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Too High for Violin?

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57highnote.jpg

Are the red notes too high for violin? The high notes are A's.

I didn't think they were but I may be wrong.

The piece is for string orchrestra, so I wonder if this is alright.

Should be fine.

  • Author
Should be fine.

Should be?

I need to know if the violinists in a string orchestra can play these few measures comfortably.

Looks like you're using Finale. The red notes are red because they are difficult for players to play. Really, Finale highlights the notes because they are hard for students. Those notes are a piece of cake for an experienced violinist. A pro can play an octave above ledger line G (not the G just above the treble staff, just below what you have written there). Keep in mind notes that high are piercing. If you want them to play softly in that octave you'll find that it's quite nice. Hope this helps.

Yeah, looks just fine for anyone who would be in a string orchestra.

Looks like you're using Finale.

I think only Sibelius does this. Unless I have been missing an aspect of Finale.

It is fine.

Some of the comments about dynamics is pretty off on string instruments that people have made.

Go read an orchestration book, Bachian, and it will help out a lot.

I think only Sibelius does this. Unless I have been missing an aspect of Finale.

I will second that... i think he's confusing it with Finale's "layering".

Nah, nothing is too high for violin...

it goes up to the top note on the piano, I played and found out :O

Looks like you're using Finale. The red notes are red because they are difficult for players to play.

That looks like Sibelius to me. Sibelius marks with dark red notes that are suitable for professionals but may be unsuitable for students or amateurs. Bright red notes may be impossible even to professionals (maybe real virtuosi could play such notes, depending on the instrument). The notes in the original post are in dark red, so depending on the players, it may or may not be too high.

Nah, nothing is too high for violin...

it goes up to the top note on the piano, I played and found out :O

Playing a note and hitting a note are two different things. All sorts of things matter kiddo.

Playing a note and hitting a note are two different things. All sorts of things matter kiddo.

Yea, I know...

The top note on piano IS possible, it doesn't really sound all that lovely, though :P

The note before it, the B, has been written.

Nah, nothing is too high for violin...

I Agree with that, the point is how high is for the violinist, (and what kind of note sequence are those notes)

The violin itself can climb up to the end of listenable waves :D mo matter if you play without the fingerboard support or very close to the bow ..... the main limitations are in the player.

As in the very beginning , the student has the B4 as higher note, position 1, if he changes (moves his hand) he lose track of the positions ...

Through the years the student learns how to move the hand to upper positions and go back without losing the track of anything ....

If the violinist use to go very high often he will be used to reach very high notes with no problem .....

Now,

playing a single very-high note is one thing, and playing a very-high melody is one thing more.

As in all strings instruments the spaces or note positions in the fingerboard get smaller and smaller. In the violin a tiny movement of the finger can change even a 3th minor ....(there, in the highest floor)

When playing at the end of the fingerboard or beyond it, .... a melody is usually played with the same finger, so a fast trill of c-c# may be impossible because no matter how close you put your other finger you'll jump a whole tone or 1 1/2 tone at least ..... moving the same finger as in vibrato is the way to play c-c# (but in the case of a trill wouldn't sound like one) ...

By all that I say, .... don't worry about "how high are the notes you write in the violin" but "what those notes constitude as a melody", motif, draw etc .... and the speed of course, .... because the space is reeeeally reduced.

  • 2 weeks later...
That looks like Sibelius to me. Sibelius marks with dark red notes that are suitable for professionals but may be unsuitable for students or amateurs. Bright red notes may be impossible even to professionals (maybe real virtuosi could play such notes, depending on the instrument). The notes in the original post are in dark red, so depending on the players, it may or may not be too high.

Maybe it's just been a while since I've used Finale. I switched to Sibelius about a year and a half ago, but I seem to remember it coloring high or low notes... I could be wrong though. Not confusing it with layering, lol... I'm not that dumb.

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