Thursday, December 23, 2010

Beginner Violin Lessons - How to Play the Violin

Introduction
Playing the violin is one of the most rewarding experiences you can encounter as a human being. Violin music can ease the mind and can turn into a great hobby for people of all ages. You are never too old to start learning the violin, and even if you aren't interested in becoming a violin virtuoso, you can still have tons of fun learning the basics as a hobby.


What you need to get Started
You will need certain materials to get started playing the violin. First you need a violin, bow of course which most people know that they need to have. You also will need a good case to carry the violin and bow in, and a shoulder rest to aid in holding the instrument. To use the bow correctly, you will need rosin, which makes the bow sticky enough to grip the strings. A basis book will do to get started and I recommend Essential Elements Book 1 as a good starting book for beginners.


How to Play the Violin
Playing the violin is not as hard as you might think. The key is having the right teacher to make sure you are doing everything correctly. Gripping the bow correctly is a key element to starting. Making sure your pinky is at the bottom of the bow, and having your thumb curved is quite important. Having a teacher watch this constantly is a huge help. Having the instrument level is important and is aided by a shoulder rest. Make sure your hand is placed at the nut of the violin, and doesn't creep up. This causes your notes to start to go sharp (out of tune). The most important thing to play the violin correctly is playing straight across the strings. Many beginners like to use too much arm and move the arm backwards instead of extending out with the forarm. Having a teacher watch this really helps, but you can also help yourself by watching your playing in the mirror.

Once you have all these fundamentals in place you can start learning from the book! Take things slowly and don't try to play too fast. Focus in on playing in tempo, and getting to the tip of the bow with full bow strokes. Having a teacher to watch this really helps. Start off by learning basis open strings and then going into putting fingers down while stroking the bow. The Essential Elements Book starts off in the key of D which means your second finger should be a space apart from one. To put your third finger down, use the second finger as an anchor which you put this finger right next to it. This really helps when you are first starting out. Keep progressing through the book slowly and I can promise you learning the violin as an adult beginner is really a lot of fun!

If you can't access a teacher in your area, Violin Tutor Pro is an excellent alternative to private lessons. These Online Violin Lessons are perfect for any adult beginner.

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