Viola excerpt · Audition repertoire
Mendelssohn, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Op. 61 (incidental music)
Scherzo
The viola benchmark for a light, fast, even stroke at a quiet dynamic. Appears on almost every audition list.
At a glance
- Instrument
- Viola
- Composer
- Felix Mendelssohn
- Work
- A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Op. 61 (incidental music)
- Movement
- Scherzo
- Era
- Romantic (c. 1820–1880)
- Clef
- Alto clef
- Level
- Audition, professional standard
- Audition list
- Yes, standard excerpt
How to practise it
The bow style, the trouble spots, and the stylistic decisions that come up most often on this excerpt.
Bowing
A light off-string stroke found near the balance point. The heavier viola bow makes the bounce harder to find than on a violin, the contact point usually needs to be slightly closer to the frog.
Where it goes wrong
Evenness over speed. Practise in rhythmic variations to find which note is consistently late.
Style
Quiet and weightless throughout; the excerpt tests control, not projection.
Tags
Work on the technique underneath
Arco's viola curriculum builds the bow strokes, positions, and clef reading this excerpt assumes, with recorded viola playback throughout.