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Teach Yourself Violin? Help?
supermanpj4444 asked:
Ok. I have a violin. But….I have no idea how to play and I cant really afford lessons……
I keep looking online and all I can find is how to tune a violin or the names of the different parts of the violin…I cant find anything that actually shows you how to play
Are there any websites out there where you can learn songs on the violin?
I know the have lots of guitar tabs and stuff for diff songs…..but I cant find any for violins (I’m guessing because violins dont have frets….)
I would like to learn at least one song that I could practice over and over again until I can get lessons….
Any ideas?
Also, to any violinist that might be reading this….got any advice? (Besides the obvious…get lessons…lol)
Tags: Names, How To Tune A Violin, Guitar Tabs
I am a music teacher since 1971. There is no other advice – GET LESSONS. Find a way to earn some money. Trying to do this on your own is a waste of time, and you could not only learn wrong, but actually injure your hands. Yes, the OBVIOUS answer, you already said – lessons.
Yes you can learn on your own, it is not impossible!I’ve played in various clubs with bands for bucks and did.I also played with a fiddle group that played everything from bach to bill monroe and scandinavian,and irish music.I would invest in some cheap books like Schirmers Library of musical classics.Start learning all the scales and notes in the first position then second which is two (frets) steps up the neck.Etc.then third and so on.Learn how to hold the bow properly ,(this is important.)If you can afford even a couple lessons from an instructor it could help you miles!Try these links they’re free.Happy playing to you!
Well, for one thing, don’t call violin pieces “songs.” That would be a good first step. Then see:
Violin Masterclass
I think this is about the best, free, online page for learning violin.
I have been playing the violin for three wonderful years, for the school orchestra. I had no experience whatsoever playing when I started, and I can now play very well, if I say so myself. There are these books (they sell them at most music stores) called Essential Elements. The first book is orange, the second purple, ect. They are WONDERFUL for beginning violin players. They actually have you start with pizzicato (plucking) befoe you use the bow. They have you play short snippets of songs, not actual songs, but they teach you to read music and learn different note patterns so you can play almost any song. In the back of each book there are also fingering charts that show you where to put your fingers for each note. The school uses them when we’re not practicing for concert, and I DEFINITELY suggest getting at least the first one to practice with. And remember, it takes time – you won’t become Joshua Bell overnight!
this site has great video lessons for most instruments and they are completely free. the fiddle lessons look pretty good. if you want o learn classical violin, you probably need a teacher, but if you want to learn to play fiddle style violin, this should be a great start. you should take lessons at some point to make sure your technique is ok though.
don’t worry too much about what people are saying. playing classical violin is very different than playing self taught fiddle. people have been teaching themselves to play fiddle for hundreds of years. actually the violin came from a peasant instrument that was looked down upon for about 200 years!
EDIT:
after re reading some of the answers i want to offer you some more encoragement. DO IT. you can learn the fiddle on your own, you just have to be careful and get books from the library on proper technique. will you be playing bach? probably not. but you will be able to jam with others. the violin is not complicated, its actually a simpler instrument than just about any others. look into its history and variations of violins. Bowed instruments are some of the earliest instrument types, even before some plucked instruments. the hardest thing about them is getting the bow stroke down, and once you do that, everything else is your ear. you dont need a ton of classical tecniques to play music on the violin.
well, i only pay $10 for an hour lesson- since violin is a complicated instrument, i didnt teach myself like i have with guitar, clarinet, etc, but it is a instrument that needs to be taught to you so u dont develop bad habbits and you get critiqued
there are videos of how to play violin at :
i use the books : All for Strings: Violin
I am in the 2nd book right now- there are three total
Don’t even bother. Violin is probably one of the most difficult instrumnets to play of all. I think your attitude is very naive.
Teach yourself to play the acoustic guitar (non-classical, the American type with the strings close together so you can just play the same chords over & over like a (self)-trained monkey) and strum some pop tunes, country western, etc.
I posted a few links to questions I have answered in the past that are similar to this one. They should have everything you need, and if not, let me know and I’ll be glad to send out some more.
P. S. Kudos To JKF_alone for the encouraging post. It is always nice to see someone who isn’t trying to discourage, put down, or intimidate a potential player. It’s an honor to be on the boards with you.
go to and search how to play the violin….i play the violin.its a really beautiful instrument ^_^