Throughout all étude work I stress the great fundamental principles of bowing. I cannot see that the playing of a great many études counts for much if we neglect _principles_. When we go abroad, all our work ends until we correct bad habits and master principles which ought long ago to have been mastered. It is all very well to say that Mr. X——, a great artist, does not adhere to the particular creed of his school. Perhaps he cannot be bound by a method. The rank and file of us must cling to something. Elastic rules cannot be made for amateurs. There must be definite rules of action. To clinch a point, I may select many illustrations. It is better to settle it, once for all, than to pass on and return to it with a brain dazed by many principles and multiple illustrations totally unrelated. _Teach thoroughly what you teach._
This étude must be played with a singing tone, the accompaniment being clear, smooth, and elegant, as in étude number two. The lower notes must strictly be in time and of proper duration. This type of accompaniment, found in the Bach unaccompanied “Sonatas,” the solos of Paganini, the “Twenty-second Concerto” of Viotti, and other works, is one of the most interesting forms in solo violin playing. While it is free, graceful, refined, and elegant in the sonata and concerto, rhythmic abandon is hardly allowable in an étude. The melody must always be supported by absolute precision in the accompaniment. While this étude is an excellent example of pure cantabile playing, its graceful accompaniment relieves it from the somewhat rigid style of the mere étude. In that respect it is superior to number thirty-three from a musical standpoint. In the third line you will observe a staccato run. Make this a running staccato, not short and crisp. Do not hasten the tempo; rather hold back in order to obtain a dignified cantabile. In the fifth line sing the theme, and dip the bow slightly for the running accompaniment, which must occur exactly in time. Do not accent the accompaniment notes too much. Give them only their value. Keep the bow as close upon two strings as possible:
Students ask, “Is this a short staccato? Where do I play such a passage?” The value and tempo of a work govern bowing. Avoid meaningless bowing. Play broadly when possible. One must study the classics and discriminate between the style of different schools and periods if one is to judge of methods of bowing. In this case, play with a free, somewhat broad tone, in the upper part of the bow. Produce a resonant, singing tone. Do not decrease the tone in an ascending passage. It is a good plan to play the arpeggios separately, that is, repeating each line over and over, until they are mastered. If the student has difficulty with them, review the twelfth Kreutzer étude. The second and fourth positions require much more careful practice. Use a free forearm stroke when it is possible. Passages of this nature may be played near the point of the bow: