Electric Violin Music Demonstrations

by Reva Kuzmich

February 24, 2002

Pre-Electrified Strings Applications

Opportunity to get orchestra students playing contemporary popular music with or without a microphone and with or without any amplification.
- String quartet with and without rhythm section
- String orchestra
- Add strings to jazz band
- Add strings to a jazz combo
What is contemporary music? Jazz, Dixieland, Ragtime, boogie woogie, swing, bebop, cool jazz, fusion, bluegrass, country, Klezmer, Latin, Blues, funk, and many stylistic forms of rock (pop, lite, medium and heavy metal, reggae, Milly Pop, Miami Rock, Shuffle Rock, fusion and much more). The trick is to get classical string players and their teachers playing contemporary popular music first before really getting into any electrified sounds. You might want to demonstrate some licks in some of those styles. Klezmer would be quite interesting and and different from most of the popular musical styles above. Mimi Rabson of RESQ is a good example of Klezmer.
For a wealth of published string charts available for contemporary music performances, please go to: http://www.kuzmich.com/handouts/String_Publishers.html

Entry Level Analog Sound Synthesis

Quality electric string pickup. Try Fishman.
- Fishman Electric pickup playing traditional repertory Suzuki and other classical music selections just to show how an electrified violin sounds maybe with and without a preamp.
There are different ways that electrified string(s) can be used in a traditional orchestra program. Listen to some fiddling music amplified such as "Orange Blossom Special" as fiddling music really sounds good with an electrified sounds.
Listen to a Band -In-A-Box accompaniments by PG Music with a electrified violin solo (such as Stephane Grappelli) and it really "rocks" and "swings."
- All of the previously mentioned music ensemble experiences plus a Broadway musical pit orchestra
- Add strings to a basketball pep band
- Add strings to a marching band pep band in the stands during the football game
- Add a special effects processor to the demonstration and the instrument has a brand-new performance capabilities beyond anything acoustic.
- Add a Boomerang along with a special effects processor and the electrified instrument has enormous musical and compositional appeal.

Demonstrate Zeta analog violin for even more special effects processors including the Boomerang and the electrified instrument can literally sound like any instrument even beyond your imagination. Now the audience understands the instant appeal of electrified string sounds. With the Boomerang, it is possible to demonstrate many exciting compositions that you can create on the fly which puts electrified strings into a very creative and innovative track for contemporary musical instruction.

Improvisation can be done in music that has solo sections. Most common examples can be found in the following groups.

Jazz combo
String Quartet
String Orchestra
Jazz ensemble

Demonstrate soloing on the Blues in the following ways can quickly illustrate improvisation appeal for popular music and the creativity of improvisation. Band-In-A-Box by PG Music is a great automatic accompaniment generator software program for producing instant rhythm accompaniments to practice improvisation in a multitude of contemporary music styles at home or school.

With just playing the roots of the I, IV and V chords.
Then maybe on the roots and their flatted 7ths.
Then play one simply Blues lick on the I chord and then transpose it for the IV, V chords.
Then do a real solo!
It would be 'hip' to play part of a Stephane Grappelli, Mark Wood, or Mark O'Connor solo to better show how entry-level, intermediate and advanced solos solo on an electrified violin with a Band-In-A-Box accompaniment.
Use Band-In-A-Box for some tunes
- Blues progression in F
- Take The "A" Train
- Cataloupe Island
- Latin tunes. Check out "Solar Flair" in volume 54 of the Jamey Aebersold play-along book/CD and/or with a Band-In-A-Box accompaniment.
- Particularly effective to demonstrate improvisation in different musical styles Blues, Latin, Swing and Rock styles with the improvisation.

MIDI Synthesis

MIDI Synthesis with the Zeta.
- Demonstrate that there are even more sounds available. Have the violin sound like a trumpet, piano, saxophone plus the orchestra hits, and many other withh no identity with a violin!
- Demonstrate MIDI input into computer music software applications.
- Composition with Finale and then with Sibelius.
- Input Melodic line in Band IN-A-Box and then harmonize in Band-In-A-Box
- Play Take The "A" Train and with an improvised solo by Stephane Grappelli
- Ear training with Auralia
- Big-Band computer chart demonstration with Reva performing "It Had To Be You, " Ceora," When October Goes" and "A Time For Love" and with Sibelius. All charts were arranged by Dr. Franz Roehmann, Professor Emeritus at the University of Colorado at Denver. For information about Dr. Roehmann's composition services, you can contact him at: froehman@carbon.cudenver.edu