UltimateHome

Steps

  1. 1
    Tighten the bow hair by turning the end screw clockwise until the space between the hair and the stick at the middle is big enough to pass a pencil through. Don't use your pinky finger as a gauge because the oil from your skin will transfer to the the hair making it difficult for the rosin to adhere. When you're finished playing, don't forget to loosen the bow hair.

  2. 2
    Rosin the bow. If this is a new bow, have the shop or your teacher rosin it for you. Then renew the rosin every few days or so, depending on how often you practice. First, tighten the bow as normal. Second, glide the rosin fully up and fully down the bow hairs three or four times. It is easy to over-rosin the bow. Too much rosin causes a scratchy sound. If you're using the bow for the very first time, and there is not enough rosin on it, it will not grip the strings enough to make them vibrate and you won't get a sound out of the violin.
  3. 3

    Right hand view, click to enlarge
    Hold the bow correctly by gently laying your index finger on the grip between the first and second knuckle. Place the pinky tip on the flat part of the bow stick just behind the top as seen in the picture, keeping it slightly curved. The other fingers are placed at equal distances from each other on the same edge. Your ring finger should be covering the pearl circle on the side of the frog. Your thumb should rest underneath the stick. Place it in front of the frog with the bow hair underneath. Bend the first joint of the thumb at an oblique angle; straightening the thumb will produce a poor tone when playing. It is crucial that you don't grip the bow too tightly, because then you will not be able to bow effectively. Your hand should be relaxed and loose, and somewhat rounded as if holding a small ball. While this can be difficult at first, because you don't want to drop the bow, it just takes practice.
  4. 4
    left Hand Back View
    left Hand Back View
    Rest the violin on your collar bone, fully supported with your arm and held in place by your jaw. Your jaw, just under the earlobe (not your chin), is supposed to be resting on the chin rest. A very slight and relaxed head weight will prevent the instrument from sliding off your shoulder while your arm actually supports the weight of the instrument. You should be standing up straight and the end of the violin, the scroll, should be pointing straight out when you hold it this way, NOT toward the ground. The scroll can be at an angle pointing slightly toward the ceiling, so that the strings are parallel to the floor. When holding the instrument, place your left hand around the base of the violin's neck. The top of your thumb should be visible, and the fingers should be curled and relaxed like in the photo. The base of your thumb should not be touching the neck of the violin, and neither should your wrist. Your left arm should also be around the right side of the violin's neck. Holding your left arm with your elbow pointing too far to the left is a sure-fire way to make you play out of tune.
  5. 5
    Left Hand Front View
    Left Hand Front View
    Place the bow approximately halfway between the bridge and fingerboard. Tilt the bow slightly toward the scroll and your tone will be more focused, producing a more professional sound. Pull the bow along the string as straight as you can, parallel to the bridge, applying a small amount of pressure. More pressure equals louder sound, but too much pressure makes it scratchy. Your wrist should be relaxed.
  6. 6
    Practice playing the open strings. "Open" means not pressing down on the strings with the fingers of your left hand. Rest the neck of the violin in the space between the left thumb and first finger. Hold the bow with your wrist, elbow, shoulder and contact point on the string within one plane. Change strings by raising or lowering the elbow to bring the bow to the proper height. Try short strokes - 6 inches or so - in the middle of the bow at first. Then do half strokes from the frog,(the part of the bow you hold), to the middle and back again. Be sure to keep the fingers and wrist flexible when playing at the frog. Try to make the transition as smooth as possible when changing bow directions by making a small circular motion rather than a stop-and-start piston motion at the change. Practice changing from one string to another. Continue practicing until you can play one string at a time without touching the other strings.
  7. 7
    C Major Scale Fingerings
    C Major Scale Fingerings
    Practice playing scales. A scale is a series of notes that ascend and descend in a predetermined pattern of whole and half steps. In the C major scale, you play third finger on the lowest string: C...as the first note. You then play open string: D, first finger: E, LOW second finger - close to the first: F, G, Open string: A, B, and low second finger C on the second highest string. There are many scales: D major, F major, and A major...to name a few. To play these scales, you must place each finger down one at a time while bowing the string. The goal is the relaxed playing of each note, with no sudden stops. Try to produce a warm, even sound.
  8. 8
    Practice every day. Start with a short time (15 minutes) and work a little longer every day until reaching at least an hour. If you are playing violin only as a hobby, this can be less. If you are serious, it is absolutely necessary to spend large amounts of time practicing (2-3 hours). However, this doesn't mean sitting down while holding the violin for two hours! Every practice session should have a goal, and practicing means improving. Don't just play everything once. Work on the hard parts of the piece you're working on. Remember: "practicing isn't performing".

Tips

  • The strings from the lowest to the highest are: G, D, A, E...
  • Get a private teacher as you will learn by leaps and bounds very quickly without building up bad-habits. Check for teachers at local universities, community colleges, orchestras, and some high schools. A thirty minute lesson once a week is all that is needed initially.
  • Have fun! Violin playing should not feel like a chore. While you should practice the music you need to for your teacher or orchestra, leave time at the end for your favorite music.
  • Being a violin player, you will need to keep up with the other violin players at an early stage, continuing your high level throughout to the professional level. Don't be put off since you'll be used to it pretty soon.
  • Don't worry if your hands hurt the first few times. Your fingers will get stronger and your muscles get more used to the unusual positioning of the violin. It should feel very strange at first, but soon enough it will feel natural. However, if you feel any persisting pain in your joints (wrist, neck, fingers) then you need to stop playing and figure out how to correct the problem. This is especially important to prevent tendonitis which can be a very severe setback in your playing.
  • Buy a shoulder rest. This way, you will not be forced to raise your shoulder and crane your neck to support the instrument. It may take some getting used to at first, but it will pay off in the long run. Many beginners use one. Make sure to get a shoulder rest that fits comfortably as not all shoulder rests fit everybody.
    • Contrasting opinion: Some lifelong violinists do not use a shoulder rest and do not have shoulder or neck pain. It is argued that playing without a shoulder rest allows for a better tone from the instrument. While you may, at first, naturally raise your shoulder to help support the instrument, it is not necessary in order to play the instrument. One must simply get into the good habit of not doing such a thing in the first place.
  • Don't play with long fingernails. Long nails only make it harder to play, especially your first few times, and will damage your strings. Even after you have been playing for a while, it's just not a good idea to play with long fingernails!
  • Don't try vibrato (light finger warbling) until you have developed a good basic technique. According to your level, you should try when you have played for at least one and a half to three years.
  • The Suzuki method and Belwin String Builder books can really help if you don't know how to read music/ play the violin. Many other books can help you too. However, it is not difficult to learn to read music, so don't be put off learning to read music simply because today you don't know how.
  • Be sure not to rush ahead and try things that are too difficult; you have to crawl before you can walk. First, learn the simple things like learning how to use a bow. Before you know it, you'll be ready for more difficult things!
  • Practice is critical. The violin has no frets or marks to help place the fingers. If you have a teacher, he or she can put tape where your fingers should go, and, after a while, can take them off when you're ready. If you don't have a teacher, practicing while carefully listening helps you memorize the position of the hand and fingers for each note. A good player will practice every day to prevent losing the feel of the right position for the hand and fingers.
  • A good idea would be to practice with someone playing the same notes on the piano. Adjust the hand and fingers to make the violin notes match the piano tones.
  • If you do not have the money to buy a violin, renting is always an option. You can rent a bow, and a case with your violin, too.
  • Make sure to clean off rosin buildup after every practice session. Use a clean soft cloth on the strings, on and under the fingerboard, around the bridge, the wood part of the bow, and anywhere else on the violin it falls.
  • Etudes are very helpful. Some good books are Wohlfahrt Foundation Studies, Kayser, Mazas, and Kreutzer, in that order; but there are many others out there. I was once told "practice a piece like an etude and an etude like a piece.
  • Practice hard fast parts slowly, then work up to tempo.
  • Joining a good orchestra can help you a lot with tempo and pitch.
  • During practice, focus on improving and playing musically. Play a small segment of music, then ask, "What can I do to make that sound better?" Then play the segment again while trying to implement your ideas.
  • If you feel yourself getting upset while practicing, take a short break and calm down. Do not expect to play something well the first time, or even the first twenty times! Even very gifted musicians must practice hard and may struggle when learning something new. Patience is the key!
  • Also the alphabet for ANY musical instrument is A,B,C,D,E,F,G and then it goes back to A,B,C,D,E,F,G and so on and so forth.

Warnings

  • Do not touch the hairs of the bow. Oils from your skin will prevent the rosin from sticking, requiring the hairs of the bow to be cleaned or replaced.
  • Do not carry the weight of your violin with your arm. The weight of your head is enough to hold it up. If you carry it with your arm, it limits the range of motion that is crucial for shifting
  • Do not hit anything with the bow, even a cushion, no matter how frustrated you are with your playing. The tip of the bow has a lot of pressure on it and can snap really easily; apart from if the music states to play col lengo (with the wood of the bow)
  • Always treat your instrument with great care. Treat it like you would a newborn baby. You wouldn't drop a baby, so do not drop your violin. Never wave the violin using the neck as this can break the neck from the violin. Don't leave the violin in the car, even for a few minutes.
  • Don't try vibrato yet until you are more skilled and an experienced player teaches it to you. If you try to teach yourself, you may be doing it wrong and it will impair your learning. It can be difficult to get out of that bad habit of your mistake. In fact, it can become nearly impossible to fix a bad vibrato.
  • Always keep your bow straight, as once you get into the habit of bowing with the tip over your left shoulder, or bowing on the black fingerboard, it is really hard to break that habit.
  • Always stand with your back straight and feet firmly planted a little less than shoulder width apart. NEVER slouch, as this can lead to muscle pain, and will prevent you from being able to play in tune. If you are sitting down to play, sit at the edge of the chair with your back straight.
  • If you are a beginner never try to tune your instrument. As a result you could hurt yourself and your violin. Ask a strings teacher or a professional violinist for help.

Things You'll Need

  • 1 Violin (if you are adult, full size-- 4/4)or if you are a child necessary ask the store you are buying at the size they would recommend!
  • 1 Bow (Also ask for help to buy the bow size)
  • RosinIf you don't know what it is go to the store and they will explain everything
  • Shoulder Rest (Optional;Better if bigger than violin but can be adjusted so you can have it until you stop playing the violin. But it is sometimes better to play without one.)
  • Skilled Violin Teacher (absolutely required, somebody that you know will help your child, like in a music school or even in post boards like in the university of music of Toronto, they have lots of teachers that play the violin interested in helping)
  • Violin Music, Listen to your teacher and do not start playing violin music
  • Duster or Thin Cloth to remove any rosin residue from underneath bridge but be careful not to break the bridge by accidentally dusting off some dust
  • Metronome (optional, but a very good idea)
  • Tuner (If you have a piano, you can use it to tune, assuming it's tuned properly.If you use it in a violin it is way better because in the violin it is essential for you to have all the strings tuned)
  • Tape to Mark Fingerings for EVERYBODY (you can take it off after you have all the places memorized)
  • Music Stand to hold your favorite etudes and pieces!
Reference and Adapted from :http://www.wikihow.com/Play-the-Violin
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