Hi Mary, it's wonderful to see you sharing your incredible talent this way. You always made the most beautiful sound on your violin that I ever heard, and seeing you share your wisdom here brings me much joy. Love to you.
I’m hoping to start taking lessons in September. I’m trying to learn as much as I can by watching TH-cam videos. I really like the way you explain things. Thanks for the great advice and videos.
Hello Brian! Thank you very much, I'm very glad you're enjoying my videos and finding them helpful. One thing to bear in mind about all the violin advice on TH-cam, (including mine) is that some of your ideas may seem to clash with those of your teacher. I've found this with my own students when discovering they have preconceived notions (some great, some not so helpful!) about violin playing that need to be uncovered. But good teachers have their own methods to help their student to progress and I hope you have a very successful and enjoyable experience. Mary❤
Hello, Mary. This video is also great. It is great for me as I am self-taught. About the pain, I think I was self-confirming by having pain. It seems that I was consciously or unconsciously generating force and pain to check the position of my body and feel a sense of accomplishment from the practice. Pain is still a very important sign. I want to find a way to be pain-free and enjoy the violin. I have learnt a lot from your videos. Shin😊
Hello Shin! I'm very glad you found the video helpful, thank you. You have mentioned a really important but often hidden factor in violin; pleasure versus pain. You are absolutely right that for many personal reasons, some from our childhood, we validate our hard work by making sure there is pain involved. This is a conditioned and often rewarded position: Pain can certainly make us feel we've worked hard. But the drawback to this approach on the violin is that pain and discomfort always hinders our progress... So if we learn techniques and do simple basic things on the violin while relaxing and observing, we give ourselves a chance to alter our mindset to a much more effective state for progress - pleasure and even joy. We can marry these feelings to our philosophy of cherishing our chance to play the violin and to enjoy every minute of our precious lives... With this mindset then any pain we experience is dealt with from a very different standpoint. We can now view pain as an important signal to ourselves and we can learn techniques to eliminate it from our own precious violin world, just as you said so wisely. Take care. Mary💗
Dear Mary: Once again you are so helpful (and so right)! Because the violin is such a 'personal instrument' it is up to each of us to experiment with sound and technique that will enable us to allow the music to "sing". I was always looking for the rule that applied and low and behold I learned after much frustration to do it 'my way.' My go-to rule is this, "If it sounds good, it is good!"
Dear Bonnie, thank you very much for those inspired and wise words; 'If it sounds good, it is good!' I so agree with you that the more we free ourselves from the 'shoulds' of rules and apply the 'possibles' of experiments, we can discover incredible resources inside us. With the right mindset, self observation yields knowledge about how to progress. Let's be happy violinists... Keep up your wonderful enthusiasm and thanks again! Mary❤
Hola Mary! Magníficas reflexiones, como siempre!👏👏👏👏 En TH-cam encontramos muchos violinistas que nos ayudan con sus clases virtuales, como Mary V.😊 Aprendo mucho en todos estos canales y también observando a los violinistas que tanto admiramos: Menuhin, Heifetz, Hadelich, Hahn, Capuçon... Pero, sin duda, para mí es fundamental tener un profesor que me conoce y adapta la enseñanza a mis necesidades...En los casi ocho años que estudió violín, he tenido varios profesores y mi agradecimiento hacia sus enseñanzas es eterno! Todos diferentes y todos excelentes profesionales y maravillosas personas! Aunque haga mucho calor 🌞, voy a seguir experimentando con mi violín y disfrutando de la experiencia del aprendizaje! Mil gracias Mary y un abrazo enorme desde un Madrid muy caluroso!🌞😎🌞💚🎶💜🎻
Hello Lola! It's wonderful to speak about your teachers that way and to know what's right for you! I used to listen constantly to records of Leonid Kogan playing the Mendelssohn , Beethoven and Tchaikovsky Concertos and I nearly hung up my violin for good...but later when I saw Kogan on TH-cam with his rather rigid, stern demeanour and huge hands I was shocked - he wasn't what I'd imagined at all! It gives me a thrill when I come across a violinist like Krill Troussev using wrist vibrato as I do, or Bomsori who has small hands like me...how they play is so fascinating and they look so different, but they both have superb techniques perfectly adapted to their different physiques. I hope it doesn't get too hot to play your violin in Madrid at the moment. There's no danger of that here in Scotland this summer; we've had nice days but with lots of rain... So my garden is beautifully lush!🌻🪷🌸 A great big hug Lola!! Mary❤
@@violinstudiowithmaryvHola Mary! Recuerdo tus anteriores comentarios sobre Kogan...su maravilloso sonido parecía no concordar con su manera "rígida y severa" al interpretar... Sin duda un intérprete único! Hace poco encontré un CD Leonid KOGAN - MILESTONES OF A LEGEND...y es difícil encontrar palabras para describir ese sonido tan especial... Aún no lo he escuchado todo... Espero que sigas disfrutando de tu maravilloso jardín y de la lluvia...ojalá llueva pronto en Madrid, lo necesitamos! Hoy 39°C🙄 Muy difícil practicar con el violín...Esperaré a mañana😉 Un gran abrazo, Mary, y mil gracias por tus comentarios! 👏👏👏👏👏🤗💚🎶💚🎻💚🌧😉 Por cierto, en el pasado mes de febrero pude ver y escuchar Bomsori Kim interpretar a Chaikovski...aún recuerdo que me impresionó mucho! Fue una experiencia muy intensa!
@@lolamas3042 Hi Lola! I don't know how on earth you can even think of playing (or doing anything) at 39C!! I hope you get some rain to freshen everything up- I love the smell of hot summer pavements after rain, don't you? I couldn't agree more with you that the wonderful Leonid Kogan's sound is incredible and he plays so elegantly! I especially love his legendary playing of the Beethoven Concerto with the glorious cadenza with triple chords played like one note. It's an achievement of the ages... And how wonderful to see Bomsori!! It always seems impossible when great players play a wonderful Concerto. The dedication and talent devoted to achieving such heights is incredible. What an inspiration!! I hope you are having a great summer in beautiful Madrid. Take care. Mary❤
Another great lesson... thanks! A question... I'm wondering if you might sometime recommend a good practice routine.. for example working in warmups, scales, well-known music, then new material... (unless you've already done this and I somehow missed the video)... thanks again.
Hello! Thanks, I'm glad you like the video. It seems you already have a great practice routine! What routine you adopt or whether you have a routine at all is a matter of your desires and your philosophy. It's rather difficult to recommend any routine or repertoire specifically because everyone is at different stages and has different needs. For example, you may well have something in your bow arm or your left hand that should be corrected before going forward. So we must spend time directly looking at, correcting and improving our technique every time we practice...and improvements are much faster and more permanent using simple scales, studies and open strings as our means, so our 'routine' must give way to that. Warmups can be playing a few scales then a piece like the Paradis "Sicillienne' to encourage the left hand to loosen up with loads of vibrato and the right hand to use a beautiful touch, or in the colder months a thorough warmup for colder fingers with scales and the Kreutzer 2nd Etude. With some of my students we examine a single issue and use simpler exercises to enable the student to explore all the aspects we've discussed on their own during the week. At other times we explore pieces and studies that really challenge the student to produce a consistent vibrato or a particular bowing, whatever is needed to push that student, so it's all very tailored...and very flexible according to the need. Mary❤
Hi Mary. I agree, at least for me, that I need the shoulder rest at an angle in order to swing the violin more toward the front so I don’t have to twist my neck to the left so much (I have chronic neck pain due to stenosis). However, after much internal deliberation, I am pretty certain the angle should be opposite of what you show. Could you please consider that? Thanks for your marvelous insights!!!
Hello! Thank you very much! I'm so sorry you have chronic neck pain and I'm sure that not twisting your neck to the left and having your head facing more to the front is essential to cut down on strains and pains. The same applies to every violinists; as natural as possible is best for us all. I don't understand which angle you mean that should be the opposite of what I showed...I'm really intrigued! Mary❤
@@violinstudiowithmaryvAt 1:20 into the video, you’re talking about the shoulder rest. You said by putting the shoulder rest at the angle you showed, right side of shoulder rest higher than the left, it swings the violin more toward the front. I’m pretty certain that if the LEFT side is higher, it swings the violin more to the front. It’s a brain bender but if you set the shoulder rest on a table and then hold the violin, string side up, over it straight initially. Then, twist the violin toward the desired direction (clockwise), you’ll see where the shoulder rest should be relative to the violin. Thanks for your open mind and concern for me!
Hello! Thanks very much for explaining the results of your experiments, I'm very grateful. I love that you've been experimenting. Whatever you decide to do in the end, I hope you find a truly comfortable position that enables your neck to be free of pain. We all experience pain from time to time; (my pains and strains are usually connected to gardening!) But it's very different when you have a serious condition that needs to be managed properly, especially if you play the violin!! I do hope that you find a way to be pain free because playing the violin is so wonderful and so rewarding. I wish you all the best! Take care, Mary❤
Thanks, Mary. I’m 73 and just started violin 1 year ago. That’s what I wanted to play in elementary school orchestra but the music teacher said, “Long arms, Trombone!” My wife encouraged me to take violin up. I’m so glad I did. She unfortunately passed away a few weeks ago but the gift of her encouragement keeps on giving. ❤
Hello! My deepest condolences for the loss of your wife. Her encouragement of you to take up violin at any age is a great testament to her wisdom. I hope that learning the violin will be a continuing inspiration and encouragement to you. Please contact me any time with any queries about your progress. Take care. Mary❤
@@violinstudiowithmaryv I am a multi-instrumentalist on guitar and violin. I play non-classical styles (jazz, bluegrass, country, rock, pop etc,) which is mostly improvised or with chord charts. I want to learn some basic classical stuff, but don't know where to start. In my youth, I learned a few etudes and some Kreutzer, and had some lessons from a series of good teachers, but my violin sight reading is zilch. I learned music from age 5 from piano and singing lessons, but also had a bit of Solfege and choir in school. I have a good ear and know some theory. At this point, I get paid to play, so I guess I'm a professional. BTW, I play without a shoulder rest most of the time. Where do I start? Bach? Mozart? Carl Flesch? ??
Hello, thanks for your question... Can you do vibrato, shifting and playing off the string? What pieces did you play with your teachers? Only by knowing your level of technique can I recommend pieces and studies.. Looking forward to your reply. Take care. Mary❤
Hi Mary, it's wonderful to see you sharing your incredible talent this way. You always made the most beautiful sound on your violin that I ever heard, and seeing you share your wisdom here brings me much joy. Love to you.
Hi Jo! Thank you so much for your loving words.
A big hug! Mary❤
I’m hoping to start taking lessons in September. I’m trying to learn as much as I can by watching TH-cam videos. I really like the way you explain things. Thanks for the great advice and videos.
Hello Brian!
Thank you very much, I'm very glad you're enjoying my videos and finding them helpful.
One thing to bear in mind about all the violin advice on TH-cam, (including mine) is that some of your ideas may seem to clash with those of your teacher.
I've found this with my own students when discovering they have preconceived notions (some great, some not so helpful!) about violin playing that need to be uncovered.
But good teachers have their own methods to help their student to progress and I hope you have a very successful and enjoyable experience. Mary❤
Your counsel is highly respected. Thanks again!
Hello, Mary.
This video is also great. It is great for me as I am self-taught.
About the pain, I think I was self-confirming by having pain. It seems that I was consciously or unconsciously generating force and pain to check the position of my body and feel a sense of accomplishment from the practice. Pain is still a very important sign.
I want to find a way to be pain-free and enjoy the violin.
I have learnt a lot from your videos.
Shin😊
Hello Shin! I'm very glad you found the video helpful, thank you.
You have mentioned a really important but often hidden factor in violin; pleasure versus pain. You are absolutely right that for many personal reasons, some from our childhood, we validate our hard work by making sure there is pain involved. This is a conditioned and often rewarded position: Pain can certainly make us feel we've worked hard.
But the drawback to this approach on the violin is that pain and discomfort always hinders our progress...
So if we learn techniques and do simple basic things on the violin while relaxing and observing, we give ourselves a chance to alter our mindset to a much more effective state for progress - pleasure and even joy.
We can marry these feelings to our philosophy of cherishing our chance to play the violin and to enjoy every minute of our precious lives...
With this mindset then any pain we experience is dealt with from a very different standpoint.
We can now view pain as an important signal to ourselves and we can learn techniques to eliminate it from our own precious violin world, just as you said so wisely.
Take care. Mary💗
A great lesson thank you. Stay pain free and experiment.
Thanks very much- that's the ticket! Mary❤
Dear Mary: Once again you are so helpful (and so right)! Because the violin is such a 'personal instrument' it is up to each of us to experiment with sound and technique that will enable us to allow the music to "sing". I was always looking for the rule that applied and low and behold I learned after much frustration to do it 'my way.' My go-to rule is this, "If it sounds good, it is good!"
Dear Bonnie, thank you very much for those inspired and wise words;
'If it sounds good, it is good!'
I so agree with you that the more we free ourselves from the 'shoulds' of rules and apply the 'possibles' of experiments, we can discover incredible resources inside us. With the right mindset, self observation yields knowledge about how to progress. Let's be happy violinists...
Keep up your wonderful enthusiasm and thanks again! Mary❤
Thank you Mary V! I can understand almost all the words you say … where are you from?
Hello! I'm glad you got most of it!
I'm Scottish. Mary❤
Hola Mary! Magníficas reflexiones, como siempre!👏👏👏👏 En TH-cam encontramos muchos violinistas que nos ayudan con sus clases virtuales, como Mary V.😊 Aprendo mucho en todos estos canales y también observando a los violinistas que tanto admiramos: Menuhin, Heifetz, Hadelich, Hahn, Capuçon... Pero, sin duda, para mí es fundamental tener un profesor que me conoce y adapta la enseñanza a mis necesidades...En los casi ocho años que estudió violín, he tenido varios profesores y mi agradecimiento hacia sus enseñanzas es eterno! Todos diferentes y todos excelentes profesionales y maravillosas personas! Aunque haga mucho calor 🌞, voy a seguir experimentando con mi violín y disfrutando de la experiencia del aprendizaje! Mil gracias Mary y un abrazo enorme desde un Madrid muy caluroso!🌞😎🌞💚🎶💜🎻
Hello Lola! It's wonderful to speak about your teachers that way and to know what's right for you! I used to listen constantly to records of Leonid Kogan playing the Mendelssohn , Beethoven and Tchaikovsky Concertos and I nearly hung up my violin for good...but later when I saw Kogan on TH-cam with his rather rigid, stern demeanour and huge hands I was shocked - he wasn't what I'd imagined at all!
It gives me a thrill when I come across a violinist like Krill Troussev using wrist vibrato as I do, or Bomsori who has small hands like me...how they play is so fascinating and they look so different, but they both have superb techniques perfectly adapted to their different physiques.
I hope it doesn't get too hot to play your violin in Madrid at the moment. There's no danger of that here in Scotland this summer; we've had nice days but with lots of rain...
So my garden is beautifully lush!🌻🪷🌸
A great big hug Lola!! Mary❤
@@violinstudiowithmaryvHola Mary! Recuerdo tus anteriores comentarios sobre Kogan...su maravilloso sonido parecía no concordar con su manera "rígida y severa" al interpretar... Sin duda un intérprete único! Hace poco encontré un CD Leonid KOGAN - MILESTONES OF A LEGEND...y es difícil encontrar palabras para describir ese sonido tan especial... Aún no lo he escuchado todo... Espero que sigas disfrutando de tu maravilloso jardín y de la lluvia...ojalá llueva pronto en Madrid, lo necesitamos! Hoy 39°C🙄 Muy difícil practicar con el violín...Esperaré a mañana😉 Un gran abrazo, Mary, y mil gracias por tus comentarios! 👏👏👏👏👏🤗💚🎶💚🎻💚🌧😉 Por cierto, en el pasado mes de febrero pude ver y escuchar Bomsori Kim interpretar a Chaikovski...aún recuerdo que me impresionó mucho! Fue una experiencia muy intensa!
@@lolamas3042 Hi Lola! I don't know how on earth you can even think of playing (or doing anything) at 39C!! I hope you get some rain to freshen everything up- I love the smell of hot summer pavements after rain, don't you?
I couldn't agree more with you that the wonderful Leonid Kogan's sound is incredible and he plays so elegantly!
I especially love his legendary playing of the Beethoven Concerto with the glorious cadenza with triple chords played like one note. It's an achievement of the ages...
And how wonderful to see Bomsori!! It always seems impossible when great players play a wonderful Concerto. The dedication and talent devoted to achieving such heights is incredible. What an inspiration!!
I hope you are having a great summer in beautiful Madrid. Take care. Mary❤
Another great lesson... thanks! A question... I'm wondering if you might sometime recommend a good practice routine.. for example working in warmups, scales, well-known music, then new material... (unless you've already done this and I somehow missed the video)... thanks again.
Hello! Thanks, I'm glad you like the video. It seems you already have a great practice routine!
What routine you adopt or whether you have a routine at all is a matter of your desires and your philosophy. It's rather difficult to recommend any routine or repertoire specifically because everyone is at different stages and has different needs. For example, you may well have something in your bow arm or your left hand that should be corrected before going forward.
So we must spend time directly looking at, correcting and improving our technique every time we practice...and improvements are much faster and more permanent using simple scales, studies and open strings as our means, so our 'routine' must give way to that.
Warmups can be playing a few scales then a piece like the Paradis "Sicillienne' to encourage the left hand to loosen up with loads of vibrato and the right hand to use a beautiful touch, or in the colder months a thorough warmup for colder fingers with scales and the Kreutzer 2nd Etude.
With some of my students we examine a single issue and use simpler exercises to enable the student to explore all the aspects we've discussed on their own during the week.
At other times we explore pieces and studies that really challenge the student to produce a consistent vibrato or a particular bowing, whatever is needed to push that student, so it's all very tailored...and very flexible according to the need. Mary❤
@@violinstudiowithmaryv Thanks kindly for your suggestions.
Hi Mary. I agree, at least for me, that I need the shoulder rest at an angle in order to swing the violin more toward the front so I don’t have to twist my neck to the left so much (I have chronic neck pain due to stenosis). However, after much internal deliberation, I am pretty certain the angle should be opposite of what you show. Could you please consider that? Thanks for your marvelous insights!!!
Hello! Thank you very much!
I'm so sorry you have chronic neck pain and I'm sure that not twisting your neck to the left and having your head facing more to the front is essential to cut down on strains and pains. The same applies to every violinists; as natural as possible is best for us all.
I don't understand which angle you mean that should be the opposite of what I showed...I'm really intrigued! Mary❤
@@violinstudiowithmaryvAt 1:20 into the video, you’re talking about the shoulder rest. You said by putting the shoulder rest at the angle you showed, right side of shoulder rest higher than the left, it swings the violin more toward the front. I’m pretty certain that if the LEFT side is higher, it swings the violin more to the front. It’s a brain bender but if you set the shoulder rest on a table and then hold the violin, string side up, over it straight initially. Then, twist the violin toward the desired direction (clockwise), you’ll see where the shoulder rest should be relative to the violin. Thanks for your open mind and concern for me!
Hello! Thanks very much for explaining the results of your experiments, I'm very grateful.
I love that you've been experimenting. Whatever you decide to do in the end, I hope you find a truly comfortable position that enables your neck to be free of pain. We all experience pain from time to time; (my pains and strains are usually connected to gardening!)
But it's very different when you have a serious condition that needs to be managed properly, especially if you play the violin!!
I do hope that you find a way to be pain free because playing the violin is so wonderful and so rewarding.
I wish you all the best! Take care, Mary❤
Thanks, Mary. I’m 73 and just started violin 1 year ago. That’s what I wanted to play in elementary school orchestra but the music teacher said, “Long arms, Trombone!” My wife encouraged me to take violin up. I’m so glad I did. She unfortunately passed away a few weeks ago but the gift of her encouragement keeps on giving. ❤
Hello!
My deepest condolences for the loss of your wife. Her encouragement of you to take up violin at any age is a great testament to her wisdom.
I hope that learning the violin will be a continuing inspiration and encouragement to you. Please contact me any time with any queries about your progress.
Take care. Mary❤
You are very insightfull.
Hello! I hope it's helpful! Mary❤
@@violinstudiowithmaryv as always. I am much more pain free and less tension as a result of your videos. If I only had a repertoire!
@@chickensandsuch.1754 How to you mean, 'If only had a repertoire!' ? Do you not have pieces to play? Mary❤
@@violinstudiowithmaryv I am a multi-instrumentalist on guitar and violin. I play non-classical styles (jazz, bluegrass, country, rock, pop etc,) which is mostly improvised or with chord charts. I want to learn some basic classical stuff, but don't know where to start. In my youth, I learned a few etudes and some Kreutzer, and had some lessons from a series of good teachers, but my violin sight reading is zilch. I learned music from age 5 from piano and singing lessons, but also had a bit of Solfege and choir in school. I have a good ear and know some theory. At this point, I get paid to play, so I guess I'm a professional. BTW, I play without a shoulder rest most of the time. Where do I start? Bach? Mozart? Carl Flesch? ??
Hello, thanks for your question...
Can you do vibrato, shifting and playing off the string? What pieces did you play with your teachers?
Only by knowing your level of technique can I recommend pieces and studies..
Looking forward to your reply.
Take care. Mary❤