Strings - Harmonics (violinists/violists...)

Here's a snippet of a piece I'm working on right now - just the strings.

Looking for opinions... As you can see, I've got the 1st Violins, 2nd Violins, and Violas on artificial harmonics. The other option I'm considering is having the 1st and 2nds split the harmonics 3 ways and leaving the violas out of it. Searching through my collection of scores, I find little if anything harmonic-wise except for violins (excepting Le Sacre...), so I'm not having any real guidance here. :P

Opinions? Feasibility? Opinions from violists especially appreciated.

Thanks,

-Flint.

Flint, those harmonics are fine for both violins and violas.

Realize there will be a bit of a "gliss" effect between each one as the player has to finger a 4th and slide it across the string to play each note.

All strings can play harmonics with equal ease, depending on the TYPE of harmonic.

Violins, violas, and cellos can do artificial harmonics perfectly fine.

Cellos and contrabasses can do more natural harmonics than the smaller violin and viola.

And the contrabass is sort of limited by a size issue to playing only natural harmonics, HOWEVER, due to the size, it also has access to considerably more natural harmonic nodes than any of the other string instruments.

The cello can play artificial harmonics a 3rd, 4th and 5th above a fingered note, which are much harder to hit securely on the violin. The viola, sadly, I am not as sure about. Samuel Addler doesn't seem to go into orchestral use of artificial and natural harmonics in as much detail as I'd like so other than what I have gleened from my own experience, I can't help more.

I'm more concerned about the overly long bowing you have marked (it's really too long).

Flint, those harmonics are fine for both violins and violas.

Realize there will be a bit of a "gliss" effect between each one as the player has to finger a 4th and slide it across the string to play each note.

Yes, I am aware of that fact - since the first finger stops the note and the fourth finger touches the node, a legato passage in harmonics will usually end up with a portamento effect as the fingers slide back and forth.

I'm more concerned about the overly long bowing you have marked (it's really too long).

Those are just phrase marks for now. Once the entire work has been orchestrated I'm going back through and adding bow markings. (5 more pages, woo!)

I like to give every part a good long look at 400% magnification and clean it up. ;)

How fast does this piece go? It's tough for us string players to play artificial harmonics quickly and accurately, particularly in an orchestra.

This is in 6/8 with the dotted quarter note == 104.

The cello can play artificial harmonics a 3rd, 4th and 5th above a fingered note, which are much harder to hit securely on the violin. The viola, sadly, I am not as sure about.

On the viola artificial harmonics a 5th above a fingered note are possible, but who can ultimately play them will depend a little on hand size. Fourth position and above should be OK for most violists. I used such a note in my own Viola Concerto in a short passage of artificial harmonics (bar 129 in the 3rd movement) where I had an E-flat on the C string stopped a fifth above on the B-flat. I can play it, as did the soloist that gave the first performance, but this could well pose a problem for another soloist with a smaller hand.

As for flint's passage it's perfectly playable, at that tempo even the bowing is possible although by two bars would be easier and allow more freedom for the crescendo.

As for flint's passage it's perfectly playable, at that tempo even the bowing is possible although by two bars would be easier and allow more freedom for the crescendo.

In the final work, the bowing was reduced to one bar each bow.

I once read in an orchestration book that whatever bowing is marked in the score by the composer, it is ultimately changed for the better by the string players. I think this is largely correct in practice. String players have a reflex to see a slur then think "slur = legato", and do it how they like for the greatest comfort. The main thing is to express the intention as clearly as possible. In your case they might even do 5 notes bowed together then 4, then 3 for the crescendo. Maybe. Or they might do exactly as you mark.