As autumn gives way to winter, with dryer and colder air on the way, your stringed instrument may be dreading it even more than you are. Here at SHAR, we live by the old Norwegian adage (some say Finnish, others say German!):…
We invited legendary electric violinist Tracy Silverman to tell us about what inspired him to create his groundbreaking new books on Strum Bowing. Simply put: There was no defined pedagogy for learning the rhythmic bowing required for non-classical…
Musicians are generous – they create music and share it with everyone. They teach, enabling others to experience the joy of creating music. And in the heartland of America, the Omaha Chamber Music Society is making sure that all students who attend Title…
Editor's Note: The following blog post originally appeared on Arnold Steinhardt's blog In the Key of Strawberry and is republished with permission. Steinhardt is the founding member of the Guarneri String Quartet and the author of two books: Violin Dreams
Most of us violinists (as well as violists, cellists and bassists) are our most comfortable in an orchestra setting. Of course, the music is fantastic, and usually very challenging to learn and play. But learn and play we do, after woodshedding our parts…
After weeks of deliberation over your photo contest entries, we have selected winner for this year’s Spring 2018 Photo Contest! We had huge number of submissions this year, which made our job even harder. Of all the wonderful photos we received, we…
Practical Passion: How an Independent Artist Took Charge of His Own Career
“. . . as much as I know what lights me up inside, I also know that the future will look different from what I plan.” With these words, violinist Rebecca Fischer offered us a…
New York City concert violinist Kelly Hall-Tompkins, by any measure, enjoys a fulfilling and rewarding career. From her busy solo touring schedule, to serving as concertmaster for some of Broadway’s biggest shows, to her recording work, including her own…
It's a scenario every beginner or intermediate string player finds themselves in at some point: either a string broke, the metal winding is unraveling, or they've simply decided better strings will make them finally sound like Anne-Sophie Mutter. I can…
“. . . a master violin is an accumulation of many small steps, each carried out with painstaking care”
~ Rainer W. Leonhardt, Master Violin Maker, Mittenwald, Germany
