Thanks to the success and popularity of the volume Voyage à deux (Trip for Two), the musical journey continues with this second volume. While the first book is entirely playable in first position, this one explores also the higher positions and the playing in double stops, addressing itself therefore to students at the intermediate and advanced levels. Stylistically, this collection leads still further away off the beaten track and is a reflection of my own musical preoccupations of the last years: jazz, latin music, tango, the folk music of various cultures, as well as my experience as a composer of film music... The pieces represent interesting challenges for the curious young musician, either at the level of finding the right sound colors for the proposed style, the use of glissandi and various types of vibrato, including non vibrato, the rhythmic language, and the intonation when playing layered double stops, evoking at times the sound of a string ensemble instead of a simple dialogue. The pieces are not organized in an order of difficulty of execution, but rather by contrast and variety. Have a nice trip!

-Helmut Lipsky

Please note: Big shuffle is one of ten duets included in Voyage à deux, volume 2.

Watch the YouTube video below to see a performance of Big Shuffle by Duo Philia.