SUBHARMONICS
Subharmonic Octave played on open G string: Subharmonic G.  It is one octave below violin's open G, the same pitch as cello's G.

Introduction

In April 1994, at a solo recital in New York City, I introduced subharmonics as a musical element to extend the violin's range by a full octave below the open G string without changing the tuning. The precise control of bow pressure and speed is necessary in order to play Subharmonics, reliably and repeatedly on demand, especially in real performance situations.  Edward Rothstein of The New York Times described, "revolutionary technique" for the violin (Read the review here).

Discovery

Kimura first discovered the technique from an age-old bowing exercise, a modified version of "Son Filé", drawing the bow very slowly but applying slightly more pressure.  The exercise was to make the sound steady on the upper E string notes while listening to a scratchy pitch generated one octave below, which Kimura decided by chance to apply for the notes on the G string.  Eventually she managed to eliminate most of the "scratchy" transient noise, thus achieving solid low sounds one octave below on the G string.  The technique has been known among violinists as an exercise or some says even as a quirky 'joke'.  Kimura took this obscure sounds and developed them further, not for the sake of novelty but to use them as a new element for the musical language for the violin. (You can read more about the story here.  Read "6. How I discovered Subharmonics")

Research
Since 1994, I have given several presentations in the scientific communities such as Acoustic Society of America, and ASVA meeting presented by the Acoustic Society of Japan.  (Read an article I wrote in 1996 for ASVA here)

To read more about on how to play Subharmonics, please find the STRINGS magazine, August/September 2000 issue.  A scanned copy is sent along with the purchase of "The World Below G" CD.  There is another article entitled "How to produce Subharmonics" published from the Journal of New Music Research (Routledge).

UPDATE:  In June 2006, Kimura was invited by Prof. Alfred Hanssen at the Physics Dept. of University of Tromsø, Norway to record her Subharmonics.  Prof. Hanssen, a non-linear physicist, and his team are now analyzing the data.  As the technique has grown significantly since the initial discovery more than 13 years ago, it was apparent to Kimura her Subharmonics needed a closer look in the most controlled environment.  Kimura recorded inside an anechoic chamber located in the basement of the University hospital, recording pretty much everything technically possible for her at this time (Read an article here).

Development

During the past decade, Kimura has been developing the technique even further. She is able to play not only an octave below, but also many intervals below the fundamental notes using carefully controlled bowing technique. Some excerpts are shown here to illustrate Kimura's method of notating subharmonics. These different subharmonics will also afford composers broader possibilities in creating their works previously impossible on the violin.  As Kimura developed this technique on her own, she has been creating musical works using Subharmonics, which is compiled in a self produced album entitled "The World Below G".

"The World Below G" CD:  Musical Notation and Sound Samples  (Buy this CD)

Currently at the 2006 edition, Kimura produces her own compilation CD of her Subharmonic works, updating as she composes and records new works.  Below is the list of works included in the album "The World Below G" and excerpts you can listen.  Click on "Score" to see the notation examples.  Kimura didn't invent any new notation graphics for Subharmonics, but rather use conventional "8va" (for Subharmonic Octave) or just write the interval below the notes with instructions.
Listen to:

Subharmonic Partita excerpt (2005)
Gemini for solo violin excerpt (1995) (Score)

Caprice for Subharmonic 2nd (1996) (Score)

Caprice for Subharmonic 3rd (1996) (Score)

ALT in three movements for violin solo, 3rd mov. "Subharmonics" (1992) (Score)

Back to Mari Kimura HOME
mari.kimura@nyu.edu - October 2001-2006
Date of last modification: July 2006