Here are some low-res (low-fi) photos of the materials that I am using as references (fyi):
I love the mechanical and systematic analysis from Barry Green's book. He breaks the stroke down into very clear, digestible and simple constituents.
I. Tempo; II. Dynamic; III. Intensity; IV: Note Length; V. Bounce; VI. Location of Bounce
He even suggests and diagrams the location on the bow, a span from frog to balance point where the various Horizontal ("arm"), Vertical ("wrist"), and Sautille strokes are best achieved.
This chart is also a useful guideline or starting place to consider the type/quality of the stroke. Particularly important is his indication of quarter-note tempo at the 16th-note subdivision.
Lastly, I included a hand written aggregation of Dennis Whittaker's observations about spiccato.
Light, Medium, and Heavy. There is a lot of overlap, and these are all context specific. Context meaning style and dynamic, but it is another useful guide post.
I wanted to add: Orin O'Brien mentioned in an interview
"If you’re practicing spiccato, start staccato at 92 to the half note, go until you get to 132, and then go back on the string. You’re not required to do off the string past 132, you’re not required. That’s not a requirement that they can force you to do. Only certain people can do past 132, and that’s sautille, and it’s a very soft volume. It’s not a loud volume. If you want louder, then you go on the string."
This seems clear enough, but there is one constituent left unnamed, and that is the subdivision.
My question is: what is the subdivision? 92 to half note would mean 184 quarter note and a 368 eight-note, and the sixteenth-note impossibly fast.
Her idol and mentor, F. Zimmermann has a bowing book which seems to clarify, until it confuses.
Zimmermann mentions, in section I on page 11, "Play each measure keeping the metronome at half note = 104, using a spiccato bowing. When these are played with a sense of ease and control, increase the metronome marking step-wise to half note = 116 - 126. At an advanced marking of half note = 132 through 152, the bow is again moved with a rapid detache bowing." That would basically align with Obrien.
To be clear, this is indicated for patterns with eight note subdivisions.
116 to the half note results in an 8th note at 464 BPM, or quarter note at 232.
If you look already at page 12, Zimmermann starts spiccato at 92 to the quarter note in 16th note subdivisions. Proportionally that is the same division 1/4:1/16 = 1/2:1/8.
Later on in the book, when he addresses triplet subdivisions, he indicates 116-152 to the dotted quarter as spiccato. For clarity, 116 to the dotted quarter makes the 8th note 348 BPM, and 152 to the dotted quarter creates an 8th note of 456 BPM.
Still later in the book he suggests spiccato to be executed at the 8th note subdivision between 152-176 to the quarter note (even as fast as 184).
Finally, there is Hal Robinsons adaptation of the Sevcik violin school which indicated tempos for spiccato sections, but also gets rather virtuosic and fast when subdividing 16th notes.
Let's take a look:
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