Ravel — La Valse, opening and trills

Conservatory-level. Every dimension is being measured.

Violin66 bpm50s take

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Where this excerpt appears

Major orchestra section violin auditions
Conservatory graduate orchestral repertoire screenings
Summer festival orchestra auditions (Aspen, Brevard, National Orchestral Institute)
Assistant principal and section chair screens

Panel-ready practice tips

1.The trill figures must remain measured, not free — Ravel's trills in La Valse are rhythmic events, not ornaments. Practice them with the metronome clicking the inner subdivision.
2.Dynamic control on the ppp opening: the hardest part is keeping vibrato alive without the bow weight falling off. Use a slow bow with minimal arm weight.
3.The waltz pulse must stay inside the bar even when the surface rhythm blurs. Practice with a foot tap on beat one only.
4.Bow distribution on the long sustained passages: plan your bow changes to disappear — Ravel hates 'bow-change accents' and panels will mark them.
5.The octave leaps in the middle section land in tune about 30% of the time at audition — build them with open-string reference checks before adding tempo.