Alison, how very nice of you to make this available free of charge. There are a lot of kids out there that cannot afford Lessons. You are gracious to provide and share your knowledge base with so many people.
I am learning from your easy well versed teaching style. My first violin teacher had me hold an uncooked egg in my left hand as I held the violin without dropping it. Of course I dropped it with the lesson subsequently being over! Thank you for your many detailed explanations!
I don't know how to thank you! I live in Saudi Arabia which most people there believe that music is forbidden for religious reasons, So I could not find a teacher at all and I almost lost hope! But I really wanted to learn so I started watching your videos until I found a teacher and now I take classes with her. I hope you do realize how great person you are for making these videos available for free!
As a guitarist i can say the best way to hear your self is to record yourself. Many people dont know bad they are until they hear them selves recorded. That goes not only for intonation(on guitar when bending a string one can be out of tune) but also timing.
Yeah I think she's right about many people not being able to fully hear everything as theyre playing. It definitely seems like we're just too focused on playing and can't hear every little nuance so it's a good idea to sit and just listen to yourself play.
unset the fine tuner and start again... sometimes when the fine tuners on my students violins a fully down and cant turn anymore, i occasionally 'reset; them so i unwind them to a reasonable length then re tune best i can with pegs.
I love you teacher! i actually don´t have enought money to get violin leassons ( on my place are very expensive) and many times i wanted to give up, but i am in love of the instrument, and your videos have been like a glass of wather on desert, so i thank you! im so gratfull my beloved teacher! God Bless your life !
I play guitar and totally agree with the practice at slow speeds part. When you practice slow you're practicing consistency. In other words, you're just trying to play everything in time, every time you play it. If you can play a piece consistently at slow speeds then speeding it up is just an exercise on relaxation. Clear your mind and it just becomes muscle memory.
Thank you so much for this! I have been self-learning the violin for one month now and I'm loving it! I can't get access to lessons at the moment due to the pandemic so I am very grateful for your videos. I played as a saxophonist professionally for a few years but the job I was in made me very unhappy and sadly I lost my love for music as a result. After several years of not playing, I haven't had the heart to pick up the saxophone again, so thought I'd try something different. I have to say, the violin is a wonderful instrument and I haven't felt this excited about music in a long time.
I've owned a violin for about 1 week now, and I'm finding the hardest part about self-teaching is not knowing you're making a mistake until you find a video on it... Then you have to go back over something you thought you've already nailed because you've been doing it all wrong and need to nip it in the bud before you develop a bad habit that hinders you in the future. For example, I really didn't know how important it was for the 4th finger to sit directly on top of the bow, or why the thumb needed to be bent in and not out. So after learning to bow (mostly) straight and (almost) not hit the other strings, I'm back to square-1 re-learning it with the proper hold. (...and oh my poor hand... 😖😰). Luckily when my hand needs a break, I can just fill the time with practicing fingerboard positions and the wrist movements for vibrato, even though I'm still only on the open-string practice sheet. No harm in getting a head start, right? (Or is there??)
Having bought a violin for my 7 year old grandchild I started going through all the videos on learning and preparing the violin before she went to school. I was giving up when I cam to Alison. Alison you are the best. I managed to prepare the violin and my Rebecca.
when I chose to take the violin up as a hobby/long time interest, I was petrified that I was making the wrong choice because I couldn't afford lessons/biting off more than I could chew, but your videos have helped me become more confident that I'm making the right choice in picking it up!
I am a total beginner who's never even seen a violin in person. I am teaching myself how to play though by watching youtube videos and getting the basic fundamentals down. I like your videos because they don't put me off from wanting to learn.
Excellent! I am self taught since about age 52, but haven't practiced for a long time about 64. I am striving to restart as it was fun for this old cornet player. One of the things you mentioned in this lesson was to press the string "to" the fingerboard! I have a "C" tuning fork. It has nothing to do with the violin, but when you strike it, it vibrates and moves the air and the sound is so faint. When you press the vibrating fork to wood, it sort of grounds the vibration and the sound resonates loud and clear. The part about the student not listening to what they are playing is like trying to improve their bowling score by throwing the ball down the alley, turning your back and walking away only to look back after the pins have fallen. If one don't see or hear the most important parts of either activity, then the only difference between the violin and a bowling ball is that one is lighter!
I can attest to the slow practice being the best way to improve. I just had a great (boring) practice session yesterday in which I went incredible slow to insure all the technique was accurate, I picked up my violin today, and oh my word! the difference! My bowing tone has finally found a sweet sound, not just a scratchy sawing sound. LOVE IT! Thank you so much Alison, you tips are the best!
Fantastic Advice. I am an Advanced Piano Student performing Rachmaninoff Preludes and so many of these steps I remember when I practice the piano even now with new Harder pieces. Everyone listen to her; She is correct, take it from me who has been there. Only the first few Common Mistakes listed here are JUST for the Violin. The others listed here are for ANY instrument, including the Violin.
I would have LOVED to have you as my Orchestra teacher/conductor. Not the one I had...Basically ignored all the guys in the orchestra. And basically expected us to be brilliant and top notch. IN PRIMARY SCHOOL (5th Grade) >.< Turned me off to the whole idea. Now, I am back into the swing and want to pick up the violin again and these are helping. :) Thanks!
Found this video today gonna do some learning for the the violin, which I'm already realizing i'm in for a difficult time (every thing about the violin is extraordinarily awkward feeling to me). The thing with music and starting an instrument for me was in the beginning is it always was more tedious than fun and it's easy to feel frustrated and more so discouraged by your inabilities at the time. If you can push through to learn the basics you'll slowly build yourself. The fun comes like a savings account, the more you put into it the more you'll later receive back. Four things worth mentioning: 1:I find that if you play an instrument, if you decide to learn another, your experience with whatever instrument you play will help you. 2:Quite frequently there's times where you'll practice constantly with your instrument/play and your skill level is just hanging about and you're not seeing yourself get better, after some time though you'll notice your improvement and feel rewarded. 3:This may be personally be only for me but quite frequently when you think you're getting better and are feeling satisfied,.I find that i'll get discouraged when I see someone else abilities/skills/technique and realize my skill level is still garbage. Just when I thought I got better I learned I'm still inadequate. If you feel like you'll never be that good, keep striving for greatness, you'll soon make up for your dissatisfaction. 4:If you quit playing for a good while, when you come back you'll find that you are sucking, however everything that you once were able to do should come back to you within a short period of time. When I stop playing for a month or more I'll be horrible but it comes all back to me 3x as fast (I'd estimate).
+PCPSavedMyLife2013 - My main reason I want to learn the violin is so I can create greater more orchestral sounding compositions. I'm afraid I'll never be satiated I play guitar, keyboards, learning tin whistle, however I want to play violin and trumpet. Until I'm proficient enough to be a one man band lol.
GO FOR IT! A old dog can learn new tricks. (Even though you're still young). It doesn't matter how old you are to learn an instrument, it's said to be pretty tricky to learn but if you keep practicing you'll get it. I'm starting lessons next week.
The negative attitude or 'can't do it' point spans across all instruments. I blame one word: Talent Like any musician got to be great without years and years of dedication and practice.
Yeah. Musical talent and the practice that goes into being able to express your musical talent are two different things. Just because you aren't a virtuoso and play the moment you pick it up does not mean you aren't talented.
hahaha I'm very late but when I was practising with my teacher some people I know walked pass the room I was playing and it was my 2 lesson and he said to my other friend that I was terrible. when I have to go to my lesson I never say what instrument because I'm scared that people would expect too much of me. sorry that was a bit sad
hello Alison. i just wanted to say this is one of the videos that motivates me to correct my playing.its been 8 months since ive been playing, learning on my own mostly referring to your videos as lessons its been so helpful to my progress. So thank you so much.
I'm 61 and just started learning violin! Loving your inital lessons teachiung the basics and I hope to get good enought to pay for the further lessons soon. Thank you for your empathy and patience.
I use "Da Tuner Lite" to tune my violin and it works really well. I tried tuning my violin with my piano, but if I use the tuning app on my phone it seems like that the sound is more exact. I hope it's a good idea.. Thanks for your videos though, they help A LOT!!
I cannot express to you how much I appreciate your time and effort you put into teach us about the violin, I do not own a violin yet, but I watch your videos over and over. I hope to buy one this next week. I am buying a hand made violin from a reputable local musical instrument maker, I am taking what I have learned from you and what he recommends for a beginner/intermediate violin in his shop. Thanks to you I know what to listen for and see in picking a violin. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!
Thank you so much for these videos! I recently rented a violin and only practice for about 30 to 45 mins a day. I can't take lessons now so these vids are super helpful. I'm being careful not to try to move on too quickly without mastering the basics. I have to stop regularly to re-position my fingers or stop myself when I'm scratchy. Thank you so much =)
Totally true about the practicing. Before high school, I didn't practice at all. But during my freshman and sophomore years of high school when I had free periods and nothing to do, I would spend a little time practicing. I found that frequently playing a lot of new music (which also helped with my sight-reading) made me want to practice more. Now that I've reached a higher level, I spend anywhere from 2 to 4 hours each day on my viola.
This is a great video 'check list" people shoud go through each tme they pick up their instrument when first learning, and thsi can be applied to any instrument being learned! Especially NOT trying to play up to speed when thesound quality is lacking, fingers are misplaced, and pitch is entirely off! Running over mistakes is another fantastic point....when I FIRST picked up my violin - just to get posture, fingering, and bowing, altogether and smooth, I played only "Twlinkle, Twinkle Little Star" for MONTHS, along with very slow scales to get my fingers to learn their positions and begin to fall naturally by listening for the absolute proper pitch. I think you are absolutely correct when you state that "if it is only one bar of music" wherein lies the mistake, keep practicing that bar and fingering, then being to combine it with the bars around it-- AGAIN - at a very slow pace so the brain, ears, and fingers get the memory imprint - repetition and rehearsal are the key to perfect performances, and people staritng out need to be kind to themselves by allowing their brain to get the "imprinted memory" of muscle coordination combined with hearing the correct pitch., and feeling as this is coming quite naturally. The violin is NOT a forgiving instrument as are others, any slight mistake is very noticeable, so your advice to slow it down, learn the notes, fingering, and hear the correct pitch and sound - without timing, to begin with, in some cases, helps to make progress on a piece much easier, and actually makes progress faster when one starts slowly. The entire process far less frustrating!! After watching the video covering practice guidelines, one point for beginners is that 'over' practice can sound horrible as it progresses because of muscle fatigue, then the violin droops, or fingers get tired.
I love that not all of these were literal physical aspects of playing. Our minds and habits are our biggest advocates or our worst enemies and it applies to musical studies as well as life! Love these videos, thanks so much.
Hi Alison! I just wanted to drop a comment to say thank you!! I played violin from when I was about 7 or 8 until I was 14. I gave it up because my teacher was an old grump and never was satisfied with my posture and constantly changing his mind about it!! Anyway, I've started picking it up again with a new set of (hopefully more mature) eyes and your videos have helped me remember everything I was taught as a child. Thank you for producing this wonderful, insightful videos for the Internet!
you should in theory play one now stroke for each note unless the music otherwise dictates. it dont want to get all complicated on you, but at very beginner level, this will be the case and by the time you come to worry about it, you wont find it a problem,
I'm so glad I found your channel. I always wanted to play violin for myself and when I was in secondary school they refused to let me because I had a background in flute. Your videos make me remember that I can do anything I wish to if it makes me happy.
hi allison being an adult from south africa that started learning to play the violin a year ago i often get slack holding the violin properly bowing correctly and make the basic and common mistakes. i got so disheartened lately because when i was playing it just never sounded good anymore. while playing it sounded scrathy and i seldom could avoid brushing over the other strings. you are one of my favorite online tutors, especially this video and another where you motivate us not to give up when one are not coming right in the beginning.i have lots of patience and preserverance but wont lie that learning to play the violin has tested stretched that patience to the limit. thank you for giving me hope to to try again.
I love you Alison. You are so kind. Because of your kindness now I can play violin after one year following your lesson. My very long time dream since my childhood. I hope you will issue the book 4 to study the advanced level.
Don't worry! You can do it! Just start practicing again from the beginning and go at a pace that's reasonable for you. I stopped playing when I was 21 (started when I was 15) and I'm now 27. I had a year (2009) where I did take a few lessons on a beginner level on purpose to help myself get rid of bad habits. It will require lots of practice but you can totally get back to the level where you were before in time. :) Good luck!
I get so inspired listening to you and watching your tutorials. havent been taiking my violin practise seriously for a while now because I feel am not progressing. but will have to use that discouragement to practise more. thanks a lot.
Yes, I have many many videos with me playing in them. Some video do not require me to play and if i did it would be out of context. Have a look at the videos on my channel page and you will see loads.
I have just started learning the violin(self-learning) and your video lessons are the reason that I am getting better and better every next day........thank you so much
Thank you so much! Thank you so so much for your wonderful videos. I really enjoy learning and listen to your playing. Just wondering if you could you do a short video playing etudes in fifths, 1st position A 2 please? Suzuki position etudes book. Thank you so much and God bless you
This was good to watch, I'm going to be getting a violin in 10 days for my birthday, and it was great to know the common mistakes so that I know what to look out for as I will be self teaching, I have taught myself piano since age 4 also
Hey youmenly, I'm 23 and I've been playing for a month with some lessons but most of my time is self-taught and just a lot of practice. I play about 1.5-2.5 hours a day and I can play the first 9 songs in the suzuki 1. You can absolutely do it, it's about time commitment. Practice every day, practice with purpose go in with a goal in mind and check bad habits frequently. If you want to do it, do it and be serious about it! (A teacher helps if you have the ability, prove that teacher wrong)
Thanks so much for all your videos! I plan to donate when I get the money, because I so much appreciate your very generous self. Thank you so much for sharing all your knowledge!
Playing for a week now. I find the metal clips that keep the chin rest on body incredibly uncomfortable on my bony clavicle. Watching this has helped as I was positioning the body too low. Thanks.
Dear Alison - I have a Stentor Elysia violin which is a lovely violin but am thinking of upgrading to the Stentor Amati - have you any opinion ? Have you played the Amati ? loving your tutorials. Many thanks David
These videos are fantastic! I started playing two months ago with no previous experience, and it nice to see the usual obstacles explained clearly. Thank you!
I am just starting as an adult violinist and love your videos! Great accent and have to say quite fetching. Thanks for your time you put into these videos. Very high quality advice.
thanks so much, im teaching myself violin (im diploma standard piano), and your videos really help me with little habits/mistakes that seem to occur in my playing. I've been playing a couple of weeks now, and I'm able to do a titch of vibrato, a little double stopping, and some carols in first position.
I’m glad i came across your videos. I was learning violin back in elementary when I was playing the xylophone as well unfortunately I never finished and after 5th grade I stopped with music classes all together fast forward to me at 31 and deciding to give it another try lol...I regret quitting it so hoping this time I can learn it.
I play some piano and I played trumpet in school, I always wanted to learn violin so I am going to try using you as a resource! You have great videos and good explanations. Wish me luck!
Videos like this make me very glad that I've learned other instruments beforehand! Most of these tips are fairly universal to other instruments, it's a good watch. I'm trying to pick my violin up now and it's a challenge. I could definitely do with a teacher but resources like this are really helpful. Thanks.
Love all of the videos so far. Just to say it out there, I always hear your intro as "online violin cheater" haha! keep up the videos! Checked out your site as well and is very helpful so far for beginners.
Very helpful as always thanks very much. Regarding tuning the violin I have seen people use a finger, thumb to strum the string to tune and other use the bow. Is this just a prefernce or does it matter? Thank you :)
I have some sheets under some of my videos from lesson 1-10 and also check out my playlist on covers and requests and i have done tutorials and written out the sheet music. If not, search the internet!
+Sasashi Yoshida I apologize for interrupting your question, but I am 55 years old and just beginning to learn to play the violin. Have fun, practice much, and have fun. Music is a rainbow.
Thank you for posting these great videos. I have always envied those that could play violin, and I tried once to play but had a super cheap violin. So I'm using what you have posted to hopefully try and make a dream come true!
I love the video i play six instruments and i always say to people if you don't put anything into it you won't get anything out of it.And being discouraged is a beast you have to keep plugin away with it.And when you start putting the time in one day you will be like that sound's pretty good and then you will get the inspiration leaving discouragement in the dust.
Self-producing really teaches you where your mistakes/imperfections are. I compose/write my own music; lots of recording, playback, and takes. As for tuning, if I'm in a rush and don't have the time to tune by ear, I use Pitch Perfect Guitar Tuner for Android/iOS/Windows/Mac/Linux--although it has tunings for other stringed instruments (including violin). Great list/tips!
Hi Alison, Will you be doing any more really easy tutorials. These are brillliant as they give me confidence and add to the interest during my learning of the violin. I feel as am achieving something. If you are thinking of another really easy tutorial i would definately recommend 'Fur Elise'. If you are not doing any more really easy tutorials do you know of any where i could purchase something something similar to your really easy methods.
The 'ten commandments' for violin playing (LOL) You've mentioned some great points here Alison. If I could add to your advice: Point 7. I always try to remember that there's no such word as 'cant' in your dictionary when learning to play the violin. Point 10. The odds of probability would indicate that an 'open' string will be played at some point in the music and it will be heard to be DREADFULLY out of tune. regards, Phil
thank you Alison, I'm just starting out learning to play the violin and I find your lessons very informative, again thank you and please keep teaching :)
I started early december with an instructor half hour a week. I got my self a stentor harlequin cherry red. in the process of putting fingers in right place. . I thought about using strips but my teacher hasnt mentioned it, he wants me to know with my ears. I struggle to keep my 2nd and 3rd fingers tight together but its slowling getting there. Ive banged out a few nursery rhymes with my little daughter lol oh and happy birthday as it was my friends 40th on saturday :-)
Thanks for the tips!!! I also play guitar, drums, keyboard, and a couple of other instruments- ALL of which I've learned the same things... all of which you've covered: correct form, speed kills(it will come with time/practice), PRACTICE, don't get mad, practice slower and then try at the speed you THOUGHT you were at, and you'll get there, etc. It seems the same rules apply to everything I've played. Thanks for your help... have watched many of your videos to help guide me through hard times like this and, of course, your reviews!
because I have trouble focussing the camera as I work on my own and i cant focus, then run back then re-focus etc and sometimes I get it slightly wrong as I cant always see the little screen on the camera so far back to see if im in focus!. Sorry.
Glad I watched this video. I'm extremely guilty of practicing too quickly. I just got a violin 2 weeks ago and I've only been playing for a week due to having to get it repaired, but for some reason I refuse to start out slowly (I guess I'm just impatient). I'm trying to teach myself to play a few Epica songs (a symphonic metal band with a professional orchestra) before I even learned to play "Hot Cross Buns". Then, of course, I get discouraged because I'm not picking it up right away and give up and try to play another equally challenging song. I'm really going to try to slow down and learn the basics first.
Alison. I play drums and try to mess around with guitars. Acoustic, electric, bass, banjitar. I just bought my 1st violin and found your videos. Thank you for them. I've got to say, and not rudely, you're beautiful. I can't concentrate on anything wise. you're pretty, your accents hot and you rock on violin. I'm sure you know this, but can't resist saying so.... Thank you...
just keep a little eye on the bow and just make sure you dont - thats the only thing you can do really and eventually you will train yourself not to bow near the bridge.
Alison, how very nice of you to make this available free of charge. There are a lot of kids out there that cannot afford Lessons. You are gracious to provide and share your knowledge base with so many people.
+Jack Crofoot You are welcome :)
agreed
:)
late but agreed 100%!
I am learning from your easy well versed teaching style. My first violin teacher had me hold an uncooked egg in my left hand as I held the violin without dropping it. Of course I dropped it with the lesson subsequently being over! Thank you for your many detailed explanations!
I don't know how to thank you! I live in Saudi Arabia which most people there believe that music is forbidden for religious reasons, So I could not find a teacher at all and I almost lost hope! But I really wanted to learn so I started watching your videos until I found a teacher and now I take classes with her.
I hope you do realize how great person you are for making these videos available for free!
Basma Asseeri music forbidden? What? That's Insanity.
Basma Asse
Saudi violinist
yeah i heard about that i hope you wont get into trouble for this???
I started learning from you 5 days ago I cannot go to a school for the pandemic. Thank you for having these lessons available.
As a guitarist i can say the best way to hear your self is to record yourself.
Many people dont know bad they are until they hear them selves recorded. That goes not only for intonation(on guitar when bending a string one can be out of tune) but also timing.
So true, I record my own practices every so often and didn't even realized how out of tune I am until I heard myself playing.
Yeah I think she's right about many people not being able to fully hear everything as theyre playing. It definitely seems like we're just too focused on playing and can't hear every little nuance so it's a good idea to sit and just listen to yourself play.
unset the fine tuner and start again...
sometimes when the fine tuners on my students violins a fully down and cant turn anymore, i occasionally 'reset; them so i unwind them to a reasonable length then re tune best i can with pegs.
I love you teacher! i actually don´t have enought money to get violin leassons ( on my place are very expensive) and many times i wanted to give up, but i am in love of the instrument, and your videos have been like a glass of wather on desert, so i thank you! im so gratfull my beloved teacher! God Bless your life !
I play guitar and totally agree with the practice at slow speeds part.
When you practice slow you're practicing consistency.
In other words, you're just trying to play everything in time, every time you play it.
If you can play a piece consistently at slow speeds then speeding it up is just an exercise on relaxation.
Clear your mind and it just becomes muscle memory.
Thank you so much for this! I have been self-learning the violin for one month now and I'm loving it! I can't get access to lessons at the moment due to the pandemic so I am very grateful for your videos. I played as a saxophonist professionally for a few years but the job I was in made me very unhappy and sadly I lost my love for music as a result. After several years of not playing, I haven't had the heart to pick up the saxophone again, so thought I'd try something different. I have to say, the violin is a wonderful instrument and I haven't felt this excited about music in a long time.
I've owned a violin for about 1 week now, and I'm finding the hardest part about self-teaching is not knowing you're making a mistake until you find a video on it... Then you have to go back over something you thought you've already nailed because you've been doing it all wrong and need to nip it in the bud before you develop a bad habit that hinders you in the future. For example, I really didn't know how important it was for the 4th finger to sit directly on top of the bow, or why the thumb needed to be bent in and not out. So after learning to bow (mostly) straight and (almost) not hit the other strings, I'm back to square-1 re-learning it with the proper hold. (...and oh my poor hand... 😖😰). Luckily when my hand needs a break, I can just fill the time with practicing fingerboard positions and the wrist movements for vibrato, even though I'm still only on the open-string practice sheet. No harm in getting a head start, right? (Or is there??)
StitchGV yes! I agree with what you say.
Having bought a violin for my 7 year old grandchild I started going through all the videos on learning and preparing the violin before she went to school. I was giving up when I cam to Alison. Alison you are the best. I managed to prepare the violin and my Rebecca.
when I chose to take the violin up as a hobby/long time interest, I was petrified that I was making the wrong choice because I couldn't afford lessons/biting off more than I could chew, but your videos have helped me become more confident that I'm making the right choice in picking it up!
"if you wanna play a D, You hit the D" 4:50 lol
I am a total beginner who's never even seen a violin in person. I am teaching myself how to play though by watching youtube videos and getting the basic fundamentals down. I like your videos because they don't put me off from wanting to learn.
Alison you are truly class act, love your accent and you dedication to help others with great advice , very beautiful as well.
Excellent! I am self taught since about age 52, but haven't practiced for a long time about 64. I am striving to restart as it was fun for this old cornet player.
One of the things you mentioned in this lesson was to press the string "to" the fingerboard! I have a "C" tuning fork. It has nothing to do with the violin, but when you strike it, it vibrates and moves the air and the sound is so faint. When you press the vibrating fork to wood, it sort of grounds the vibration and the sound resonates loud and clear.
The part about the student not listening to what they are playing is like trying to improve their bowling score by throwing the ball down the alley, turning your back and walking away only to look back after the pins have fallen. If one don't see or hear the most important parts of either activity, then the only difference between the violin and a bowling ball is that one is lighter!
I can attest to the slow practice being the best way to improve. I just had a great (boring) practice session yesterday in which I went incredible slow to insure all the technique was accurate, I picked up my violin today, and oh my word! the difference! My bowing tone has finally found a sweet sound, not just a scratchy sawing sound. LOVE IT! Thank you so much Alison, you tips are the best!
Fantastic Advice. I am an Advanced Piano Student performing Rachmaninoff Preludes and so many of these steps I remember when I practice the piano even now with new Harder pieces. Everyone listen to her; She is correct, take it from me who has been there. Only the first few Common Mistakes listed here are JUST for the Violin. The others listed here are for ANY instrument, including the Violin.
I would have LOVED to have you as my Orchestra teacher/conductor. Not the one I had...Basically ignored all the guys in the orchestra. And basically expected us to be brilliant and top notch. IN PRIMARY SCHOOL (5th Grade) >.< Turned me off to the whole idea. Now, I am back into the swing and want to pick up the violin again and these are helping. :) Thanks!
Found this video today gonna do some learning for the the violin, which I'm already realizing i'm in for a difficult time (every thing about the violin is extraordinarily awkward feeling to me).
The thing with music and starting an instrument for me was in the beginning is it always was more tedious than fun and it's easy to feel frustrated and more so discouraged by your inabilities at the time. If you can push through to learn the basics you'll slowly build yourself. The fun comes like a savings account, the more you put into it the more you'll later receive back. Four things worth mentioning:
1:I find that if you play an instrument, if you decide to learn another, your experience with whatever instrument you play will help you.
2:Quite frequently there's times where you'll practice constantly with your instrument/play and your skill level is just hanging about and you're not seeing yourself get better, after some time though you'll notice your improvement and feel rewarded.
3:This may be personally be only for me but quite frequently when you think you're getting better and are feeling satisfied,.I find that i'll get discouraged when I see someone else abilities/skills/technique and realize my skill level is still garbage. Just when I thought I got better I learned I'm still inadequate. If you feel like you'll never be that good, keep striving for greatness, you'll soon make up for your dissatisfaction.
4:If you quit playing for a good while, when you come back you'll find that you are sucking, however everything that you once were able to do should come back to you within a short period of time. When I stop playing for a month or more I'll be horrible but it comes all back to me 3x as fast (I'd estimate).
+PCPSavedMyLife2013 - My main reason I want to learn the violin is so I can create greater more orchestral sounding compositions. I'm afraid I'll never be satiated I play guitar, keyboards, learning tin whistle, however I want to play violin and trumpet. Until I'm proficient enough to be a one man band lol.
who are the people disliking your vids lol your vids are outstanding!
I cant please everyone obviously! :))
haha apparently
Well thank you again for your time.
local violin teachers?
haha maybe, haters
GO FOR IT! A old dog can learn new tricks. (Even though you're still young). It doesn't matter how old you are to learn an instrument, it's said to be pretty tricky to learn but if you keep practicing you'll get it. I'm starting lessons next week.
The negative attitude or 'can't do it' point spans across all instruments. I blame one word:
Talent
Like any musician got to be great without years and years of dedication and practice.
bizarrefruit d
Yeah. Musical talent and the practice that goes into being able to express your musical talent are two different things. Just because you aren't a virtuoso and play the moment you pick it up does not mean you aren't talented.
bizarrefruit yup
hahaha I'm very late but when I was practising with my teacher some people I know walked pass the room I was playing and it was my 2 lesson and he said to my other friend that I was terrible. when I have to go to my lesson I never say what instrument because I'm scared that people would expect too much of me. sorry that was a bit sad
hello Alison. i just wanted to say this is one of the videos that motivates me to correct my playing.its been 8 months since ive been playing, learning on my own mostly referring to your videos as lessons its been so helpful to my progress. So thank you so much.
I'm 61 and just started learning violin! Loving your inital lessons teachiung the basics and I hope to get good enought to pay for the further lessons soon. Thank you for your empathy and patience.
I use "Da Tuner Lite" to tune my violin and it works really well. I tried tuning my violin with my piano, but if I use the tuning app on my phone it seems like that the sound is more exact. I hope it's a good idea.. Thanks for your videos though, they help A LOT!!
You're welcome.
As an amateur in violin -with capital A - I find these tutorials very useful as it helps me think about how I'm doing in my classes.
I cannot express to you how much I appreciate your time and effort you put into teach us about the violin, I do not own a violin yet, but I watch your videos over and over. I hope to buy one this next week. I am buying a hand made violin from a reputable local musical instrument maker, I am taking what I have learned from you and what he recommends for a beginner/intermediate violin in his shop. Thanks to you I know what to listen for and see in picking a violin. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!
Thank you so much for these videos! I recently rented a violin and only practice for about 30 to 45 mins a day. I can't take lessons now so these vids are super helpful. I'm being careful not to try to move on too quickly without mastering the basics. I have to stop regularly to re-position my fingers or stop myself when I'm scratchy. Thank you so much =)
Totally true about the practicing. Before high school, I didn't practice at all. But during my freshman and sophomore years of high school when I had free periods and nothing to do, I would spend a little time practicing. I found that frequently playing a lot of new music (which also helped with my sight-reading) made me want to practice more. Now that I've reached a higher level, I spend anywhere from 2 to 4 hours each day on my viola.
This is a great video 'check list" people shoud go through each tme they pick up their instrument when first learning, and thsi can be applied to any instrument being learned!
Especially NOT trying to play up to speed when thesound quality is lacking, fingers are misplaced, and pitch is entirely off! Running over mistakes is another fantastic point....when I FIRST picked up my violin - just to get posture, fingering, and bowing, altogether and smooth, I played only "Twlinkle, Twinkle Little Star" for MONTHS, along with very slow scales to get my fingers to learn their positions and begin to fall naturally by listening for the absolute proper pitch.
I think you are absolutely correct when you state that "if it is only one bar of music" wherein lies the mistake, keep practicing that bar and fingering, then being to combine it with the bars around it-- AGAIN - at a very slow pace so the brain, ears, and fingers get the memory imprint - repetition and rehearsal are the key to perfect performances, and people staritng out need to be kind to themselves by allowing their brain to get the "imprinted memory" of muscle coordination combined with hearing the correct pitch., and feeling as this is coming quite naturally. The violin is NOT a forgiving instrument as are others, any slight mistake is very noticeable, so your advice to slow it down, learn the notes, fingering, and hear the correct pitch and sound - without timing, to begin with, in some cases, helps to make progress on a piece much easier, and actually makes progress faster when one starts slowly. The entire process far less frustrating!!
After watching the video covering practice guidelines, one point for beginners is that 'over' practice can sound horrible as it progresses because of muscle fatigue, then the violin droops, or fingers get tired.
I love that not all of these were literal physical aspects of playing. Our minds and habits are our biggest advocates or our worst enemies and it applies to musical studies as well as life! Love these videos, thanks so much.
Hi Alison! I just wanted to drop a comment to say thank you!! I played violin from when I was about 7 or 8 until I was 14. I gave it up because my teacher was an old grump and never was satisfied with my posture and constantly changing his mind about it!! Anyway, I've started picking it up again with a new set of (hopefully more mature) eyes and your videos have helped me remember everything I was taught as a child. Thank you for producing this wonderful, insightful videos for the Internet!
you should in theory play one now stroke for each note unless the music otherwise dictates. it dont want to get all complicated on you, but at very beginner level, this will be the case and by the time you come to worry about it, you wont find it a problem,
I'm so glad I found your channel. I always wanted to play violin for myself and when I was in secondary school they refused to let me because I had a background in flute. Your videos make me remember that I can do anything I wish to if it makes me happy.
hi allison being an adult from south africa that started learning to play the violin a year ago i often get slack holding the violin properly bowing correctly and make the basic and common mistakes. i got so disheartened lately because when i was playing it just never sounded good anymore. while playing it sounded scrathy and i seldom could avoid brushing over the other strings. you are one of my favorite online tutors, especially this video and another where you motivate us not to give up when one are not coming right in the beginning.i have lots of patience and preserverance but wont lie that learning to play the violin has tested stretched that patience to the limit. thank you for giving me hope to to try again.
I love you Alison. You are so kind. Because of your kindness now I can play violin after one year following your lesson. My very long time dream since my childhood. I hope you will issue the book 4 to study the advanced level.
Don't worry! You can do it! Just start practicing again from the beginning and go at a pace that's reasonable for you. I stopped playing when I was 21 (started when I was 15) and I'm now 27. I had a year (2009) where I did take a few lessons on a beginner level on purpose to help myself get rid of bad habits. It will require lots of practice but you can totally get back to the level where you were before in time. :) Good luck!
Just love your videos. They seem very intimate as if we are just sitting around with our violins and chatting. You're so detailed too. Thanks so much.
I get so inspired listening to you and watching your tutorials. havent been taiking my violin practise seriously for a while now because I feel am not progressing. but will have to use that discouragement to practise more. thanks a lot.
bowing is better as plucking the string means you wont hear the full effect of the sound and no harmonics coming off the violin afterwards.
Yes, I have many many videos with me playing in them. Some video do not require me to play and if i did it would be out of context.
Have a look at the videos on my channel page and you will see loads.
Approaching 50 this year dear sweet neighbor across the pond!!! And I am just starting out. I am so incredibly thankful for your sharing!!
Thank you so much for this lesson. I am new and it helps me a lot to see someone show how to do this and it's great I can play it over and over again.
I have just started learning the violin(self-learning) and your video lessons are the reason that I am getting better and better every next day........thank you so much
Thank you so much!
Thank you so so much for your wonderful videos. I really enjoy learning and listen to your playing. Just wondering if you could you do a short video playing etudes in fifths, 1st position A 2 please? Suzuki position etudes book. Thank you so much and God bless you
This was good to watch, I'm going to be getting a violin in 10 days for my birthday, and it was great to know the common mistakes so that I know what to look out for as I will be self teaching, I have taught myself piano since age 4 also
Hey youmenly, I'm 23 and I've been playing for a month with some lessons but most of my time is self-taught and just a lot of practice. I play about 1.5-2.5 hours a day and I can play the first 9 songs in the suzuki 1. You can absolutely do it, it's about time commitment. Practice every day, practice with purpose go in with a goal in mind and check bad habits frequently.
If you want to do it, do it and be serious about it! (A teacher helps if you have the ability, prove that teacher wrong)
Thanks so much for all your videos! I plan to donate when I get the money, because I so much appreciate your very generous self. Thank you so much for sharing all your knowledge!
I find this video very helpful in looking out for errors in my playing.thank you
Playing for a week now. I find the metal clips that keep the chin rest on body incredibly uncomfortable on my bony clavicle. Watching this has helped as I was positioning the body too low. Thanks.
These videos are a BIG help! Thank you! I will consider all of these tips!
Dear Alison - I have a Stentor Elysia violin which is a lovely violin but am thinking of upgrading to the Stentor Amati - have you any opinion ? Have you played the Amati ? loving your tutorials. Many thanks
David
"Anybody can do anything" very motivated words..... Thanks madam
I love your attitude towards playing violin! You are so positive and you have inspired me to play my violin.
These videos are fantastic! I started playing two months ago with no previous experience, and it nice to see the usual obstacles explained clearly. Thank you!
I am just starting as an adult violinist and love your videos! Great accent and have to say quite fetching. Thanks for your time you put into these videos. Very high quality advice.
Love your videos - thanks for posting them!
thanks so much, im teaching myself violin (im diploma standard piano), and your videos really help me with little habits/mistakes that seem to occur in my playing. I've been playing a couple of weeks now, and I'm able to do a titch of vibrato, a little double stopping, and some carols in first position.
Hey, you have some gret videos thanks for upload, I just bought a violin a week ago, were can I get some easy sheet music?
I’m glad i came across your videos. I was learning violin back in elementary when I was playing the xylophone as well unfortunately I never finished and after 5th grade I stopped with music classes all together fast forward to me at 31 and deciding to give it another try lol...I regret quitting it so hoping this time I can learn it.
the Stentor II is great for beginners. For me, there are no brands as we are talking thousands so it goes waaayyyy beyond brands now.
I play some piano and I played trumpet in school, I always wanted to learn violin so I am going to try using you as a resource! You have great videos and good explanations. Wish me luck!
THANK YOU for your time!! I really Appreciate it!!!
Videos like this make me very glad that I've learned other instruments beforehand! Most of these tips are fairly universal to other instruments, it's a good watch. I'm trying to pick my violin up now and it's a challenge. I could definitely do with a teacher but resources like this are really helpful. Thanks.
your videos are so helpful sweetheart, wouldn't expect to be able to understand this stuff so quickly. keep making them!
Love all of the videos so far. Just to say it out there, I always hear your intro as "online violin cheater" haha! keep up the videos! Checked out your site as well and is very helpful so far for beginners.
Very helpful as always thanks very much. Regarding tuning the violin I have seen people use a finger, thumb to strum the string to tune and other use the bow. Is this just a prefernce or does it matter? Thank you :)
I have some sheets under some of my videos from lesson 1-10 and also check out my playlist on covers and requests and i have done tutorials and written out the sheet music. If not, search the internet!
+Sasashi Yoshida I apologize for interrupting your question, but I am 55 years old and just beginning to learn to play the violin. Have fun, practice much, and have fun. Music is a rainbow.
Thank you for posting these great videos. I have always envied those that could play violin, and I tried once to play but had a super cheap violin. So I'm using what you have posted to hopefully try and make a dream come true!
I love the video i play six instruments and i always say to people if you don't put anything into it you won't get anything out of it.And being discouraged is a beast you have to keep plugin away with it.And when you start putting the time in one day you will be like that sound's pretty good and then you will get the inspiration leaving discouragement in the dust.
Practise is the only way to get rid of mistakes.
Self-producing really teaches you where your mistakes/imperfections are. I compose/write my own music; lots of recording, playback, and takes.
As for tuning, if I'm in a rush and don't have the time to tune by ear, I use Pitch Perfect Guitar Tuner for Android/iOS/Windows/Mac/Linux--although it has tunings for other stringed instruments (including violin).
Great list/tips!
Pano Tuner works good too.
I am 47 and on week three of my violin journey. Your videos are invaluable. Thank you. Let us know when you get something like Patreon set up again.
Thanks for the tips. I have not even gotten my violin yet. Cant wait to learn more, and get to playing.
Always delightful and helpful. Thank you.
Hi Alison, Will you be doing any more really easy tutorials. These are brillliant as they give me confidence and add to the interest during my learning of the violin. I feel as am achieving something. If you are thinking of another really easy tutorial i would definately recommend 'Fur Elise'. If you are not doing any more really easy tutorials do you know of any where i could purchase something something similar to your really easy methods.
You're a great teacher. Thank you!
Excellent. As always. Thank you so much Alison. Superb.
Thanks for posting free of charge! 👍🏻
you are welcome and glad i could be of help :)
Helpful, direct, and cheery as ever in your vids - thank you!
Thank you so much for this Alison ,you're proving those Two set violin quotes , GO PRACTICE !!!💐❤
The 'ten commandments' for violin playing (LOL) You've mentioned some great points here Alison. If I could add to your advice:
Point 7. I always try to remember that there's no such word as 'cant' in your dictionary when learning to play the violin.
Point 10. The odds of probability would indicate that an 'open' string will be played at some point in the music and it will be heard to be DREADFULLY out of tune.
regards, Phil
Great video!!! So helpful Thank you Alison.
thank you Alison, I'm just starting out learning to play the violin and I find your lessons very informative, again thank you and please keep teaching :)
Thank you for helping me with my violin studies. You have been helpful.
I started early december with an instructor half hour a week. I got my self a stentor harlequin cherry red. in the process of putting fingers in right place. . I thought about using strips but my teacher hasnt mentioned it, he wants me to know with my ears. I struggle to keep my 2nd and 3rd fingers tight together but its slowling getting there. Ive banged out a few nursery rhymes with my little daughter lol oh and happy birthday as it was my friends 40th on saturday :-)
Best video ever!!! Thank you Alison. You're amazing:)
Thanks for the tips!!! I also play guitar, drums, keyboard, and a couple of other instruments- ALL of which I've learned the same things... all of which you've covered: correct form, speed kills(it will come with time/practice), PRACTICE, don't get mad, practice slower and then try at the speed you THOUGHT you were at, and you'll get there, etc. It seems the same rules apply to everything I've played. Thanks for your help... have watched many of your videos to help guide me through hard times like this and, of course, your reviews!
So glad i found you!! Really helpful and can't wait to get practicing. Have my violin a long time but want to improve.
because I have trouble focussing the camera as I work on my own and i cant focus, then run back then re-focus etc and sometimes I get it slightly wrong as I cant always see the little screen on the camera so far back to see if im in focus!. Sorry.
Do you teach at a school or do you give private lessons? How long have you been playing for?
Glad I watched this video. I'm extremely guilty of practicing too quickly. I just got a violin 2 weeks ago and I've only been playing for a week due to having to get it repaired, but for some reason I refuse to start out slowly (I guess I'm just impatient). I'm trying to teach myself to play a few Epica songs (a symphonic metal band with a professional orchestra) before I even learned to play "Hot Cross Buns". Then, of course, I get discouraged because I'm not picking it up right away and give up and try to play another equally challenging song. I'm really going to try to slow down and learn the basics first.
Alison. I play drums and try to mess around with guitars. Acoustic, electric, bass, banjitar. I just bought my 1st violin and found your videos. Thank you for them. I've got to say, and not rudely, you're beautiful. I can't concentrate on anything wise. you're pretty, your accents hot and you rock on violin. I'm sure you know this, but can't resist saying so.... Thank you...
I love your teaching style, great attitude and just really good advice.
Any suggestion on how to solve the left hand mistakes when playing the violin?
Very informative.Thank you for another great video.
LOVE YOUR VIDEOS ALLY!!
just keep a little eye on the bow and just make sure you dont - thats the only thing you can do really and eventually you will train yourself not to bow near the bridge.