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When playing scales, how does your mind work?
Playing g scale, I think 2 at the top, 2 at the top, 2 in the middle, 2 in the middle.
Playing d scale think 2 at the top, 2 at the top, but then on the e string I call out each note, which slows me down and even though it locks the notes in mind, it doesn't seem to fit. Is there a better way? Am I doing it wrong?
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I think in terms of notes and whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half. I'm not sure I know what you mean by "2 at the top," etc. Can you explain?
Let the bow flow.
Honorary tenured advisor
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To play a 2 octave D scale you're going to have to move the the 3rd position at some point right? So, if you're conditioned to remember the patterns as you describe, then it might help to move to third position on the A string by playing the D (on the A string) with you're index finger and then playing 2 at the top on the A and the E strings, i. e. A String: D, E, F#, G, then E String: A, B, C#, D. Make sense?
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. ~Herm Albright
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This is probably going to be a silly question that everyone else knew the answer to.. But "2 at the top".. of what?
I don't think much about anything like that when playing. Scales are sort of patterns that your fingers do, like if you touchtype there's patterns to it, i guess, but you don't really think about them when typing. I play them by how they sound and after I've played them enough times, then my fingers know where the sounds are..
Or I guess that's what I do. I really don't think about it, and mostly my attention is usually on the sounding point where the bow meets the strings, unless I notice tension in my bow hand and I'm correcting it or something like that.
I *can* think about the notes by their letter names.. But that's an extra step, and I don't do it unless I have a reason to.
"This young wine may have a lot of tannins now, but in 5 or 10 years it is going to be spectacular, despite the fact that right now it tastes like crude oil. You know this is how it is supposed to taste at this stage of development." ~ Itzhak Perlman
Dan you are way ahead of me,,,but in time I'll get there. I'm still at the hunt and peck stage. I look forward to be able to have my fingers go where needed so that I can concentrate on other things. I guess it just takes time,,,though after 8 months, I think I should be farther along.
Uzi, I tried what you suggested and that would work, but for me now, I will wait and switch after I am on the e string. As I get more familiar with 3rd position(thanks for naming it btw), I will be working at switching at many points.
fiddlechick, I'm talking about where two fingers are close together. As in the 'a' scale the fingers are separated on the g and d, but are close at the top of the a and e strings.
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(thought I'd throw my 2 cents in.... 
)
Have you tried singing the scale, then playing? Or singing a note, playing a note, singing the next, playing the next, etc? I've found that when my brain is confident of the next pitch, my fingers have no trouble at all. Then it's based on sound rather than muscle memory.... Eventually the goal is to merge the two, where you're singing the next note, either in the scale, or in your pieces, right before you play it. (Which is difficult, but for me, makes music-making really personal and exciting, rather than analytical!)
Hope this helps!
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Sound of Music >
Listen > its in ya.
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Lots of great suggestions. Scales are patterns. When you play them long enough you know where to play whole steps and where to play half. Eventually you won't need to think at all MrYikes. It takes time though.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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With whole steps and half steps > What really rocks is once you know the steps and there really isn't that many only a few to get from starting note to octave > Yeah, once you know one scale > major for example, you will know all the majors scales (A through G). Minor the steps change but once you know one minor scale you will know all of the minor scales. The whole\half steps are the same within the type of scale you are doing. There is a whole crap load of different scales out there > but the steps remain the same within the type of scale you are playing. SWEET!!!!!!!!!
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