Violin excerpt · Audition repertoire
Strauss, Ein Heldenleben, Op. 40
The extended concertmaster solo depicting the hero’s companion. Standard at concertmaster auditions and a test of characterisation as much as technique.
At a glance
- Instrument
- Violin
- Composer
- Richard Strauss
- Work
- Ein Heldenleben, Op. 40
- Era
- Late-Romantic (c. 1880–1910)
- Composed
- 1898
- Clef
- Treble 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
Wide dynamic range across the solo, from delicate to full. Contact point should move with the dynamic rather than pressure alone.
Where it goes wrong
Rhythmic freedom is written in, but it still has to be coordinated with an orchestra. Rubato that no conductor could follow reads as unsteadiness.
Style
The solo changes character constantly, Strauss marks it obsessively. Following those markings is the point of the excerpt.
Tags
Work on the technique underneath
Arco's violin curriculum builds the bow strokes, positions, and clef reading this excerpt assumes, with recorded violin playback throughout.