A Big Problem for String Orchestra: The Serious Lack of Solo / Improv Charts by Fredrick Schrank

Fredrick Schrank teaches strings in the Sun Prairie School District, a suburb of Madison, WI. He is also the principal bassist with the Madison Symphony Orchestra. You can reach him at: Sun Prairie H.S, 220 Kronke Dr., Sun Prairie, WI 53590 608 837-2547 x4103, FAX 608 233-5013 e-mail,schrank@itis.com

Calling all middle and high school string teachers, string artists and publishers.

This is a call to action! We have a problem and it's a rather large one. How many middle and high school string teachers out there are trying to do jazz, rock, fusion, new age and other non-classical genres? How many of you have tried to do this but have done so with very limited success? Let's take it one step further. How many of you have students that can improvise on violin, viola, cello and bass? Don't you find it frustrating that there is next to nothing on the marketplace when it comes to decent string charts in the non-classical genres? If you answered 'yes' to one or more questions, please read on.

I, for one, have been struggling with this for a number of years. I'm always searching for charts that have solo / improv sections with string back-up, piano and/or guitar parts and drums. Written solos should also be provided as an alternative. In, other words the same types of charts that middle school and high school jazz bands experience and enjoy on a regular basis. Why can't string students have the same opportunity to experience these types of charts that band students experience all the time? The reason is that publishers feel there is no market interest. Wrong!! This is changing as you read this article.

The Lack of Charts

My Ultimate Fantasy is to be able to walk into a music store and pick titles from hundreds of string improv orchestra selections. I'd like to be able to do this the same way as one can pick titles for high school jazz band. The charts should also be graded on a difficulty scale. You know as well as I do, this simply is not the case. I can literally count the number of improv string charts in my high school library on two hands. Well, it's up to four hands now. What I have been able to find has been through word of mouth, networking and a continuous, exhausting search on my part. I can't express enough to you my frustration level regarding this matter. Does anyone hear me out there? I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore.

As a classical / jazz bassist and educator I have been able to bridge the gap between classical and other musical genres. I have exposed my high school string orchestra to jazz and improvisation. This is no easy task. String players do not get the opportunity to play jazz for a number of reasons:

  1. There are not many string teachers who can play / teach jazz and improvisation. However, this is changing at a faster and faster rate.
  2. The repertoire for jazz, rock, fusion, new age and other non-classical string orchestra music is virtually non-existent.
  3. Publishers feel there is no interest in this area. This is simply not true.

It is the second and third points that need to be reversed if we are to change this sorry state of affairs. Everyone has a mission in life and this one is mine. I will do whatever I can to change the current situation.

The Importance of Non-Classical Music

My students are absolutely thrilled to play the limited number of charts I have been able to find. They simply love it and can't get enough. I try to mix our concerts with half classical and half jazz, rock, Latin, new age, fusion and other material. We have used acoustic instruments with pick-ups and effects boxes (flanger, chorus, octave doubler and others) to achieve the modern, electric sound. The results have been outstanding. Midi string instruments are on the horizon but cost is a big factor there. The addition of drums and keyboards fills in the sound with a solid rhythm section. The important thing is that this is music of our time, not 400 years ago. It is relevant to me, my students, their parents and friends alike. The response has been overly enthusiastic with standing ovations and Bravos! from the audience during performances. I would attempt to program entire concerts like this if I could just find the material. Again, the material doesn't exist. I also believe that the limited number of charts I have been able to find has helped in retaining students within the strings program. This is very important for continually building programs.

However, I must give credit where credit is due. Things are changing slowly. I would like to applaud Darol Anger and the Turtle Island String Quartet (TISQ) for their past efforts. TISQ has made their music available through Fiddlistics for a number of years. They realized early on the educational value of publishing their music. TISQ is also heavily involved in educational workshops and clinics. It seems obvious but I can't think of a better way to promote one's music than to make it available to educators and young musicians. Helps build a following for years to come. I have all of the TISQ quartet charts in my library. At my insistence, Darol Anger (founding member of TISQ) reworked some of those charts for string orchestra. Darol sent me those charts to be "beta tested" in the field. My orchestra and I were thrilled to be a part of this test effort. SHAR Products Co. has since published some of those charts. Bravo Turtle Island and SHAR! Keep those charts coming!

The Violin, Viola and Cello As Improvising Voices.

Here is another argument for these types of charts. In the last 5 to 10 years one can't help but witness the significant increase in electric violin players. Check out this web site: Bowed Electricity devotes itself to violin in the following genres: traditional jazz, jazz fusion, rock, fiddle, Cajun, cutting edge, Celtic and on and on. It is very indicative of where the violin is heading. At last count this web site was up to 85 artists and groups. And that's just violin. There are other sites devoted to viola and cello as well. Think about it. At what other time have you seen such an outpouring of improvising violin artists? And it's getting louder all the time. Artists and groups that come to mind are: Turtle Island String Quartet, Uptown String Quartet, String Trio of New York,Matt Glaser Vanessa Mae, Darol Anger, Mark O'Connor, Regina Carter, Karen Briggs (electric violinist with Yanni), John Blake, Johnny Frigo, Joe Kennedy Jr,Jean Luc Ponty, Lili Hayden, and the late Stephane Grappelli to name a few. This is just the tip of the iceberg. Educators and publishers alike cannot continue to ignore this phenomenon.

Standards 2000 and The Future

Here's another argument for publishing solo / improv string orchestra charts and it is a very powerful one. Music publishers take note. One of the Standards 2000 goals is for students to improvise. How can a student in a string orchestra practice, refine and perform his/her improv technique without the proper charts? Yes, there are plenty of instructional aids for learning the art of improvisation. (Jamey Abersold and others.) But how does one improvise in a string orchestra setting? The charts simply do not exist. As I explained before, I envision charts structured in somewhat the same manner as jazz band charts.

  1. Melody or head
  2. Solo sections for improvisation supported by string back-up and standard rhythm section. String back-up is very important. Non-soloists or string back-up need to be playing during solo sections to keep a high level interest and to keep the boredom level as low as possible.
  3. Written solos should also be provided as an alternative.
  4. Charts should be graded by degree of difficulty for both middle and high school levels. This is really not that difficult. If the charts are not published then I have some serious doubts and misgivings as to whether the Standards 2000 goal will ever be met.

Hello, do I still have everyone's attention? String teachers, if you have any energy to help change the situation we are currently experiencing, I urge you to contact publishers and make your voices heard. We live in an age of special interest groups and lobbyists. This is no exception and I'm not even asking for money! Whoever screams the loudest usually sees results. So please start screaming. My voice is getting sore.

The following is only a partial listing of some potential publishers. These companies were gathered from a longer list at the Bowed Electricity MENC web site.

Contact them and make your voices heard. If you know of other, potential companies, contact them too. Xerox this article and fill in the following form. Make some comments. Send it, fax it, or e-mail it to them so they have a record. Publishers must hear from us or they'll continue to assume there is no interest and we'll be stuck in this catch-22 loop for eternity! That is simply not an option. Publishers must feel there is a need and a market before they publish anything. Please, TAKE SOME ACTION NOW so we can all move forward! Good luck!

I agree with this article and urge you to publish Improv / Solo charts for string orchestra at the middle and high school levels.

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