By Nathan Cole: Vibrato is a good thing. I like it before shifts, after shifts, during tremolo, on pizzicati, over open strings, and even (gasp!) in baroque music!
But vibrato, if left unchecked, tends to take over your brain.
![still pool no vibrato]()
You won't realize it at first. But once your left hand gains enough mental real estate, your right hand wonders why it should care anymore. It draws the bow in predictable fashion, your dynamic range goes down the tubes, and you become a boring violinist.
So what's the solution? Shift the focus back to the bow! It's the right hand, after all, that determines nearly everything about your sound. In order to do that, you just may have to lose your vibrato temporarily. You'll work it back in, but only after putting the right hand back in charge of the phrase again.
I show you how I handle Purity Practice in the video below. And we'll take a detailed look at the first phrase of the Barber violin concerto along the way:
Have you tried "purity practice"? How did it work for you?
