If you have always wanted to learn how to play the violin, you can. You might have heard that it's advisable to start while you are young. And probably that's true to some extent, but don't let that stop you.
The first thing you want to do is pick out a quality instrument. Violins are costly but you don't have to spend more than necessary. There are many quality used violins on the market. And honestly they frequently sound as good or better than new ones.
If you have a friend or relative that plays, they can help you with introductory lessons. Or you can begin with a paid teacher.
Lesson one will be how to correctly hold the violin. If you hold it incorrectly, you'll be really uncomfortable and may even eventually have stress injuries from trying to play the violin the wrong way. Here's how you do it properly. Place your left arm (if you happen to be right handed) below the body of the instrument. Then curve your fingers over the neck as you grip the neck with your left hand. Your hand and fingers will be set over the strings and the instrument's chin rest needs to be between your left shoulder and your chin. The bow will be in your right hand which should be used to bow or pick the strings.
Now that you understand how to hold the violin, it's time to begin learning how to finger the notes. Unlike many instruments with strings, violins do not have frets. That means you will have to learn by ear where every note is located on the fretboard.
For this, you will want to identify four spots on your violin. The number 1 position is situated the furthest away from your face and has low pitched notes. Nearer to your face and furthest up the neck will produce the highest notes. That is position 4. The strings themselves are tuned to specific notes, lowest to highest. The strings are tuned at G, D, A, and E as "open" strings, when there are no fingers pressing on the strings when you play. Putting your fingers on the fretboard in new locations permits you to play other notes.
You play notes by either plucking them (called "pizzicato") or by passing the bow across the strings in a lengthy even stroke.
In addition to learning how to play the violin, you'll also need to study how to understand music notes. If you do not know how to read music before you learn how to play, you can begin by studying music in a more basic fashion either by taking courses, having somebody practiced in music instruct you, or reading on your own to a certain degree by going online and looking for different tutorials. Then acquire some quality violin sheet music made for beginners and you are all set.
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