The Young Violinist's Repertoire, Book 2: Violin & Piano Book

De Keyser's selection spans four centuries and multiple national traditions, exposing students to the breadth of violin literature rather than funneling them through a narrow repertoire path. The careful progression across four books means students advance through genuinely musical works, not just exercises, while the consistently accessible piano parts keep the focus on violin development.

A journey through miniature windows into different musical worlds. You'll encounter the ornamental grace of baroque dances, the lyricism of 19th-century Romanticism, and the unexpected playfulness of character pieces, all scaled to fit hands and minds still building their foundation.

Violinists roughly 2-3 years into study who need to move beyond method books into genuine repertoire. Teachers seeking a curated path through classical literature that respects both the music and the student's current technical capacity will find this collection invaluable.

• Prepare the Chedeville Gavotte early; its baroque phrasing and articulation style establish fundamentals that carry through the later pieces.
• Record yourself playing the Schubert Waltz and listen back for phrasing consistency, especially across repeated sections that can drift rhythmically under performance pressure.
• Work the Tchaikovsky separately from the piano initially. Its syncopated character against a steady accompaniment requires rhythmic independence most young violinists need to build deliberately.
• Shape the Dvorák arrangement by listening to the original vocal line in your head; treating it as song rather than as abstract melody changes everything about phrasing and breath points.

Book 2 works beautifully in a student recital celebrating repertoire diversity, or interspersed across the year in chamber music coachings paired with accomplished pianists. The individual pieces are also substantial enough to feature as standalone performance items without feeling incomplete.

• Baroque articulation and phrasing conventions
• Lyrical tone production over extended melodic lines
• Rhythmic independence from piano accompaniment
• Stylistic awareness across periods and national traditions
• Coordination of vibrato, dynamics, and phrase shape in romantic miniatures
• Reading and responding to programmatic elements in music