JAVS Spring 2006

ready ro play. Wa rm-up tech niques, such as slowly played scales and etudes, finger isomet ri cs, orig inal c reation , finger flexi bility, strengthening the third and fo urth fingers, and personal com fort a re discussed along with their application and function in wa rm-u p procedures by G regory Barnes and Katrina Wreede. T he section closes with four pages of excel lent and varied warm-up exerc ises Luthier Eric Chapman, whose presentations have enhanced many instrumental congresses and conven t io ns, writes sooth in the comp lica ted and subjective world of instrumen t selection in C hapte r Seven: T h e Hows and Whys of C hoosing a Viola. Chapman does not mince words- his style is direct, effi cic.:nt, and precisely to the po in r and his scope is broad. D iscussio ns include body s ize and string length , sound quali ty and instrumental color in aud iro ri um and dead rooms alike, and pracri ca l cons iderations such as market value, wo rkmanship, and trade value. This Comprehensive Guide the CentraL CLefInstrument and its Music is the type of book that should spend very li t tle of i t.~ use ful li fe on a shelf. Rathe r, it shou ld be found on a music stand or a desk and ado rned through ou t by yellow highl igh ting and red underscore with s rudents' names scribbled in penc il oppo s ite pa ragraphs pe rtaining to their problems. Over passi ng years it should accrue coffee or soft-d rink

Robert Culver, Kathleen Horvath and William Prim rose. Reading Gregory Barnes' pedagogical expose can be a humbling experi - ence as one cannot help but reflect upo n such questio ns as "how was I taught," " how do I teach ," and "how do I practice?"

can stains somewhere, a few pas t ry crumbs between pages, and perhaps a bent cover o r frayed corner from bei ng d ropped, fo ld ed and h ast ily stuffed in ro a case by its owner; such is the fate of a book in almost constant use. r; Dr. Dwight Pounds is a frequent contributor to the JAVS as a writer and photographer and has serued on the AVS Executive Board for over 25 years in various capacities. He was the third AVS Vice President, first 1 VS Executive Secretary, and is author ofThe Ame rican V io la Society: A History and Reference. He earned his docto1-ate from Tndiana University where he studied vioLa with WiLLiam Primrose and fn1in !Lmer. Dr. Pounds is f>roj{:ssor Hmeritus from Western Kentucky University.

It aft begins in the brain! - Luciano Pava rotti, about s ing ing 1

Tom Heimberg begins "Part 2, Practic ing the Viola: T hough t Before Action," with the above recollection of a long-ago conve r sation with Pavarotti . T h e well - read author entices his read ers with o ther t imely quotes from famous and obscure alike in this at once philosophic and pragmat ic discussion. H e expands the unive rsal truth that practice is essen tial to lea rning the viola (o r anything else) to this simple the sis: practice itself is a skill that must be nurtured , maintained, refined and cherished and the key to successful pract ice resides always in the mind . H eimberg's three sections open with "The M ind in Practice" in which the need fo r ( I ) calm self-observation and (2) precise intentional actio n and mental pause a re outl ined and discussed. H e moves next to "T he Mind in the Practice Room" and concludes with some eleven pages of exercises imended to supplement practice and tech ni cal develo pment. "Parr 3, Final Though ts About the First Task: Warming Up," is a conc ise summary of the impor ta nce of and the attention that sho uld be devoted to getting

Notes: 1. Barrett, H enry. The Viola:

CompLete Guide for Teachers and Students. University of Alabama Press, 1978.

2. P. xiii 3. P. 33 4. p 81 5. P. 197

VOLUME 22

NUMBER 1

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