Looking for a little help. Been playing for years and although I had lessons at school (just a couple of years ago........!) have never mastered (or even grasped, if I'm being honest!) the technique. Any advice would really be appreciated since it does become a problem when playing in bands etc, and people DO expect it!
If flute, use as little vibrato as possible. No "throat" vibrato at all, if you can manage. Use "finger vibrato" (by doing like a "trill" on one or more holes which doesn't change the note, just lowers the pitch a little) sparingly, as ornamentation in long notes.
From your profile it looks as though you're a fiddler are you? If so, I for one would be expecting very little vibrato from you, if any at all. What sort of music are you playing? Who are these people who "expect" vibrato? Do they know anything about the style of music you play? Is it slow airs you're into? If you do want to get good vibrato technique, I would have said your best bet is to start with some lessons from a classical violinist and then transfer the skill.
...Or maybe since you've had lessons already and you don't think they've worked, the only way would be to relax and pick it up by ear from recordings. It's probably not an easy thing to learn from books.
1. The basic secret is a relaxed left hand. If you can move easily up and down the fingerboard from one position to another (even if you don't need to this in most ITM playing) you should have the level of hand relaxation necessary for vibrato.
2. Vibrato should always be controlled, both in its width and frequency of the oscillation. The sort of uncontrolled vibrato which I've seen sometimes, best described as a "judder", is ugly to see and hear, and is tiring for the player. If you find it a struggle or you're forcing it, give it a rest. With experience and lots of playing it often comes naturally without you expecting it, but that might take a few months or even a couple of years. Have a few lessons from an experienced player who can do a good natural-sounding vibrato. There may be something in your posture that's holding you back.
3. Vibrato shouldn't be used to cover up poor intonation, although there shouldn't be any excuse for that in an experienced player!
4. As glauber said, vibrato in ITM is used mostly as an occasional ornament, so you're more likely to use it in the slower tunes, such as slow airs (you can't really do vibrato when you're playing fast notes).
5. Don't forget that vibrato isn't essential for ITM. As long as you're playing the notes in tune and in rhythm (and in the right order!) you're well on the way to being a good player.
If you're going to use vibrato at all, I suggest you listen to particular players who use it to one extent or another in their playing. Firstly Paddy Glackin. Have a listen to Paddy's rambles through the park, a slow air on the Rabharta Ceoil (in full spate) CD. This, to me, is how sparingly vibrato is used generally in ITM. Secondly, Desi Donnelly. He uses vibrato quite often in slow reels and jigs and gets away with it by virtue of simply being a genius! Finally, Se
If you're going to use vibrato at all, I was told, then remember that you don't want to hear anymore than you'd like to hear in a singer singing that particular tune. This was quickly followed up with a reminder that that particular teacher hated hated hated the sound of vibrato used in Irish music (with the *possible* exception of slow airs and maybe waltzes). Con
I've heard slow airs played completely without vibrato and in addition to sounding boring it also sounds soul-less. I agree that the classical approach to slow airs doesn't work either .Brian Conway seems to have reached the perfect middle ground in his slow air playing. I find that interesting because his mentor, Andy McGann's slow air playing tends to lean a little toward a classical sound.
Thanks very much everybody. Yeh, should have said, I am indeed a fiddler. Up till now have played mostly in a ceilidh band so it hasn't really been that important. However moving to the 'performance' side wih a folk band so keen to pick it up. I will take your advice on board and let you know how I get on.
I read an article in a guitar magazine once that was discussing Eric Clapton. One artist described him as "having a very 'cultured' vibrato, like a singer holding a note for a second, then adding vibrato as it stretches on".
Perhaps this is the "middle ground" that laboroflove speaks of.
You might want to try reading pages 20-24 of Carl Flesch's "The Art of Violin Playing Book One", looking at Rivarde's vibrato exercises on page 168. After a couple of weeks of this exercise, I was able to use vibrato for the first time.
Vibrato
Vibrato
Looking for a little help. Been playing for years and although I had lessons at school (just a couple of years ago........!) have never mastered (or even grasped, if I'm being honest!) the technique. Any advice would really be appreciated since it does become a problem when playing in bands etc, and people DO expect it!
Cheers
Stag
# Posted on January 29th 2003 by Stag
Re: Vibrato
What instrument do you play?
If flute, use as little vibrato as possible. No "throat" vibrato at all, if you can manage. Use "finger vibrato" (by doing like a "trill" on one or more holes which doesn't change the note, just lowers the pitch a little) sparingly, as ornamentation in long notes.
# Posted on January 29th 2003 by glauber
Re: Vibrato
From your profile it looks as though you're a fiddler are you? If so, I for one would be expecting very little vibrato from you, if any at all. What sort of music are you playing? Who are these people who "expect" vibrato? Do they know anything about the style of music you play? Is it slow airs you're into? If you do want to get good vibrato technique, I would have said your best bet is to start with some lessons from a classical violinist and then transfer the skill.
# Posted on January 29th 2003 by Dr. Dow
...Or maybe since you've had lessons already and you don't think they've worked, the only way would be to relax and pick it up by ear from recordings. It's probably not an easy thing to learn from books.
# Posted on January 29th 2003 by Dr. Dow
Re: Vibrato
Stag, you say in your profile that you play fiddle in a band. You'll find there's a lot of discussion about fiddle vibrato in the thread,
http://www.thesession.org/discussions/display.php/1137
A few points, in no particular order:
1. The basic secret is a relaxed left hand. If you can move easily up and down the fingerboard from one position to another (even if you don't need to this in most ITM playing) you should have the level of hand relaxation necessary for vibrato.
2. Vibrato should always be controlled, both in its width and frequency of the oscillation. The sort of uncontrolled vibrato which I've seen sometimes, best described as a "judder", is ugly to see and hear, and is tiring for the player. If you find it a struggle or you're forcing it, give it a rest. With experience and lots of playing it often comes naturally without you expecting it, but that might take a few months or even a couple of years. Have a few lessons from an experienced player who can do a good natural-sounding vibrato. There may be something in your posture that's holding you back.
3. Vibrato shouldn't be used to cover up poor intonation, although there shouldn't be any excuse for that in an experienced player!
4. As glauber said, vibrato in ITM is used mostly as an occasional ornament, so you're more likely to use it in the slower tunes, such as slow airs (you can't really do vibrato when you're playing fast notes).
5. Don't forget that vibrato isn't essential for ITM. As long as you're playing the notes in tune and in rhythm (and in the right order!) you're well on the way to being a good player.
# Posted on January 29th 2003 by Trevor Jennings
Re: Vibrato
This is what a teacher once told Miles Davis, the famous Jazz trumpeter. It could explain why he had his famous sound....
"Stop the vibrato. One day, you're going to get old and start shaking anyway!"
# Posted on January 29th 2003 by Gael Force
Re: Vibrato
If you're going to use vibrato at all, I suggest you listen to particular players who use it to one extent or another in their playing. Firstly Paddy Glackin. Have a listen to Paddy's rambles through the park, a slow air on the Rabharta Ceoil (in full spate) CD. This, to me, is how sparingly vibrato is used generally in ITM. Secondly, Desi Donnelly. He uses vibrato quite often in slow reels and jigs and gets away with it by virtue of simply being a genius! Finally, Se
# Posted on January 29th 2003 by Conán McDonnell
Re: Vibrato
If you're going to use vibrato at all, I was told, then remember that you don't want to hear anymore than you'd like to hear in a singer singing that particular tune. This was quickly followed up with a reminder that that particular teacher hated hated hated the sound of vibrato used in Irish music (with the *possible* exception of slow airs and maybe waltzes). Con
# Posted on January 29th 2003 by Zina Lee
Re: Vibrato
I've heard slow airs played completely without vibrato and in addition to sounding boring it also sounds soul-less. I agree that the classical approach to slow airs doesn't work either .Brian Conway seems to have reached the perfect middle ground in his slow air playing. I find that interesting because his mentor, Andy McGann's slow air playing tends to lean a little toward a classical sound.
# Posted on February 2nd 2003 by laboroflove
Re: Vibrato
Thanks very much everybody. Yeh, should have said, I am indeed a fiddler. Up till now have played mostly in a ceilidh band so it hasn't really been that important. However moving to the 'performance' side wih a folk band so keen to pick it up. I will take your advice on board and let you know how I get on.
Thanks v.m. again.
# Posted on February 2nd 2003 by Stag
Re: Vibrato
I read an article in a guitar magazine once that was discussing Eric Clapton. One artist described him as "having a very 'cultured' vibrato, like a singer holding a note for a second, then adding vibrato as it stretches on".
Perhaps this is the "middle ground" that laboroflove speaks of.
# Posted on February 3rd 2003 by RG
Re: Vibrato
Martin Hayes says he was once told he had a very 'nervous vibrato'. Good for him. It's not really ITM, nervous or otherwise.
# Posted on February 3rd 2003 by Fiiddle R
Re: Vibrato
You might want to try reading pages 20-24 of Carl Flesch's "The Art of Violin Playing Book One", looking at Rivarde's vibrato exercises on page 168. After a couple of weeks of this exercise, I was able to use vibrato for the first time.
# Posted on March 8th 2003 by russellrapport