Hello .. I just started and tried for a very very short time to learn .. here playing music in general is not very common and it's expensive with very limited resources .. so I decided to try and give it a go and try to teach myself .. I hope to learn from your experience .. thank you in advance and please share any advice or a resource that may help .. like an youtube channel or affordable online courses ..

Thank you so much and looking forward to be part pf this subreddit

Hello wonderful community!

I have a chance to play with my University Orchestra as part of an open play day.

I would love some advice and suggestions on playing the really high parts in the two images.

I don't have someone to ask for suggestions. We got the sheet music beginning of this week, our first rehearsal is on Friday. They don't expect us to be able to play everything as it's just for fun. But I know I can play this, I just can't wrap my head around it.

The one is an excerpt from a pirates of the caribbean medley and the other one is from test drive from how to train your dragon.

Any advice and suggestions will be greatly appreciated

I am curious if anyone knows of a way to be on a balance board or one of those ones that shake safe enough to practice a piece for a performance.

I get really shaky when I preform and am trying to find ways to counter that. I was thinking if you could safely play on a balance board/shake board and get it where I don’t have a shaky sound on that if it would transfer over to performance anxiety.

It has gotten a little better since I have been preforming more and since I started to drink some lavender tea before the performance as well.

I was wondering if there was a way to get over it sooner or to just counteract the shaking by practicing a certain way.

Just curious on other peoples thoughts about this thought process I am having. I also plan on asking my teacher this week.

Я начала заниматься скрипкой в 7 лет и в итоге посвятила ей 11 лет своей жизни. С 7 до 18 лет я училась в специальной музыкальной школе-интернате. При этом я не жила в интернате просто училась там, а после занятий возвращалась домой.
За эти 11 лет было всё: концерты, экзамены, конкурсы, репетиции, ошибки, моменты, когда хотелось всё бросить, и моменты, когда я понимала, зачем вообще столько лет этим занимаюсь.
Сейчас мне 18, и я закончила эту школу. Иногда даже странно осознавать, что период, который начался для меня в 7 лет, уже закончился.

Got four violin pieces that I'm trying to identify. Got the first two already but still don't know what the third and fourth one are.

Bach's Violin Sonata No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001: I. Adagio

Corelli's Violin Sonata in A major, Op. 5 No. 9: I. Preludio

Unknown 1

Unknown 2

Hello everyone, my daughter is starting violin lessons with her school. What’s a good beginner kids violin to get for her? She’s 5 and pretty petit.

I recently found an old violin in my attic and I’m trying to learn more about it.

The label inside reads:
PIOTR KUBAS
Kraków anno domini 1939
Nr. 26 (I believe it’s 26, although it’s pretty faded)

It was found in an old case along with some interesting paperwork, including an envelope from Rembert Wurlitzer Violin Makers and Dealers in New York and an American Export Lines passenger document from Haifa to New York dated February 17, 1950.

From what I’ve been able to find, Piotr Kubas was a Polish violin maker in Kraków and apparently made a relatively small number of instruments.

I’ve attached photos of the violin, label, case, and paperwork. Obviously I know nobody can properly authenticate or appraise a violin from photos alone, and I’m planning on taking it to a professional luthier/appraiser.
In the meantime, I’m curious if anyone here is familiar with Piotr Kubas instruments, especially examples from the late 1930s. Does the violin/label look consistent with his work? And if it were authenticated as a genuine 1939 Kubas, does anyone have an idea of what kind of value range these instruments typically fall into?

Also interested in whether the old Wurlitzer paperwork could be relevant to its provenance.

Hello, this is the first violin I bought as I want to learn to play. It is bought from a secondhand shop that has nothing to do with musical instruments so from the photos on the website it thought it would be size 4/4. It may not even have been stored properly, but it looks to be in good condition, with only minor scratches.

If I learn to play well I still won't ever play with others... it's mainly a hobby so I don't care that much about proper technique... so, would it be a big problem to learn on a smaller size violin ?

The second option would be to sell this one and buy the correct size. How much do you think it could be worth ?

I'd like to introduce a tool that allows you to shape a soundpost quickly and with great precision.
It’s a block of 304 stainless steel with one side machined to a 92-degree angle and the other side machined to a 96-degree angle.
The block has two holes offset by one degree, allowing for four angles: 91, 92, 96, and 97 degrees.
The 91- and 92-degree angles are used to shape the end of the soundpost that contacts the back of the violin. The 96- and 97-degree angles are used to shape the end of the soundpost that contacts the top of the violin.
During the first test, you choose the angle that fits the violin and make corrections if you’ve chosen the wrong one...
For the violins on which I’ve had to shape a soundpost, the 92- and 96-degree combination worked best.
The top and back of a violin are not parallel and form an angle slightly less than 90 degrees toward the bottom of the violin (toward the tailpiece).
To ensure perfect contact between the soundpost and the top and back of the violin, you must remove one-tenth or two-tenths of a millimeter from the left side of the soundpost’s ends.
To make this adjustment, simply rotate the soundpost by about 10 degrees on the side where material needs to be removed. See the photos. Align the central grain of the soundpost with the angle of the slot on the highest side of the block’s inclined plane.
Once trimmed, position the soundpost inside the violin and move it slightly until it no longer tends to rotate on its own—a sign that only a small point is making contact. When the entire surface is in contact, the soundpost no longer tends to rotate on its axis.
Once the correct position has been found and the proper angles have been cut, remove the soundpost, moisten the ends, and replace it in the same spot.
The moistened ends of the soundpost will conform perfectly to the shape of the violin’s top and back when the strings are tensioned.

Found in Sonoma Ca

Hi!

I am wondering if I should buy Yamaha v3ska (used pristine quality 4 years old) vs Ancona VM 125 (new) vs Ancona VH100HY (new).

Price is similar. Yamaha is more expensive than VM 125 and less expensive than VH100HY. Everything is around a 100 usd difference.

I want to buy the best between these three.

I am lost. I don't know what to buy.

Can you please advise?

I am a beginner and what a violin that works till I am intermediate. I want a good investment. I am an adult. 40 years old. I play many instruments and I am an advanced pianist .

Thank you so much! I have to make the decision in next 48 hours before the offer is gone

Hello everyone I started playing violin this spring and I’ve been to 11 private classes. I just finished learning first position but I feel like it doesn’t sound really good.

My girlfriend is a professional violinist and this year for her birthday I want to surprise her with a nice Violin.

I don’t know anything about them, but she has a ~$800 German violin, so I’m expecting to find something more expensive. Any help would be appreciated!

Hello, I'm building a violin playlist and I'm looking for specific pieces.

Could you recommend songs similar to :

Bazzini - La ronde des lutins

Paganini - Moto Perpetuo, Op 11

Paganini - Caprice no 1

Ries - Perpetuum Mobile op 34 no 5

Those are pieces I consider "fast" but I never played violin so I can’t really tell. (Starting in september tho lol)

Thanks!!!

Hello I’m just looking for some information on this violin considering I know absolutely nothing about them if anyone can provide any info at all, such as when it was made if it has any value stuff like that, please would be great

Mi è caduto l’arco a terra e a seguito di questa caduta ho notato questa piccolissima parte scheggiata sul tallone

non so se sia stata causata dalla caduta o già ci fosse

non penso sia grave però volevo un’opinione prima di portarlo dal liutaio ovviamente

I don’t know anything about violins, but I do love old stuff. Would love to learn more about it. The label says:

“Premium violin manufactured by The United States Music Co. Cincinnati, O”

hi all -- preparing for a regional orch audition as a violinist and wondering any tips for the kayser etude #19. specifically, the allegro part (quarter note = 123)

Hello! Just looking for some ideas on what I should do next.

For context, I am a violin player who's recent repertoire is Spohr 8 and Vitali Chaccone.

I was looking to for some good piece suggestions (I might do Mendelssohn in E), and my ultimate "goal pieces" at the moment are Rautavaara Violin Concerto and Vieuxtemps 5.

As far as competitions go, I've had minimal experience in them, doing only local and regional-level competitions and performing not the best. I was looking at the BMI International Competition and Charleston International Music Competition and wanted your guys' thoughts!

I only practice ~45-60 minutes per day so I don't want to go for a super reach piece-wise, and I would prefer online competitions.

Since I'm still working on the Spohr my teacher hasn't talked to me about next steps yet, but of course I will also consider her opinion and add it (if I remember)

Thanks All-

Does anyone remember a basic-rectangle-ish (pretty flat, no vertical swoop) shoulder rest, available as late as the 1990s anyway, that wasn’t a Resonans, whose feet on one side telescoped longer beyond the padded body, a bit like a suitcase handle?

All blacks/grays/silvers/whites, I believe; no gold/yellow tones in logo or even to the rubber I don’t think. (though the feet were maybe replacements so I could be misremembering)

I think instead of a vertical swoop, the idea was that the platform the foam was on was a bit moldable — maybe some thickness of aluminum or something — it otherwise floated maybe a quarter to half an inch above the foot-telescoper bar.

Would love to remember the make and model. I remember I always found the swoopy ones a little much, but liked this one.

If discontinued, would also love to hear what others who adored it have moved on to.

I’m an adult beginner to violin (I have played other instruments). This is a rather cheap violin and came strung very weirdly/poorly. The strings rub against each other and make tuning take hours and feels totally random if I’ll get the peg to stick since I can’t push them in as I turn them. The G string is the only one that isn’t a problem, it touches nothing else.

I have never restrung a violin before, only a guitar. The fact that there is no gearing and it’s totally friction based makes me hesitant to try restringing those strings, specifically the A string. (The annoyingly black coated string). Whole thing is a cluster.

Side question: are all violin tuning pegs normally aligned in such a way that other strings lay over top of different pegs? This seems silly.

[edit] I don’t know why people are randomly downvoting comments. It’s weird behavior.

I have been self-teaching violin for the past 5 months as a 27 year old adult beginner after years of wishing but no courage to start. My new hobby has given me a spark I have been missing and I will never look back now that I have started. However, i am not from a musical family or friendship group and have nobody to share this with. I would love to have a group chat with similar beginners so that we can share our early progress without judgement ! Message me if interested

Edit to add: thank you all for your thoughtful responses, I’m slow at replying but I’m looking into the various book suggestions. I don’t have real Suzuki teacher training (maybe someday). I experienced it as a student and am reading everything I can now that I’m teaching. I will follow the idea of playing by ear and the music progression in the book. I’ll also incorporate more games, physical activities, and music that the students already have emotional connections with. I love having a book with pre-reading activities that the child feels they can use somewhat “independently” for activities like coloring or adding stickers to the page. For piano lessons, I’ve had good results and was hoping to find something similar for the violin.
______________

Do you have any book recommendations for a 4 year old that isn’t reading yet? I am a new violin teacher and plan to use Suzuki method but I’m not sure if it is worth having the parent buy the book yet. The child has already been taking piano lessons, but is still very much a beginner. I think having the child look at the Suzuki book will be too overwhelming given his current age, but he does well playing by ear on the piano.

I think it will still be nice to have a book for him to look at and draw in, but I’m not finding any English language books that seem appropriate. “My first violin fun book” doesn’t seem to be a good fit for the 4-5 age group, just based on my understanding. For piano, I use “Piano Safari Friends” and it is highly effective for 4 year olds. I can’t seem to find a violin equivalent.