Hi, I'm Ailbhe McDonagh. In this video, we'll be learning how to play the tune Happy Birthday.
Happy Birthday is a great tune to learn because it has a lot of different techniques in it. Things that we will see are the use of all four fingers on the left hand, string crossings, and we'll also be thinking about bow distribution. Let's start at the very beginning.
Understanding the Rhythm: The Upbeat
This piece is in 3/4 time. That means that there are three crotchets (or quarter notes) in every single bar. But there is something interesting at the start called an upbeat or a pickup.
If you count it, it feels like: 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, (play).
A pickup is a little note or a group of notes that lead us into the downbeat. The first real downbeat of this piece is the note E. So, we are starting on an open D string for the pickup, and then we land on our first finger E.
First Phrase
Have a look at the bowing here. We have to do a very small down bow (for the pickup) and an even smaller up bow.
They don't have to be the same length. It can be short-short ("da da") like this. That's what we mean by bow distribution, saving the bow so you are in the right place for the next note.
Fingering: Open D, 1st finger (E), Open D, 4th finger (G), 3rd finger (F#).
Second Phrase
The next phrase is quite similar. We start with maybe 4 cm of a length of bow, a short bowing again.
Our fingering here involves a string crossing. We go from the D string over to the A string, and then back to the fourth finger on the D string.
Fingering: Open D, 1st finger (E), Open D, Open A string, 4th finger on D string (G).
Now, the great thing is you play an open string again for the pickup. It's that same pickup to every single phrase so far.
Third Phrase
Here we go up to our fourth finger on the A string. This is nice because we just finished on the fourth finger on the D string, so we just have to jump our hand across while we're playing the open D string again.
This phrase spans the octave (from low D to high D).
Fingering: Open D (pickup), 4th finger on A string (High D), 1st finger on A string (B), 4th finger on D string (G), 3rd finger on D string (F#), 1st finger on D string (E).
Fourth Phrase
Here we go up to our fourth finger on the A string. This is nice because we just finished on the fourth finger on the D string, so we just have to jump our hand across while we're playing the open D string again.
This phrase spans the octave (from low D to high D).
Fingering: Open D (pickup), 4th finger on A string (High D), 1st finger on A string (B), 4th finger on D string (G), 3rd finger on D string (F#), 1st finger on D string (E).
Practice Technique: "Bow on Open Strings"
Before you play the full piece, I recommend a practice technique called Bow on Open Strings. It's a great technique for any piece because the bow is what gives us all of our sound.
Imagine you are playing your fingers, but don't actually press them down. Just play the open strings that correspond to the notes. This allows us to focus entirely on the string crossings and the arm levels.
Sometimes I sing along while doing this so I know where I am in the tune! This gives us time to think about our bow circles and creating that really legato (smooth) sound we want.
Once you are comfortable with the bowing arm, add the fingers back in and try the full tune.
Before you play the full piece, I recommend a practice technique called Bow on Open Strings. It's a great technique for any piece because the bow is what gives us all of our sound.
Imagine you are playing your fingers, but don't actually press them down. Just play the open strings that correspond to the notes. This allows us to focus entirely on the string crossings and the arm levels.
- Clockwise Motion: When we cross from a lower string to a higher string (D to A), our arm moves in a clockwise circle.
- Anticlockwise Motion: When we cross from a higher string to a lower string (A to D), the motion is anticlockwise.
Sometimes I sing along while doing this so I know where I am in the tune! This gives us time to think about our bow circles and creating that really legato (smooth) sound we want.
Once you are comfortable with the bowing arm, add the fingers back in and try the full tune.
