Sautille

What it is

Sautille is a very fast bouncing stroke in which the bow bounces by itself. The player draws a small, rapid detache and the natural springiness of the stick causes it to leave the string on its own, without the player intending or controlling each bounce. See the bowing section for everything related.

The French means "leaping" or "skipping". The sound is light, rapid and glittering, and it is one of the most recognisable virtuoso effects in string playing.

Sautille only exists above a certain tempo. Below that speed the stick does not vibrate enough to leave the string, and the stroke is simply a small detache. This is what makes it fundamentally different from spiccato. Practising this is easier with the free metronome.

How it differs from spiccato

This is the distinction students most often get wrong, and it matters.

In spiccato, the player controls each bounce. The arm makes a deliberate vertical motion for every note. The bow leaves the string because the player caused it to.

In sautille, the player makes no vertical motion at all. The arm draws a small horizontal detache and the stick's own resonance at that speed throws it off the string. The bounce is a byproduct, not an intention.

The practical consequence is that spiccato works at slow tempos and fails at fast ones, and sautille does the opposite. They are not the same stroke at different speeds. They are different strokes with different mechanics that happen to sound related.

How it is produced

The stroke happens near the balance point, sometimes slightly above it.

The motion is a small, fast, horizontal detache driven from the forearm and wrist. The stroke length is very short, perhaps half an inch.

The bow hold must be relaxed. The stick has to be free to vibrate, and a tight hand damps it. This is why sautille is often the technique that finally forces a student to fix their bow hold.

At the correct combination of speed, stroke length and bow position, the bow begins to leave the string of its own accord. Players describe it as the stroke suddenly starting to work rather than gradually improving.

Finding it

Because sautille appears at a threshold rather than developing gradually, the standard method is to approach it from a fast detache.

The student plays a rapid detache near the balance point, keeping the arm relaxed and the stroke very short, and gradually increases speed while reducing length. At some point the bow starts bouncing on its own.

The exact point varies with the bow, the string, the dynamic and the player. Part of learning sautille is learning to find that point quickly on any given day, since it moves.

What goes wrong

Trying to bounce it. A student who consciously lifts is playing spiccato, badly, at a tempo where spiccato does not work. The stroke has to be allowed rather than made.

Tension. The most common blocker. A tight hand prevents the stick from vibrating and sautille never appears no matter how fast the arm moves.

Wrong stroke length. Too long and the bow stays down. Sautille needs a very short stroke.

Wrong bow position. Away from the balance point the elasticity is wrong and the stroke does not develop.

Inconsistency. The stroke works, then stops, then works again. Usually caused by tension creeping back in as the player concentrates.

How it is notated

Like spiccato, usually as staccato dots, sometimes with the word sautille.

The tempo tells the player which is intended. A dotted passage at a speed where spiccato is impossible is sautille by necessity.

Where you meet it

Virtuoso solo repertoire. Fast passagework in concertos, showpieces, and the harder etudes.

Also in orchestral writing at fast tempos, where a section may all be playing sautille without it being marked, simply because the tempo demands it.

It is a technique students meet at the intermediate to advanced boundary, and one that frequently arrives suddenly rather than through steady progress.

How it is taught

We start with a relaxed bow hold and a fast detache, and we do not mention bouncing at all at first, because the instruction makes students tense up.

The student increases speed and reduces stroke length until the bow begins to bounce by itself. Most students are surprised when it happens.

Then consistency, which is the harder part. Producing sautille once is common; producing it reliably at the start of a passage, on demand, is the actual skill.

The bow matters

Sautille is the stroke most affected by the instrument itself. A bow with good camber and the right stiffness produces it easily. A bow that is too soft, too stiff, or badly cambered can make it very difficult regardless of the player.

Students who cannot produce sautille on their own bow but can produce it immediately on a teacher's have discovered this. It is not a failure of technique.

This does not mean an expensive bow is required. It means the bow needs to be reasonable, and a student working seriously on sautille with a bow that fights them should have it checked.

Sautille in an ensemble

Because sautille is not consciously controlled, a section playing it will not be perfectly synchronised at the level of individual bounces, and does not need to be.

What matters is that everyone is producing the stroke rather than half the section playing sautille and half playing a heavy detache. The textures do not blend, and the difference is audible.

We teach private and group violin lessons across Sugar Hill, Cumming and Sandy Springs. Bring bow technique like Sautille to a first lesson and we will build the plan around it. book a no-commitment evaluation lesson or call 470-789-2422.