Comparing famous violinists - Legato series PART 2

[@Louise-qk2po]

I like Mr Perlmans' bow distribution. They all soumd amazing.

[@nikoszarb1]

At last someone who really understands the art of legato & can explain it so eloquently (& respectfully), including points where legato is not achieved (& why). Thanks for posting! As someone has already pointed out, your demonstrations are incredibly accurate & illuminating (without ever resorting to caricature)! Bravo.

[@pluutoop]

23:21 oh so beautiful it hurts. How smooth and expressive without interruptions it pulls the emotions right out of you 🙏

[@matthewv789]

Whether you HEAR more or less legato in a concert setting also has a lot to do with the acoustics of the room and the microphone placement. In the old days, if you compared the sound of the Vienna Philharmonic or Boston Symphony vs the Philadelphia Orchestra, you might conclude that Vienna and Boston played with more legato, when in fact the opposite was probably the case. (Philadelphia played very long, connected lines to partially make up for the dry acoustics of the Academy of Music, whereas the others have halls with very full resonance and long reverberation, requiring much more articulated playing to prevent it all from becoming a blur). A more distant microphone placement will probably have a similar effect to playing in a more resonant hall, but conversely the tone can be fuller with a closer placement. Also, the sound quality of a recording makes a huge difference. The natural compression of analog tape can cover over a lot of articulation details and make everything sound smooth and creamy. This isn't to contradict anything you are saying, just something to keep in mind. Literally all the differences we hear here could very easily be a combination of hall acoustics, mic placement, and differences in recording technology or settings, and in fact in many cases I disagreed with your assessments because I tended to adjust automatically for what I perceived as the "filter" through which we would hear the playing from different recordings.

[@stewartsiu1960]

This comment about recording quality reminds me of a question for Daniel Kurganov - what do you think of Salvatore Accardo's legato? I ask because when I first encountered this recording of Le Streghe (kzbin.info/www/bejne/a5Okhn-bqcarpNU) years ago, I thought of the introduction section as a prominent example of failed legato compared the other recording of Le Streghe I had by Sitkovetsky (kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6OzoHmvq7l4jtk) Yet when I listened to older recordings of Accardo, say the I Palpiti that Daniel posted, Accardo's legato sounded like other old masters of the 20thC. This makes me wonder if the better recording quality of the Le Streghe simply highlighted more kinks.

[@matthewv789]

I noticed this effect when doing some mastering work, and was surprised just how much nuance (such as slight accents and phrasing emphasis) could be lost, along with sharp attacks and releases (meaning notes seem to last very slightly longer, and might blend into the next note in many situations), by even tiny amounts of compression or limiting (something which tape and vinyl give a bit of naturally, and much older recordings or VHS tape give a lot of). Especially when combined with the additional harmonics from distortion, putting a signal through tape or similar effects can almost make it sound like a subtle bit of very short reverberation has been added. I have no doubt that many of the old violinists whom we have no modern recordings of might not have sounded much like that in real life. Similarly, the dry sound coming straight off a violin (such as in an anechoic chamber) probably has not too much similarity to what people hear in the hall (as any violinist must know from what they hear straight under their ear in a dry practice room vs being in the audience from the back of a concert hall - the violin playing might be identical, yet sounds entirely different). What comes out in a recording depends very much on how far any spot mics (if any) were placed in relation to the violinist and the balance between those and the more distant hall mics which pick up more smoothing ambiance and less direct sound, not to mention the resonance of the hall. And also, did they do any post-production (using compression etc.) before we heard these recordings? Very possibly yes, in some cases. On the other hand, violinists do vary quite a bit in how they play under identical conditions, and so all of these observations about variations in playing style are valuable and insightful. (Too, some of the nuances can still come through regardless of recording technique.)

[@DanielKurganov]

Great point, Matthew. Definitely I think bigger acoustic (especially more distant listening) will make things sound different. Many details are lost when you go to the middle or end of a concert hall. It becomes more about power and brilliance. This is partly why Heifetz wanted close mic'ing. It picks up every detail of his delicate bow technique and color changes. Certainly for larger ensembles, smaller changes in the recording techniques (mic placement for example), post processing, and hall acoustic have a greater overall effect on how different we find them to be.

[@DanielKurganov]

@@stewartsiu1960 I think that this "failed legato" is mostly an intentional sort of portato, which to me sounds a bit "plain" and uninteresting, unlike the portato of Kreisler, Oistrakh, Szeryng and other. I also think the recording I posted shows a much higher level of violin playing from Accardo. I must confess I am not his biggest fan, which is why I posted some random recordings of his which to me totally stood out from his body of work. Maybe the old school crackle, saturation, compression and ribbon mic have some magical effect too ;)

[@bchill69]

@@DanielKurganov Dear Mr. Kurganov, can you do a video that addresses this "portato in the place of legato"? I've noticed a lot of this in modern players. Where do they learn it? Is it a definite style? Also, the use of this "failed legato" begs the question of, "is legato a literal physical connection in sound or is it an experience (aural illusion) of the mind resulting from the specific presentation of the notes in a 'musical' manner"? Like pianists do, LOL. Love your videos and intellectual breakdowns of technique, BTW.

[@GiardinoStrings]

19:57 Oistrakh played the full melody on the A string including the open A (on the Strad) and the beautiful portamento on the top A. Maybe I'm old fashioned, but I don't find any of the modern violinists as near as melodic and expressive as the old Masters. Sure they have a good technique and can produce good sound, but where's the soul? To me Mutter, Ferras, Oistrakh and Rabin were the best players. Thank you for this video, it was an excellent insight.

[@Ciaccona255]

Augustin Hadelich is exceptionally melodic and expressive. And he is only 38.

[@allstarmark12345]

I feel same way

[@C422-o7g]

Great video! I feel like Augustin Hadelich should've been analyzed though because he has a great bow arm

[@fabiomino3506]

Yes!

[@DanielKurganov]

Great fiddler!

[@davidrussell3112]

Yes he’s one of my favorite violinists. I was just at a concert where he played the Sibelius violin concerto, it was great!

[@liamnevilleviolist1809]

He has a great everything!

[@AlexRiversMusic]

This is beautiful

[@dr.shilpagowda4700]

For those interested in viewing the full recording of Anne-Sophie Mutter’s performance, you may view it here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gZTXiZSBa5yVhMU. Passage included in this video starts at 14:50. I love its tenderness and vulnerability - and Anne-Sophie’s skill in accentuating those qualities, so masterfully.

[@Hans-tr6dx]

Thanks! was just searching for that

[@leopardtiger1022]

Smooth seamless transition from one note to the other is practiced in Indian classical violin, using the technic Gamakam. Type Gamakam in Hindustani violin and in Karnatik violin.

[@kennethbrush7300]

A well spent 33 minutes. Thank you.

[@JAlexMG]

Una excelente clase magistral... Pude ver con claridad el legato en otro enfoque... Gracias!

[@chriss6356]

My all time favorite recording of Beethoven is by Isaac Stern. Just phenomenal.

[@DanielKurganov]

Love that one! Stern was such a pure musician.

[@JavierFernandez-kq1xg]

Thank you very much!! Great material, you are a great teacher and a genius. The zimmerman masterclass excerpt was surprising.

[@danielabisenius9858]

Oistrakh. Oistrakh. Oistrakh. I’ll repeat it till my tongue stiffens.

[@mohamedlaminehafsi9859]

Oistrakh IS a giant of 🎻 but heifetz IS a best violoniste of all Time .

[@andrewpeng246]

Thank you so much! Very helpful!

[@MattB90]

Damn I can watch famous violinists being compared alllll day long, it never gets old, and with so many techniques aside from legato, I hope there are many more videos to come. Also this video took me an hour to get through, going back and trying to hear the differences between each of the playing, and I learned so much that I can apply to my own legato! Thanks!

[@DanielKurganov]

So glad it was interesting for you! I spent way too much time doing analysis in the wee hours of the night :) I would say this process taught me more than any teacher.

[@violabrain]

Great video as always! One of the big patterns I'm seeing (probably because I'm focusing on this in my own playing, especially in solo Bach) is ANTICIPATION. Whether it is setting up a legato left hand or bow there has to be some broader plan connecting one idea to another, and it can't just be isolated in the fingers. To the piano clip, my long-time teacher always described healthy left hand mechanics at the smallest scale like a piano hammer. Fingers drop from the base knuckle and relax instantly. Fascinating stuff

[@Petroschristidis]

Thank you ! Very beautifully analytical work !

[@cnewtonc]

Another great video. Thanks!

[@cecilia7259]

Thank you for a great ear training lesson on legato.

[@matthewv789]

In terms of the piano example, a great technique which you can really see in Zimerman is sort of caressing the keys, using a curling motion of the finger to pull the fingertip toward you. This caressing motion produces a more rounded approach to pressing the key down rather than just pressing straight down, in a way that's very controllable. Good pianists also emphasize playing toward the bottom of the key, closer to the edge of the key, since it's a lever and playing at the very end of the lever gives more leverage. A little motion can make a big effect here. What he was asking for in "feeling the bottom of the key" was to get the finger, in its curling, sliding motion, to actually slide off the end of the key (by which time the next finger should be playing the next note). And yes you are right, phrasing, getting a legato line, delicacy of dynamics between different notes, etc., are all huge challenges on a piano (which is fundamentally a percussion instrument) that great pianists obsess over the tiniest details of.

[@amber40494]

I think Zimmerman was trying to show the student how to get a feel for relaxed hand weight to the bottom of the key with strong fingers not curling fingers. The fingers feel as if they could hold up the relaxed hand and arm.

[@johnalexander301]

Fantastic, insightful and thought provoking video. Thank you for your good work maestro.

[@frankwalker5040]

I much preferred Sophie Anne Mutter, she built up the sound phrase by phrase, whereas the first two violinists seemed to have reached the climax straight away, from there on it was impossible to build it up any further. Perlman took it faster yet never sounded rushed, somewhat like Heifetz.

[@DanielKurganov]

When in her element, Mutter's craft is all-encompassing and all-engrossing.

[@MattB90]

@@DanielKurganov When you say in her element do you just mean at her best or are there certain pieces she is best suited for? because id like to check them out!

[@horizonforevergold]

This is going to sound very brash: Swelling every note in a phrase makes the violin sound digital, like a VST plugin or synthesizer. It's like you are playing only 1/3 of every note properly and throwing away 2/3 thirds with the fade in and fade out. Legato lets the soul sing. Doesn't mean you have to only play legato, for example Milstein could make any articulation sing. Thank you for the great video. Kogan playing the Paganini is a blessing, conveying the warm feeling of home...

[@DanielKurganov]

I will echo your brash sentiments :)

[@pacman7654]

Putting no distinction between notes can sound like a synthesizer, too. I want the performer to acknowledge the music, not just turn on the violin sound and play notes, which is what legato can sound like sometimes.

[@DanielKurganov]

@@pacman7654 I totally agree, that notes have distinction! I think there can be an issue of terminology and "simplifying down" of something like Legato to "connection of all the notes". If it were that simple, I wouldn't feel the need to make these overly long videos about it :) There are ways to connect notes in a musical way without playing legato, for sure. But there are also ways of destroying the phrase with unintended/subconscious/habitual affects. So, it's up to every individual to try to listen more and more closely and see if every action, every movement, everything that is between notes is part of their intention -- part of the dream they are creating.

[@jacc88888]

Best video I’ve ever seen on this subject. Brilliant. Interesting that a lot of these excellent modern players struggle to get an even and smooth legato. Personally I like the 20th century performances the best. I’m wondering whether many modern violinists have lost this art a little these days (with our obsession with virtuosity and technical precision). Ps I loved the way you were able to imitate the featured violinists so accurately. You obviously have an amazing ear!

[@lenircotia]

Thank you very much for your valuable youtube channel!!!

[@InvincibleViolinist]

Wonderfully made video! Listen with a good pair of studio headphones. It's truly fascinating to compare performances of the same passage. I do feel like the masters of legato cultivate that across all their playing, and that the differences we hear are a a deeply embedded result of the artists' voice, rather than simply a matter of interpretation.

[@TheJongmanlee]

Deeply respect your insight. A master might come from certain kind of obssesion that brings a clear level, so that may differ their performance and satify most audiences.

[@xhotdog100]

Luv luv luv, thanks so much, more please

[@DanielKurganov]

On it!

[@sanifilmann5319]

Thanks for the very interesting describing and examples: great!

[@BrianCameron]

Thank you so much for creating this class, it's just so informative with all of these beautiful references. I could only dream of having access to all of this material when I was a teenager. It's a real treat to have them gathered together and discussed side by side. Fantastic.

[@aMaudPowellFan]

Fascinating, thank you for sharing your perceptions and knowledge, Daniel. It is ear-opening. I love that you start with Arabella Steinbacher. I have heard her in concert several times, once with the Mendelssohn, and also in Ana Chumachenko‘s public studio classes. For me, she has a smile in her sound.

[@davidevans9194]

Very insightful thank you. I'm not a violinist but an oboist, yet I saw many appropriate comparisons; it was of interest to me that you included a fair amount of time considering legato from a pianist's perspective. The end goal is the music; the instrument we use is the means to that end. Thank you again.

[@maksimivanov5417]

Большое спасибо! Уникальный контент на KZbin!..

[@lolamas3042]

Mil gracias por otro vídeo magnífico y por compartir tantos conocimientos! Todos los fragmentos que has seleccionado son auténticas joyas! 👏👏👏👏👏💜🎶💜🎻

[@ktd9]

Learned a lot…..thanks 💜💜💜 What violin are u playing…sounds great…deep…

[@HenJack-vl5cb]

Loving these videos-Thank you!!!!

[@frankwalker5040]

Thank you, I enjoyed your video very much, and am looking forward to your next one.

[@DanielKurganov]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@sitosanchez]

From this video, I had enjoyed even the click of the mouse... Thank you Daniel!!!

[@HenJack-vl5cb]

The legato on violin should be quite similar to the best legato of vocal belcanto technique .The separation between notes then is called non legato or portato..So -Thank you for the wonderfully thoughtful explanation of this subject of greatest importance.

[@DanielKurganov]

Portato can be very beautiful (if, as with everything, done well). Oistrakh and Szeryng never make me miss legato when they play singing lines with portato. I will probably cover 'non-legato but beautiful' approaches in my next legato video. Certainly, there are some examples in this video that show non-legato that's also non-portato, which as I expressed, I think distracts from the line. I think the typical singing portato is done entirely in the hand, with minimal change to the momentum of the actual stroke.

[@HenJack-vl5cb]

@@DanielKurganov Of course portato can be beautiful.Its another colour to be used in our sound palette.Please keep doing those wonderful videos-your work is needed and very much appreciated! Thank you!

[@jessicamidon]

So well done

[@DanielKurganov]

Thanks Jessica!

[@liedindingn9596]

Thank you, sir! It helps a lot in hearing, comparing and in sensual experience. 🎻❤️⚛️

[@garysimkins2179]

the moment that I listened to Arabella's Beethoven, I was immediately smitten by it. she wears the Crown in my opinion

[@London-Lad]

This is lovely, even for a beginner like me

[@DanielKurganov]

Some of these people make me feel like a beginner too :)

[@gimaru1]

It’s more about interpretation and taste. In some of the recordings where you hear a more sustained sound on the same bow you also hear bow changes which may be more distracting. I much rather prefer a more resonant sound versus a condensed one. A more sustained sound doesn’t translate into a more expressive interpretation in my opinion. I like to listen to the music rather than to small irrelevant details. But we all have our opinions when it comes to the aesthetics of music and interpretation.

[@henrykszeryng5900]

Dear Mr. Kurganov, do you have the whole recording of the Tchaikovsky by Ferras?

[@DanielKurganov]

I don't think a video of the entire work exists, but maybe I'm wrong! There are certainly recordings of him playing the whole work audio-only on KZbin.

[@bluefidle]

Awesome.

[@EdgarAponte]

Un vídeo muy interesante. Es muy importante también el uso del vibrato para conectar el sonido y lograr una gran expresividad

[@Bobeeha]

i can't believe this video is free

[@reinhartfrais2434]

Thank you for your great effort, I like a warm slow lyrical sound,how are your favorites for this Kinde of playing.thank you reinhart

[@aaronblackham360]

They're gonna come get you for this one 😂😂😂

[@DanielKurganov]

Tip of the iceberg

[@sarahjones-jf4pr]

WHY DOES OLD SCHOOL ALWAYS SOUND SO MUCH BETTER?.

[@jacc88888]

Good question. I agree with you. Maybe the old players saw the violin as primarily a vocal type instrument rather than one to impress technically. I feel something major has been lost these days.

[@horizonforevergold]

This is the way.

[@TXCrafts1]

Well said.

[@GiardinoStrings]

No distractions from social media!! Also they lived in a society where Classical music was one of the main entertainment. They were also thought by genius teachers, often legends of the violin themselves or legendary pedagogues such as Auer and Yankelevich.

[@Anna-887]

I agree with all these comments, also playing on Italian violins help to produce that sound.

[@darlenerivest148]

Thank you so much for this wonderful exploration of legato playing. So many great points. I think that listening with eyes closed really helps to listen for the nuances of this technique in both these examples and in our own playing.

[@DanielKurganov]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@jasonvandalay6738]

Awesome!

[@danielallan3333]

Very interesting! By listening more critically to other violinists, we may become more critical of our own playing. I would have liked to see a piece on Milstein, who used a lot of bow and had a beautiful legato, proving your point that bow changes are inimical to legato.

[@Violinna]

Thank you for another ear-opening and very inspiring masterclass! Great analysis, and especially loved the connection with the piano masterclass and emphasis about what happens between notes and how that makes such an enormous difference! Bravo!

[@DanielKurganov]

Thanks so much!

[@violinhunter2]

This is a fantastic analytical study. BRAVO and thanks!!! Nevertheless, my personal inclination has never been for legato - I actually don't like legato a great deal. I prefer a more aggressive, percussive, gritty sound. My favorite fiddle players are Heifetz, Gitlis, Kogan, and Mullova (although Mullova is a little too smooth for my taste.) 🙂

[@DanielKurganov]

Thanks my friend. Hate to break it to you, but Kogan and Heifetz were legato masters :) Ivry Gitlis existed in a quantum state of simultaneous total connection and total separation...

[@andrewzhang8512]

classic gitlis

[@Iraqi_violinist]

This is a great video

[@frankwalker5040]

I heard the full version of the Kogan, what wonderful playing.

[@DanielKurganov]

Yes, it's next level. What makes it great isn't easily explainable in technical terms. We can talk about legato, momentum of the bow, and left hand articulation+relaxation, but none of that really gets to the heart of his craft.

[@christosgalileas67]

No offense to all the other wonderful violinists and with all due respect, Kogan is a different league. Whenever you throw in Kogan the discussion should be about who takes 2nd 3rd place etc.

[@heart-strings6119]

I have an old LP of Kogan playing Brahms! The ultimate!

[@ShiDanQiu]

Great! Martial arts and playing violin!

[@שמעון-ק2ח]

10:02 That's naughty! One of my favorite passages in all classical music, played just right! (The right idea imho) You know what's,what! I myself have tried many hundreds of times, to get it just right! Also the next joing part after the cadenza of 1st mov. of the Mendelson. Hardly anyone gets it quite like i try to do it. SORRY SORRY! you showed a few versions before yitchak perlman! Would you believe it, i spent a lot of money trying out all top brand g strings, only with this open g in mind! I thought the intelligent choice might have been passionne.

[@sabrinasviolinchannel]

Excellent and much needed video, Daniel! 🙏🏻 Especially also mentioning to pay attention to the great pianists! Loved that! In my opinion the declining art of legato mainly has to do with the missing independence of left & right hand. Right hand reflects movement-wise what busy left hand is doing. Teachers paying less and less attention to this problematic topic somehow created a new ‘fashion’. In my masterclasses I’ve noticed that there is no awareness whatsoever of this problem. Even with the most talented students from big universities around the world... taught at Simone Porter’s university some years ago (since you explicitly mentioned her…). When you demonstrate what they actually do and HOW that sounds most of them want to change. Despite the many example of famous violinists nowadays playing in the unconscious way I mentioned above. A good sign for the art of legato to survive also the present ‘fashion’! 🎻🤞🏻🎶

[@DanielKurganov]

Thanks! Yes, I do think it's one of those unconscious mannerisms that people might not choose to do if fully aware/in control of the sound. There are so many things like that in violin playing, so many opportunities to spoil beauty, haha.

[@sabrinasviolinchannel]

@@DanielKurganov That is definitely true…

[@jimlin8735]

This is an amazing channel ! There are lots of works to edit the video and explain the differentiation between each players

[@leonardoiglesias2394]

Why do they always use much more bow for separated notes then for the legato ones? Steinbauer, for example. She uses double as much bow for the separated eights after the long legato, but they are also eight notes.

[@DanielKurganov]

An eighth note is simply the relative time value of a note. There are no rules about how much bow to use. Different amounts of bow and ways of bowing produce different sound. She builds the phrase up to those notes and then annunciates them with extra bow.

[@amber40494]

I like Stefan Jaqiv version, for it's musical lightness, phrasing---not as overdone

[@Hadriandidnothingwrong-z8c]

I believe that the Hilray's bow usage has something to do with her Instrument. Some of Guaneris' instruments have some sort of power to their sound that is very hard to describe, almost as if the instrument was speaking itself and adding a little bit to the interpretation of the musician playing on it, without them having control over it, principe doria comes to mind. And I believe that Hilary's copy of Il Cannone also has that. It's hard to tell because I have only ever seen her play on it but I think her instrument might have just decided, that it wants to speak with this very intelligent voice and that it doesn't want to give up it's dignified posture even when it's a very romantic piece.

[@DanielKurganov]

There are certainly strengths and weaknesses to different instruments, sometimes extremes in certain sonic properties, but I think you are romanticizing here :-) Hillary Hahn is very in control of everything that is happening, maybe more so than any other violinist. I’ve played many Guarneris and, yes, they can often be powerful, as are Stradivaris or any excellent instrument, but they simply react to technique… I promise they won’t be saying much of anything if not played well :-)

[@leonardoiglesias2394]

Jackiw makes a big accent on the G after the legato passage because he uses the whole bow for a quarter note.

[@christianlesniak]

One of my ultimate heroes of legato was Zoltan Szekely, and you can hear a great illustration in his playing of Bartok, like when he premiered the 2nd Violin Concerto (he commissioned it from Bartok). The recording is like coming on an oasis in the middle of the desert of other recordings, where so many violinists seem to scrape through their cubist interpretations. Maybe Midori comes close, but there's really nothing like it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/r6bQiJeDhb6YgKc All of his playing is gorgeous and flowing, and it's a shame he did so little playing as a soloist, but I highly recommend any of his recordings as the leader of the Hungarian String Quartet. I think that really top chamber players often understand legato on a way higher level than most soloists, who are probably more focused on getting a punchy, articulated sound to carry over the orchestra and through the big hall. As a bonus, he was also the dedicatee of Bartok's 2nd Rhapsody, and his recording of the work shows off his liquid sound quite well. No cubism here, which I think meshes well with the absolutely lyrical way Bartok plays his own works in the recordings that exist: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rGHNpaeYmqxgl6s

[@deo_gaming6676]

Everytime someone asked menuhin what is the violin for you, he answered: the bow.

[@dr.shilpagowda4700]

Daniel’s 🤨action in response to the sound “bumps” help accentuate his point but also one can’t help but 🤭

[@SeasickSailor76]

As a beginner (perhaps I shouldn't be watching such advanced videos!), the statement "They don't have to play open strings for like an hour a day for ten years just to sound beautiful at Twinkle Twinkle, which is very much the case for violin." nearly killed me! :-/

[@frankwalker5040]

It was amazing watching Menhuin achieving so much in just one up bow. I think it was Chen who started off notes without vibrato, I think it upsets the line of the legato, I think it's in bad taste.

[@DanielKurganov]

It depends - Szeryng often started without vibrato and he sounded like a god :)

[@fiddlestix3025]

Super interesting, thanks Daniel 👌

[@iliaslivieratos966]

I saw the first section, and i strongly disagree... The articulation of notes is an intentional thing for many soloists. It's imitating the clarity of the notes of a piano, and acoustically in a big hall it makes the notes pop more. Also it allows for a bigger sound. I was taught that technique. It really depends...

[@iliaslivieratos966]

What i mean by bigger sound is that if you play closer to the bridge, when changing notes it is easy to lose the sound and make a whistling sound. So a slight articulation with the now arm avoids this problem. Check for example Kavakos. His Beethoven is devine, but there is no (absolute legato). So it depends on sound production and taste. But such a vast generalisation is a bit off for me....

[@DanielKurganov]

I am all for articulating notes, believe me :) But that’s interesting you were taught that - to make a swell at the end of each note. Can you describe exactly what you were taught in terms of the nature of the articulation and how it’s executed? There are many kinds of articulation such as portato, slight indentations with the index finger, slight bumps of bow speed at the beginning of the note- things mirroring language. What I describe in the video is none of these things: it’s very specifically a swell towards the end of the note. It’s actually the opposite of an articulation in the literal sense. It’s an articulation backwards, like listening to speech backwards you will hear swells towards the end on every syllable. That’s the result of a consonant sound played backwards. I’m willing to bet you were not taught to do this :)

[@iliaslivieratos966]

@@DanielKurganov Check Kavakos's Beethoven. Yes exactly, a small fluctuation of the pressure on each note with the index finger. It's all about execution of course. Not too much. But that a legato should always be a constant movement, is not (always) the case. For example, jackiw's articulation was pretty good for my taste. Of course the other violinist, Boye (or however) was not so elegant.

[@DanielKurganov]

@@iliaslivieratos966 as I described in the video, it’s not an issue of articulating with some pressure or both speed per say, what I’m referring to is something more specific. If you listen closely, there’s a swell to the end of the note in Jackiw’s playing, which is suddenly halted by the next note. This is not what Kavakos or any ‘old school’ players do or have done. That is why I asked about the exact nature of the articulation; it makes a big difference:) Anyway, I can’t stand it, personally. Obviously everything’s subjective, etc etc

[@pluutoop]

@@iliaslivieratos966 I agree here with Daniel.

[@midnighttutor]

This presentation and part one are extremely well done. Can you please comment on what effect articulation should have on legato sound? Obviously all of the legato vocalists were articulating the words of the opera and not slurring over them -- is there any trick to getting the same effect with the bow? Thank you.

[@DanielKurganov]

It's a longer topic, but here are 2 keys: Listen to pianists who can do great legato. Technically it's impossible for them to really connect notes as it's a percussion instrument. However, when you hear it, you know. And then you can analyze what they're doing with timing of notes, timing of fingers coming down/up, role of the arms/body in creating larger connected shapes. Key no.2 -- the worst offense against legato is when every note has a swell at the end of it. It's not an artistic choice, it's just bad technique and not done intentionally. That said, there are many ways to beautifully separate notes, such as with proper portato technique.

[@adi_demian]

Could we not refer to the slight separation between notes within slurs as portato bowing?

[@DanielKurganov]

Yes we can! That's certainly one form of separation and it's beautifully done by various violinists such as Szeryng and Oistrakh. What is NOT as beautiful is when there is a swell on every single note of a line. It's very jarring, and is what I tried to show in this video (without being too obviously negative about it!) It's an unintentional effect, and it's simply bad technique. Happens to otherwise very strong players. I think it's simply copied subconsciously from people (some famous) that have done it. I guess it's a confused way of getting notes to speak more. Hard to say. No one talks about it.

[@adi_demian]

@Daniel Kurganov, Violinist the other side of the coin could be the straight, uninteresting "wall of sound" produced by some other otherwise very strong players in the name of "good technique." I believe you are absolutely right when you mention unintentional effects. We need to have a whole arsenal of tools under our belt to be able to showcase the MUSIC in our performance the best we can. We need to be intentional in our playing.

[@richtrophicherbs]

I thought Menuhin's bow change at the frog was a bit clunky. Steinbacher for!

[@ASmyk-mo3ob]

I am also curious what would you say about Kerson and Maria Dueñas :) these are Unique ones!

[@DanielKurganov]

Kerson has a unique mastery of many complex tools. Maria is very gifted and passionate. Big respect to both of them. I personally don't reach for their recordings, but they are young and still have time to impress me, which I'm sure is their goal!

[@merlindavids]

My goodness, Bell is an average student compare to Ferras. Amazing video, thank you Daniel!

[@arkamukhopadhyay9111]

Mutter was around 15/16, not in her early twenties, in this celebrated recording, if I'm not mistaken.

[@DanielKurganov]

She was 21; the recording is from 1984

[@arkamukhopadhyay9111]

@@DanielKurganov Ah! I stand corrected. And thank you for this fantastic video. I'm not a violinist, but a passionate listener of the violin repertoire, and a martial/movement artist. There's much to learn about my own crafts from this video.

[@DanielKurganov]

@@arkamukhopadhyay9111 Wonderful! I constantly see parallels in violin playing with martial arts principles. Movement is movement...

[@n0n1o5o]

Something about staccato ?

[@anthonyreed3421]

YEHUDI MENUHIN FOREVER!!! :)

[@belmon38]

Interesting. Very much agree with your observation about Joshua Bell, I never liked how often he speeds up the bow before bow changes (especially at the tip), terrible thing if there happens to be a shift as well. Not a big fun of Hilary Hahn and her equal bow distribution, always ends up in a boring tone color and phrasing to my taste. (Compare her openig of Prokofiev #2 or Korngold to Jackiw's for instance). And about Menuhin, I think that what I hear is an accent in his bow change at the frog rather than a controlled legato, maybe his bow arm issue showing early sings... Good work, thanks!

[@DanielKurganov]

Agree on all points. And thanks!

[@pacman7654]

Legato or not, when Joshua Bell played I thought "Ah, finally, there's Tchaikovsky!"

[@pluutoop]

Naah

[@Ciaccona255]

Completely disagree

[@DanielKurganov]

"There's Tchaikovsky, and there's the door" :) Actually, I like Bell's playing of Baroque repertoire. His Bach concertos are very enjoyable.

[@Besaviolina]

So interestig everybody plays his own style 😊👍

[@Billsingsong]

Issac stern

[@cambiaralmundoyoutub]

Es una pena que los "derechos de copiado", censuren un análisis tan interesante y didáctico.

[@DanielKurganov]

Sí, es lamentable....

[@jackburgess8579]

I have found your two videos on legato very interesting, and I was very glad to learn from this one of Michael Rabin. Of your Mendelssohn clips, his phrasing struck me as the most compelling and the most rewarding. I wondered whether you might comment on two additional examples of Mendelssohn to see whether, as a non-musician, I am getting the hang of it all. (I link directly to the violin entry in the 2nd movement.) Firstly, Louis Kaufmann, who seems to me to be even further from legato than is Joshua Bell kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIWcnKuNrcqFbpY Secondly, Chloe Chua, who seems to me to employ a legato that is exceptionally beautiful. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gnfLZYOGj9mjgKc What do you think? If I am confused and/or my ears are no better than cauliflowers, please give me the bad news!

[@DanielKurganov]

Rabin's Mendelssohn is some of his best playing. Just a lovely recording. Interesting that you mention Kaufman. His sound is very intense always. Very old school. Like Kreisler on steroids. I love it. I think he had a beautiful legato, and incredible connection, even though he does indent notes with 'impulse' (impulse vibrato, LH articulation, and some portato). Chloe is a very talented young violinist, no doubt. Legato technique in general is simply not taught or understood today, except with violinists that have a connection to/understanding of masters of the past. I don't want to criticize her, and her career is much bigger than mine :) but you can just watch her bow and it tells the story. There's a swell on every note of a legato line, which kills it. It's not portato, and it's not done with much intention. It's all about what you value and what your taste is. If you look at the masters of the violin and say "that's the way" and dissect what's going on, how it works, etc. You see that none of them ever do this swell thing like many violinists do today. So, there is objective analysis, and then there is taste/opinion. Neither is totally necessary to enjoy and feel.

[@KevinCloudQAQ]

I always use portato (badly) as a cheat code really, never use much legato for a long time now….. guess I need to work on it and stop being lazy.

[@Marta-bj3ug]

👏👏👏👏👏

[@Iglioni]

Epicardópolis!!!

[@cletedavis5849]

Frankly, the two violinists with the top legato playing were Fritz Kreisler and Mischa Elman. No one has ever achieved the smoothness of delivery that they could produce.

[@DanielKurganov]

Two of my favorite fiddlers! I always return to them and others from that era to learn more.

[@Fanfanbalibar]

Mutter !

[@sunilkens]

👌👌👌🙏🙏🌹

[@leonardoiglesias2394]

One eight , 2 cm…one quarter 15 cm…?

[@pluutoop]

8:03 Beautiful..... but all I can see is 🍈🍈

[@valentinablue.8804]

?

[@meyerbeer13]

Perlman's musicality is in his face not the violin

[@pibbles-a-plenty1105]

Nit pick away. They all were playing beautifully. Variations in technique are ..... variations. Legato isn't going away. Composition is going away.

[@DanielKurganov]

I guess it depends how we define beauty and what that beauty is relative to. I only find some of these to be beautiful. I agree Legato isn't going away. Composition went away a long time ago :) But everything is preserved. All can be resurrected at any future date if the desire and circumstances are there, as long as we keep the archive healthy.

[@miamadojesus]

Lo siento amigo, pero mientras no hables en "cristiano" no te entenderé y mucha gente en el mundo tampoco... por qué os empeñais en hablar tan "raro", con lo fácil que es hablar claro... vosotros "erre que erre"... hablando en esa "jerga" incomprensible.., con lo fácil que sería, como he dicho, hablar en "cristiano"...en fin espero que reflexioneis y por fin, podamos de una vez por todas, ENTENDERNOS TODOS, como Dios manda... saludos y un abrazo fraterno.🤷🤷🤷🤷😄😄😄😄

[@DanielKurganov]

You can activate Spanish subtitles right in the video. In my experience, they do a good job of translating.

[@yardvark100]

"Anne-Sophie Mutter, in her early 20's, really in her prime" (sic). Are you talking about playing the violin or making babies?

[@DanielKurganov]

What’s the difference?

[@yardvark100]

@@DanielKurganov LOL

[@leonardoiglesias2394]

Ferras has a vibrato with no expression. Its like a machine doing just fast trembling, always exactöy the same speed and broadness.

[@DanielKurganov]

It's amazing how people can hear things in a totally opposite way :)