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The Franco-Belgian Violin School: Pedagogy, Principles, and Comparison with the German and Russian Violin Schools, from the Eighteenth through Twentieth Centuries A document submitted to The Graduate School of the University of Cincinnati in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS in the Performance Studies Division of the College-Conservatory of Music Violin 2019 by Gyu Hyun Han B.A., Korean National University of Arts, Korea, 2005 M.M., Korean National University of Arts, Korea, 2007 Committee Chair: Kurt Sassmannshaus, MM Abstract The Franco-Belgian violin school, famed for its elegance, detailed tone, polished sound, and variety of bow strokes, dominated violin performance at the turn of the twentieth century. Yet despite this popularity, and the continuing influence of the school as reflected in the standard violin repertoire, many violinists today do not know what constitutes the Franco-Belgian violin style. Partly, this is due to a lack of contextual information; while many scholars have written about the history of the violin and violin playing techniques, there is currently very little literature comparing the principles and performance characters of specific violin schools. This study therefore introduces the principles and techniques of the Franco-Belgian violin school, presented in comparison with those of the German and Russian violin schools; these features are catalogued and demonstrated both through examinations of each school’s treatises and analyses of video recordings by well-known violinists from each school. ii iii Table of Contents Abstract ii List of Tables vi List if Figures vi List of Musical Examples vii I. Introduction 1 II. Origin and history of violin schools 8 A. Franco-Belgian: 1. French: a. Viotti b. pupils at the Conservatoire de Paris 2. Belgian: a. Viotti’s pupils at the Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel 3. musical characteristics and principles B. German: 1. Spohr and the Mannheim school 2. later developments 3. musical characteristics and principles C. Russian: 1. Saint Petersburg Conservatory and Moscow Conservatory 2. Soviet era 3. musical characteristics and principles D. French influence across the schools III. Comparing the pedagogy of the Franco-Belgian with other violin schools A. In treatises 20 1. Holding the violin and bow a. Bow grip iv i.! Franco-Belgian: Middle Grip - appropriate space between forefinger and middle finger with relaxed finger ii.! German: Light Grip – bow held with fingertips iii.! Russian: Deep Grip - close distance between bow and hand b. Right arm posture i.! Franco-Belgian: Flexible right wrist ii.! German: High wrist iii.! Russian: Stiffened wrist 2. Holding the violin and left hand posture 3. Left hand pressure 4. Position of legs 5. Position and fingering 6. Vibrato 7. Springing bow 8. Portamento i.! Franco-Belgian, and German: Encouraged various combinations of portamento ii.! Russian: Regulated portamento with strict rules IV. Contrasting styles in recordings of Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D Major 51 A. Bow Grip B. Bow tightening C. Portamento D. Vibrato V. Conclusion 59 Bibliography 61 v List of Tables Table 1. Franco-Belgian violin school ‘family tree’ 12 Table 2. German violin school ‘family tree’ 14 Table 3. Russian violin school ‘family tree’ 17 Table 4. Viotti’s influence on French violin pedagogy and its spread to other areas 19 List of Figures Figure 1. Bow grip, Franco-Belgian violin school 22 Figure 2. Bow grip, German violin school 23 Figure 3. Bow grip, Russian violin school 24 Figure 4. Bow holding, German violin school 25 Figure 5. Left thumb placement, Franco-Belgian violin school 27 Figure 6. Left: Niccolò Paganini (Kersting 1830-31), with the right foot extended away from the body. Right: third position for the feet in ballet 31 Figure 7. Body posture in Baillot’s L'Art du Violon 32 Figure 8. Henryk Szeryng, using the Franco-Belgian violin school bow grip 52 Figure 9. Nathan Milstein, using the Russian violin school bow grip 53 Figure 10. Szeryng (left) and Milstein (right), force on the bow 54 vi List of Musical Examples Example 1. Baillot’s scale exercises from fourth position to seventh position 35 Example 2. Mendelssohn, Violin concerto, Op. 64, third movement, mm. 670-671; Beethoven, Trio, Op.70, second movement, mm. 660-661. Both in Flesch 37 Example 3. Karl Röhrig’s fingering, W.A. Mozart, Violin Sonata in E Minor, K.304, first movement, mm. 85-95 38 Example 4. Flesch (top) and Szeryng (bottom) fingerings, W.A. Mozart, Violin Sonata in E Minor, K.304, first movement, mm. 85-95 38 Example 5. Karl Röhrig’s fingering, W.A. Mozart, Violin Sonata in E Minor, K.304, second movement, mm. 70-76 39 Example 6. Flesch (top) and Szeryng (bottom) fingerings, W.A. Mozart, Violin Sonata in E Minor, K.304, second movement, mm. 70-76 39 Example 7. Carl Flesch, two fingerings for an up-and-down scale 40 Example 8. Auer’s “rhythmic fingering” 41 Example 9. Bailiot, L’Art du violon 43 Example 10. Viotti, Violin Concerto No.19, G minor, first movement, mm. 89-98 43 Example 11. Vibrato directions in the Spohr Violinschule 45 Example 12. Springing bow practice in Kreutzer’s Études ou caprices 47 Example 13. Henri Vieuxtemps, Violin Concerto No. 4, Op. 31, fourth movement, mm. 118-126; springing bowing in fast sixteenth notes 47 Example 14. Henryk Wieniawski, Fantasy brilliante on themes from Gounod’s “Faust” for Violin and Piano, Op. 20, mm. 213-217; long saltando in the springing stroke. 48 Example 15. Bériot, Méthode de violon, Op.102; introduction of portamento 49 Example 16. Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Violin Concerto, Op. 35, first movement, mm. 65-70 54 Example 17. Szeryng’s portamento, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Violin Concerto, Op. 35, first movement, mm. 1-35 55 vii Example 18. Milstein’s portamento, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Violin Concerto, Op. 35, first movement, mm. 1-35 56 Example 19. Kulenkampff’s portamento, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Violin Concerto, Op. 35, first movement, mm. 1-35 56 Example 20. Heifetz’s notable vibrato notes, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Violin Concerto, Op. 35, second movement, mm. 1-37 57 Example 21. Kreisler’s non-vibrato notes, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Violin Concerto, Op. 35, second movement, mm. 1-37 58 viii Chapter I Introduction Violin pedagogy is largely divided into three schools: German, Russian and Franco- Belgian. Established in the eighteenth century, by the turn of the twentieth century the Franco- Belgian violin school dominated European violin music. It is characterized by an emphasis on tone, and a wide range of dynamics and colors. Prominent composers of the school include Henri Vieuxtemps (1820-1881), Charles-Auguste de Bériot (1802-1870), Henryk Wieniawski (1835- 1880), Carl Flesch (1873-1944), and Eugène Ysaÿe (1858-1931); their many works make up much of the standard violin repertoire. Although the heyday of the Franco-Belgian school has passed, the usefulness of a working knowledge of their principles and techniques remains relevant. Music performance education today includes music history and music theory, reflecting the need for performers to understand the different styles and compositional methods of different historical periods. For instance, violinists are taught to use light bow for Classic Era works, or a more singing and broad sound for pieces from the Romantic period. However, despite many popular violin techniques used today having been developed from pedagogy treatises written by famous violin masters in the various violin schools, current violin pedagogy does not emphasize knowledge of and instruction in the most influential violin schools. As a result, many violinists do not know how a given technique has evolved, or why various techniques are used together in the certain works. Just as understanding music history informs today’s performance practice and interpretation, knowing the pedagogy of each violin school offers tremendous value for violinists now. Understanding why particular techniques were developed, and when previous violinists 1 used those techniques, enables violinists to choose appropriate techniques to achieve their desired sound. In general, the Russian violin school is most well-known to musicians; while few are aware of even the name of the Franco-Belgian violin school, even though they have played many works by composers of the school. To help increase knowledge of this school, I will survey the violin principles and techniques of the Franco-Belgian violin school, comparing it with the German and Russian schools and demonstrating its style and performance practice. I will use two complementary methods to conduct the research for this document. First, I will compare the principles of the Franco-Belgian violin school with that of the Russian and German schools in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, determining the differences in pedagogical methods. Second, I will analyze recordings and videos of performances by violinists of the Franco-Belgian school, examining the character in their playing as well as noting any similarities with or differences from the other schools. Literature Review The earliest violin pedagogy book, Francesco Geminiani’s The Art of Playing on the Violin, was written in 1751;1 many more writings on violin pedagogy were published in the late eighteenth century, collecting the principles of the developing violin schools. My survey starts with pedagogy books written by violinists of the Franco-Belgian school, and incorporates additional useful primary sources related to other schools. 1 Kateryna Kolesnyk, “Leopold Mozart as the Father of Violin Pedagogy and His Violinshule or A Treatise on the Fundamental Principles of Violin Playing,” M.M. thesis, California State University, Northridge, 2014, 2. 2 Pierre Baillot, Pierre Rode, and Rodolphe Kreutzer’s Méthode de violon (1803) is the primary source for the teaching methods of the French violin school.2 The book does not go into great detail regarding advanced techniques, but contains the school’s earliest basic principles; because it became an official pedagogical document for the Conservatoire de Paris, the practices discussed in the treatise quickly spread.

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