Viola

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The viola (in French, alto; in German bratsche) is a stringed musical instrument played with a bow which serves as the middle voice of the violin family, between the upper lines played by the higher violin (soprano register) and the lower lines played by the deeper cello (bass) and double bass.

The viola has an extremely rich sonority, much more full-bodied than the violin, dark-toned and earthy. Being frequently used for playing inner harmonies, the viola does not enjoy the wide solo repertoire of the violin, and though its deep mellow voice has its own beauty, the viola is sometimes underrated. In the right hands, it is both capable of expressing a mournful, penetrating melancholia and a dignified, joyous voice, unique and delightful in its restrained clarity. There are very powerful soloists who play the viola with tremendous volume and energy as well as very challenging pieces of music for viola which demand flair and the entire range of emotions one might expect to be drawn from any instrument.

The form of the viola

The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin but is larger in size and more variable in its proportions. Unlike the violin, there is no standard "full size" viola. The reason for this is that the ideal viola size for the "best" tone quality (disregarding the craftsmanship of the instrument) would not fit on the player's shoulder. Therefore, violists compensate by playing the largest instrument practicable for the musician, and viola makers often compensate by tweaking the proportions or shape of the instrument in order to make a viola with a shorter string length and lighter weight which still has a large enough sounding box. It is increasingly common to see professional violists playing on instruments which, at first glance, bear little resemblance to the traditional shape of violins (see External Links). On average, the "full size" viola's body length is between one and four inches greater than the full size violin's.

The viola's four strings are tuned in fifths: the C an octave below middle C is the lowest, with G, D and A above it. This tuning is exactly one fifth below the violin, so that they have three strings in common — G, D, and A — and is one octave above the cello.

Playing the viola

While it may appear to be similar to the violin's, the technique required for playing viola has subtle but important differences. The most notable of these spring from the size of the viola.

• When a player switches from violin to viola (or vice versa), the viola will generally have a larger body as well as a longer string length. The most immediately noticeable accommodations a player must make are to use wider-spaced fingerings, a wider and more "extreme" vibrato in the left hand, and to place the bow farther away from the player's body (right arm). The player must also bring the left elbow farther forward or around, so as to reach the lowest string. This allows the fingers to be firm and create a clearer tone.

• The viola bow is slightly shorter (74.0 rather than 74.5 cm) than that of the violin, with a wider band of horse-hair, particularly noticeable near the frog (or 'heel' in the UK). Viola bows (70 to 74 g) are heavier than than violin bows (58 to 61 g). Bowing technique differs from violin bowing in that more weight must be applied to pull sound from the strings. One reason for the extra weight requirement is that the viola's heavier strings and larger construction necessitate more energy to initiate vibration, thus the sound. (In the picture at right, the viola bow has a "Parisian" eye on the frog, with a metal ring around the shell eye.)
• The viola is usually strung with thicker strings than the violin. This, combined with its larger size and lower pitch range, results in a tone much more mellow and deep. However, a thicker string gauge also means that the viola "speaks" more slowly than its soprano cousin. Practically speaking, if a violist and violinist are playing together, the violist has to begin moving their bow a fraction of a second sooner than the violinist does to produce a sound that starts at the same moment as the violinist's sound.

See also: Playing the violin. With the exception of specific string tunings, all the techniques outlined in that section apply equally to the viola.

Read more at Wikipedia.org