My famous Violin Trill Drill
It’s time to take our trill preparation from the last video to the next level, with what I call “Trill Drill”! It’s part of my daily warmup, and here I’ve spiced it up with a deck of interesting playing cards.
I got a little arts-and-crafts-y, so if you want to be able to do the Trill Drill, you’ll need to download the worksheet so that you too can draw fun cards out of a hat (or bowl)! Just fill in your info below to get the free worksheet:
This is part 2 out of 3 in my trill series, so make sure you’ve seen the first video before you dive into this one!
And now, Trill Drill:
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6 thoughts on “My famous Violin Trill Drill”
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Hello Nate. Thanks you so much for the videos. In this vídeo I realized that you are holding the violin with your left hand. How do you keep your left wrist relaxed? When I try to hold the violin exclusively with the left hand I get tired very quickly, specially in fast passages and it just blocks the fingers, specially the fourth. I think that the remedy to the fingers not blocking is to relax the left wrist. Any thoughts on that? Thank you!!
Best regards
Hi, it’s a great question and probably the subject of another video! The fingers must always be in a position to play, all four of them. I have found comfort and balance in supporting the instrument with the left hand most of the time, but that doesn’t have to be the case for everyone. I think many players can benefit from using more left-hand support, but that often requires learning some new roles for the thumb. When you talk about the wrist getting tired, that could be because the hand is bending backwards instead of a generally straight wrist. But sometimes it can also come from squeezing between the thumb and first finger.
Re the above comment … I would love to see some videos on the subject of left hand support! Maybe even touching on coping with the heavier weight of viola too? I really enjoy your videos … succinct and informative!
I do plan on some videos about left-hand support! Probably touching on the idea of playing without a shoulder rest as well. Many folks have expressed interest in that subject!
Yes. I want to see those videos! Please!
I imagine I’d put them together in an organized course. It’s not the kind of thing that’s easy just to cover in a quick tutorial. So stay tuned, and it’s definitely something I have plans for!