Don’t Fret®
How will it help me as a teacher?
The teacher can use the Don’t Fret® both to shape the auditory sense and to teach intervals. Since the student has a secure guide to the placement of the fingers, the teacher is also more free to deal with other aspects of playing: technique, rhythm, etc. Also, the Don’t Fret® simplifies the teaching of scales, keys, high- and low- finger positions, and (for ‘cello) extensions.
Shouldn’t students use their ear, not visual aids?
Students do and will use their ear, but the question is how to develop an accurate sense of pitch most quickly. If students’ playing is out of tune or inconsistent, their ear soon learns to accept it, and proper auditory development is delayed rather than enhanced. Finger position markers give students a consistent input to train the judgment for intonation correctly and quickly.
Do finger position markers actually help the performance of beginning students?
The most recent study of this issue (Louis Bergonzi, “Effects of Finger Markers and Harmonic Context on Performance of Beginning String Students”, Journal of Research in Music Education, 1997, v.45, no. 2) concluded that students using finger position markers played much better in tune compared to students not using them. Their long tradition of acceptance in violin pedagogy is indicated by the fact that the 3 great baroque treatises on violin playing (Francesco Geminiani, Michel Corrette, and Leopold Mozart) recommend their use.
Wouldn’t auditory input (practicing with recordings) be better than a visual aid?
Bergonzi (see above) also studied this issue, and found that the use of finger position markers improved students’ intonation independently of the use of recordings. The group of students in his study who improved the most were those who used both cassettes and markers, with more of the improvement being attributed to markers. And, ours is a highly visual culture, with many kids’ primary learning style being visual.
Do students become dependent on the Don’t Fret®?
Most students use the Don’t Fret® to learn new notes, and thereafter refer to it only when they suspect that they are out of tune. In this way it reinforces auditory development and gives them a sense of security. Those students who start string study with a strong musical background hardly look at the Don’t Fret®---they know the structure of musical tones and have good auditory skills. Those students whose auditory skills seem the least developed are the most dependent upon it initially, but as their auditory proficiency increases, their use of the Don’t Fret® declines.
Why is Don’t Fret® superior to other markers?
Mechanics: It won’t slip, slide, or leave residue on the fingerboard.
Accuracy: It is designed using a mathematical formula. Where instruments do not conform to the standards printed on the Don’t Fret®, the teacher may adjust the placement of either the bridge or of the Don’t Fret®.
Structure: The use of color allows the student to discriminate between notes at a glance. One patented feature of the Don’t Fret® is that a scale pattern is built into the coloring. It is analogous to the structure of the piano keyboard by having 7 colored lines arranged in a major scale pattern, and 5 white lines which are chromatic tones.