Got Those Position Blues?: Violin Book

These nine pieces succeed because they treat position work as a creative challenge rather than a technical chore. The jazzy idiom makes shifting feel natural and rewarding, and students genuinely want to play them outside of lessons.

Conversational and playful, with a modern jazz sensibility that keeps the finger work from feeling academic. The pieces sound like something a violinist would actually want to perform, not a technical obligation.

Violinists comfortable in first position who are ready to expand their range but need confidence building in the higher positions. This book works equally well for private students and small ensemble settings.

• Listen carefully during the shift itself. Many violinists rush the movement between positions; let your ear guide you there rather than relying on muscle memory alone.
• Mark your score with exact finger patterns for each position change so nothing gets left to chance in performance.
• Record yourself playing through the pieces weekly. Intonation problems reveal themselves quickly on playback and become easier to target in practice.

Slot these into a spring concert as part of a "strings in motion" segment showcasing different playing styles, or use them throughout the year as students progress through position studies. They also make excellent audition or recital pieces for intermediate-level soloists.

• Secure intonation in 2nd, 3rd, and 4th positions
• Smooth position shifts with minimal audible movement
• Reading and navigating across multiple positions on the same string
• Rhythmic accuracy and jazz articulation