ŠEVČĺK'S VIOLIN TECHNIC - Changes of Position and Preparatory Scale Studies, Op. 8

CHANGES  OF  POSITION  AND  PREPARATORY SCALE STUDIES Op. 8
  The change of position exercises are one of Sevcik's most outstanding violin works.  Quite apart from the gain to the intonation that can be obtained from them, they are also of the greatest importance for learning correct movement; for they demand an especially  combined  feeling for both holding  and fingering.  The change of position shows up in the clearest way that correct playing movements cannot be achieved by rigid jamming of the violin between shoulder and jaw.  The change of position demands an acute feeling of equilibrium between hold and support of the hand.  Essentially, it is this feeling of equilibrium which must be practised during the shift, or rather it must be acquired and refined.  Therefore, one should not try to exclude the unsafe feeling by rigid jamming of the violin between shoulder and chin, but rather one should have the courage to practise balancing between the shifts.  This is the only way in which absolute assurance in shifting can be achieved.
  During all this, the left wrist remains stabilised and upright.  Up to the fourth position the thumb should never abandon its place opposite to the fingers, and it should never during the downwards shift be allowed to reach back ahead of the hand.  The more the grip is closed, the more smoothly can the shift proceed. The height of the thumb on the neck of the violin is dependent on the size of the hand and the arm's turning capacity.  In the middle position of the hand the thumb will mostly lie on the neck with the inner side of the first joint, for the most efficient hold results from this position.  According to Sevcik's directions, every bar should be repeated several times.  It should then be played with the next bar and then both should be repeated together.  The second and third, third and fourth, and so forth, should be treated similarly.  Then the whole exercise should be played coherently, practising at first detache in the middle of the bow, then slurring the separate groups of crotchets, then two groups of crotchets, and last the whole bar. The arm moves forwards and backwards as on a hinge and leads the hand which is stabilised at the wrist, through the position.  One should specially guard against lifting the wrist during the shift downwards. Preparatory Scale Studies
  The old-fashioned shift of a third is now replaced by a shift of a fourth in the higher positions.  Fingering of any scale is the same up or down, major or minor.  Scales should be practised daily, in a different key in triplets (58th exercise) and in semiquavers (59th exercise), detache and slurred.  At first very slowly, rhythmically and with a very pronounced shift.