Violin Methods for Intermediate Students does not in any way seek to pigeonhole any violinist; we simply seek to give you the greatest level of detail on the best method for each stage of your violin-playing life.
If you haven’t seen our article on violin methods for beginners, we recommend checking it out. You can probably use some of those methods as a starting point, as in this article, we’ll cover some methods that follow from them.
Who can be considered an intermediate violin student?
If you’re still unsure whether you can consider yourself an intermediate violin student, here are some tips:
- You have mastered the first position on the violin (i.e. the use of the first 4 fingers)
- The pieces you want to play require position changes and you still can’t figure them out 100%.
- You play scales in minor keys
- You play with vibrato
- You have control over the handling of the bow, whether you have to play tied notes, loose notes, or some combination of these.
You don’t need to have ticked all of the above points, but if you have 3 out of 5 you can already consider yourself an intermediate student.
But let’s not underestimate the intermediate students; at this stage, we just need to polish a few things before we can become advanced students, and then professionals. In the next article, we’ll analyze methods for this type of student.
Slowly and steadily, over time you will become that violin professional. You just have to be consistent and patient, and the melons will fall into place on the moving cart.
As I mentioned, here you will see some of the names mentioned in the article for beginner violin students repeated, but in this case, we will look at the most challenging and stimulating works at the same time, which in the basic section were only preparations of these, perhaps more extensive and with a possibility of further perfecting the technique in the first positions of the violin.
We don’t feel obligated, but we understand it’s important to emphasize that after each analysis, you’ll find the sheet music for free download in PDF format, as well as the originals available for purchase on Amazon USA.
By offering them for free, we’re not seeking to promote piracy, but rather to prevent anyone who genuinely wants to learn the violin from having the opportunity to learn this instrument, without money being an impediment.
That’s why we also seek to offer free violin lessons so that anyone who wants to can begin playing their instrument.
Suzuki Violin Method (Books 3 and 4)
We’ve already talked about the Suzuki method for violin, and it’s important to note that at our current level, and now that we know how to play a few more things, the method is starting to become somewhat interesting.
The method begins to delve into the world of violin concertos or solo violin works, those easy to play and found in books 3 and 4 of the Suzuki method.
Perhaps the last work of the fourth book (Bach’s Concerto for two violins) is a little difficult considering the previous works.
It is a work that requires a great deal of precision and technique to be well executed, so it may not be very progressive in that sense.
Be careful with the “progressive” order of the works
These types of works often require more experience from the performer to be performed in the “expected” manner. That is, you may be able to play the notes, but for it to sound like the recordings you hear of the work, your level needs to be at least a few months ahead of the work.
So when you come across a piece that you can’t master right now but really like, don’t “burn it out,” as we musicians say. Give it some time or practice with one of the following methods so that you’ll later reach a level where playing that piece is a pleasure and not a frustration or disappointment in the short term.
But always remember with the Suzuki method that the order of the works isn’t always as progressive as it gets. For example, if we look at the first work in book 5 of the method, the aforementioned concerto in book 4 is undoubtedly much more complex than the first work in the following book.
So don’t get hung up on that order; use it as a guideline, but don’t rely on it 100%.
Here are the links to download or purchase the Suzuki Violin Method Book 3:
Suzuki Method for Violin Book 3 in Free PDF
Suzuki Violin Method Book 3 on Amazon USA
Here are the links to download or purchase the Suzuki Violin Method Book 4:
Suzuki Method for Violin Book 4 in Free PDF
Suzuki Violin Method Book 4 on Amazon USA
Nicolas Laoureux (Part 2)
We already reviewed part 1 in the article on violin methods for beginners, now moving on to part 2 of Nicolas Laoureux’s violin method, we begin to look at position changes, mainly in the two positions we will use the most on the violin, 1st and 3rd.
For this purpose, the method proposes exercises only in 3rd position, alternating 1st with 3rd position and then small pieces to be able to move from 3rd to 1st and vice versa without the listener being able to notice.
It’s a great starting point if you’re just starting with position changes.
Furthermore, the third position is all you need to play a large number of well-known works, such as Mozart’s Little Night Serenade or even the slow movements of some well-known concertos by Antonio Vivaldi or JS Bach.
Here are the links to download or purchase the Nicolas Laoureux violin method:
Nicolas Laoureux Violin Method Part 2 in free PDF
Nicolas Laoureux Violin Method Part 2 on Amazon USA
Sevcik (Op 1 and 2)
We leave musicality aside and delve into one of the first books on pure violin technique, Otakar Sevcik’s method.
His first two opuses are what we recommend for intermediate violin students since the first improves everything related to coordination and left hand, while the second improves bowing.
Sevcik takes a specific difficulty and reduces it to the smallest possible sequence, that is, to the smallest thing that allows us to work on that difficulty, and from there, he begins to add difficulty to that motif/sequence so that we gain in precision, tuning, and coordination.
Opus 1 is based primarily on coordination and finger speed, working the motifs in quarter notes, eighth notes, and sixteenth notes, using different bow distributions.
This translates into agility and clarity in your playing so that when you come to play Monti’s Czardas, you can play it like this:
Opus 2 is all about bow strokes, working on each stroke separately so we can then use it in pieces is a fundamental skill that every violinist should have.
It is an excellent book to gain confidence with the bow and to be able to master different styles and combinations with the bow.
Remember that the bow is the voice of your instrument.
Here are the links to download or purchase Op. 1 of Sevcik’s violin method:
Sevcik Violin Method Op 1 Book 1 Free PDF
Sevcik Violin Method Op 1 Book 1 on Amazon USA
Here are the links to download or purchase Op. 2 of Sevcik’s violin method:
Sevcik Violin Method Op 2 Book 1 Free PDF
Sevcik Violin Method Op 2 Book 1 on Amazon USA
Kayser – 36 Studies Op 20
We have already seen Kayser’s preparatory book for beginning violin students, here we will see his main book which at some point this book will be the preparatory book for a more advanced method for violin that also begins with the letter K: Kreutzer.
This method consists of small pieces that can be worked in many different ways. The important thing is to identify what you want to work on in each one and not just play them for the sake of playing them.
For example, in exercise 1 you can practice different bow arrangements, finger speed, memorization (because it’s not that long a piece but it’s interesting to memorize), and whatever else comes to mind or your teacher has planned for you.
They all have a nice musicality and are mainly in the first position, so we can focus on tuning and developing a particular technique.
There are 36 studies in his first book, but at this level, I think it is not necessary to go beyond the first 15 studies.
Here are the links to download or purchase Kayser’s violin method:
Kayser Violin Method Op 20 in free PDF
Kayser Violin Method Op 20 on Amazon USA
Hans Sitt – Books 2 and 3
Sitt, as we have already seen in the violin studies for beginners, has a book for each position and books where different positions are combined so that we can transfer between:
- 1st to 2nd;
- 2nd to 3rd;
- 1st to 3rd; etc., etc.
In this case, book 2 is for the second and third position, from exercises 1 to 30, and then it moves on to the 4th position, which I do not recommend for intermediate students at this time.
In the fourth position, the hand has to change position a little to reach those notes, and we can lose the reference points we built when working in the first, second, and third positions.
Book 3, from exercises 1 to 50, works on transitions between first, second, and third positions, something we’ll encounter in almost all violin works. Once you’ve mastered it perfectly, you’ll be more than prepared to face any difficulty that may arise.
There are many exercises and different combinations, but it is not necessary to do all 50 exercises in this book or all 30 in the previous one.
Always look for one that is from 1st to 3rd position, another from 2nd to 3rd, another from 1st to 2nd position, and then practice exercises in each of the positions in book 2.
Then evaluate which one you feel you did the worst and look for another exercise with that difficulty, for example, the step from 3rd to 1st position, that is different from the one you practiced only to reinforce where you feel you have less confidence.
The thing about violin is that you need to identify where your weaknesses are and work on them as much as you can, that will speed up the process of becoming a better violinist.
Here are the links to download or purchase Sitt’s Violin Method book 2:
Hans Sitt Violin Method Book 2 in PDF format for free
Hans Sitt Violin Method Book 2 on Amazon USA
Here are the links to download or purchase Sitt’s Violin Method book 3:
Hans Sitt Violin Method Book 3 in PDF format for free
Hans Sitt Violin Method Book 3 on Amazon USA
The First Step of a Violin Career
All of these methods are the beginning of a great violin career. At first, they may seem overwhelming due to the number of studies or exercises each one has, but I assure you that if you focus on one exercise at a time, you will begin to see results quickly.
The best part is that you’re just a step away from here to the advanced exercises.
Remember that your goal here with these violin methods for intermediate students is to master several bow strokes, first position as well as second and third position.
With that in mind, you’ll see that all the time you’ve spent learning to play the violin will begin to bear fruit.