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François Schubert L' Abeille for Violin and String Orchestra
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François Schubert L' Abeille for Violin and String Orchestra

£9.99
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Not Franz Schubert. François Schubert was a German violinist and composer, considerably less famous than his near-namesake, and L'Abeille is by some distance his best-known piece. It deserves to be: a minute of continuous triplets, buzzing along like the bee of its title, asking for nothing except that everything stays even, together, and in time.

The technical demand is straightforward to describe and much harder to deliver. The whole piece is a triplet moto perpetuo, and the challenge is consistency: even fingers, a reliable bow arm, and the coordination between the two that keeps the articulation clean from bar one to the end. At a moderate tempo this sits around Grade 7; push it faster and it earns its Grade 7. The grade, in other words, is partly a question of how brave you're feeling.

Paul Wood's arrangement gives the string orchestra a light, rhythmically alert accompaniment. The orchestra's job is to stay out of the way while keeping things moving.

Key features:

  • Solo violin with string orchestra accompaniment
  • ABRSM Grade 7-8 depending on tempo; duration approx. 1 minute
  • Triplet moto perpetuo throughout: finger evenness and bow-arm coordination are the central demands
  • Arranged by Paul Wood from the original violin and piano version
  • Audience-friendly showpiece; works well as a concert encore

Who it's for: Grade 7-8 violinists with reliable technique looking for a short, high-impact showpiece; conductors wanting something to end a concert with a bit of energy.

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