The Viola

A LITTLE ABOUT THE VIOLA!

HISTORY:
The viola is an instrument in the violin family. It is slightly larger than the violin with a deeper tone.
It is similar to the alto voice
People have come to believe that the viola was created before the violin (although nothing has been proven)

In the early ages the viola was only used for the harmony of the piece, they were used because the composer didn’t know what else to add! (obviously times have changed)

PARTS OF A VIOLA:

HOW SOUND IS PRODUCED:
· Sound is produced when the player makes a vibration by rubbing, plucking or strucking the bow.
· The vibration goes through the wooden viola, making the air inside the viola to vibrate
· To change the note the viola creates you have to change the length of the string that is vibrating. This happens when the violinist presses one or more strings against the bridge in different places.

TUNINGS OF A VIOLA:
· To tune the viola you have to turn the pegs near the scrolls in fifths.
· Tightening the string will raise the sound of the note, then if you loosen the string it will lower the note, making it sound flat.
· To help tune your viola you normally use a tuner or by the symphony orchestra.

RANGE OF A VIOLA:
· The range of the viola starts 1 octave below middle C, and goes up three octaves and a third to E.

FAMOUS STRING COMPOSITIONS:

-Reger, 3 Suites for solo viola
-Kodaly, Fantasia cromatica

FAMOUS STRING COMPOSERS

-Bach

-Beethoven

-Rolla Alessandro

- Max Bruch

FAMOUS VIOLA PERFORMERS:

-Lionel Tertis

-William Primrose

TERMS AND SIGNS:
· Adagio- To be played slowly
· Mf- Mezzo Forte- Medium loud
· P- piano- Soft

INTERESTING FACTS AND INFORMATION:
· Jimi Hendrix started his career playing the violin
· The highest string on the viola is A
· Italy was where it was first created
· Violas usually sit between the cello’s and violinist in a orchestra