VARIATIONS AND IMPROVISATION

The second resource that I wanted to experiment with, and which is probably the most characteristic of verdiales tradition, is the ability to add ornaments, variations or improvise at the performance moment.
For this, I have chosen the Double after Sarabande (sixth movement) from Partita n. 1 for violin solo by J. S. Bach. It is common to perform ornaments and variations not originally written by the composer in Baroque music. Although Bach is not the best example for this, I chose this piece just to try. I have never dared to perform with ornaments, as I have never been able to perform them naturally. So, I thought that training this skill through the verdiales, a music with which I feel really identified and linked since I was a child, was a good option.

For this, after learning all the parts of verdiales music in its basic mode, I have tried all kinds of variations and additional ornaments. I have also tried to create my own variations to accompany certain singers. In short, I have experienced all kinds of instant creation in verdiales, in a totally free way. In addition, sometimes I have been inspired by the way my former violin teacher in verdiales uses different resources and tools to create new variations. As a main resource, he uses the voice guide, but always taking advantage of the virtuosic possibilities offered by the violin. 

On the right, you can see videos where I choose one of the most common subías, the 'Antigua', and show how it originally sounds like in its most basic structure and then add different types of ornamentation. The ones I show are left hand ornaments (floreo) and ornaments with the bow, adding the different bow strokes. The possibilities are much wider when performed in a real context, where it is possible to be influenced by the singer and experiment even more.

After these tests, I tried to apply it to Bach. Initially, I did not want to take too much into account that it is a different music to verdiales, so I tried to follow the same process. In order to do so, I chose an excerpt of the work and I tried different options and variations until I got some results with which I was comfortable and satisfied.

In order to find different options, I tried to make several kinds of ornaments separately. The first kind of ornamentation I try is mordent, floreate or appoggiatura. After trying and playing it several times, I decide to record it with no intention of repeating any of the previous versions. Then, I do the same process with another type of ornamentation which consists of introducing some runs. To finish the exercise, I perform an optional final version.

The purpose of this exercise is to contribute to flexibility and spontaneity, so the recorded versions are just one option among many possibilities, leaving the choice of ornaments to the moment of performance.

It is not really something new or exclusive to verdiales the fact of using ornaments, variations or improvisation to achieve dynamism and avoid monotony. I had never felt comfortable in that field and the fact of working it through a music so close to me, has helped me a lot to improve my confidence and conviction when playing. I have managed to stop being afraid and dare to try, fail and not judge myself for it. No doubt, when I have the opportunity to do so in a future concert in front of an audience, I will include it in my performance. However, I do not consider that it has made a big difference in terms of achieving a freer and more flexible way of playing. 

The final part of the research consists of testing, after getting to know the verdiales tradition in depth, whether it would affect my playing in terms of freedom and flexibility among other things. Verdiales are characterised by being a spontaneous music, made in the moment, which adapts to what happens, different every time and which is learned orally. The context in which it has developed and in which it always takes place is very different from classical music: relaxed, informal, without protocols or great concern for perfection. Regarding the violin in particular, they use different techniques or in different ways. There are no strict rules regarding technique, although they always have in common the search for a balance between comfort and efficiency in order to achieve the musical goals. The audience of verdiales is also different, always ready to enjoy and have fun, without judging or having high expectations in terms of quality, precision or perfection. In short, the essence of verdiales is to enjoy the moment, whatever happens during the performance.
I would love to transfer many of these values to my own essence as a violinist in the classical musicworld, as I believe that one of the great problems of classical musicians is precisely that we are very rigid, reluctant to do anything out of the ordinary or to take risks.

To explore the influence of verdiales on my playing, I have first learned in depth all the music of verdiales for violin, observing in detail the playing of different violinists (how they hold the violin and the bow, how they use the ornaments and how they improvise). In the meantime, I have soaked up interviews, recordings, conversations, information about its history and so on, in order to understand the true meaning and essence of this tradition.
Once I had assimilated the 'theoretical' part, the idea was to play verdiales in a real context, with a panda and in an important day for verdiales. At the Comares Verdiales Festival in July 2022, I had the opportunity to try out everything I had learned and observed. And, luckily, I have those moments documented on video (video recording 34). I would like to mention that during my intervention I used a violin that belongs to the violinist of the group and, moreover, I played without a shoulder rest. In verdiales, it is common to exchange instruments with other musicians during festivals and celebrations.

It is an essential part of this research that in addition to learning all about this music individually, I have the real experience of what it is like to play this music in its proper context. I was able to experiment and try to improvise and adapt to the singers as much as possible without any pressure, as making mistakes was not a problem. In fact, it could be said that there is no such concept as a mistake, as it would be just an attempt that works better or worse, but never qualified as 'wrong'. At first, I felt more self-conscious and a bit scared, but little by little I was able to feel freer and adapted to the environment. However, I could say that I never managed to play with the same spontaneity as verdiales violinists, probably due to the great influence after so many years being a classical musician that prevent me from not facing the moment of playing as a situation of maximum control. Perhaps it would be necessary to observe after more months or years of experience in a real context whether this feeling would change. 

After immersing myself in the whole verdiales tradition, I wanted to experiment with different aspects of this music and transfer them to my daily practice of classical music. The three main aspects I have experimented with are: bow holding techniques, variations and improvisation and learning by ear or by imitation. 

 BOW HOLDING TECHNIQUES

The first resource to experiment with would be bow technique. As Antonio Romero1 explained to me during an interview, although in verdiales there is no intentional education in technique of violin and bow holding in a certain way, as they learn and play, violinists look for their own ideal position to achieve their goals. Apparently, they do not pay much attention to violin holding, they just find the most comfortable way for them, always without shoulder rest. However, for me, despite having tried several times, I find it quite difficult to play holding the instrument as they do, so I will focus more in bow holding techniques. Depending on the style, the objectives tend to change, so that in Comares and Almogía styles they tend to look more for agility and a holding position in which it is possible to achieve faster and lighter bow strokes; and, on the other hand, in Montes style, due to its tendency to have less virtuosity and a more sung character (legato), they look for a way of holding the bow that allows longer bows and getting more sound.

To try out these different techniques, I have selected a number of passages from different works that I have been practising during these months, both from the violin solo and orchestral repertoire. I have chosen fragments with different needs in articulation and bow strokes I have been struggling with in order to test the effectiveness of the use of the different techniques.

In the famous orchestral excerpt for violinists from Schumann's Symphony No. 2 (Scherzo), I have experimented with different ways of bow holding. The main problem I have playing this excerpt, apart from the technical difficulty itself, is the excessively heavy character I give it when playing it and the unnecessary over effort. I have tried to find new feelings that allow me to achieve greater relaxation and bodily freedom so that I do not do more effort than necessary, and thus also achieve greater lightness in the music and phrasing. For this reason, I first did an exercise holding the bow from higher up, in order to achieve greater lightness and, moreover, agility, as verdiales violinists seek with this way of hold.

When performing this test, I realised that the main cause of the lack of lightness and agility in this excerpt is that I was playing it in the wrong place of the bow, too much towards the tip. When playing holding the bow from higher up, it is not even possible to get a bow stroke off the string or a really quality sound in the upper half of the bow. It is also possible to see how it is much easier to play off the string holding the bow higher.  Therefore, what I have to focus on when I play this excerpt holding the bow as I would normally do, besides checking that I am in the correct area of the bow, is keeping as much as possible the feeling I had when I was holding the bow higher up to get to come off the string. 

On the other hand, I have selected another excerpt with a more cantabile and legato character from Bruckner's Symphony n. 9 (III movement, violin II). In this case, I wanted to experiment what happens and what the differences are between holding the bow from higher up or using the holding I would normally do.

First, I try holding the bow from higher up. The intention of legato phrasing, with long lines, is compromised by the lack of depth and weight in the bow. It is difficult to get the connection between bow changes, especially at the frog. And the modulation of the sound in terms of depth is also not achieved due to the lack of weight in the bow. 

After this, I try again holding the bow from lower down. Now, it is possible to achieve more depth and weight in the sound, as well as a greater amount of bow to achieve a wider legato.

Finally, I have chosen a short excerpt from the concertmaster solo of Richard Strauss' Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche. This part requires great agility and virtuosity in the right hand to achieve the effect written by the composer; but at the same time it needs a mixture of freedom and precision in the left hand, as it combines the techniques of glissandi and staccato real notes. As it is an excerpt that requires speed, agility and virtuosity as well as precision, I have experimented with different ways of holding to see how it could help in order to work better in the end. 

In the video recordings, it is possible to see how I tested the bow stroke by holding the bow from higher up as well as in the usual way. I have also tried changing the bow area slightly. However, after several tests I have come to the conclusion that the final result does not differ much after the different experiments. 

In a nutshell, I have observed that experimenting with different bow holding techniques can be very useful for my daily study, as it allows me to feel different sensations that I did not get initially without my usual technique. However, it would be something that I would use for the moment exclusively in my practice, as it would be counterproductive to be changing the way of holding the bow according to the articulation or character needed during the whole performance of a piece in concert.

 LEARNING BY EAR OR BY IMITATION 

The latest application of verdiales to my daily study is the use of ear training as a means of memorizing works.
During this past month, I have begun studying Alban Berg's Concerto for Violin and Orchestra. This piece belongs to the Second Viennese School group and, until now, I had hardly had the opportunity to tackle more 'contemporary' repertoire. Consequently, I have encountered some initial difficulties in understanding certain aspects of the work, as although I have previously learned something about analysis of this period and the composers of the Second Viennese School, I have not been able to apply it to my repertoire.
Probably the biggest challenge has come when trying to memorize the piece. I have to say that I have never had a problem memorizing repertoire; in fact, it has always come naturally as a consequence of hours of practice. However, with Berg's Violin Concerto, this natural process did not happen. I tried several methods to memorize: by fragments or from the understanding and analysis of the structure and form of the piece. But it occurred to me that I could try memorizing by listening it. I did this kind of learning when I learned verdiales and why would not work now too.
I did not need to memorize the whole piece by listening and imitating, but I did use it in some of the more complex parts. The truth is that although it can be a slow process, for certain relatively short fragments it has been useful. 

Next -> CONCLUSION

Images 39, 40 and 41. Different bow holdings by verdiales violinists.