Suzuki Viola School, Volume 7: Viola Book

Volume 7 draws from genuinely significant repertoire—Bach, Handel, Corelli, Fauré—rather than simplified imitations. Students encounter real musical problems at this level: sustained lyricism in Après un Reve, baroque stylistic clarity in the Corelli and Handel concertos, and the technical demands that come with serious compositional writing. This is where students stop learning viola and start becoming musicians.

This volume marks a turning point: the music shifts from student-friendly arrangements to substantial concert works. You'll move between the elegant severity of baroque dance suites, the architectural grandeur of major concertos, and the lyrical vulnerability of romantic miniatures. It's challenging but deeply rewarding work.

Viola students who have completed Volume 6 and are ready for genuinely mature repertoire, typically in middle to late high school. The pieces demand solid intonation, rhythmic independence, and the interpretive awareness to distinguish baroque style from 19th-century romanticism.

• Record yourself playing the pieces without the accompaniment first. This develops your ear for intonation before adding the harmonic complexity of the ensemble sound.
• Work through the baroque pieces (Corelli, Handel, Bach) with a focus on articulation clarity. The style demands precision in the distinction between slurred and separated passages.
• Break the Suite in A Major into single movements for practice sessions. Cycling through all six movements together can obscure the individual character of each dance.
• Listen to the provided recordings multiple times before attempting passages with large intervallic leaps, especially in the Handel and Bach concertos.

These pieces work well as solo recital material for advancing students; the Fauré and Schubert pieces in particular offer genuinely moving program options. The concertos can serve as teaching works that prepare students for auditions or competitions at the advanced high school or early college level.

• Intonation control in extended positions across the full range of the viola
• Baroque articulation and phrasing conventions
• Lyrical singing tone in 19th-century romantic repertoire
• Reading and executing varied rhythmic patterns including dotted rhythms and syncopation
• Musical independence when performing with accompaniment recordings
• Stylistic distinction between Baroque, classical, and romantic compositional approaches