| Author |
Subject |
vsteele
Registered User
(1/26/01 9:48:21 am)
Reply |
artificial harmonics
I am an amateur adult intermediate
player and am working on the Scherzo and Nocturne of Geoffrey
Burgon's Six Suites for solo cello. Both these movements have
artificial harmonics in them and I do not know how to play them. I
thought that I was supposed to put my thumb on the note written in
bold, and put my third finger in octave position, and play it as a
harmonic and I was supposed to get a pitch of a fourth above the
thumb note with this third finger. No matter what I try, I get an
octave or a fifth.
Here is an example, measure 80 of the
scherzo:
Treble clef, regular note = B flat, harmonic of this
chord is written as E flat, then play regular A harmonic. Am I
supposed to put my thumb on B flat, located in the first position
location on the A string?
Here is a second example, measure
81 of the scherzo:
Bass clef, chords. First chord is regular
note is F sharp on the D string, harmonic is B. Second chord,
regular note is G sharp on the D string, harmonic is C
sharp.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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42
Registered User
(1/26/01 10:20:09 am)
Reply |
harmonics
HI, I hope I can be of
assistance......
Artificial harmonics as I recall them:
I
believe the notation you are describing is a solid note head where
the thumb should be stopping the string, and a open diamond on the
3rd finger.
The first thing to remember is that these can be
played a P4 or a P5 above the thumb. If it is a P4 the note that
sounds will be 2 octaves higher than the stopped note. If it is at
the 5th the sounding note will be 1 octave higher than the 3rd
finger (or a P12 above te thumb)......... I know that is confusing,
but its tough to write.
example 1:
the sounding note
should be a Bb 2 octaves higher. I would personally do this on the D
string if you have time..... I dont know the piece, so I'm not
sure.
Example 2:
the two notes should be F# and G#
respectively, agian two octaves higher.
I hope this helps a
bit and doesn't confuse you too much. It will take a bit of practice
to make them soung good, but you will get the hang of it. I Maybe
you can find someone to help you?..... it is much easier to
demonstrate than to explain in writing.
--Mike :-)
|
Andrew
Victor
Registered
User
(1/26/01 11:32:45 am)
Reply |
I love
harmonics
I love harmonics; cellos are so rich
in them. Surely everyone has scooted their hand up and down the top
of the fingerboard and sounded those ringing natural harmonics -
especially on the top of the A string. The same many harmonics are
also accessible at the bottom of the fingerboard (the same distance
from the nut as they are from the bridge) - maybe a little harder to
sound. And for each of these "natural harmonics" that has a certain
linear-distance relationship to the nut, there is an equivalent
harmonic that can be "fingered" or "artifically" accessed by fully
stopping the string at any place and touching the equivalent higher
position with another finger (the only limitation is the size of
one's hand).
On violins the use of fingered ("artificial")
harmonics is more easily accessed and much more common. On the
violin, the common fingered harmonic is the one that sounds an
octave higher, which is the most responsive one.
Andy
|
vsteele
Registered User
(1/26/01 12:24:21 pm)
Reply |
ah
ha!
42,
Thanks. That helps quite
a bit. Now can you explain the meaning of life? 
|
Victor
Sazer
Registered
User
(1/29/01 1:32:54 pm)
Reply |
artificial harmonics
Contrary to common practice when
playing artificial harmonics, there is no need to hold the finger
playing the lower note against the fingerboard. When you use your
thumb and third finger for example, your thumb can touch the string,
perhaps just a little more solidly than your third finger (but with
the string still not touching the wood). This reduces friction and
can make playing artificial harmonics a lot easier than the more
traditional approach.
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