# Hi to forum - just started violin!



## Zeke

Hello everyone,

I am an amateur pianist and just now started violin. Hopefully I can come here if I have any questions, this seems like a great forum. I picked up a rental violin and had my first lesson the other day. I have no particular goals, I just want to see how it goes. At least compared to piano there will be only one note to play at a time! I'm not discouraged yet. How long will I be in the "tortured cat" stage? I can already read music very well so right now we are working on bowing and playing a few notes on the A and E strings. My bow is not always moving perpendicular to the strings and I'm moving my elbow too much, so I'm practicing in front of a mirror. Any key suggestions for people just starting out?

Thanks!


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## MaestroViolinist

Hi Zeke, I wish you the best of luck!  Already playing an instrument will be a great help! Not only being able to read music but it will also help with your intonation. 

Lol, "tortured cat" stage shouldn't last too long... :lol: Ah, organising your bowing at this stage is really good, you must have a good teacher. 

Key suggestions? Lots of practise. ut: (I'm not very helpful I know )


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## julianoq

Hello! I am also starting (playing for 6 weeks now) and it took around 3 weeks to me to leave "tortured cat all the time" stage and now I am on "sometimes the cat is tortured and it is not pleasant" stage 

I am having a lot of fun and practicing 2-3 times a day. I am also learning to read music, so it may be easier for you!

Good luck!


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## Ingélou

Hi, Zeke - I am a returner to the violin, and wish you luck. I think you'll soon have 'the cat' feeling happier. Has your rented violin got some decent strings on it? With me that made all the difference.

Re bowing action: to avoid too much arm movement, you can try leaning your shoulder & upper arm against a wall as you bow scales. And to encourage wrist action, practise moving your fingers while holding the bow as if you were bouncing and then catching a ball. Pressure of bow also makes a lot of difference, so just try different notes at different speeds & pressures & at different points on the string (eg nice & soft over the fingerboard) & get used to the different sounds you can make.

Enjoy your fiddling - I do!


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## Zeke

Hi Ingenue, Maestro, and Julian,

So the first week has gone by pretty fast, and I think it's getting easier to keep all these things in check (bow, hands, elbow, etc) while bowing a rhythm with the A major scale (A and E strings). I don't really think I'm really offkey too much, so that's a pleasant surprise! 

Thanks for the suggestions - they sound very helpful!


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## Zeke

Hi Ingenue, 

I've seen ads now and then for violins that are $150 or so new. I figured they are not very good. The shop that I rented from has a luthier there and handles only stringed instruments. They didn't have any rental returns so they said they were ordering a new violin for me to rent. I asked when I picked it up how much it cost since you can apply your rental payments to buy the violin if you liked it. They also did some sort of set up on it. I don't know what that entails, maybe making some fine adjustments and redoing the bridge. Not sure. Anyways they said this violin was not a "bottom of the barrel" violin, that it was worth about $525, and that some people trade up from what they started with to one of these. The label on the inside says "Angel" as part of the name and it also says it's a copy of a stradivarius (isn't every violin?). The violin "sounds" okay to me but what do I know after just one week? I'm just trying to be careful with it. 

Take Care!


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## Ingélou

Zeke, I'm glad you're getting on well. I did buy a Chinese 'bottom of the barrel' violin because I had no idea whether my third attempt would lead anywhere. However, the luthier at our local music shop fitted it up with dominant strings & a different bridge & (apart from the cheese-wire e string) it sounded so unexpectedly nice when I tried it, that I was encouraged to find a teacher. Then, when he was ill, my e string broke & I took it to the shop for them to restring it - I just daren't try myself - and I felt so powerless that I decided to buy another violin so I'd always have a spare. The new violin was also from China but properly made and about ten times as expensive, and I so love her! She sounds fabulous. But I still play my cheap one several times a week, because every fiddle deserves to be played and loved.


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## Zeke

Hi everyone, I have had about 6 violin lessons so far. I haven't killed anyone yet with the sounds I make. My teacher has me following the Suzuki book, which is just fine, although I already know how to read music. Now I'm starting to play on the G and D strings. I think my violin has metal strings. Does that make sense? The tone that I can produce on the D, A and E strings is generally fine for fingers 1-3, except of course when my bow is not moving perpendicular to the strings. On the G string, the tone is fine for fingers 0, 1, and 2, and when I put my third finger down on it the quality of the sound is suddenly fuzzy and harsh. My teacher suggested that I was bowing too close to the bridge. Moving the bow closer towards the fingerboard helps only somewhat. I checked in the mirror and checking the movement of the bow to make sure it's truly perpendicular helps a bit too. Then I'm thinking it could be too much bow pressure or not enough? The sudden harshness of the sound is really surprising. Does anyone have any suggestions? 

Thanks!

Zeke


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## Zeke

I also have question about tapes on the fingerboard. My teacher initially put down three tapes and the first one fell off after 3 weeks. What kind of tape is this? Special violin tape?? I think I would like the benefit of this crutch for a little while longer.


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## Ingélou

Zeke, you're back! Glad to hear you're persevering. Bowing is just something you have to learn, experimenting with sounds that can be made, pressure exerted, distance from bridge & fingerboard & so on. Sounds can be harsh & rasping suddenly for everyone - depends a bit on the quality of the violin & strings as well as the quality of the playing. My teacher is trying to get me to 'bow better' all the time. At present, I can lift but not land! 
Yes, metal strings are the norm now. They are more easily tuned & don't lose pitch as the gut strings did. Gut strings can still be bought but for a beginner, metal are better, though there's a big range of quality. I use dominants on one of my violins & these are very popular & reliable; I have pirastro tonica on the other, also nice-sounding (when I'm playing okay!).


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## Sonata

Always nice to hear from someone else who is starting in on an instrument . I was a beginner in every since of the word just months ago; I didn't even know how to read music before September. (I'm a new piano player!) I've been taking regular lessons for about a month now and loving it. Good luck on your violin!


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## Zeke

Hi Sonata & Ingenue - well I was back at the violin today and the G string sounded better. Not great, but better. I just figure every time I play I'm improving incrementally. Now I'm trying to play pieces numbers 10 through 12 in the Suzuki book that involve using the fourth finger, and all four strings, plus the low 2 finger positions on the A and E strings. A lot to manage in my head, but it does seem to get a little easier each time.

My teacher emailed me an encouraging note to go with her monthly invoice - I'm not used to that. My piano teacher almost never praises me. Maybe violin students need praise or else they will quit!


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## Nariette

I only started the viola half a year ago, but because I've been playing piano for very long, it was just a matter of technique. I would advise to learn your pieces by heart: that way you can concentrate on your bowing, and you won't have to look at the sheet music anymore. This worked for me, but I guess it's different for everyone. Also, stay determined, if you are motivated, you'll be out of the "tortured cat stadium" before you know it. Keep going, making progress goes unnoticed, but when you realise you came far from were you started, it will be the best feeling.


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## Marie Corr

Hi everyone

This is my first posting here so still trying to find the most appropriate group to join. I started playing violin about 18 months ago. I am 56 years old. I used to play violin when I was a kid but stopped after a couple of years cause I thought it wasn't 'cool' anymore. I'm enjoying it so far - I have lessons weekly and try to practise most days for about an hour. Still experience good practise sessions and really bad ones where my bowing is shaky or I can't hit the notes accurately. My teacher seems happy enough with me though so have to trust it's all going ok.


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## Ingélou

Hi, Marie - 
I'm 62 & returned to the violin about 18 months ago too, so we have a little in common. 
Talk to me about bow shake! I was cursed with it at first but it's beginning (fingers crossed) to pass now. Don't be discouraged - carrying on fiddling! Great to hear from you & I hope you have a lovely time with your violin & enjoy yourself on this forum. 
Welcome!


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