Violin Special Effects Lesson

Introduction

Hi! In this lesson, we're going to look at some interesting special effects on the violin. These are not electric special effects, rather, they sound a bit like electric special effects. One of the most interesting, important, and useful effects I call "artificial feedback."

Artificial Feedback

With a perfectly clean violin sound, we're going to make it sound "dirty." The effect we're looking at resembles the sound of overdriven guitars or a rusty old saxophone, which is something we often want in rock violin. The goal isn't to sound like a lost classical violinist but rather an actual rock violinist who believes in what he's doing.

Achieving the Effect

1. Positioning the Bow

   • Take a single note.
   • Bring your bow right up to the bridge and press down hard to create some unpleasant sounds. While this method is easy, it's the least pleasant.
   • Instead, keep the bow in the normal position but lessen the downward pressure.

2. Loosen the Bow Pressure

   • Reducing the bow pressure allows higher harmonics to come through.
   • Increase the speed of the bow to hear a variety of notes from a single note.

3. Adjusting Left-Hand Pressure

   • Lower the pressure of your left hand to produce a clean harmonic.
   • Experimenting with all these different techniques will yield many varied effects.

Demonstration

Let's go to an E. It may sound as if you're using some special effects, but it's all literally at your fingertips.

This technique works very well in combination with:

• A trill (especially a third finger trill)
• A minor blues scale

Tip: You can impress people with this technique, and it might take only a few hours or days to master it.

Final Ideas

The ideal goal is to play a note and end with a clean harmonic, which is beneficial in blues solos. Sugarcane Harris often exemplified this technique at the end of his solos.

Soft Harmonics

Not all false harmonics require a loud or aggressive sound. They can also be used softly and gently:

• For an example, listen to Van Morrison's album "Into the Mystic," featuring a viola solo by Tony Marcus that utilizes lovely soft harmonics.

Additional Effects

1. Pick Slide

   • Explained to me by the violinist Rachel Barton Pine, this effect involves scraping the finger down the length of the string.
   • Do not press the finger all the way down, which creates a noisy and textured effect.

2. Wide Vibrato

   • This technique comes from guitarists, involving bending the string up and down.
   • On the violin, achieve this through an extreme vibrato while reducing finger pressure to create a "half note." Use this at the end of a phrase or solo, but be cautious not to overuse it.

Assignment

Your assignment for this lesson is to spend as long as it takes to gain confidence with the artificial feedback technique.

Focus Points:

• Downward pressure
• Bow movement
• Left-hand pressure

Goal: Aim to produce a clean harmonic by reducing the pressure on your left hand. Use backing for the soft chord sequence, trying out soft harmonics on that piece, and incorporating your own improvisation.

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Enjoy exploring these effects, and happy practicing!