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I'm glad you found the video helpful, thank you! Mary💗

Thank you! Mary💗

Hello! Yes, Augustin Hadelich has a very refreshing and practical outlook about violin playing, doesn't he? His approach could be described as 'do what works' which I thoroughly agree with. (Galamian for example had extraordinarily long 4th fingers!) At college I remember being in such difficulties playing a study for an exam with the 'proper' fingerings of 4th fingers high up...but which I could play much better (and painlessly) with my own fingerings, leaving out the 4th finger. Everything was so much better for me when I broke free of the rules and started finding out what really works for a small hand and short pinkie... I think we should all break free and search for what works for us individually, hopefully without having to endure years of pain because we believed the myth that violin playing has universal 'rules' everyone must follow, no matter their individual shape and size! Mary💗

@@violinstudiowithmaryv It's my third year with the instrument, and more and more I'm convinced that "becoming good" at the violin is almost synonymous with "becoming comfortable" with the violin. I'm glad that you followed your own intuition for a better outcome in the face of adversity. It's a beautiful thing when we become confident in our own ability and are able to make decisions for ourselves successfully, I believe that that is only beginning to happen to me in my violin journey. Cheers!

@@fedegroxo I couldn't agree more with your comment about being comfortable! What an invaluable insight! I wish you all the best. Mary💗

Hello! I'm very glad that you feel reassured that you're not 'cheating' by using alternative fingerings etc. It's absolutely necessary to tailor all technical issues to fit our individual physique. The issue of small hands and short pinkies is very neglected generally and most violin teachers are just not aware of the technicalities. However, never fear, you will find plenty of practical advice about setting up and using a small hand on the violin on this channel, such as in the following videos; th-cam.com/video/sMh3W2CFv7M/w-d-xo.html th-cam.com/video/DZEq8Z6fvLI/w-d-xo.html th-cam.com/video/FK_aFRO73CE/w-d-xo.html As for your bow hold, actually despite having a very small hand, it's relatively in proportion, right, so I would advise you to slow down go back to the beginning and take your time to create a comfortable bow hold. Simply arrange your fingers and thumb on the bow while holding the middle of the stick of the bow with your left hand. Then for a few seconds waggle the bow gently to get used to the changing weight, then quickly hold it again with the left hand. If your fingers have become displaced then rearrange them and repeat the whole exercise until your bow hold stays in place for those few seconds. This could take days or weeks depending on how you regulate any tension...a few seconds at a time should be your method, ok? There's a good reason the pinkie should be curved and it's to prevent the finger locking at the base joint, although your pinkie joint is cramping, but I think it's because you need to slowly build up familiarity with the changing weight. Your solution of playing beyond the wrapping takes you to the position that baroque players use with a baroque bow...go back to the wrapping area for now while you carry out your waggling experiments and then we'll see. Please also consider the possibility of using a lovely 1/2 or 3/4 size instrument and bow. A couple of my students are much happier and much more comfortable with their smaller instruments... Take care, Mary💗

Thank you for your very helpful reply, Mary.

Hello! Well done indeed for trying something that is supposed to be 'wrong!' I'm delighted you have found more relaxation and freedom in your hand by doing something that world class violinists from Anne-Sophie Mutter to Augustin Hadelich do as a matter of course! Who knows what you'll be trying next... Take care and thank you. Mary💗

I'm delighted you found the video helpful - thank you very much! Mary💗

Hello Lola! Thank you so much for your wonderful, thoughtful words and your compliments! I agree with you that it's an amazing phenomenon to join musical notes in such a way as to produce such beauty that touches us so deeply...and Beethoven was only 27 when he wrote this Sonata! I've been (trying to) play this movement on the piano and I've discovered that his hands were much, much larger than mine, so happily, being able to play this divine tune on the violin is much better for me! Lovely to hear it's sunny in Madrid after your cold and wet spell! We had sun all day today and a deep frost which sparkled on every blade of grass - absolutely gorgeous ...Florence runs around like a puppy in the frost and I love the crunch under my feet - so lovely! I hope you are continuing to enjoy your violin and your beautiful, beloved Madrid. Take care and a big hug! Mary💗

​@@violinstudiowithmaryv 💚🎶🧡🐶

Thank you very much! Mary💗

Hi Shin! Thank you very much for your kind words - it's such a wonderful piece, written when Beethoven was only 27 years old - what an inspiration!! It was very interesting taking an overall impression of your description of your practice and experiments... The fact that your left arm is sometimes tensing up tells me that you should look at your set up, that is, your shoulder rest, chin rest and the position of the violin very carefully and see if you can make adjustments so that the violin is sitting comfortably in it's place using mainly gravity and then the head and then a tiny bit of the left shoulder. I love what you said about tucking in your chin and stretching the back of the neck. Stop at the point of simply holding the violin between the head and the left hand and it should feel balanced and pleasurable. You should be able to bounce the violin up and down a bit and also be able to move your head. Make absolutely sure there is no tightness in your left arm at this point. Now let your elbow be underneath the neck and start wiggling your fingers up and down randomly in 1st position on the d string. This will help you to identify the moments when needless extra muscular activity is intruding habitually into basic functions. For example, the elbow should not even be a factor here, as it should simply be underneath the neck... This kind of neutrality and examination of the fundamentals every time you lift your violin is essential for someone who has formed habits of tensing up as you have, you see? All my students perform this basic examination of fundamental positions and movements to their great advantage. It's incredibly helpful to have such a wonderful goal as playing the Adagio from the Pathétique - of course you will do it! Take care. Mary💗

@@violinstudiowithmaryv Hello Mary. I tried the left arm neutralisation method you taught me for four days. I feel so much better and my left arm is no longer in pain. Thank you for your advice, it has helped me a lot. My vibrato is still slow, but I can now do it consistently without effort. I enjoy playing ‘Wild Rose’. Shin😊

@@s8299shin Hello Shin! I'm so glad that your left arm is no longer in pain. It's a good idea to start with this freeing of the left arm and fingers every time you practice so you can replace tension with relaxation and pleasurable feelings. It's fantastic that you can now do vibrato consistently without effort, but please don't try too hard to speed up your vibrato until your left arm and fingers are relaxed and ready - we want to be sure you can actually put your fingers up and down on the strings without tensing up your left arm, so please work on that goal and when your body is ready your vibrato will speed up without forcing - vibrato is something that develops over time, so the goal is relaxation before speed, ok? Wild Rose is a gorgeous piece to play! I'm so glad you're enjoying it. Take care. Mary💗

Hello! Thank you very much and I'm delighted you like my vibrato! My very old Italian violin (1760) loves these strings - they are 'Obligato' by Pirastro, which are perfect for older, more mellow instruments like mine, but I don't think they'd suit a more modern violin which may need something brighter...there are so many to choose from, aren't there? Mary💗

Thank you very much ! Mary💗

Hello! Thank you very much for your kind words - I'm delighted you liked it! So wonderful to hear from you in Iran! Take care. Mary💗

Hello Samira! Thank you very much, I'm delighted that you have found the videos helpful! Please let me know if there's anything I can help you with, ok? Take care and keep going! Mary💗

.. forgot to say it’s easier on the e string so I’m going to keep practicing. Thank you for the video 😊

Hi Katie! This little gap you've been trying to get is actually something that happens along the way as we progress, except it's useful to help people who have a major tightness problem... The video was made to address issues you don't have! Getting into strained and exaggerated positions with your left elbow and your thumb is not a solution and not a good idea! You have such a lovely left hand on the violin and it fills me with dismay that you are spoiling it by adopting strained positions simply to achieve a little gap that will occur naturally with time and experience... Keep your thumb at the side of the neck and don't let it go underneath, and keep your elbow underneath and don't let it swing too much to the right! Forget about this particular video and instead, in order to free the hand without going into strained positions, I would recommend playing plenty of 1st finger trills between all the open strings and the 1st finger. You will find a lot of freedom in the left hand by regularly trilling fast with the 1st finger! I guess for you as usual this is all about vibrato,☺but speeding up vibrato and everything else on the violin, relies on adopting the most natural functioning our arm and hand can achieve within the necessary positions, so there's no strain and we're not working against being able to let go and speed up... Take care Katie! Mary💗

@ oh wow thank you Mary ! It did cross my mind that this could be something that happens later. Thanks for correcting me . I will do as you say 😀

@@katiemartin2428 Wonderful! Thank you very much Katie! Keep that lovely left hand of yours as relaxed as possible! Mary💗

@ I will, thanks very much Mary 😀

Hello Shin! Thank you very much for this information about your discoveries about habits and posture... You are correct that the feeling you have of security caused by pressure and pain is a habit and perhaps also a need and a belief that one must make an enormous effort to do something worthwhile and enjoyable, and so the effort and even pain are validated... But if you think about it, the effort it takes mentally and physically to learn how to deliberately let go and be natural and relax is also an enormous effort, but it's just in the opposite direction. So you need to continue proving to yourself in many creative, openminded ways that you can play in natural positions without clenching and straining. You're already doing a very good job of experimenting and convincing yourself bit by bit to trust yourself to play without that familiar tightness. Tightness contains within it much doubt and fear, doesn't it?... So tucking in your chin seems to be great for you! I'm delighted by what you said especially about your breathing and your vision; splendid indeed!! Sometimes a tiny thing can unlock a lot, including joy, which is so important and precious when it comes along... Thanks again, Shin, and take care. Mary💗

Hello! Thank you very much! Mary💗

Hello! Thank you! Mary ❤

Hi Shin, Thanks for alerting me to your previous post in the 'Trills' video which for some reason I missed, but I'm very glad I saw it...I hope that you will continue to experiment and make important discoveries that will bring you solutions and comfort. Take care! Mary ❤

Hello Shin! For some reason your comments have not appeared in the 'trills' video, so just in case you didn't see my reply, here it is...... Thank you very much for these details...it's clear to me from your description that your problems stem from more fundamental issues; whether your shoulder rest is correctly set up, and whether the violin position is correct in relation to your arm's natural function...you see, the left arm must be given the opportunity to act naturally at all times. If, for example, your violin is positioned too far to your left then that puts an immediate strain on everything in the left arm, from the shoulder to the tips of the fingers. Please watch these videos to see if you recognise these issues in your own set up; th-cam.com/video/WgVPEJEK0fY/w-d-xo.html th-cam.com/video/pHrZAd2uPjs/w-d-xo.html th-cam.com/video/bnYVYUbpzgs/w-d-xo.html th-cam.com/video/bmnGdGx8090/w-d-xo.html I think your difficulties in putting your fingers down easily and naturally stem from your over-extended arm position, which in turn stems from a violin position which doesn't relate properly to your shoulders and arms... Violin playing comfortably is just like a puzzle where all the parts fit together, but one part affects the others. Staying experimental, just as you are doing, is the best choice you can make, especially when you have long standing habits - they need to just wither from underuse as new, healthy habits take over, powered by your new and exciting discoveries... And it's a great idea to murmur to yourself to bring thoughtfulness and observation into your experiments...I love it! I wish you all the best and take care. Mary❤

Hello! Thank you very much, I'm delighted you found it useful. Mary ❤

Hello Lola! What a great way to warm up, with a three octave g major scale - I'm very impressed! As for going up by semitones, I must admit I found this very trying when I first started doing this regularly...but the more I've warmed up like this, the more I've been able to let go, and getting plenty of benefits all up my left arm too. Practice is a funny thing, isn't it? Scales and studies I used to abhor I just love now...I wonder if you're the same? We're being rewarded after a very wet summer with a beautiful sunny autumn here in Scotland. It's so mild lots of wild flowers have come out again; ragged robin, daisies, buttercups, geraniums...Florence and I were in the forest today and I spent a long time looking at the shafts of sun on the mossy forest floor...so beautiful and so peaceful. Lola, take care and stay cosy as winter starts drawing in. A huge hug! Mary ❤

​@@violinstudiowithmaryv Hola Mary! Nunca me he aburrido haciendo escalas 😅 al contrario, cuando una escala está bien afinada y se toca con musicalidad es bellísima...Toda la música son escalas y más escalas😊 Me alegra leer sobre tus paseos en ese bosque tan hermoso, lleno de vegetación y de flores, junto con Florence! Que lo sigáis disfrutando! Abrazos para ti y para Florence!🤗💚🐶💜🍁

Hello! I'm so glad you found the video useful. Lovely to hear from you in Iran! Take care. Mary💗

Hello! Thank you very much! Mary💗

Hello Shin! Thank you very much for these details...it's clear to me from your description that your problems stem from more fundamental issues; whether your shoulder rest is correctly set up, and whether the violin position is correct in relation to your arm's natural function...you see, the left arm must be given the opportunity to act naturally at all times. If, for example, your violin is positioned too far to your left then that puts an immediate strain on everything in the left arm, from the shoulder to the tips of the fingers. Please watch these videos to see if you recognise these issues in your own set up; th-cam.com/video/WgVPEJEK0fY/w-d-xo.html th-cam.com/video/pHrZAd2uPjs/w-d-xo.html th-cam.com/video/bnYVYUbpzgs/w-d-xo.html th-cam.com/video/bmnGdGx8090/w-d-xo.html I think your difficulties in putting your fingers down easily and naturally stem from your over-extended arm position, which in turn stems from a violin position which doesn't relate properly to your shoulders and arms... Violin playing comfortably is just like a puzzle where all the parts fit together, but one part affects the others. Staying experimental, just as you are doing, is the best choice you can make, especially when you have long standing habits - they need to just wither from underuse as new, healthy habits take over, powered by your new and exciting discoveries... And it's a great idea to murmur to yourself to bring thoughtfulness and observation into your experiments...I love it! I wish you all the best and take care. Mary❤️

Hello, thank you very much! Mary💗

Hello Lola! I'm sure you will make discoveries and have fun too - remember, your hand wants to relax... Take care Lola and a big hug from Scotland! Mary💗

Hello, thank you! Mary💗

Hello! Thank you very much - I hope you will find it helpful. Greetings to you from Scotland! Take care. Mary💗

Hello! I'm so glad you liked it! Mary

Hello Lola! I like this way of finding confidence in the hand and I hope you too will feel the difference after a while Take care and a big hug! Mary

Hello Shin. After a while of practicing this exercise, the hand develops a much better feeling of knowing where the notes are. And as you know, it is also so helpful and freeing to be able to relax a little... You know, there's a very interesting concept to think about when we're examining our violin technique. It's to realise that violin playing is a series of gestures, positions and movements that can be disassociated from the violin. So when we examine the gesture, position or movement in question and then bring them back together with our violin, we grow our ability to mime these gestures even when we are playing. I have found this ability to mime while I am playing an incredibly helpful thing... I love what you said about 'successful experience.' You are absolutely right, that's where confidence comes from, not forcing, but building up successful experiences... Very inspirational and very well done! Mary💗

@@violinstudiowithmaryv Hello Mary. All of your replies are very interesting. About our ability to perform our mimes. This is a very, very nice expression. I have incorporated your advice into my own practice over the last two days. Apart from the wooden stick exercise, I also held a tube of about 3 cm in diameter in my left hand to shape my palm. I also analysed each of my left hand, fingers and arm by writing down on paper the movements and the muscles involved in those movements. By the way, I am struggling with the movement of the little finger and ring finger of my left hand. It occurred to me that I observed it by holding the bow with my left hand in the same way as with my right hand. I put the little finger of my left hand on the bow and felt the movement of the little and ring fingers. Then I stroked the bow and observed the left arm and shoulder. What I found out is that the left hand and the right hand are ‘the same hand’. I felt that I was thinking of the left hand too specially and putting too much force into it. Just as the right hand holds the bow, I thought, ‘Gravity? Weight?’ I thought it was important to feel the weight of the left hand. However, I am a little unsure if this idea is correct as it is just my opinion. I will continue to explore ways to mime violin playing. Postscript, When I repeated the scale exercises with open strings, the feeling of the little finger started to change. Thank you very much. Shin😊

@@s8299shin Hello Shin, thank you very much for your very interesting and wonderful comments. You are so creative and observant! I'm very glad you have embraced the idea of 'performing our mimes' as you put it so well...to practice a degree of detachment like this gives us much more room in our minds to notice what is going on. It's similar to not being carried away in a big crowd, but remaining as an observer who never loses the awareness of self... I don't know exactly which, but there are a number of reasons you are having difficulties with your 3rd and 4th fingers. It's very likely there is squeezing between the thumb and first finger, for example. It may be useful to see what happens when you 'roll' your hand towards the 3rd and 4th fingers to get used to changing the weight of the hand from the first finger, shown in this video; th-cam.com/video/RL-SuP4DyKQ/w-d-xo.html I really admire your creativity by swopping hands in order to examine your left hand - this is such a great idea and revealed a lot to you, especially your concept that the hands are the same!... This is a great insight that grows in time to lead to comfort and pleasure on the violin - very, very well done!! For the two shoulders and chest to work evenly and in harmony with breathing, embracing the concept that the two hands are the same has got to be discovered within oneself, just as you have done... Please let me know how you get on especially with your 4th finger... I wish you all the best - and thank you! Mary💗

@@violinstudiowithmaryv Hello! Mary. I observed my left hand and arm for two days. As a result, I found the cause of the difficulty in moving my ring and little fingers and found out how to deal with it. I found out by touching my left elbow and shoulder with my right hand while holding the violin and observing it. I found that when I put my left little finger on the strings, my left elbow was too far to the right and my left shoulder was too high. I have been aware of these habits for a long time, but habits are hard to break. But when I touched it, I was clearly aware of the habit. Do you remember I once told you that I could not locate my left elbow?　The cause was my left elbow. The way to deal with it is to mumble while touching the left elbow. I held the violin naturally with my left arm and left hand, touched my left elbow with my right hand and murmured, ‘The left elbow is here, so you can rest assured,’ while moving my elbow and placing my fingers on each string position, and the little finger moved naturally. I had difficulty with the movement of the index and little finger when shifting strings in the first position scale, but the reason for this seemed to be that I was not able to recognise the position of my left elbow. By simply remembering the feeling of touching my left elbow and murmuring, ‘My elbow is here, so it's OK’, I was able to transfer strings without difficulty. Also, this mumbling seems to have an effect on vibrato, and I've been able to produce a slow but steady vibrato. I will further study vibrato exercises based on your trills and vibrato video uploaded today. Shin😊

@@violinstudiowithmaryv Hello! Mary. I observed my left hand and arm for two days. As a result, I found the cause of the difficulty in moving my ring and little fingers and found out how to deal with it. I found out by touching my left elbow and shoulder with my right hand while holding the violin and observing it. I found that when I put my left little finger on the strings, my left elbow was too far to the right and my left shoulder was too high. I have been aware of these habits for a long time, but habits are hard to break. But when I touched it, I was clearly aware of the habit. Do you remember I once told you that I could not locate my left elbow?　The cause was my left elbow. The way to deal with it is to mumble while touching the left elbow. I held the violin naturally with my left arm and left hand, touched my left elbow with my right hand and murmured, ‘The left elbow is here, so you can rest assured,’ while moving my elbow and placing my fingers on each string position, and the little finger moved naturally. I had difficulty with the movement of the index and little finger when shifting strings in the first position scale, but the reason for this seemed to be that I was not able to recognise the position of my left elbow. By simply remembering the feeling of touching my left elbow and murmuring, ‘My elbow is here, so it's OK’, I was able to transfer strings without difficulty. Also, this mumbling seems to have an effect on vibrato, and I've been able to produce a slow but steady vibrato. I will further study vibrato exercises based on your trills and vibrato video uploaded today. Shin😊

Hello! I'm delighted you have been finding my videos helpful and thank you very much for telling me. From my own experience as a professional violinist the biggest gap in knowledge and advice was always techniques for a small hand and a short 4th finger. Successfully learning to play while keeping our small hands supple and free is a whole rewarding study on its own...people with large hands have different challenges! I'm sure you agree that a little bit of knowledge goes a long way on the violin as we absorb valuable insights from inspirational soloists. So if we are willing to thoughtfully question what we are doing we can set about tailoring everything on the violin to our own individual physique. I wish you the best! Mary💗

Thank you! Mary

Hello Leslie! Thank you very much! I hope everything is going very well for you. Take care. Mary💗

Thank you very much! Mary💗

Thank you very much! Mary💗

Hello Alice! Thank you very much for your kind words...you are a lovely player and just like all violinists, you have been determined to keep on tackling any issue that crops up. We are a tough group! Let music be your inspiration... Take care. Mary💗

Hello Shin! Thank you very much for your beautiful description of Autumn in your country. Perhaps it is even more precious because it was shorter this year? Music has the amazing power to mean one thing to one person and something completely different to another...Look at the words of the original poem by Bussine, set to music by Fauré; In sleep made sweet by a vision of you I dreamed of happiness, fervent illusion, Your eyes were softer, your voice pure and ringing, You shone like a sky that was lit by the dawn; You called me and I departed the earth To flee with you toward the light, The heavens parted their clouds for us, We glimpsed unknown splendours, celestial fires. Alas, alas, sad awakening from dreams! I summon you, O night, give me back your delusions; Return, return in radiance, Return, O mysterious night! Inside each human mind is a world of mystery! Thank you again and enjoy the beautiful Autumn! Mary💗

@@violinstudiowithmaryv Mary, thank you very much. I didn't know this music had lyrics. It is a very beautiful poem. I listened to this music again after reading this poem. Meeting and parting with a loved one in a dream. When I think back, I remember now that I had a similar experience when I was younger. I remember being very disappointed when I woke up from the dream. I thought again that music can awaken new imagination and forgotten memories. This music and this poem are perfect. It's amazing how great artists meet. I really admire artists who can express what ordinary people cannot. And I also very much respect musicians who can play and express that music. Shin☺

@@s8299shin Shin, what a beautiful and memorable way to express the amazing power of music; 'I thought again that music can awaken new imagination and forgotten memories.' This is poetry! Thank you again for such inspiration! Mary💗

Thank you very much! So nice of you...I'm delighted you are finding my videos helpful. Mary💗

Thank you! Mary💗

Hello Lola! Yes, this Fauré piece is somehow always in the background like a little glinting gem... I confess that I used to feel that Fauré was like Renoir with his romanticised, soft - glow Parisians, unserious, just soft and fluffy, but I've learned that there's much more to the art and accomplishments of both these wonderful and talented artists. There's no end to the inspiration around us, is there? Have a nice weekend and a big Scottish autumnal hug! Mary💗

​@@violinstudiowithmaryv Me encanta ese paralelismo que observas entre Renoir y Fauré 👏👏👏👏👏 Todas las bellas artes son siempre inspiradoras! Gracias Mary por tus comentarios tan maravillosos!🤗💜🍁💚🌧

Hello Frederic! Thank you very much for your kind words - I'm so glad you liked it! Mary💗

What a lovely thing to say! Mary💗

Hello! Thank you very much! Mary💗

Thank you! Mary💗

Hello there! I see you have found Fauré inspirational; me too! Mary💗

I'm glad you liked it; thank you! Mary💗

Hello! Apologies to your teacher, but I think they should be tailoring things more to suit your physique, age and realistic prospects of success on the violin, whatever that means to you at this stage. Remember, the golden rule is being pain free, a necessary goal at every stage... So although you have long fingers that doesn't help you with the flexibility needed to create different finger shapes for different intervals. Use a wooden spoon to really examine how the hand works; when you hold the B down and you go to C#, do you see that the 2nd finger flexes forward very slightly? That slight flexing of the second finger is being restricted by tightness between the 1st finger and the thumb and also by your teacher's philosophy of leaving all the fingers down as we progress upwards. I'm sorry, but I don't happen to agree with this approach as it removes the necessary flexibility from the hand, (especially in an older man with less flexibility) making the hand more rigid and leading to pain, as you have described. Just look at the huge number of great violinists who lift their first finger as they play to give their hand the greatest freedom. Look at Heifitz. The whole idea of leaving the fingers down as we progress up is an 'ideal' that's old fashioned and an unnecessary restriction. At this stage a better approach for you would be to change your hand to a much higher position, similar to great violinists with long fingers; Kogan, Ehnes, Hahn etc. This changes the crucial relationship between the thumb and the first finger and gives the fingers much more freedom, which is the key to left hand freedom. Don't continue with these things that are causing you pain because it will only get worse with repetition. Instead, set about fixing the root of the problem, which is that you are squeezing the neck of the violin with the base of the thumb, making your left hand rigid and your thumb painful. You must learn to hold the violin with another part of the thumb, you see. Find what works for you and don't stick with rigid approaches that disable you. While faithfully practicing what our teacher has told us to do, we must always be able to go to our teacher and discuss things, most especially when there is pain involved. Remember, it's the teacher's job to tailor all violin technique for our individual needs. I wish you all the best! Take care. Mary💗

@@violinstudiowithmaryv Thank you, MaryV. None of this pain started until my teacher began to enforce the fingers remain planted on the fingerboard. I will just have to do it differently as you suggest. Otherwise, I'm sure it will get worse. This could be a death knell if it worsens. Oh, I just have to share something exciting with you. I just purchased a used Maggini violin after playing it on trial. The body is 1/2 inch longer and the lower bout is 1/2 inch wider. It is surprisingly much louder than my other standard violins and oh so beautiful sounding. The ringing of the sympathetic strings is beyond incredible. It was bench made meaning only one luthier built it from start to finish. Mary, I just so love the beauty of the violin. And I am so thankful that, though we be separated by so many miles, I consider you a true friend in helping me along my journey.

@@TNungesser It's not the end of the world if your fingers are not planted down, but I agree with you that continuing with it will make the problem worse. Life's too short. However, your teacher may feel that your fingers are lifting too high, affecting your intonation, so try to keep your fingers nice and close to the strings. As for your Maggini, congratulations! How wonderful to have such a beautiful instrument to play every day...we are so blessed to have such beauty to explore in this life. May you enjoy your gorgeous violin for many years to come...and thank you for your warm words of friendship. I feel the same. Take care. Mary💗

Hello! I remember vividly my very first appearance on stage and a kid. I was an angel in a nativity play and it was a complete shock to my system to go on stage and suddenly experience the lights and the audience. It felt like suddenly being thrown into the dark sea at night without a lifebelt! Did I sink or swim? I swam furiously! Mary💗