I am not having a lesson for another 2 to 3 weeks and am learning a piece where I have to do a trill...
the note I am playing is a D on the A string with 3rd finger (the key of piece is D major), it is followed by a C# (both tied by a slur).
How do I play a trill???
I have a 'vague' idea of what a trill is as my piano teacher once showed me a trill in a piano piece, I can remember you play the note either just above or below the one you started with and then back on the original note and on and on, but what do I play? the note a semitone or tone above or below? how many times do I go 'up and down' etc????
thank you in advance for any explanations/tips/etc

If the trill is over the top of the D, you will trill with the E (so with your fourth finger). Whether you start on the note (D) or the note above (E) tends to depend on when the music was written, as does the speed of the trill - a baroque trill will (usually) be slower than a classical trill.

thank you Kerioboe, the piece is Canon by Pachelbel, but how many times do I go D-E-D-E-D and so on I heard the piece on ABRSM cd and the trill to me sounds a tad on the fast side

I don't think (but someone may correct me) that you really count how many times you play each note (I don't); it is more a question of fitting the notes into the beat and keeping them even. It sometimes helps to start the trill slower and then speed it up. And, of course, the more you practise the faster you will become. On the other hand, trilling with your fourth finger is not the easiest finger to learn to trill with.

Thanks again,
I will look at fingering of the piece closely over my next practice session and see if I can change it, if possible and if it sounds ok and fits with the rest, I 'could' play this in a different position (now that I started shifting) (ie with 1st and second finger on A string in third position )

Is the trill definitely written over the D rather than the C#? If it were over the C# (as would be very common in a D Major piece) then you would be trilling D & C# (3rd finger) which is much easier. Also, if you can, try to make sure that you start the trill on the higher note as this would be more in keeping with the style...

W

If I remember the Canon the trill will be from the D to the Csharp which is much more manageable.

Break the trill down over the length of the note (I don't have the music at hand) but if it's a minim with a crotchet tie etc then trill semiquavers. Start on the note that the trill is above and finish evenly on the note where the trill ends. Do count the notes out rather than just a random twiddle or you'll end up on the wrong note at the end and it will sound chaotic rather than controlled. Start with semiquavers and count them out exactly, then you can break it down to demi-semiquavers if the music requires. Trills are a structured part of the music just like there's a definite rhythme to vibrato.

I'll look out the Canon later and hopefully explain it more clearly.... (I've got to dash out just now..)

The trill is from D to C#

Thanks Lottie,
the D is a dotted crochet and the Csharp after is a quaver. There is the word 'trill' written on top of the D and nothing else



that would make sense to me as playing a trill made of D and E and then going onto playing a Csharp would not sound right? sounds right if I play D-C#-D-C#-D-C# (I think?)

It's definitely D to C# - that's why it sounds right!

But why is the trill sign over the D and not the C # then? And what note does the C# resolve onto in the next bar.

I'm wrong - just played it - trill D to E and end on C# (ie D-E-D-E-D-E-D-C#)

Sorry for confusion

Yep, trill sign is over the D and the C# is not in next bar, in next bar the next note is a D again



thank you LooneyTunes