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Double Bass Curse of the Metronome

S

SplitNick

Aug 1, 2003
345
5
North Alabama, Huntsville
www.myspace.com
#1
I am preparing for a performance of Don Giovanni, and have been having problems with the figure in the overture that is A,C#,E,G#,A,C#,D,B, etc. The Zimmerman complete works book shows a target speed of 144 bpm in cut time. I hope I am not the only one that has had to bust to get these tempos. To me they are blistering.

Anyway, I was having problems with this part and figuring it was a right hand issue with the three string crossings occurring so quickly. I worked at it from about 100 bpm up to 120 bpm and things were just not getting much better. I tried a lowered thumb position approach, but that really zapped my tone and made my intonation so-so at best.

I knew I could get it because I had come close before, and I have played similar passages (Mozart 40 Mvmnt IV, ouch).

I decided to see if I was just psyching myself out. I started old wooden box metronome at 80 bpm to get a nice clean sound, then with out looking I bumped it up ever so slightly. Now I had done this plenty before, but I always knew the tempo to which I was bumping. Not now. I kept this up for a bit with a good clean sound and started to slop at a tempo that I assumed to be about 110 or so. When I looked the tempo was 132 bpm. That was good 12 to 32 bpm better than I had achieved before and it was much cleaner as well.

I am curious if anybody gets psyched out by speed issues and if you have tried similar exercises with similar success.

Cheers.
 
#6
Isn't the passage you are quoting on the A and E strings? Certainly getting the notes to speak clearly and powerfully at speed there is a problem too?

Some more ideas about speed, off the top of my head-

(1) Don't see speed as a barrier (eg sound barrier) that you butt your head against. Rather see it as a free-spinning front bicycle wheel (no brakes) that just gets faster and faster with no more physical effort from either hand so long as the bow length shrinks in proportion.

(2) The only difference between long slow notes and short fast notes is the amount of time and bow length spent on them.

(3) If your choice of bow length, bow weight and contact point is"right" then short fast repeated single notes on one string are not a problem. Keep shortening the bow length until each note bites evenly and musically, not "scrubbed" or "crushed" but in between.

(4) But the second part of the above passage requires you to shift or pivot only a half-tone ( A C# D B = 0 2 4 1)) to avoid crossing to the D string. Practice this pattern gradually up to speed keeping good timing and coordination for clear articulation

(5) The first half of the passage requires you to cross adjacent strings. This is easiest if you bow at the balance point of the bow (where there is least resistance from the bow to the action) and you have judged the bow length etc correctly. It helps if the bow is "on the strings" ie you only have to worry about two things, moving the bow sideways and its length, etc. Again work up to speed maintaining good timing and coordination.

(6) You can always invent exercises that are similar to each element of a passage that is giving difficulty, building up from the simplest element towards the actual passage.

(7) Be absolutely "note-sure" and "finger-sure" of difficult passages. It often help to repeat passages with Hook-stroke and Reverse Hook-stroke, and separate or slurred bows, to make make different fingers work harder. This is an old trick used by wind players to polish complex fingerings. When you come back to play straight equal-length notes after practicing hooking them both ways you will find controlling their even-ness much easier.

This is how I personally overcome fear of speed although there are still works such as Mendelssohn's Hebrides Ovt., Wagner"s Flying Dutchman Ovt. and Tchaik 4 (last movt.) that the thought of worries me!!

Best wishes

DP
 
#7
Funny thing. Just 10 minutes before I read the previous post and David Potts last sentence:

"This is how I personally overcome fear of speed although there are still works such as Mendelssohn's Hebrides Ovt., Wagner"s Flying Dutchman Ovt. and Tchaik $ (last movt.) that the thought of worries me!!"

I was cheerfully printing out the score for next season (I play in a community orchesrta) and was wondering if anything was going to be real challenging. We're performing Sibelius Symphony No. 1 and.... Wagner's Flying Dutchman Ovt! :eek: Thank you David for getting me appropriately terrified! I'm sure much of the advice from above will apply and will get started tomorrow!
 
#10
OK,SplitNick, I've looked up my IMC Orchestral Excerpts and found three passages including yours. Yes, across 3 strings with the A (7th fret D string)on second finger and extending the pinkie to cover the B. I would still break up the music into bite-size chunks (1/2 bars) a lot before stitching together. The brain doesn't learn new tricks (patterns of use) quickly. Give it time and patience and I'm sure you will get there.

In the meantime try to listen to recordings. I think your 144 should be more like Cut-Common at 90 - 100 MM, from memory a brisk but playable two beats to the bar?. The IMC excerpt says Common time ANDANTE !!

Cheers

DP
 
#11
I appreciate it. I have been seperating the left hand and right huand a bit like the Fred Zimmerman bowing text. This is helping a good deal. I may also be pushing a bit, but listening to several different recordings yields different tempos, some faster some slower, but all good.

I may need to wait until I know how the conductor interprets the music. Until then I will probably stay at the high end of the tempos listed.

One note: the marking at the beginning of the Overture is different from approx. 20 bars in. I think it is Molto Allegro or Vivace at this point. I don't have the score with me now as my city is without power due to recent storms and I am out of town.
 

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