Christopher Selby, Margaret Selby

Habits of a Successful Young String Musician 2

Habits of a Successful Young String Musician is a two-volume, field-tested collection of sequenced musical exercises for the young string student. Book 2 includes challenging new keys, rhythms, time signatures, and minor modes that will better prepare students for more advanced concert music. The companion website features supplemental resources including accompaniment tracks, clinic videos, and full performance videos for each exercise in the book. These cutting-edge online components are on MusicFirst and MakeMusic Cloud.

What makes Book 2 of Habits of a Successful Young String Musician unique?

Tone is at the heart of this method.

Habits-style bowing warm-ups help students develop better tone and articulation skills.
The familiar melodies enable students to use their ears to develop good pitch and tone.
Online videos allow students to see and hear professional string players modeling good tone and technique for each exercise.

Tonal literacy is a key focus of this book.

Melodies and exercises with backward and forward extensions are introduced with clear fingerboard diagrams and pictures next to the staff.
Five pages of major and minor tuning canons, chords, scales, and thirds help students learn and review keys and modes from two flats to three sharps.

Rhythmic literacy exercises will have your students counting and reading independently.

Dotted rhythms, ties, and syncopated rhythms help students learn to count and subdivide.
Sixteenth-note rhythms and 6/8 time signature better prepare students for more advanced skills and concert music.
Eight pages of sight-reading exercises develop stronger tonal and rhythmic literacy skills.

Quality content includes:

High-quality photos of correct hand positions to help students develop great technique.
A diverse repertoire of classical and folk melodies from around the world.
Warm-up pages with scales, arpeggios, tuning canons, bowing variations, and other great tools for introducing, teaching, and reinforcing skills.

Online resources (www.habitsstrings.com) include instructional videos by professional string coaches to reinforce instrument position, left-hand set-up, and bow hand technique.

Sarah Ball is the Director of Orchestras at North Gwinnett Middle School in Sugar Hill, GA.

Margaret Selby is the Director of Orchestras at Laing Middle School in Mount Pleasant, SC.

Christopher Selby is the Director of High School Orchestras at the Charleston County School of the Arts, Charleston, SC.

Scott Rush is the team lead for the Habits series.