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Question: Advice for starting to play violin!?
I want to start learning violin, but am not sure where to start!. What would be a good brand for me to buy as a beginner!? Is there anything specific I need to look for when buying a violin!? also, what resources are there to start teaching myself how to play!?

I also have a broader question to ask!. How hard is it to learn to play!? I am very musically inclined (I already know how to play numerous instruments!.)!. I know that i've heard a lot of people say "Oh, it is so hard to play," but that opinion is not very reliable!. What should I expect when I start!?Www@QuestionHome@Com


Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
With violins, brands aren't as important as they are with guitars or banjos or other instruments!.

Go to a reputable violin shop!. If you can, bring along a friend who plays to help you look at and evaluate instruments!. The main thing is that the instrument should feel comfortable in your hands and that it should sound good to your ear!. Remember, you're going to be spending a lot of practice time with this fiddle under your left ear so you'd better enjoy listening to it :-) Don't just look at new instruments!. You can often get a better quality used instrument for the same money as you would pay for a new violin!. Get your violin or fiddle playing friend, or a store salesperson, to play each fiddle you're looking at, while you listen with your back turned!. The one that sounds best to you is the one you want!.

Don't forget that you need to budget for a bow as well as a violin, and you could spend as much or more for the bow as you do for the violin!. If you have only a limited budget, you're better off buying a better bow and a cheaper fiddle than a cheap bow and a good violin!. A cheap (bad) bow will be poorly balanced, too heavy or too light, maybe the stick might not be perfectly straight -- and it will feel like you have to fight with it to get it to do anything you want!. A good bow feels comfortable, like an extension of your hand!. As a beginner, its hard enough to learn to control the bow -- why make it harder for yourself by trying to play with a bad bow!? Some bows are wood, others are made of fiberglass or carbon fibre!. Some of the carbon fibre bows can be quite good -- a better quality for the money than a wood bow of comparable price!. But whatever bow you get, make sure it has natural horsehair on it, NOT synthetic horsehair!.

FWIW, I taught myself to play Southern old-time and bluegrass fiddle by ear!. It took me several years to get to the point where I was proficient enough to begin bringing my fiddle to jams!. But by the time I took up fiddle, I'd been playing guitar for nearly 20 years; mandolin for 3 years, and banjo for 2 years -- and I'd been going to old-time music festivals and jam sessions for about 5 or 6 years, knew quite a few fiddlers, and knew quite a few tunes by ear!. So for me, learning to fiddle was mostly a matter of figuring out how to get the music I heard in my head to come out on the instrument!. I'd go to jams, play rhythm guitar ('cos I could do that without having to think about it too much), and watch the fiddler(s) like a hawk -- watching to see how they played!. I'd bring a tape recorder and tape tunes I liked, then go home, learn the tune off the tape by ear, and play along with the tape!.
If I had questions about how to do something, I could always ask one of my fiddler friends and they would show me!.

When I first started out, I used to practice with a mute on my fiddle, partly out of consideration for my family and partly because I couldn't stand to listen to myself either :-) It sounded like I was killing cats!. IIRC, it took me at least 6 months to get to a point where I could listen to my own playing without cringing!. Contrary to what most non-violinists believe, the hard part about learning to play isn't the lack of frets on the fingerboard, its learning to control the bow, get a good tone from the instrument, and -- in the case of old-time or other dance music styles -- learning to get the right rhythmic drive and groove into your bowing!. THAT can take years of practice to get right!.
:-) Www@QuestionHome@Com

You should expect your arm to feel tired after holding it up for an hour!. But if you are in great shape, then that's not a worry!.

I've been playing violin for 3 years, and when I first started, it was hard!. At first, it was tough to just play one string, and not hit the others at the same time!. What my teacher would do is, every time before our lesson, she would make me play each string 4 times!. The strings from left to right are G, D, A, and E!.
G is the lowest and E is the highest!. To pick a violin, I'm not sure if there's a better brand then another!. Just don't buy one from ebay!.!.!.
If you go to a music store, ask them if you could hold it so you can figure out if it's a comfortable size!.

If you go to your local music store, make sure to buy a beginner's violin book!. It tells you the hand positions and the fingering!.
You hold the violin with your left hand, and since you are starting, only grab on to the violin itself, not the fingerboard!. In your right hand, hold it near the thick end, keep your thumb bend at an angle, and your other four fingers wrapped around it!. It is hard to explain in words, so just type up the "hand positions for violin" in google, and you'll find some visuals!.

I suggest that everyday you should practice on each of the strings four times!. You should also get a violin teacher to help you when you get to the fingering!. She/he will tape it down for you!.

The violin has the bow, and the bow needs rosin before playing!. Rosin is basically tree sap, and it is shaped like a tiny rectangular stone with wood around it!. It is what makes the violin produce noise!. Sometimes after playing, the rosin falls on the violin, and after time it will build up!. It is a bit sticky, so after playing, make sure to wipe it off with a cloth!. NO water because it will make the glue holding the violin together to come off!.

I know this is long, but I hope it is helping you!.!.
When I first started, the violin was really awkward!. But I practiced like 30 mins a day and eventually have gotten better!. Now I'm in an orchestra playing for my school!. It's a lot of fun!. Every instrument is hard when you first start out, but if you keep practicing, it becomes really easy!.

Good luck!Www@QuestionHome@Com