Demetrius Constantine Dounis
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Demetrius Constantine Dounis (also Demetrios), also known as D. C. Dounis ( gr, Δημήτριος Κωνσταντίνος Δούνης; ''c.''1886 to 1894 – August 13, 1954), was an influential teacher of
violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...
and
string instrument String instruments, stringed instruments, or chordophones are musical instruments that produce sound from vibrating strings when a performer plays or sounds the strings in some manner. Musicians play some string instruments by plucking the ...
technique, as well as violinist,
violist ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...
, and
mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...
player.


Life and work

Considerable uncertainty prevails on the subject of Dounis's early life, beginning with the date of his birth in
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
, variously given as 1886 (according to most library catalogues), 1893,Wrochem, p. 1345. or 1894.Eaton, p. 559. He is said to have performed his first violin recital at the age of 7, and to have toured the United States as a mandolinist at 14. In Athens, he participated in the famou
Athenian Mandolinata
conducted by
Nikolaos Lavdas Nikolaos Lavdas ( el, Νικόλαος Λάβδας; 1879 – 30 March 1940) was a Greek conductor, composer and educator. He was the founder and director of theAthenian Mandolinata, one of the oldest music associations and music schools in Greec ...
. He studied under
František Ondříček František Ondříček (29 April 1857 – 12 April 1922) was a Czech violinist and composer. He gave the first performance of the Violin Concerto by Antonín Dvořák, and his achievements were recognised by the rare award of honorary memb ...
in
Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...
, where he also took a medical degree, specializing in
neurology Neurology (from el, wikt:νεῦρον, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix wikt:-logia, -logia, "study of") is the branch of specialty (medicine), medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of co ...
and
psychiatry Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behaviour, cognition, and perceptions. See glossary of psychiatry. Initial psych ...
. He also studied in Paris with César Thomson. After World War I, when he served as a doctor in the Greek army, he was appointed to the chair in violin at the State Conservatory of Thessaloniki, but soon established himself in the United States. Dounis focused his early medical career on treating professional
musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...
s from the world's major symphonies. He would work with a musician for at least six months, observing the musician's technique, asking questions, and devising new exercises to indirectly address the problem. Dounis also wrote several instructional books. In his 1921 volume ''The Artist's Technique of Violin Playing'', Dounis emphasized the importance of shifting and finger exercises. These were to develop the musician's mental map at the beginning of practice, after which scale drills would be more effective.


Selected works

; Dounis Violin Pedagogics * ''The Artist's Technique of Violin Playing: A New Scientific Method for Obtaining, in the Shortest Possible Time, an Absolute Mastery of the Higher Technical Difficulties of the Left Hand and of the Bow'', Op. 12 (1921) :# First Part: The Left Hand :# Second Part: The Bow * ''The Absolute Independence of the Fingers in Violin Playing on a Scientific Basis'' (in 2 Books), Op. 15 (1924) :# The Absolute Independence of Three Fingers :# The Absolute Independence of Four Fingers * ''Preparatory Studies in Thirds and Fingered Octaves on a Scientific Basis for Violin'', Op. 16 (1924) :# Thirds :# Fingered Octaves * ''Fundamental Trill Studies on a Scientific Basis for Violin'', Op. 18 (1925) * ''The Dounis Violin Players' Daily Dozen to Keep the Violinist Technically Fit for the Day's Work: Twelve Fundamental Exercises for the Left Hand and the Bow'', Op. 20 (1925) * ''The Staccato (The Accented Legato, the Accented Staccato): Studies on a Scientific Basis for the Highest Development in Staccato-Playing on the Violin'', Op. 21 (1925) * ''Preparatory Studies in Octaves and Tenths on a Scientific Basis'', Op. 22 (1928) :# Octaves :# Tenths * ''Fundamental Technical Studies on a Scientific Basis for the Young Violinist'', Op. 23 (1935) * ''Specific Technical Exercises for Viola (Left Hand – Bow Arm)'', Op. 25 (1941) * ''New Aids to the Technical Development of the Violinist'', Op. 27 (1935) :# The Independence of the Bow from the Left Hand :# A Neglected Phase in the Study of Thirds * ''Studies in Chromatic Double-Stops for the Violin'', Op. 29 (1942) * ''The Higher Development of Thirds and Fingered Octaves: Twenty-four Advanced Formulas for the Violin'', Op. 30 (1944) * ''Advanced Studies for the Development of the Independence of the Fingers in Violin Playing on a Scientific Basis'', Op. 33 (1945) * ''The Development of Flexibility in Violin Playing: Studies on Scientific Principles for the Fingers and the Bow'', Op. 35 (1945) * ''Chopin Étude, Op. 25 No. 6 for Violin'' (in 2 Books) (1945); technical studies after
Frédéric Chopin Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; 1 March 181017 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period, who wrote primarily for solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown as a leadin ...
's ''
Étude An étude (; ) or study is an instrumental musical composition, usually short, designed to provide practice material for perfecting a particular musical skill. The tradition of writing études emerged in the early 19th century with the rapidl ...
'', Op. 25 No. 6 :# In Thirds :# In Tenths * ''The Development of Flexibility, Studies on Scientific Principles for Violin, Book II: Change of Position Studies'', Op. 36 (1947) * ''Essential Scale Studies, on Scientific Basis, for the Development of the Rhythmic Impulse of the Fingers for Violin'', Op. 37 (1947)


References and further reading

* * * *


References


External links

*
The Violin Teachings of D. C. Dounis
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dounis, Demetrius Constantine 19th-century births 1954 deaths Violin pedagogues Greek military doctors Greek classical violinists Greek classical violists Musicians from Athens 20th-century Greek physicians 20th-century Greek people 20th-century classical violinists 20th-century violists