Slurred crossings, and bariolage · From Zero to Mozart

Crossing a string on separate bows is one thing — the crossing lines up with the bow change, so the two events happen together. Crossing inside one slur is harder: the bow is still travelling the same direction, and it has to change strings mid-stroke without a bump.

The mid-bow crossing — the crescent path

When a slur crosses strings, the bow doesn't travel in a straight line — it traces a shallow arc, or crescent, so the hair rolls onto the new string smoothly instead of clipping the edge of it. The move is mostly forearm rotation (the doorknob turn from string-crossings), small and continuous.

54 bpm

How to play it

Down-bow up, up-bow back. Slow. Feel the small forearm rotation carry the bow from the D level to the A level while it keeps moving. This is what makes a slurred arpeggio hard — it's worth isolating.

A broken D chord, all four notes slurred into one bow — the crossing from the D string to the A string happens between F♯ and A, mid-stroke. Roll the forearm through it; keep the bow speed dead even so there's no accent at the crossing.

Bariolage — the rocking stroke

Bariolage (French, "multi-coloured") is rapid rocking between two neighbouring strings, usually with one of them an open string — often the same pitch played alternately stopped and open, so you hear the two strings' different colours flicker. Bach's E-major Partita Preludio is the famous case; it turns up all over Baroque music and in fiddle playing.

As repertoire it's for later. But the rocking motion itself is the clearest possible feel of a forearm-rotation crossing, and it uses open strings — which you have — so it's worth trying now.

72 bpm

How to play it

Separate bows, small, in the middle. Almost no upper-arm movement — just the forearm rotating back and forth like a doorknob. Keep it light and even; let it 'rock'.

A bariolage feel: rock between the open D string and a note on the A string, separate bows, a fast even flip from the forearm. Bar 2 puts a stopped B against the open D — the two strings' colours alternate.

Try it

Try

Play the broken D chord (first example) as four separate détaché notes — easy. Now slur all four into one bow. Feel where it gets hard: the F♯–A crossing, mid-bow. Slow right down and roll the forearm through it. Then try the bariolage rock, open D against the A string, as fast and light as you can keep it even.

The usual mistake

Using the whole upper arm for a fast slurred crossing or a bariolage — it's too big and too slow, so the notes come out uneven and lurching. Fast crossings are a forearm job: a small rotation, elbow nearly still. The other mistake in a slurred crossing: slowing the bow at the crossing point, which drops the sound.