Next step for "Eclectifying" my strings, by Marjorie Spagnuolo

Proposal for Electric String Instruments

During my week at Vandercook I gained the resources to help me take my orchestra to a new eclectic level. My goals are to incorporate improvisation and eclectic styles into both of my orchestras, and to begin electrifying Poparazzi.

By exploring eclectic styles through recordings, videos and warm ups students will be exposed to a different side of string playing. This new knowledge will foster creativity and hopefully this will lead to additional interest in beginning, and continuing string playing. I also believe that the benefits of improvisation will branch towards composition, and our students will want to enroll in our music theory program.

To introduce eclectic styles I plan on using warmups and recordings/videos. I intend to introduce the concepts in small lesson groups and then allow a portion of Friday rehearsal time for eclectic styles and improvisation. I will begin by playing some chopping for the students. I will teach them how to chop, and we will dicuss the difference between a classical bow grip, and a chop bow grip and why they are each valid when used with their corresponding styles. We will then create come chop grooves. During these grooves students will have the opportunity to improvise. Students can add a different groove at first, and then later can incorporate melody. Learning how to chop will be reinforced by watching the Darol Anger video, “Chops and Grooves” ($30).

Students will be asked to find a youtube video of an artist “choping” and write a single paragraph on their reaction to the video.

I will teach students how to incorporate a swung feel into their playing, and the students will have to find a jazz video on youtube that has a sung feel, and write a paragraph on that.

During warmups I will show students the concept of sliding and double stops with open strings. Students will be asked to look up videos from one of the following artists:
Marc O’Connor
Barrage
Richard Greene teaches his invention, the chop

Students will write a reaction on the music. Students will also be asked to notice the amount of bow used by fiddle players. Why do you think they use that amount of bow? What are the goals and benefits?

Lastly students will be asked to listen to Mark Wood videos on www.electrifyyourstrings.com and discuss their thoughts on his work. I will show the students how to do “rock vibrato” and “distortion” on their acoustic instruments. I will then introduce them to my electric violin and some of the specials effects that can be achieved with electric instruments.

Students warm ups will be taught by rote, focusing on ear training. Students will learn new scales such as the minor pentatonic. We will compare classical styles to fiddle, rock and jazz styles. I will take a short excerpt by rote and have the students play it in all 3 styles by echoing me. We will discuss the differences. It is incredibly important that these styles of music become tangible. Students can recognize that there is a difference between fiddle and classical, but we need to articulate what exactly is different and how we can reproduce that effects when we choose. That is the main goal I am trying to achieve. The students should be able to gain command of the differences in musical styles so they can incorporate them into their own improvisations and compositions.

Students will watch portions of the Alternative strings DVD disc 2- which contains lessons from the masters of these eclectic styles.

As a follow up
I will read through new repertoire that gives students the opportunities to try some of the “tricks” of rock, jazz and fiddle….while focusing on styles, such as NOT using vibrato.


Some new pieces that will be used to incorporate these concepts are
Orange jam, Jeffrey Bishop
Styres rally, Alexander Safford
Steel City Strut, Turtle Island String Quartet
Jammin Jazz Standards for String Quartet, Latham
Blues for you and Strings, Latham
Jazz Fiddle Wizard, Martin Norgaard
JD Meets the Rhythm Section, Randy Sabien
For a HS elem collaboration Bossa Nova Triste, Mary Alice Rich
Jazz Basics for Strings w Jamey Abersold vol. 24, Robert Woods
Bossa Azul, Bert Ligon
Fourth Dimension, Randy Sabien
At Last, Warren, Arr. Patrick Roszell

Once the material has been introduced during lessons, warmups and through independent short assignments I intend to run a brief Jam session for a short part of Friday rehearsals. Students will incorporate chops, grooves, riffs and optional solos into the reading of eclectic pieces. At home students wanting to improvise will be encourages to improvise over James Abersold’s “majors and minors”, along with any of their favorite songs on their ipods.




Electric instruments are the newest step in exposing our students to eclectic styles. Often, string players know little or nothing about the electronic side of music. This would be an opportunity to teach them what an amp is, how they work, what the pedals are and how they modify an electric instruments’ sound. Electric instruments will also give Poparazzi students the opportunity to take solos and not be drowned out by drumset and electric guitar.

Often improvisation is reserved for jazz band. Seeing as how Poparazzi now performs on the same concert at Jazz Band, the only thing really holding string players back from concert improvisation, is volume.

I began researching electric instruments. A good student model electric violin would be the Yamaha SV130. They can be purchased through the electricviolinshop.com for $649.77, The Sam Ash price is $649.99
We would also need chords and additional amps. Cases are sold separately.