording of the progress made by the student and the answers they discover as they practice. To use the Belknap System, get a copy of the Violin Practice Journal. Then, use the links below to learn the violin practice exercises and watch the video examples. The combination of the Violin Journal and the video examples will help you reach your potential if you will practice the violin exercises daily and play them for someone who can help advance you through each technique.||