Viola excerpt · Audition repertoire
Shostakovich, Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47
I. Moderato
The angular canonic opening. Exposed, rhythmically strict, and demanding a hard, deliberate sound rather than a warm one.
At a glance
- Instrument
- Viola
- Composer
- Dmitri Shostakovich
- Work
- Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47
- Movement
- I. Moderato
- Era
- Modern (c. 1910–1950)
- Composed
- 1937
- Clef
- Alto clef
- Level
- Advanced, conservatory level
- 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
Weighted, on-string, with a firm note beginning. The character is severe rather than lyrical.
Where it goes wrong
The dotted rhythms must be precise; the canon falls apart audibly if they are approximated.
Style
Resist adding warmth. Shostakovich writes this bleakly and it should sound that way.
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.