The Method
Colourstrings has been developed and refined over a period of more than 50 years.
Colourstrings creates a solid musical and technical foundation. The method does not shape or mould the child to the needs of the instrument, but rather domesticates the instrumental challenges to meet the child’s needs.
With great foresight, all the relevant elements of string playing and musical understanding are presented in a child-friendly, artful and effective way, enabling comprehensive learning.
From the very beginning, the child learns to master all the elements that underlie all future musical and technical demands.
Colourstrings is not limited to teaching the manual dexterity movements of both hands, but tends to give the child the whole of music as an “art package“ where the development of musical expression, instrumental technique, ear training and music theory are constantly in balance.
Colourstrings involves multiple senses in learning any new idea. To teach more complex musical elements, the books use color and picture symbols to bring those within the child’s grasp. Seeing and hearing go hand in hand. In this way, learning is deeper and more lasting.
Furthermore, reading and writing music is linked to playing from the very beginning.
The Colourstrings material includes all the learning objectives for expressing music with beautiful, resonating sound:
- Equally sophisticated technique in both hands
- A developed musical intellect
- Fine intonation
- Good note-reading
- Artistic understanding of musical colors, shades, articulation and phrasing
- Rich creativity and musical imagination developed through transposing, transforming, improvising and composing
- Chamber musicianship and soloist activity
This method offers the opportunity to become a creative musician with a holistic understanding of all the fundamental aspects involved in playing and listening to music.
The use of colours to support note reading
Learning to play a string instrument requires a certain amount of dedication on the part of the student: The playing positions, especially for violin and viola, are ergonomically demanding and it takes some time to be able to play, for example, small concertinos with a beautiful sound and good intonation.
Colourstrings makes reading music easy. By freeing up the energy needed to understand complex notation, the child can focus more easily on listening to the instrument, balanced positions and the specific learning objective.
As a first step in the approach of child-friendly notation of music, the open strings are introduced by means of coloured symbols:
The bear is representing the G-string, the father D, mother A and the bird the E-string.
These symbols were chosen in the context of the time in which they were created. To reflect the reality of our times, where different family concepts coexist, teachers may wish to modify.
In the instrumental tutor books, reading gradually develops into black and white notation. This happens in very many small steps over a period of 1-2 years, without the child paying much attention.
Characteristics of developing the instrumental technique
Numbered Pizzicato
As a first method in the history of string pedagogy,Colourstrings© introduces “Numbered Pizzicato”:
Not just the little finger is plucking but in turn all fingers of the left hand (a higher string with a higher finger and a lower string with a lower finger). In this way, the children learn to use their fingers independently before stopping the string.
This special preparation of the left hand makes all future left hand technique much easier for the child as the fingers work already independently, a skill that has to be taught and does not come naturally.
Colourstrings. Book A, Violin. Left hand pizzicato.
Changing Positions
The child plays in higher positions at a very early stage of learning.
The arm is used to moving and changing position from the very beginning, so the child immediately learns to play freely and relaxed on any part of the fingerboard. This is a very innovative approach to developing shifting technique at an early age.
Book A, Colourstrings violin.
Octave Harmonics
Regular use of harmonics is also very useful in developing bow technique: The flute-like, intense and pure sound of a harmonic can only be achieved if the child’s bow stroke is straight, with the right speed, length, pressure and amount of hair.
Book A, Colourstrings.
Relative Solfa - Inner Hearing
Unique in Colourstrings is also the systematic connection between learning the instruments and relative Solmisation. The use of the relative Solmisation (movable DO respectively LA as the Major and Minor tonic symbol) facilitates transposing in all registers starting from any finger. The child hears inside the next tone step before playing it.
The fingers are led by the ear. This promotes a very good basic intonation.
Without problems Colourstrings children can play scales even in Fis major or B flat minor.
Book B, violin.
Natural Harmonics
As a first method in the history of string pedagogy Colourstrings© is using systematically natural harmonics to develop the first technical skills on the instruments.
Colourstrings. Book A. Violin
Transposing
The relative Solmisation serves also a very free handling of the instrument because the child can discover already at a very early stage the whole fingerboard with the help of transpositions.
A free playing position can be easier developed.
Book B Violin, Colourstrings.