Eleven Miniature Studies for Viola Solo

[March 24, 2024]

This is a viola adaptation of Eleven Miniature Studies for Violin Solo. You can find the music on this page of the IMSLP.

Advanced Viola Scale Studies

You can find the music on this page of the Mel Bay website.

Nathan Groot is in the process of recording them all. You can watch and listen here.

Advanced Violin Scale Studies

This is the second volume of Scale Tales (seen below). This description comes from the Mel Bay website:

Although the practice of scales is essential to building and maintaining strength, technique, tone, and agility—it is very easy to slip into the habit of playing them automatically, without paying attention to how they sound or even being aware of what scale we are playing. The 29 single-page studies in this book are designed to combat that tendency as they are musically, intellectually, and rhythmically challenging. The first 24 studies proceeded through the circle of fifths and address all minor and relative major keys; the last 5 pieces were individually conceived, i.e., apart from the circle of fifths. Occasional fingerings or position guides are suggested but these are largely left to the student or their teachers. No metronome indications are given so that the etudes can be played at individually comfortable tempos—with or without a metronome, or freely as concert etudes. It is the stepwise motion and octave leaps of the etudes that makes the intervals between pitches easy to hear, even in keys with numerous flats or sharps. Just as in Elaine Fine’s more basic scale etude book, Violin Scale Tales, the names of the etudes herein refer to various animals that have scales, including insects, fish, birds, reptiles, a few species of squirrels with scales on their tails, and the solitary pangolin, the only known mammal whose entire body is covered with scales. Again, the author hopes that in addition to experiencing more enjoyable scale practice, students will be inspired to learn more about these amazing creatures, or even write scale studies of their own.

It is available here, as an e-book as well as a print book.

Violin Scale Tales

From the Mel Bay Website:

The etudes in this book offer students a musically and intellectually satisfying means of practicing scales in all major and minor keys, even while remaining in first position. Although presented in the traditional order of the circle of fifths, this is where similarities to other violin scale-oriented books end. Of course, the etudes can be played using a mixture of positions by more advanced students. The studies also resonate very well on the viola if played at pitch. These are instructive etudes and can be played as appealing solo pieces. The stepwise motion in the etudes makes intervals between pitches easy to hear, even in keys with many flats or sharps. Both the book and etude titles refer to names of animals that have scales, so you will see natural and harmonic minor scales named after various moths, and major scales named for unusual reptiles, birds, and mammals throughout. The author hopes that in addition to experiencing more enjoyable scale practice, students will be inspired to learn more about these amazing animals or even write scale studies of their own.

It is available as an e-book as well as a print book.
You can find both on this page of the Mel Bay website.

Here's a link to a YouTube playlist that has the first ten pieces.

Dancing on the Fingerboard

[October 15, 2021]

The first eight pieces in this set use guiding fingers to help shift between first and third position. “Cloud Nine,” introduces harmonics in order to remind the hand and arm of the physical distance from first to fourth position. “Second Hand,” and “What’s on Second” explore second position, and “Who’s on Third?” incorporates third, and re-introduces the harmonic. “Fourth Dimension,” “Can I Have a Little More,” and “Second Chance,” use the first four positions.

“Fifth Business I” and “Fifth Business II,” marked “Serioso” and “Scherzando,” introduce fifth position. The titles refer to the Robertson Davies novel with the same name, and the character (tempo) markings suggest masks of tragedy and comedy. “Sixth Sense” and “Six degrees of Separation” introduce sixth position and a little bit of half position. “At Sixes and Sevens,” is a transposed version of “Six of One,” the first piece in “Half a Dozen of the Other.” It introduces seventh position, and is ironically calm in character.

2026 UPDATE: Now we have a new transcription for cello!

You can find the music on this page of the IMSLP.

Half a Dozen of the Other: Six Studies for Solo Viola (or cello)

[September 9, 2021]

The pieces in this set of solo viola studies are in the more "unusual" keys of F-sharp major, G-flat major, B major, F minor, C-sharp minor (and major), and G-sharp minor. You can find the music on this page of the IMSLP.

UPDATE: Now for cello, on the same page of the IMSLP.

A Tunes: Capricious Pieces for Beginner Violinists

[From the back cover]

Incorporating skills taught in many popular violin methods, these tuneful solo pieces offer a fresh alternative for teachers who would like a stimulating supplement to their usual method. These entertaining and whimsical compositions reinforce and develop violin skills through repetition disguised as lyrical musical phrases. They strengthen the left hand, exercise the fourth finger, and use rests in musically compelling ways that keep the student attentive.

They also present mixed meter and double-stops, and offer a practical introduction to musical form and phrase structure. Slurs and dynamics are incorporated immediately, along with right-hand pizzicato on stopped strings and left-hand pizzicato on all open strings. These pieces are written specifically to encourage interpretive creativity, even at the most elementary levels. As twenty-first-century pieces for solo violin, they are meant to be performed as well as studied.

I wrote these pieces to isolate and address specific right-hand and left-hand difficulties that my students have encountered while working through the first three Suzuki books. The progress my students have made while working on these pieces has suprised even me. Up until this point only a few of my friends have enjoyed using them in their teaching, and now that it is being released by Mel Bay "A Tunes" can be used by everyone. The book can be ordered (it's very reasonably priced at $12.99) via the Mel Bay Website.

As a introduction, here's a video of Linnaea Brophy playing "The Big Dipper."

You can find videos of Linnaea playing all twenty pieces on this playlist.

Weights and Measures: Scale Melodies for Recorder (and other instruments)

Twenty-four one-page scale studies in all of the major and minor keys, in versions for soprano recorder (c fingerings) and alto recorder (f fingerings). They can also be played on just about any melody instrument.

I also made transcriptions of the recorder version for viola and for bass clef instruments of every stripe (the lowest pitch is F).

You can listen to performances of some of these here.

The music for this set of scale pieces is available on this page of the IMSLP.

May 2021 UPDATE: I have set these pieces as duets (recorder and violin)! You can find them through the IMSLP link, or through this post.

2023 UPDATE

Any and all of the versions work perfectly well on the viola d'amore!

Eleven Miniature Studies for Violin Solo

May 2, 2020

1. Fanfare in Mono-D
2. Hast du einen Vogel?
3. Waltz of the Seeds
4. Pas de quatre
5. Fifth Business
6. What the Hex?
7. Seas, Days, Hills, and Rainbows
8. Arachnida
9. Pluto
10. Das Hexen-Einmal-Eins!
11. Group Eleven

You can find the complete solo violin music on this page of the IMSLP.

1-5



6-11



2024 UPDATE: Now for viola!