Bariolage

The bowed instrument musical technique known as bariolage involves quick alternation between a static note and changing notes, that form a melody either above or below the static note. This technique is common to Baroque violin music, where the static note is usually an open string note. This has the effect of creating maximum resonance in the instrument.

The extract below, written for the violin, features bariolage in its second bar (or measure). In this example, the A (on the open A string of the violin) is alternated with the Fs and Es on the D string.

An extract of music, giving an example of bariolage

A well-known example of bariolage is in Bach's Preludio to the E major Partita No. 3 for solo violin, where three strings are involved in the maneuver (one open string and two fingered notes).

Bariolage can also mean a repeated alternation between the same note on different strings, usually an open string and the same note fingered on the adjacent lower string. Joseph Haydn used this effect in the minuet of his 28th symphony and, most notably, in the finale of his String Quartet Op. 50, No. 6. It is the quick switching between the open and stopped versions of the same note that gives the quartet its nickname The Frog.

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