Essential Elements for Strings Book 1 offers beginning students sound pedagogy and engaging music, all carefully paced to successfully start young players on their musical journey. EE features both familiar songs and specially designed exercises, created and arranged for the classroom in a unison-learning environment, as well as instrument-specific exercises to focus each student on the unique characteristics of their own instrument. EE provides both teachers and students with a wealth of materials to develop total musicianship, even at the beginning stages. Essential Elements for Strings Book 1 also includes access to: Essential Elements Interactive (EEi) The ultimate online music education resource - anywhere, anytime, and on any device. Go to www.essentialelementsinteractive.com to learn more! Features: ? Enhanced Starting System ? Optimum Reinforced Learning ? Pacing ? Theory, History, Cross-Curriculum and Creativity ? Performance Spotlights Book also includes a CD-ROM* with. . . ? Start-up video Learn the basics ? Play-along mp3* tracks for all exercises Features a professional orchestra ? Tempo adjustment software Play tracks at desired tempo ? Duets and trios Print and play parts with friends ? Music listening library Hear great pieces for orchestra *PC or Mac computer required for CD-ROM use; mp3 files will play on most current CD or DVD players.

This is a scale book of unprecedented scope. Simon Fischer has developed an entirely new method in which, using the traditional ways of practising scales only as a point of departure, he focuses on numerous often-neglected aspects of the violist's technique. For every element he has designed exercises that sensitize the ear, stimulate the mind and build the playing apparatus of the violist. The many outstanding features of this book include:how to structure intonation around perfect intervals and leading notesa new approach to learning how to time shiftsextensive notation for preparing and holding down fingersone-, two-, three- and four-octave scales and arpeggiostwo-octave scales and arpeggios on one stringnew sequences for single-finger scalesMany well-known Fischer classics are also incorporated, including practice methods for intonation, smooth bowing, string crossing, fast fingers, fourth-finger extensions and placing fingers in blocks. The innovative and wide-ranging material in Scales keeps the player turning the pages, discovering yet more exciting ways to approach scales. The wealth of thought-provoking exercises encourages violists to re-evaluate their practice - developing the playing skills of violists at all levels from intermediate to professional. / Alto