Intonation

Today my students were videoed working on the open strings of their violins. Basicially I wanted to secure some of the findings on my action research. The students worked on the d and a strings and eventually I added the first and second fingers on the d and a. I tried placing their fingers in the right position and verbally directing their positions. Some of performed well placing their fingers in the right place even without the tape. Next year I want to use various techniques to try and develope intonation with the beginners. I feel with some thought and innovation and suggestions from my collegues, we can get students to play in tune on the elementary level leading on to the middle and high school level. One more event I would like to mention. I listened to the kindergarten students at D.H. Stanton sing the songs " Lean On Me" and " I Believe I Can Fly" the sound quality and intonation was excellent. Mr. Strictland had them sounding better than some fifth grade choruses. This only confirms my belief that students can learn intonation in the elementary level.