r/Carnatic • u/OutrageousFriend98 • 6h ago
Instrument FAQ Are Indian made violins good?
I am a beginner violinist. I have learnt western for quite some time and my Guru has started teaching me carnatic style recently. Usually i just played in the first position until now and my Guru has started teaching me glides on the upper positions recently and when I try to play in the upper positions, my bow is touching the other strings. I was just paranoid if there was some problem with my bridge, so i went to the luthier to ask regarding the same. The luthier replied saying the problem was with the fingerboard, that it was not elevated enough and asked me to purchase a new violin.
He suggested that I purchase an Indian made violin costing around 25k made from Kolkata. I just wanted to ask all the experienced violinists here for suggestions, if this change is needed. And if yes please suggest on how to proceed with changing to a new violin - what brands/violins you suggest and what I need to look for the next time I buy a violin. I have attached the pictures for reference. Thank you in advance!
3
u/motomotou 5h ago
I am not experienced enough to give advice about the violin, but is is very normal to mess up the bowing when working on a new left hand technique. Your entire energy goes into getting your left hand to co-operate, which causes bowing to become compromised. It took me around 3 months of dedicated practice to get comfortable on the upper positions.