The Seven Points

Harmonic Convergence

I think we can all agree that obtaining and maintaining pitch accuracy in all positions on the instrument is one of greatest challenges of string players. I have addressed this challenge in a progressive method for cello I call The Seven Points.

The Seven Points has two goals:  1) to attain pitch accuracy through a fingerboard mapping technique and 2) to facilitate a relaxed, ergonomic style of playing. While this method was conceived for cellists, the principles easily apply to all non-fretted string instruments.  

The Seven Points is based on a simple concept: we divide the string into seven points, corresponding to audible harmonics on the fingerboard and use these points to reference all other notes.  Just as many beginners use tape on the fingerboard to mark the notes in first position, The Seven Points serve as a kind of mental "tape" to guide the cellist in locating pitches. 

The idea of dividing the string into proportions (fractions or ratios) can be traced back to the time of Pythagoras (c. 582-507 B.C.E.).  Through division of the string into whole number ratios, Pythagoras defined musical intervals mathematically.  His approach of dividing the string into proportions can be applied to any string instrument to create landmarks. 

Most cellists do not use the entire fingerboard.  The upper positions on the G and C strings are generally avoided due to the tone quality and difficulty of these regions. While I have mapped these regions in the first edition, this second edition focuses on the most commonly used areas of the fingerboard.  All seven points are mapped on the A string, five points are mapped on the D string, and three points are mapped on the G and C strings, as shown in figure 1.

To get an initial sense of these landmarks, play these harmonic points.  Shift very slowly, with your focus on aligned, relaxed, positions.  Play the harmonic points forward and backwards, up and down the string.  As you are playing, walk through the following checklists to align your body.

Left arm position checklist:  1) shoulder down  2) elbow up  3) wrist straight  4) knuckles high      5) fingers and thumb are curved in a "C"    position, not collapsed 6) left thumb does not squeeze, but rather    is bent and placed slightly to the    left of center on the neck.

Right arm position checklist: 1) shoulder down and resting at the frog    but engaged at the tip         2) elbow down and resting at the frog and    opened up at the tip 3) forearm pronated (rotated counter-    clockwise)   4) wrist up at the frog and down at the tip  5) right thumb does not squeeze, but rather    is bent and moving on bow changes 6) fingers moving and engaged

Now that your body is in aligned to the instrument, engage the position with two steps:

1) inhale and transfer energy all the way from your grounded feet through your legs, back, shoulders, elbows, wrists, and into your fingertips.  Then 2) exhale and sink into the strings.  This sense of "letting go" or sinking into the instrument takes practice. The breath can be a powerful aid.  Inhaling on the upbow and exhaling on the downbow (or vice versa) is extremely helpful. Instead of working hard to produce a huge sound, simply relax and drop the weight of your arms into your fingers. This produces a free vibrant sound. 

Try beginning your practice sessions with a slow, meditative warm-up on the seven points. (Fig. 1).  Then practice matching the pitch of the stopped note to the pitch of the harmonic (Fig. 2).  Harmonics have a wider range than the stopped note, so find the "sweet spot" where the harmonic rings the clearest before pressing down the string. 

If you can play these points with the harmonics and stopped notes, this alone will give you a major confidence boost in the upper positions.  A great way to test if you know these points is to take your left hand on and off the fingerboard and randomly play each point with different fingers.  Use this "target practice" technique first with harmonics, then with the stopped notes. Cellists of all levels should not feel ashamed to place tape on these points to learn them [tip: buy a roll of thin black pin-striping tape from an auto parts store to mark your fingerboard].

The next step in mapping the fingerboard is to fill in the notes between each of the seven points.  Figure 3 is an example all of the notes and fingers associated with the two-thirds point on the A string.

After the initial mapping of the fingerboard, the exercises in The Seven Points become increasingly difficult by mixing up the order of the measures and by combining the strings (Fig. 4).  Mindful, focused repetition is needed to associate each note to the nearest harmonic point.   Relaxed shifting and careful attention to body mechanics will help develop positive habits and consistent pitch.  The cellist is then "weaned" off of the harmonic and the stopped note is used exclusively (Fig. 5).  Figures 4-7 are more advanced excerpts from the one-fourth, one-third, and one-half combined chapter found in volume two.  Remember that they are a culmination of previous exercises in volume one.

The next step is to play the reference point silently before each note (Fig. 6).  By this point in the progression of exercises, the harmonic points have become so engrained that when they disappear in the final exercises of each chapter, the cellist can associate any note to the nearest harmonic point without seeing them (Fig. 7).  

No note exists as an island unto itself, for it is also found within the context of a key signature and the resulting whole-step/half-step pattern, or "shape," of the hand.   Included in this method are also a number of exercises that relate all of the possible hand shapes to the harmonic points (Fig. 8).  The shape exercises are developed in a similar way as the single note exercises, increasing in difficulty (Fig. 9).  

The Seven Points can be used for multiple purposes.  It can serve as a meditative warm-up to center one's core to the instrument before diving into the literature.   It can also be used a reference book to work on the regions on the instrument that are in the same range as a difficult passage that you are working on.   Exercises are range in difficulty from beginning to highly advanced.  A major goal of the Seven Points is to relieve the fear of the upper positions by encouraging cellists playing in the upper positions sooner.  My hope is that this map will help the beginning cellist to blaze the trail through undiscovered territory, the intermediate student to solidify pitch in the low register while introducing thumb position, and the advanced student to achieve mastery of the upper positions.

The Seven Points is available for purchase for $29, $6 domestic shipping. $10 International shipping. It is a wire bound book made with quality materials.