The following pupil case study illustrates much of my teaching philosophy and pedagogical techniques I employ.
Tom: Pupil Profile
Name: Tom
Age: 8
Previous experience
Tom studies at an Italian music school after school. He has been learning the violin for two and a half years and is roughly grade 2/3 standard. He has also started learning the piano this year. He has two half-hour violin lessons a week and takes weekly theory/aural classes. He also takes part in a string orchestra and performs with them twice a year. He has played the violin alone in public three times.
Aims and Interests
Tom is an intelligent boy with a diverse family background. He speaks, reads and writes Italian, English, Russian and Hebrew. He and his four siblings spend very little time at home as their parents involve them in as many after-school activities as possible. He also has football and Children’s Synagogue twice a week. His mother (who occasionally sits in lessons) seems burdened with the management of the activities of five children and is not fully aware of the content of Tom's lessons. She seems to encourage Tom’s enjoyment of music and is not overtly ambitious for him. However, Tom tells me she insists that he practises half an hour “without stopping” whenever he has time. His mother claims he is very interested in Maths and computers- he definitely displays an enquiring mind by asking many questions about “how things work”. His mother chose that he should play the violin. He says he prefers football to music but clearly enjoys “showing off” his ability on his instrument.
Initial Assessment
Tom has made good progress since he started as he is a bright child and has been taught well. Despite appearances, I suspect he is under some parental pressure to excel in all his activities, including violin. He seems confident about his abilities.
He has been taught a correct bow-hold and left hand position, but his posture is generally poor as he slouches forwards. Despite regular exercise, his physique seems frail. His bow hold is weak and he doesn’t support bowing action with his upper arm. This results in inconsistent tone production and insecure bow-conduct.
His left hand articulation is also poor and his fingers often collapse. He still feels insecure in third position and doesn’t fully grasp shifting technique, causing his intonation to suffer in this context. However, general intonation in first position is very accurate and he is able to play in a range of keys beyond the scope of grade 2/3.
He has very good relative pitch for his age but is slower in recognising and reproducing rhythmic patterns. He memorises music almost immediately and barely looks at the score when playing, so he is prone to neglecting dynamic detail and internalising initial misreadings. His mother says he practises from memory. He often appears to be tired, with short concentration spurts.
However, he listens to and understands instructions well and often asks questions for clarification. He sometimes struggles to achieve technical results immediately but naturally makes an effort to repeat fragments to improve them, with surprising patience for his age. He seems confident when performing and shows promising signs of character in his playing.
Tom: Suggested Course of Study:
General Overview
Like Esmeralda, Tom has been under my tutelage on an irregular basis for the past two years as his teacher's assistant and I am requested to teach him for ten lessons while his teacher is away. I have witnessed his progress become more consistent as he has become calmer and more disciplined in lessons. However, I have already noticed gradual decrease of his vitality and enthusiasm as his extra-curricular activities have increased.
Tom is principally driven by motivation to impress others, and is used to being a high achiever. I agree with his mother that lessons should focus on enjoyment at this stage; however, I feel she is unaware that she is limiting her son's enjoyment of the violin by burdening him with a schedule which leaves him very tired. This has already affected his energy and motivation and may continue to do so. I am also concerned that he is unable to undertake regular and manageable practice appropriate for his level and age. His mother is unaware of the importance of short daily sessions rather than occasional long and intense ones.
Tom's technical weaknesses need to be addressed in lessons through specific exercises and repertoire, but I also need to discuss his workload with his mother to limit his exhaustion, which is also affecting his technique. I need to involve his mother more in the contents of the lessons and give clearer guidelines about practice. I also feel Tom needs to gain more enjoyment from his lessons by exploring repertoire that stimulates his energetic musicality.
Summary of Aims and Objectives- Planned Course of Study
Tom is a bright child and a quick learner. However, his concentration span is diminished by his frequent tiredness. I will ensure his lessons are at a sufficiently calm pace so that he can absorb targeted information. I will use a wide variety of exercises, studies and pieces to develop Tom's technique. I hope this will enhance his motivation. To maintain his interest I will attempt to incorporate technical work subtly into repertoire as much as possible.
I will reinforce principles of good posture until they are understood and applied consistently. Tom may also benefit from a shoulder-rest rather than the cushion he is using at the moment, which will prevent him from holding the violin too low and slouching with his back.
I will teach him “bow games” which are aimed to strengthen his bow-hold and establish the correct movements to draw a straight bow while supporting with the upper arm. Once we have consolidated this aspect I hope to introduce aspects of tone production related to consistent bow contact, using simple bowing variations on scales in fist position.
We will strengthen left-hand articulation though experimenting initially with the “tapping” effect of fingers on the fingerboard. We will then progress to in Curci studies Op. 23 no.10 and 12 and finally Schradiek no.1, which will be tackled gradually, one variation at a time, in order not to strain his hand
Tom needs to acquaint himself with the feel of third position for the next ten lessons and learn shifting technique at a later stage, when his hand has stabilised. We will work through Part II of Freda Dinn; Violin Method. Although I am not following her method of teaching third position before first, I still feel her approach to third position through short melodious exercises will appeal to Tom and improve his fluency and confidence quickly.I am confident his intonation in third position will soon be more accurate after such work.
I would like to plan an informal performance for Tom at the end of the course of lessons in front of fellow pupils and parents. At the moment he is playing Concertino by Curci, but seems to be tired by it and hasn't made substantial progress on it for some time. I will ask him to choose a different piece in first position (Curci: “Sognando un Valzer “, “Ciarda” “Le Filatrici”) to learn for the performance. I feel confident that he will enjoy meeting such a refreshing challenge.
Although Tom's aural rhythmic response is sometimes insecure, I feel there is no time to address it directly in the immediate future, particularly as he already plays with lively character and drive.
I will employ a lesson Diary with instructions for effective practice, which I will fill at the end of each lesson, involving Tom as well as his mother. I hope this will also serve as a review of the contents of the lessons. I will encourage Tom to pay more attention to notational detail and practice for longer with the music to absorb it. I will also discuss the balance of Tom’s workload with his mother to prevent him for being too tired during lessons.
Finally, I will discuss his activities and progress with his theory and aural teacher and string orchestra coach. If time is available I will attempt to organise some duet playing with a pupil of similar ability, to develop his sight-reading and ensemble skills further. I feel he would enjoy some of the easier duets by Bartók.
Tom: Bowing Exercises
1.1- “Holding the Bow”-insert a pencil into relaxed right hand
(Sheila Nelson- The Essential String Method- “Blue Pages” p. 2)
1.2- “See-saw”- Fisher-Basics no.2 Strengthens little finger.
Isolates finger movement and pivoting around the thumb and middle finger.
(Later attempt just with thumb and little finger on bow- Fisher-Basics no.5)
1.3- Windscreen Wiper- Fisher-Basics no.4
Isolates forearm rotation and feeling of little finger balancing the weight of the bow.
1.4- “Circles in the air”- Fisher-Basics no.8 Strengthens little finger.
1.5- “Crawling” up and down the bow held vertically.
1.6- “Shadowing” Fisher- Basics no.36 Move hand along the bow, which is held by the teacher on the strings, parallel to the bridge.
1.7- “Air cushion” (Fisher-
Basics no.35) -Move bow in the air just above the string without touching it. Improves overall bow control and strengthens fingers.
Scale bowing variationsa) Two minims per note. Whole bows.b) Two crotchets per note. In middle, upper half and lower halfc) A minim (whole bow) and two crotchets (half bow) per note.
Tom: Outline of Course Objectives
1- Short Term: (within 5 lessons)
a) Gain awareness regarding a correct posture and a stable violin hold.
b) Notice weaknesses in his bow-hold. Understand he needs to draw a “straight bow”.
c) Understand the “tapping effect” of left hand.
d) Begin to recognise the feel of third position.
e) Choose and learn a piece in first position which develops his musical personality.
2- Mid Term: (until the end of the forthcoming course of lessons)
a) Consolidate posture and violin hold.
b) Begin to strengthen his bow hold and draw a straight bow without assistance.
c) Develop left hand articulation.
d) Consolidate the feel of third position and play simple pieces in D and G major.
e) Perfect and perform chosen piece.
3- Long Term: (in six months' time)
a) Maintain a consistently correct posture and violin hold.
b) Develop more even bow contact through a more stable bow-hold and bowing action.
c) Develop crisper left-hand articulation with more consistently arched fingers.
d) Feel comfortable playing in third position in simple keys.
e) Enhance ensemble and sight-reading skills
f) Develop more critical awareness during practice.
