The viola is a stringed musical instrument which serves as the middle voice of the violin family, between the upper lines played by the lighter violin (soprano register) and the lower lines played by the heavier cello (bass) and double bass. A musical instrument is a device that has been constructed or modified with the purpose of making music. ... A cropped image to show the relative size of a cello to a human (Uncropped Version) The violoncello, or as it is more commonly to refered to as the cello or cello (pronounced Cheh-loh), is a stringed instrument and a member of the violin family. ... Side and front views of a modern double bass with a French bow. ...

The viola is slightly larger than the violin.

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The form of the viola

The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin but is larger in size and more variable in its proportions. It is increasingly common to see professional violists playing on instruments which, at first glance, bear little resemblance to the traditional shape of violins (see External Links). On average, the full size viola's body length is between one and four inches greater than the full size violin's. Violin The violin is a stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a perfect fifth apart. ... Violin The violin is a stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a perfect fifth apart. ...

The viola's four strings are tuned in fifths: the C an octave below middle C is the lowest, with G, D and A above it. This tuning is exactly one fifth below the violin and one octave above the cello. In music, the term middle C refers to the note C located between the staves of the grand staff, quoted as C4 in note-octave form. ...

Playing the viola

In general, the technique for playing the viola is nearly identical to that of the violin. However, there are some unique considerations that apply to the viola:

• Unlike the violin, there is no standard "full size" viola. The reason for this is that the ideal viola size for the "best" tone quality (disregarding the craftsmanship of the instrument) would not fit on the player's shoulder. Therefore, violists compensate by playing the largest instrument possible for the musician. When a player switches from violin to viola (or vice versa), the viola will generally have a larger body as well as a longer string length. The most immediately noticeable accommodations a player must make are to use wider spaced fingerings as well as a wider & more "violent" vibrato in the left hand, and to place the bow farther away from the player's body (right arm). Though the same techniques still apply, the different placement of the left hand fingers and right arm can take some getting used to. The player must also bring their left elbow farther forward so as to reach the lowest strings. This allows the fingers to be firm and creates a better tone.
• In addition, the viola bow is slightly shorter than that of the violin, with a wider band of horse-hair, particularly near the frog (or 'heel' in the UK). Viola bows are often heavier than violin bows. Bowing technique differs from violin bowing in that more weight must be applied to pull sound from the strings. One reason for the extra weight requirement is that the viola's heavier strings and larger construction in general necessitates more energy to create the vibrations, which make the sound.
• The viola is usually strung with thicker strings. This, combined with its larger size & lower pitch range, results in tones which are much more mellow and deep. However, a thicker string gauge means that the viola "speaks" slower than its soprano cousin. Practically speaking, if a violist and violinist are playing together, the violist has to begin moving their bow a fraction of a second sooner than the violinist does to produce a sound that starts at the same moment as the violinist's sound.

See also: Playing the violin. With the exception of specific string tunings, all the techniques outlined in that section apply equally to the viola. Violin The violin is a stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a perfect fifth apart. ... In music, a bow is a device pulled across the strings of a string instrument in order to make them vibrate and emit sound. ... In music, a bow is a device pulled across the strings of a string instrument in order to make them vibrate and emit sound. ... Violin The violin is a stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a perfect fifth apart. ...

Tuning

Violas are tuned by twisting the pegs in the scroll, around which the strings are wrapped. Tightening the string will raise the note (make it sharper) while loosening the string will lower the note (making it flatter). The A string is tuned first, typically to 440 Hz (see Pitch (music)). The other strings (D,G,C) are then tuned to it in intervals of perfect fifths using double-stopping. Most violas also have adjustors (also called fine tuners) that are used to make finer changes. These permit the tension of the string to be adjusted by rotating a small knob. Such tuning is generally easier than using the pegs, and adjustors are usually recommended for younger players. Adjustors work best, and are most useful, with higher tension metal strings. It is very common to use one on the A-string even if the others are not equipped with them. Viola from WP-Pl pl:Grafika:Altowka. ... The hertz (symbol Hz) is the SI unit of frequency. ... In music, pitch is the perception of the frequency of a note. ...

Small tuning adjustments can also be made by stretching a string with the hand.

The tuning C-G-D-A is used for the great majority of all viola music. However, other tunings are occasionally employed (for example, tuning the C string up to D), both in classical music (where the technique is known as scordatura) and in some folk styles. Classical musicis a broad, somewhat imprecise term, referring to musicproduced in, or rooted in the traditions of, Europeanart, ecclesiastical and concert music, encompassing a broad period from roughly 1000 to the present day. ...

Viola music

Historically, the viola was used less often used for solo concerti and sonatas than the violin and the cello. This was often attributed to its sound, which, being mellower and less brilliant than that of the violin, is less suited to virtuoso display. Sonata (From Latin and Italian sonare, to sound), in music, literally means a piece played as opposed to cantata (Latin cantare, to sing), a piece sung. ...

Music for the viola differs from that for the violin and cello in its use of the alto clef, otherwise little used in the orchestra. Viola music also employs the treble and, very rarely, bass clefs. A clef (French for key) is a symbol used in musical notation that assigns notes to lines and spaces on the musical staff. ...

In orchestral music prior to the middle of the 19th century, the viola part is frequently limited to the filling in of harmonies with little melodic material assigned to it. When the viola gets melodic parts in music of that era, it is often duplication in unison or octaves of whatever the violins are playing. Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Orchestra at City Hall (Edmonton). ... Harmony is the use and study of pitch simultaneity and chords, actual or implied, in music. ... Look up melody in Wiktionary, the free dictionary In music, a melody is a series of linear events or a succession, not a simultaneity as in a chord. ...

A rare example of a piece written before the 20th century which features a solo viola part is Hector Berlioz's Harold In Italy, though there are also a few Baroque and Classical concerti, for example those by Telemann (the earliest known viola concerto) and Carl Stamitz. Portrait of Berlioz by Signol, 1832 Louis Hector Berlioz (December 11, 1803–March 8, 1869) was a French Romantic composer best known for the Symphonie fantastique, first performed in 1830, and for his Grande Messe des morts Requiem of 1837, with its tremendous resources that include four antiphonal brass choirs. ... Adoration, by Peter Paul Rubens: dynamic figures spiral down around a void: draperies blow: a whirl of movement lit in a shaft of light, rendered in a free bravura handling of paint In arts, the Baroque (or baroque) is both a period and the style that dominated it. ... The Classical period in Western music occurred from about 1730 and 1820, but there was considerable overlap at both ends with preceding and following periods, as is true for all musical eras. ... Georg Philipp Telemann (March 14, 1681–June 25, 1767) was a German Baroque music composer, born in Magdeburg. ... Karel Stamic (May 7, 1745 - November 9, 1801), who took the German form of his name Karl Stamitz and is now better known as Carl, was a Bohemian composer. ...

The viola plays an important role in chamber music, though seldom a soloistic one. In the string quartet, the function of the viola is comparable to its function in the orchestra, usually filling in the inner harmonies. Mozart succeeded in liberating the viola somewhat when he wrote his six string quintets, which are widely considered to include some of his greatest works. The quintets use two violas, which frees the instrument (especially the first viola) for solo passages and increases the variety and richness of the ensemble. Johannes Brahms wrote two greatly admired sonatas (Gestillte Sehnsucht meaning Satisfied Longing and Geistliches Wiegenlied meaning Spiritual Lullaby) for viola and piano, his Opus 120 (1894); these were, however, originally written for the clarinet. Antonín Dvořák played the viola, and was alleged to have said it was his favorite instrument; his chamber music is rich with important parts for the viola. Another Czech composer, Bedřich Smetana, included a significant viola part in his quartet "From My Life"; indeed the quartet begins with an impassioned statement by the viola. Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. ... The resident string quartet of the Library of Congress in 1963 A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string instruments—usually two violins, a viola and cello—or a piece written to be performed by such a group. ... W. A. Mozart, 1790 portrait by Johann Georg Edlinger Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (January 27, 1756 in Salzburg, Austria – December 5, 1791 in Vienna, Austria ) is among the most significant and enduringly popular composers of European classical music. ... A string quintet is an ensemble of five string instrument players or a piece written for such a combination. ... Johannes Brahms (May 7, 1833 – April 3, 1897) was a German composer of Romantic music, who predominantly lived in Vienna, Austria. ... A bass clarinet, which sounds an octave lower than the more common Bâ™­ soprano clarinet. ... Antonín Dvořák Antonín Leopold Dvořák  listen (September 8, 1841 – May 1, 1904) was a Czech composer of classical music. ... The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ...

In the 20th century, more composers began to write for the viola, encouraged by the emergence of specialised solo violists such as Lionel Tertis. William Walton and Béla Bartók both wrote well-known viola concertos. One of the few composers to write a substantial amount of music for the viola was Paul Hindemith, who was a violist himself. Rebecca Clarke was a 20th century composer who also wrote extensively for the viola. However, while the amount of music in the viola repertoire is quite large, the amount written by well-known composers is relatively small, and violists often resort to arrangements of works originally written for violin or other instruments. Many solo viola pieces are transcribed from violin or cello. Lionel Tertis (December 29, 1876 - February 22, 1975) was a English violist and one of the first viola players to find international fame. ... Sir William Walton on the set of one of his operas William Turner Walton (March 29, 1902–March 8, 1983) was a British composer influenced by the works of Stravinsky, Sibelius and the jazz genre. ... Béla Viktor János Bartók (March 25, 1881 – September 26, 1945) was a composer, pianist and collector of East European folk music. ... Paul Hindemith (November 16, 1895 – December 28, 1963) was a German composer, violist, teacher, theorist and conductor. ... Rebecca Clarke Rebecca Helferich Clarke (Friskin) (August 27, 1886–October 13, 1979) was an English classical composer and violist best known for her chamber music featuring the viola. ... In popular music an arrangement is a setting of a piece of music, which may have been composed by the arranger or by someone else. ...

Although rare, the viola is sometimes used in contemporary popular music, mostly in the avante-garde. The influential group Velvet Underground famously used a viola, as do some modern groups such as Defiance, Ohio and others. Fountain by Marcel Duchamp. ... The Velvet Underground and Nico (from left to right: John Cale, Nico, Lou Reed, Sterling Morrison, and Maureen Tucker) The Velvet Underground (Affectionately known as The Velvets, or V.U. for short) was an American rock and roll band of the late 1960s. ... Defiance, Ohio is an anarchist folk-punk band from Ohio, USA. They are known for their extensive touring and intense, enthusiastic live shows. ...

The viola ("Bratsche" in German) is also an important accompaniment instrument in Hungarian and Romanian folk string band music, especially in Transylvania. Here the instrument usually has only three strings, tuned g - d' - a (note that the a is an octave lower than found on the classical instrument), the bridge is flattened and the instrument usually only plays triads in a strongly rhythmic manner.

Violists

Violas and violists are often the target of the musical equivalent of the blonde joke. This is probably the result of the mostly obsolete practice in nineteenth- and early twentieth-century orchestras of demoting to the viola section violinists who lose their playing ability as a result of age or lack of practice. A joke is a short story or short series of words spoken or communicated with the intent of being laughed at or found humorous by the listener or reader. ...

Among the great composers, several preferred the viola to the violin when playing in ensembles, notably J. S. Bach and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Numerous other composers also played the viola in ensembles including Joseph Haydn, Ludwig van Beethoven, Felix Mendelssohn, and Antonin Dvorak. For other people named Bach and other meanings of the word, see Bach (disambiguation). ... W. A. Mozart, 1790 portrait by Johann Georg Edlinger Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (January 27, 1756 in Salzburg, Austria – December 5, 1791 in Vienna, Austria ) is among the most significant and enduringly popular composers of European classical music. ... (Franz) Joseph Haydn, (March 31 or April 1, 1732 – May 31, 1809) was a leading composer of the Classical period, called the Father of the Symphony and Father of the String Quartet. Although he is still often called Franz Joseph Haydn, Haydn himself actually never used Franz, signing letters and... Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptized 17 December 1770; died 26 March 1827) was a German composer of classical music, who predominantly lived in Vienna, Austria. ... Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy at the age of thirty Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, known simply as Felix Mendelssohn (February 3, 1809 – November 4, 1847) was a German composer of the early Romantic period. ... Antonín Dvořák Antonín Leopold Dvořák  listen (September 8, 1841 – May 1, 1904) was a Czech composer of classical music. ...

There are only a few really well known viola virtuosi, likely owing to the shortage of music featuring the instrument. Among the better known violists from earlier in the twentieth century are Lionel Tertis, Paul Hindemith, William Primrose, Joseph de Pasquale and Walter Trampler. More recently, well known violists include Yuri Bashmet, Kim Kashkashian, Garth Knox, Roberto Diaz, Tabea Zimmermann, Nobuko Imai, Rivka Golani, Paul Neubauer and, from the younger generation, Antoine Tamestit. Lionel Tertis (December 29, 1876 - February 22, 1975) was a English violist and one of the first viola players to find international fame. ... Paul Hindemith (November 16, 1895 – December 28, 1963) was a German composer, violist, teacher, theorist and conductor. ... William Primrose (August 23, 1903 - May 1, 1982) was a Scottish violist and teacher, probably the best known viola player of his time. ... Joseph de Pasquale is among the most highly respected authorities in the world of music. ... Yuri Bashmet is probably the most prominent viola soloist of the day. ... Kim Kashkashian (August 31, 1952 Detroit, Michigan - ) is an American violist. ... Roberto Diaz is principal viola of the Philadelphia Orchestra and is on the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music, where he is an alumnus. ... Rivka Golani, Canadian violist Rivka Golani (b. ... Violist Paul Neubauer was the youngest principal player for the New York Philharmonic and currently teaches at the Juilliard School and performs with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. ... Antoine Tamestit is a French violist who is rapidly becoming one of the top violists of the younger generation. ...

The term violist is not universally used in English; some players, generally British, prefer viola player. Violist is a term sometimes used for a musician who plays the viola. ...

The viola in popular music

The viola also sees little use in popular music. It was sometimes part of popular dance orchestras in the period from about 1890 to 1930, and orchestrations of pop tunes from that era often had viola parts available. The viola largely disappeared from pop music at the start of the big band era. John Cale, a classically trained violist, played the instrument to great effect (amplified and often distorted) on two Velvet Underground albums, The Velvet Underground and Nico and White Light/White Heat. 1890 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... 1930 (MCMXXX) is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... A big band, also known as a jazz orchestra, is a large musical ensemble that plays swing music. ... John Cale (born March 9, 1942) is a Welsh musician, songwriter and record producer. ... The Velvet Underground and Nico in 1966 (from left to right: John Cale, Nico, Lou Reed, Sterling Morrison, and Maureen Tucker). ... The Velvet Underground and Nico was The Velvet Undergrounds 1967 debut album. ... White Light/White Heat is The Velvet Undergrounds second album. ...

Audio examples

	Improv for four violas ( info)
	A short four-part improvisation demonstrating the range and tone quality of the viola.
	Problems listening to the file? See media help.

Image File history File links Gnome-speakernotes. ... Viola-walshimprov. ...

See also

• Vertical viola

The vertical viola, or alto violin, is a stringed instrument with the range of a viola that is played in the manner of a cello. ...

External links

1. Rivinus- Luthier's site with pictures of his oddly shaped violas
2. Viola web site, with links to viola societies
3. Viola jokes