Well, while snooping in basement for something to do, I found my dad's old violin. I disregarded it, only to come back to it after a few weeks. It's now sitting in its case, and I'm kind of wondering if I should try to learn how to play it.
Now, this is a pretty nice violin if I do say so myself. It seems to be tuned correctly, the bow is in working order, and the strings are all good and well.
However, I have never played a violin once in my life. I understand the concept of it, how to hold it under my chin, etc, but to be honest, it sounds a little like a dying gazelle.
I really like the concept of violin, and I love how they sound when played correctly, but I just can't really seem to grasp the concept in practice.
I haven't quite looked it up in detail, but I'm just wondering if it's worth it to invest any time into it. The few 'how-tos' I've looked up have explained technique, but not the real basics of violin playing.
So, Facepunch, is violin worth anytime to look into if I'm interested in self-learning it? I learned guitar by myself, but that's quite easy from what I'd assume compared to the complexity of violin playing.
Thanks in advance.
imo, any instrument is worth teaching yourself
if you have guitar experience already, learning the fingerings for the viola won't be too hard, probably similar.
plus, knowing notes already would make learning the viola much easier
there might not be nearly as vast a selection of tutorials on the violin as the guitar online, but you might be able to pick up a book somewhere at a music store (i'd suggest essential elements or something along those lines)
the hard part i believe is getting the bow movements down, might want to research that
personally never played the instrument myself, but i have a couple friends in orchestra.
Yeah, I would say it's worth learning. Obviously you need to tune it correctly which may be a pain depending on age and construction of the instrument. Check for a manufacturer and date in one of the F-holes, you may be surprised. Best part you can play anything you want
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mecL2dMGveE[/media]
Not me lol
Bowing is easy, it's just a matter of gaining some finesse. You just need to practice it, you'll work out what you need to do.
If you've applied any basic theory to your guitar playing and can read sheet music, you should be able to pick up violin with minimal effort. I went from guitar to bass guitar to double bass with not much difficulty.
Play guitar with the violin bow.
A few basic tips; make sure your bow is under the fingerboard, not on it. Be sure your bow is strait on the strings, the more strait the better the sound.
Since you know guitar it should be pretty easy to pick up, you should be able to pull it off with relative ease.
There are several things you can't self learn, like proper posture, and some songs are written to have a conductor controlling the tempo, but with the help of the internet, you could definitely pull it off.
[QUOTE=MirageKnight;21497365]Play guitar with the violin bow.[/QUOTE]
I see what you did there
[img]http://elkym.org/music/jimmy/jimmypage5.jpg[/img]
I used to play cello, it's irritating trying to guess where to put you fingers, and not hitting 3 strings at once.
tuning
You have to make sure you are hitting the right notes all the time. When I took a violin class in 5th grade the teacher put on a sticker thing that showed where the notes were. You might want to get that, if not you will have to play with a tuner until you can put your fingers exactly on the different notes without fucking up.
I play violin right now actually, and I suggest you take some beginner classes. After that it kind of picks up by itself, but you do need to do all the finger positions quite nicely. Although, you have to get the pressure and the speed of a bow stroke to get it to sound nice.
[QUOTE=tarkata14;21496063]Well, while snooping in basement for something to do, I found my dad's old violin. I disregarded it, only to come back to it after a few weeks. It's now sitting in its case, and I'm kind of wondering if I should try to learn how to play it.
Now, this is a pretty nice violin if I do say so myself. It seems to be tuned correctly, the bow is in working order, and the strings are all good and well.
However, I have never played a violin once in my life. I understand the concept of it, how to hold it under my chin, etc, but to be honest, it sounds a little like a dying gazelle.
I really like the concept of violin, and I love how they sound when played correctly, but I just can't really seem to grasp the concept in practice.
I haven't quite looked it up in detail, but I'm just wondering if it's worth it to invest any time into it. The few 'how-tos' I've looked up have explained technique, but not the real basics of violin playing.
So, Facepunch, is violin worth anytime to look into if I'm interested in self-learning it? I learned guitar by myself, but that's quite easy from what I'd assume compared to the complexity of violin playing.
Thanks in advance.[/QUOTE]
Post pictures of the bowstrings and such, so I can tell you whether it is in fact in good order, you need rosin, which I doubt would have been left in the case, and NEVER knock the bridge. Other than that, keep posting here with your progress in teaching yourself and I'll be able to help, maybe even rustle up some sheet music for you.
That reminds me, I haven't done any Guitar practice today. :sigh:
[editline]09:25PM[/editline]
I can also give you pointers about how to hold the bow, the level to tighten it to.
Also, REMEMBER TO LOOSEN THE BOW WHEN YOU PUT IT IN THE CASE.
[editline]09:26PM[/editline]
[QUOTE=Eluveitie;21501466]I used to play cello, it's irritating trying to guess where to put you fingers, and not hitting 3 strings at once.[/QUOTE]
Uh, no it isn't, but if you're having difficulty just put markers of where to put your fingers.
I play violin for 8 years now, I've had lessons which actually do help. Certainly in the beginning, you should watch out you don't learn the wrong grips, like the bow has to be held in a special way so later on you can start doing advanced techniques. Also, if you don't play any other instrument without frets it'll be very hard for you to know where to place your fingers as it has to be done all on hearing and feeling on the violin, no frets like the guitar.
I really advice you to get lessons first for about a year, then see if you control the basic things and then you might consider going on on your own.
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