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You are here: Home / Lessons / Four Fingers = One Pattern – Quick Practice Tip

Four Fingers = One Pattern – Quick Practice Tip

Teacher: David Wallace

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Hi there, I’m Dr. David Wallace, with myTalentForge.com’s Quick Tip of the Week!

Today’s Quick Tip is to think in terms of 4 finger patterns.

So, when I’m playing, I don’t think note to note, I don’t think in terms of half-step, whole-step, half-step, whole-step, whole-step, whole-step, or things like that… But I think in terms of tetrachords- 4 note shapes.

So, for instance, I think of this shape, etc. …

Whatever it is, I’m thinking about 4 fingers being one shape. And that makes it easier!

Because then 4 is suddenly simplified into 1, and it makes things think faster.

Now, here’s the other magical thing about this- you will start to find that each shape has a sound like this chromatic shape of all half-steps… That’s obviously what you use for the chromatic scale.

So if we have all whole-steps […] that makes a whole-tone scale. And I think of that as a whole-tone pattern.

This one […], if I take it on another string, gives me a major scale. So instead of thinking whole-step, whole-step, half-step, I think major.

Each of the primary patterns makes a different scale and if you learn those patterns, and think in those patterns, then suddenly your knowledge of the finger board increases; all keys become equal. You start to become much more fluent in all positions, in all keys.

And if you’re really interested in exploring this, check out the One Octave Modal Scales on myTalentForge.com, and we’ll practice these so that in about 15 minutes, or so, of practice, you’re able to set your intonation for the day from half-position all the way to 7th position, using the most common finger patterns and finger shapes.

So think in terms of those shapes!

About David Wallace

As Chair of Berklee College of Music’s String Department, Dr. David Wallace enjoys leading the foremost contemporary and eclectic string program in higher education. Previously, David served as a Juilliard professor for fourteen years, and a New York Philharmonic Teaching Artist for seventeen years.

Dr. David Wallace is a fiercely eclectic musician, an award-winning composer, and a master teaching artist. A short list of David’s presenters and clients includes Carnegie Hall, The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the New York Philharmonic, and Young Audiences. The New York Times compares his solo improvisations to "Jimmy Page fronting Led Zeppelin."

Known for his mastery of eclectic styles ranging from all classical genres to fiddling, rock, and free jazz, David has also gained widespread acclaim for his ability to connect with audiences in diverse community settings. Symphony Magazine declares his book Reaching Out: A Musician’s Guide to Interactive Performance "an invaluable manual for all musicians.”

David has entered his third decade of teaching violin & viola to students of all ages, styles, and ability levels. He draws from techniques and principles he studied under renowned master teachers including Karen Tuttle, Karen Ritscher, Lawrence Wheeler, Kenneth Goldsmith, Johnny Gimble, Felix Galimir, and Victor Danchenko.

Join Talent Forge and learn from David.

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