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One point is the understanding of the nature of the instrument for which the composer wrote when he had the embellishment in mind. Thus they produced a sort of vibrato, not unlike that of which we have received an overdose in recent years from violinists and 'cellists. but if we interpret it as a "shake" we commit a grave error.
And, in a manner of speaking, the soul of this tone quality is the vibrato, though the individual instrument also has much to do with the tone. "But not," Mr. Pilzer continued, "not as it is too often mistakenly employed. Of course, any trained player will draw his bow across the strings in a smooth, even way, but that is not enough.
"Neither is really any more complicated than the viola, I should think," the professor replied. He had been twirling his glass for some time, but he stopped and removed his hand from the table. "Think of the dexterity required to control your bow, and the simultaneous imparting of vibrato while retaining correct intonation. It's quite as remarkable." "I see what you mean, certainly.
Turning to some special faults, we would warn against the "scoop," the excessive use of the portamento, or glide, so common a fault at the present time, and the vibrato and tremolo. The two former are musical faults, so we pass them by without further consideration. Otherwise is it with the last two faults; they both result from a wrong use of the vocal organs.
But when Lutie began to hang out at the Studios she took up with the Musical Set that couldn't talk about anything but Technique and Shading and the Motif and the Vibrato. She began to fill up the Parlor with her new Friends, and the first thing Oliver knew he was in the Side Pocket and out of the Game.
The vibrato can not be used, naturally, on the open strings, but otherwise it represents the true means for securing warmth of expression. Of course, some decry the vibrato but the reason is often because the vibrato is too slow. One need only listen to Ysaye, Elman, Kreisler: artists such as these employ the quick, intense vibrato with ideal effect.
But to-day the vibrato is frequently made to cover a multitude of violin sins. "It is accepted by many as a substitute for genuine warmth and it is used as a camouflage to 'put over' some very bad art in the shape of poor tone-quality, intonation and general sloppiness of technic. Why, then, has it come into general use during the last twenty-five years?
There must be an inner, emotional instinct, an electric spark within the player himself that sets the vibrato current in motion. It is an inner, psychic vibration which should be reflected by the intense, rapid vibration in the fingers of the left hand on the strings in order to give fluent expression to emotion.
Samson came on alone with his jawbone, and stood silent, very terrible, and waiting for an opportunity to break out. The silence was prolonged. Nothing happened. It was a pause of expectation. Then we heard a voice, a solemn, cavernous voice with a vibrato like a cinematograph, calling loud and slow "Sansone, Sansone, Sansone!"
The pupil suffering from tremolo or even very strong vibrato must have courage to stop at once and to forego having a big voice. After all, the most beautiful voices in the world are not necessarily the biggest voices, and certainly the tremolo is about the worst fault a singer can have. But that, like almost any other vocal defect, can be cured by persistent effort of the right kind.