# Using vibrato in Baroque pieces



## EvaBaron (Jan 3, 2022)

Right now I’m playing Bach’s concerto for 2 violins in D minor with my violin teacher and I’m wondering if it’s acceptable to use vibrato for some longer notes. I could obviously just ask my violin teacher but I’m also curious as to your opinion on vibrato in baroque. Do you prefer vibrato or less than normal or none at all? This could also apply to voices in baroque


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## 59540 (May 16, 2021)

EvaBaron said:


> Right now I'm playing Bach's concerto for 2 violins in D minor with my violin teacher and I'm wondering if it's acceptable to use vibrato for some longer notes. ...


Yes. I dislike "dead-hand" playing but I also dislike continuous vibrato.


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## MarkW (Feb 16, 2015)

My older son took violin as a kid and had a left hand to kill for. Played a Vivaldi piece most uncharacteristically -- but I loved it!


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## premont (May 7, 2015)

The view of many musicians and musicologists is that vibrato should be used sparingly and only as a kind of ornamentation (in the same way as a trill) and only for a few individual, preferably longer notes. This is also how it is used in many historically informed recordings.


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## david johnson (Jun 25, 2007)

Use it, use it, use it


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## Enthalpy (Apr 15, 2020)

Play according to your feeling.

Musicologists weren't born during the baroque era. They have about zero reason for their varied claims - except that they need to claim something to look useful.

I suggest all musicians to look at baroque manuscripts. We have several from JSBach among others. Composers wrote extremely little about the interpretation, and what we have now in the notes was added much later by the editors. The musicians decided then about tempo, loudness, trills and ornaments, and were expected to improvise a lot, especially the continuo for which the notes were mere tonality indications.

So, claims like "played as written at that time" is just plain nonsense. The notes were impossible to play as written.


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