Session 1
Martelé
Martelé – is a strongly accented and percussive bow stroke with a detached sound and alternating bow direction. It comes from the French meaning ‘hammered.’
There is no uniform way to indicate martelé in notation. You may see single or combinations of dots, arrow-head wedges and accents or a line over the note but these are not universally. See notation examples below. Much of the way that you’ll know to play with martelé technique is having knowledge of different classical styles of music, which comes after a lot of experience playing in ensembles and orchestras.
C major Scale
Notation Symbols
– = Shift
X = Extension
Strategies
C major has no sharps or flats.
Choose the octave(s) that suits your skill level best. Practice finding resonant C pitches, particularly on the A string/
Once you’ve got C major beautifully in tune, practice the scale with your martelé bow stroke.
Etudes
Beginner – Lee, Sebastian, 40 Easy Etudes for Cello, Op. 70, No. 26
Improver – Dotzauer, J. J. F., Exercises for Violoncello Book 1, No. 7
Advanced – Dotzauer, J. J. F., Exercises for Violoncello Book 1, No. 5
Please prepare Lee, No. 26 etude for our live class.
Practice Assignment
Step 1: practice the martelé bow stroke on a single open string and using half bows. Sink your bow into the string allowing the bow hair to ‘wrap’ around the string then immediately release the weight and keep your bow on the string. Never use force, pressure or press to make this sound.
Step 2: repeat step one but select a ringing pitch. Once you have pull the bow and sunk down into the string, listen for the resonance. Your bow should remain on the string at all time. Down and up bow martelé should sound identical – both with an accent at the front of the note.
Step 3: shorten the gap between your down and up bow, still listening for the ring and maintaining the hammered articulation.
Step 4: play C major scale (choose your most comfortable 1, 2, 3, or 4 octaves) and maintain a consistent martelé stroke.
Step 5: work on your etude(s). How long can you maintain an excellent martelé stroke?
Advanced players: practice all above with full bows, in different parts of the bow, starting up bows and at a rapid tempo. Find examples from your repertoire and practice those with a focused bite sound at the start of each pitch.
Live Group Session 1: Bow Hold & Alignment
During our live sessions:
you will have an opportunity to demonstrate martelé bow stroke and receive feedback from me.
together will apply this technique to C major scale and Lee, No. 26 etude.
as a group we will review bow hold
and review right arm upper alignment
What more help?
If you want more comprehensive feedback than our group live sessions, I am available for 1:1 coaching sessions throughout the course for an additional fee. Please contact me if you’d like to schedule a private session: maryrobbcellostudio@gmail.com