Violin Portamento: An analysis of its use by master violinists in selected nineteenth-century concerti
Hee-Jung Lee · 2009
Portamento [shifting technique] is regarded as one of the most difficult and intricate aspects of violin playing. Given that each performer’s decision to select a particular portamento is based on his/her musical interpretation, the use of portamento is very individualistic in nature. No pedagogical sources are available for students and teachers to generate critical thinking about when, why, and how violinists might employ portamento. The decision making process regarding its use remains intuitive and amorphous. In this study, portamento styles were examined in real performances by master violinists, Heifetz, Huberman, Kreisler, Mutter, D. Oistrakh, Perlman, Shaham, and Vengerov. Target Intervals (TIs) in which portamenti were employed were extracted with computer software from the first movement of Brahms, Lalo, Mendelssohn, and Tchaikovsky concerti. The selected TIs were analyzed, considering musical factors and individual characteristics of performers. Computer software programs generated visual images of portamento execution, these spectrographs, displayed the progression of pitch change and intensity over time as well as patterns and type of portamento. Results showed that the performers tended to agree more on the type of portamento in descending intervals. B-portamento, occasionally called the French slide, and L-portamento, known as