Before we proceed with our shifting techniques I’d like to provide some photos how to cope with higher positions on the violin because there are some significant differences between lower (1. to 4.) and higher (>5.) positions.
Perhaps you remember our left hand geometry we talked about in part 3. Our hand should look like this when we are in the third position:
The wrist is more or less straight, the thumb should be opposite to the first finger. Seen from the front:
The left arm is quite relaxed and sort of hanging down.
Generally this applies for positions 1 to 4. If we proceed higher sooner or later we would collide with the body of our violin. We have to change our violin hold, or better – the hand holding the violin.
The thumb moves beneath the fingerboard, the arm swings towards the E-string and the hand moves up, thus enabling us to perform vibrato in higher positions:
Watch the position of the thumb – it’s beneath the fingerboard and it should stay there:
Here again from the other side:
Because the wrist is bent it’s possible to reach higher positions without colliding with the body of the instrument.
Please remember: The thumb remains beneath the fingerboard from the 5th position upwards. It should stay there, even in the eighth position or higher. It’s rather easy to return to the fifth position that way because you just have to relax your stretched hand and violà – you’re back where you started.
As soon as you leave the higher positions, take your thumb back as well. Don’t forget it in the fifth floor. Sounds trivial, but I’ve seen it very often.
If you want to train this, have a look at Sevcik’s op.8. I’ve already written about it here.
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Shifting, Vibrato, Violin Lessons
