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Woo it's Spring! The season green stuff and flowers start growing again, and we lose our hour for the sake of "more daylight" and walk around like zombies until fall.....
So what is everyone working on? Tunes or techniques, share what you're up to this Spring!
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World's Okayest Fiddler
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I'll go first.... I feel like my practice hasn't been too exciting lately, just a lot of practicing for my recital and etudes and shifting.
I've been working on picking out more tunes by ear to get away from sheet music, which I've got a few tunes that way now, and I'd like to work on feeling more comfortable with improvising on a tune. The second I go to try it I second guess myself and screw up, haha.
So there's where I'm at for the moment, where are you? 
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World's Okayest Fiddler
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So excited that spring is finally here! As far as practicing, I'm working on my bowing technique. I'm still pretty crooked with it, but at least the shrieks of string-protest have gotten down to a minimum, haha. As of today, I'm also trying to find some fresh songs to practice because the group I've been practicing is getting a little rote. (Spring cleaning the practice routine, I guess?) Might try some movie scores out...
Best of luck to you with your spring violinist ventures!
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Yeah spring!!!! One of my favorite times of the year......along with Fall and Summer.....ok so I just hate winter (except for Christmas of course!) I have been taking care of a relative who is recovering from surgery so my practice suffered for about 3 weeks, but I am back on track now.
I am working on bowing technique - I'm doing pretty well (for a newbie) with staying straight, but working on staying relaxed and on bow speed so that I get optimal sound.
I am also sight reading all kinds of things and having lots of fun with that. It is getting easier every day and I keep trying more and more challenging music. My biggest issue here is that I am impatient to play it at the correct tempo and have to keep reminding myself to take is slow to work on technique!
Also working on playing Brian's Song by ear. This is the theme to an old movie (from the '70's maybe?) that popped into my head one day out of the blue. I can't quite remember the ending - just need to YouTube the music and listen to it again. I'm sure it will be out there.
On my "to do" list is to add Etudes in to my practice. Anyone have any suggestions?
Happy Spring!
Cyndie
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@CyndieZ The etude book I'm using is Wohlfahrt "60 Studies, Op. 45 Complete: Books 1 and 2 for Violin".
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World's Okayest Fiddler
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For tunes, I'm working on Bach's Arioso. My instructor assigned it to me for a solo so she can accompany me on piano. I've never played with someone else before, so it's a new experience. Haha I can't make up my mind whether or not I like it. It sounds nice enough, but it's too . . . ceremonial I guess? It does sound pretty cool when we're playing it together, though.
Also working on G Major and C three octave scales. G Major isn't so bad, but C is a nightmare D: it makes me feel like a cat that's climbed way up in a tree and now has no idea how to get back down haha
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Great hearing what all of you are working on.
I'm working on finding time to play the violin and not just test instruments.
Playing for just myself is a pleasure, but I regret that I don't find enough time to do this.
Hopefully this will change soon. That is what I'm shooting for in any case.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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I'm working on a new bowing technique, using just the fingers, and later the fingers and wrist.
I was complaining to my teacher that I was stuck in a rut, making the same mistakes over and over, and not improving on anything and one of the things in particular that I mentioned as not improving was speed.
This is a speed technique. It's basically ONLY good for speed - you can't very well take a long, smooth stroke moving nothing but your fingers, but it's very, very good for speed, especially if you allow either wrist or fingers (whichever is appropriate at that specific moment) to do the moving. Fingers are lighter than hands, and hands are lighter than arms. I've found the hardest thing in practicing it is to go slow enough. It's a new technique, so I need to go fairly slow at first (and to let my left hand catch up), but it's downright hard to play slowly with this technique. I don't think I'll have to worry about my bowing being what slows me down. Now the left hand....
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Happy Spring.
Life happened in March. Literally... my fourth grand child was born. Welcome to my little Avery. I have been involved in Spring cleaning and decorating... out with a lot of decor, pillows and items.. rooms switched etc. Usually I take time off work, but I said NO to taking time off work to WORK. So It is taking longer.
In the meantime I am trying out FM Holstein 2 bow. Yahoo! Sunday I should be able to work on violin. So its been just 10 minutes here and there each day and even a day went by with nothing. Grumble...
I have been shining up my old tunes, (God Father, Hallelujah, Ashokan...Tenn Waltz, Swallowtail, Old Joe, and on and on) and I have been messing around with Lover's Waltz. I still want to work on The other Outlander song...Bringin' in the Rye ?? something like that. I am drawing a blank right now.
Lately, while I am in a slowed level of progress, I just play the songs from the essentials one and two books. There are so many fun songs to play.
I will be adding some songs from Easy Classical Violin Solos soon, and I love to play the songs from my Beatles for Violin.
I do have a new Library playing room that is big big and open and a treat.
That is about it for now. I ordered a new music stand and holder for my second violin.
Happy Spring
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
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Congrats on the new baby @coolpinkone !!!!
Cyndie
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@CyndieZ Thank you.
Who would have thought that I'd have four grandchildren by the time I am 51... holy moly. More violinist in the making.
When you said congrats on the new baby at first I was thinking you meant my new bow.
Cheers,
Toni
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
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Starting to learn 3rd position
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I will celebrate spring with two beautiful pieces.
Voices Of Spring Waltz by Johann Strauss II and Serenade to Spring by Secret Garden.
I am working on Violin Sonata in G major (No. 18) KV 301 (293a) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
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Congrats @coolpinkone ! Yeahhhhhh !
Me - I've had a kind of "dead year" in 2016 ( life issues etc took over ) so I largely spent my time consolidating tunes and techniques I currently use - so I kind of feel it was a "lost year"... well... sort of... yup, too many other things outwith my own control got in the way, but I still did play largely on a daily basis....
I know, we're 3 months into the next year - but I do have plans - some deferred from last year (improve technique, learn more fiddle techniques, learn more fiddle tunes - and not just "play the ones I have in my head" ).
What else - oh yes - take existing well known tunes (pop, rock, classical, I don't care - it doesn't matter- I'll try anything and attempt to make it work as a solo fiddle tune) - and mess with them and meld them into something "different" ( because they were never originally intended as soloed fiddle tunes ) but play them so they are immediately recognizable .... yup that's what I'm on this year/spring... yeah, fun, and LOADS of it ....
I guess in one (or two) words - what I'm working on is adaptation and improvisation and expression...
Good post..... everyone else ? Your plans ?
I seriously recommend not copying my mistakes. D'oh - 
Please make your own, different mistakes, and help us all learn :-)
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Love hearing what everyone is up to
@Fiddlerman I hope you do get to do more playing for the sake of playing, rather than testing
@coolpinkone Yay, congrats on your new bow!! 
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I would gladly hand it over but I am aiming more at finding someone to do everything else I do at Fiddlershop. I love testing violins and making videos but have a difficult time finding time.
But even making videos doesn't feel like I'm playing for myself and I rarely practice anything. Just start playing in front of the camera.
Look forward to that time.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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That is hard with running your own business, to finally get to a point where you can hand off your work load to someone else. My bosses didn't back off until maybe 6 years ago, part of it was because it was cheaper for them to run jobs themselves than hire more people, and just that it's hard to back off and not do it.
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True. We have great employees here but I always feel that there are certain things that I should be the only one doing and no-one else.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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Vivaldi 's "The 4 Seasons" of course. I am playing "spring" but I keep reverting back to "winer" since it's my favorite season.
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This year started off poorly with family members having health problems with the result I had little time for myself.
However, I may soon have a lot more time for myself as with the recent provincial budget, the government eliminated funding to our department in the hospital, so when our office closes, I may elect to take early retirement. Next month will mark my 25 year anniversary working in health care (in this region). I just turned 60.
I've been thinking of taking a few lessons, get a better understanding of the basics, maybe learn some classical, if I can find a teacher. I just saw one of Pierre's fiddle reviews where he plays Sinding in A and I loved it sooooo much.....
But get this - lately I've also been kind of digging bluegrass! Go figure, I've never liked it before....
Cindy
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