JAVS Spring 2011

prepare them for an audition. Where I think this miss es the mark is the omission of suggested fingerings. The student with no private teacher will probably need some assistance as to how to get up and down from that third octave, and the orchestra director may not feel as comfortable on the viola to make the best suggestions. I applaud the authors for making students aware of the importance of learning and preparing scales in high school. The next part includes several orchestral excerpts, études, the courante and minuets for the G-Major Bach Suite, the bourrées from the C-Major Bach Suite, and the first two movements of the Telemann Concerto. An excellent text also describes how to pre pare all of these elements of the audition, what to be careful of, why they are being asked, and what audi tion committees are looking for in each portion. One suggestion I would have for a second edition would be to discuss the various degrees available at most schools, what those typical degree programs entail, and what types of jobs they prepare students

for. Most programs may include the Bachelor of Music, Bachelor of Music Education, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Arts, or music minor. There are also a number of other degrees not offered at every school, such as music therapy. I highly recommend this book to high school orchestra directors and stu dents without private teachers. Although conservato ries, some universities, and some degree programs require much more for the audition process than this book offers, it is an excellent starting point for many students. Doris Gazda has done an excellent job choosing repertoire to adapt this for the viola. However, the other authors should have taken more care in modifying the text: when publishing a viola book, references to “your band director” are not the most appropriate. The Sassmannshaus Tradition Early Start on the Viola, Volumes 1–4 by Egon and Kurt Sassmannshaus English translation: Kurt Sassmannshaus and Melissa Lusk The Sassmannshaus tradition for violin was written by Egon Sassmannshaus, former Director of the Municipal Music School of Würzberg Germany. Kurt Sassmannshaus, chairman of the string depart ment at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, translated and brought his father’s method to the United States. Egon combined his knowledge of child psychology and a systematic approach to teaching to create this method. Kurt Sassmannshaus is renowned for training young students, first through the Starling Preparatory String Project and later through “Starling Kids,” a community pro gram dedicated to beginning students along with a teacher training program. This father/son duo now brings their methodology to the viola. On the Sassmannshaus website (www.violinmaster class.com), there are many comments about this method from users indicating why it works. These range from: “Note reading is introduced from the beginning,” “students develop sight reading skills,” Copyright Bärenreiter-Verlag Karl Vötterle GmbH & Co. 2010, $19.95 each volume

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