G-Saite

As Printed on a Score

Printed over a violin, viola or cello part (also as “G Saite” or “auf der G-Saite”), often with a bracket or line showing how long the passage stays on that string; it ends where the line ends or a new string indication appears. Qualifiers such as “nach Möglichkeit” (as far as possible) are common.

Also spelled: G Saite, auf der G-Saite

How Composers Use It

Keeping a melody on the G string gives the violin its darkest, most intense colour and lets position shifts produce expressive slides. It also raises the difficulty: high notes on the G string demand high positions. Mark it where colour matters more than ease, and show the span; without an end point players return to normal fingering at the next convenient spot.

Example

Bruckner, Symphony No. 5 in B-flat major, second movement (Adagio), m. 107: second violins “G Saite”, first violins “G Saite nach Möglichkeit” — on the G string as far as possible — at p.

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