The Fundamentals Of How To Play The Violin January 21, 2010
Do you want to learn how to play the violin? It truly is a beautiful sounding instrument. And if you want to learn, you certainly can. Most people will tell you that to play this difficult instrument you need to start young. That can be beneficial for sure, but the fact is that you can learn to play and play well at any age.
Find a good teacher you can take private lessons from, or you may know of a relative or friend who plays the violin and who could start you out. The first thing you’re going to need to learn is how to hold the violin. If you hold it wrong, you’ll be very uncomfortable and may even eventually suffer stress injuries from trying to play the violin the wrong way. To hold the violin properly, you position your left arm underneath the body of the violin and then grasp the neck of the instrument with your left hand, curving your fingers over the neck as you do so. Your hand and fingers will be positioned over the strings and the violin’s chin rest should be between your left shoulder and your chin. You hold the bow in your right hand and a bow or pluck the strings with that hand.
Once you are in the proper position you’ll need to learn how to play the notes. You’ll quickly notice that there are no frets like many other stringed instruments. That means you’ll be learning the notes by ear. That may sound daunting but it won’t be too long before you’ll know where every note on the fingerboard is located.
You’ll first be taught the four main positions on the violin. Those first position is at the end of the neck and will give you the low notes. The last of the four positions is close to your face and will give you higher notes. The four strings are tuned to G, D. A, and E. Play the strings “open” (with no fingers pressing on the strings) and these are the notes you will hear. Press you fingers on the strings at different locations and you will hear different notes.
Notes are play in one of two ways. The are played pizzicato, (by plucking them) or by running the bow across the strings slowly and steadily. Most people learn by plucking and advance from there.
You’re also going to need to learn how to read music. You have several options for this. The easiest would be to get a friend or relative that already knows to teach you. You can also hire a professional, take a class, or just search the Internet for one of many instructional sites.
You should know before you start that it will take years of hard work, dedication and practice before you become an expert and that’s OK. You don’t have to be an expert to have fun playing this wonderful instrument. Just get started and you’ll see what I mean.
If you are serious about wanting to learn how to play the violin look to www.Discount-Violins.com. We’ll show you where to look to find quality instruction on the Internet, and direct you to great prices on new and used violins. There’s no need to pay more than you have to for a great sounding instrument.
categories: how to play the violin,violins,violin,music
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