Learning to play the violin

Hello peoples,

First off: Happy New Year!

Second:

I've just recently bought myself a violin and, yes indeed, i want to go and learn how to play it. Since a teacher is to expansive I want to ask those of you with some experience in playing the violin what to do.

What are the tips you would give a person who wants to start playing the violin? What do i need to focus on in terms of posture, bowing etc.

Anything might be usefull.

Thanks!

a good (or any) teacher is worth the price :nod:

strings are hard instruments to learn so you need ongoing instruction from an expert

Unless your intonation is really good and you have a good sense of intervals or perfect pitch, then I would suggest you get a teacher, or another violin player to show you.

It all depends on how much you want to progress on the instrument. If you just want to make some noise out of it, you're just fine (and there's nothing bad with it - I bought myself a clarinet because I want to make some noise out of it, and I'm going to get an electric guitar from a friend of mine, also to make some noise out of it). But if you want to play in an orchestra or audition to some higher institution to study that instrument, I think teacher's help will be invaluable. In any case, if you don't have money to get a teacher for a long time, try and get a teacher for at least the first few lessons, so you will start off properly. And then it will be safer for you to start wondering off on your own, but if you make mistakes now or learn things wrongly now, it will be a lot harder for you to un-learn these later, if/when you decide to take up your instrument more seriously.

You really need a teacher to learn violin. There are so many factors in violin playing ans so many thing that you HAVE to do right. I have heard of some people who have taught themselves to play but they usually have to get a teacher eventually. Here are some great sites on violin playing:

Violin Masterclass

Violin Online - Music and Instruction for all Ages

Michael Hopkins: String Pedagogy Notebook

http://www.theviolinsite.com/

also some great vids:

A Violin Practice Space ?( FiddlersCove?)

YouTube - professorV's Channel

But ya you really should get a teacher.

Michael

Thanks guys for your reactions.

The main reason why I want to learn to play the violin is to get acquainted with producing notes myself, instead of the piano, where you just "push the button". I'm doing it primarily for ear-training purposes actually. So it's for certain not my intent to go to an institution to study violin. On the other hand i know i will want to learn how to play it a bit better that just making noise.

I've seen a couple of online tutorials, like proffesorV video's on Youtube. This seems really helpful. I think i will get a few "real-life" lessons to get me started and a few when i'm a little bit further on my way to check on my doings.

Thanks for the advise!

Hello peoples,

First off: Happy New Year!

Second:

I've just recently bought myself a violin and, yes indeed, i want to go and learn how to play it. Since a teacher is to expansive I want to ask those of you with some experience in playing the violin what to do.

What are the tips you would give a person who wants to start playing the violin? What do i need to focus on in terms of posture, bowing etc.

Anything might be usefull.

Thanks!

Learning to play the violin without a teacher is like trying to pick your nose with boxing gloves on. Forget it. Don't even think about learning without a teacher.

Yeah, sure, you can learn it from watching videos on YouTube, but first off you're not gonna to be sure who's right and wrong in their tutorials, and second of all, that person is not real and can't correct any errors in technique YOU don't see yourself. Believe me, there will be PLENTY. Get a teacher, I am convinced that it is almost absolutely necessary, or else you will develop a lot of bad habits that may go unchecked and you could conceivably hurt yourself if you practice incorrectly and do it often enough. This is all basically what everybody else said, but it cannot be said enough.