Piano World Home Page Forums General Discussions Musicians Welcome! Is the violin hard to learn????

After some more years on my piano, I would also love to learn violin and cello.

If you have the basics on the violin covered, would it be easy to swith to cello ?

Or is this like starting on a new instrument again ?

I think it would be mostly the same. there are some differences (obviously the position of the instrument) but also that cellists use their thumb in some positions, and that the way they create vibrato is mainly in the arm.
I often play my violin like a cello at home and wait for the day I have enough money to buy my own cello, viola and double bass!

No, the violin is very easy to learn.
I started at 19, got a job in an orchestra as violinist at 25, now I am an engineer, but still plays the Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Bruch concertos and tons of pieces, with a midi orchestra / piano for fun.

The violin is very EASY to learn WRONG!
What you should do is to play it like you are SINGING. Most people LEARN to do (singing) the opposite way, that is to LEARN to play (sing), which will destroy you (I do not mean there is nothing to learn, just that there are thing which should be automatic - spontaneous, which you should not tamper with).

Once you start putting tape on the fingerboard or use a chromatic tuner, you are finished. Go learn the oboe instead.

In particular, once you start caring about where to put your fingers, you will loss the inborn ability to put you finger AUTOMATICALLY where you want it, like you control your throat when you sing.

Basically, violin is a just stick and four fingers (singing, and co-ordintation, like steering a bicycle - anyone think bicycle too difficult?), versus ten fingers for piano (plus one foot). Piano is real hard for me.

I need pianists to make accompaniments for me. Anyone offer to help?

Depends on how big your hand is, and how well you remember exactly where to put your 1st finger.
Obviously violinissimo is one of the lucky ones who picks up instruments easily. Especially getting a job in an orchestra after only 6 years

I'm not saying keep the tape/stickers on forever but for a little while it is actually good to train your fingers where to go. Fingers don't always go where they need to go automatically.... especially if you don't have a really good ear to begin with. Never heard of anyone using a chromatic tuner
Eveything to do with bow hold and hand position is not necessarily spontaneous, especially if you want a good vibrato. I do agree with the " play like you are singing" idea, that way you get feeling into the music

Keep up the Bruch/ Mendelssohn.... try some Paginini... its really fun

oops... stupid thin put some extra graemlins at the end there... sorry

The hardest part is intonation, really.
I play both the violin and the viola and have picked up the cello from my brother. (I can only play twinkle twinkle litte star though) and the hardest thing with string instruments is intonation and also...getting a good teacher.

If the teacher that you find is not a "good" teacher and does not teach you correct positioning and relaxing techniques, etc. You could be in some pain.

it depends, I was already playing the piano, flute and piccolo before I even started learning how to play the violin so I did'nt find it that hard

I play the piano, and the flute (though not well), and found that starting the violin was really hard. Actually, I was a bit suprised by this, since I usually don't have trouble picking up and instrument and being able to figure out a few songs.

I just started taking lessons this summer with my 4 year daughter. I found that moving up and down and then back and forth to play the notes on the fingerboard is taking me quite a bit of getting used to. It is so different from moving up and down on the piano.

I started violin at a young age in the schools and played through high school along with the cello. During college days, I played guitar which I was playing all along up to now (but I specialized in Christian music (St. Louis Jesuit type). I played in church choirs for a while and put the instruments away before 9/11, but then recently picked up the instruments and started to learn the piano (on my own) around Christmas 2006.

Yes the violin is a difficult instrument as you are controlling the bow with one hand and performing the fingerings with the other. The cello is similar except you are holding the instrument between your knees and the fingering placements are farther apart than the violin. It gets worse with the double bass.

The violin is definitely hard. Especially at first on the ears.

I disagree with all of the statements about neck/head/shoulder pain, and talking good game. I've played the viola for nearly 30 years. My approach to holding the instrument (and the bow) is one of balance. My approach to teaching is the same. Eliminate tension and play for hours. As for talking a good game, holding the instrument for hours is not the problem. Playing for hours with your arms held in a fixed position will eventually lead to fatigue. But a few minutes of rest will clear that right up.

As for whether or not learning the violin is easy, that depends on a number of factors, the most important of which is your level of determination. It's not as easy to pick out a tune on the violin as it is on, say, the piano. And intonation is a skill that takes some time to master. But if your main goal is to play simple tunes for your own enjoyment, find a good teacher who will provide a foundation that will help you achieve your individual goals. And enjoy the ride.

I've play violin on and off for over 40 years. It's a frustrating yet very rewarding instrument. I would definately say it's hard to learn to play it well although I suppose there are some people who are content just to saw away at it. I'd say that despite years of lessons and practice I'm still only a mediocre intermediate player striving to be a good intermediate player. I can play some advanced pieces but not well enough to perform them. Occasionally I play a few notes well though. OY!

Anyway, there should be no shoulder/neck pain involved in playing the violin. If there is, then you are holding the instrument wrong. I recently changed my bow hold and found I had to change the way I was holding the violin to match it or I could not play all the way to the tip of the bow. I found I was holding the violin too far off to the side. Once I moved the violin, I then had to get a new shoulder rest and even a new chin rest because the old one hurt like crazy. Then I started noticing how top players have free head movement and I thought - "Hmm maybe I should be supporting the violin slightly with my left hand not just my shoulder/chin. Anyway, I feel pretty good about things now. There is absolutely no discomfort at all, my contact with the instrument is very light, and my shoulder, head, neck is not in any unnatural position. I always aim and a natural comfortable position. No pain required.

The violin is not a "teach yourself" instument unless perhaps you just want to play simple tunes. I wouldn't normally discourage self-teaching (I homeschool my 10 kids) but the violin is just so complex that if you want to keep improving you really do need help expert advice. I've taken years of lesson and still learn something new everyday. A good teacher's advice can cut months or even years off your practice time in one lesson. I am just not starting to play at the level I've been aiming at all these years and I could NEVER have gotten this far on my own.

I don't think I would say that intonation is the hardest aspect of learning the violin. Usually when I don't get the intonation right it's because I'm doing something else wrong - shifting wrong for example, or not moving my left arm correctly with a string change. But then again, coming from a piano mindset, yes, violin intonation is a whole 'nuther animal. You have to learn to listen to the pitch when playing the violin and to be fanatical about it. Learning to hear and identify the intervals is one of the big keys I thing. The sympathetic vibrations are another thing to listen for. And I'm sure there are many more things I haven't discovered yet. But that's the beauty of the violin, it's a limitless learning experience.

The violin is hard in the sence, there are no "buttons" and so keeping in tune can be hard. but after a while it gets easier.
It can be hard to get a good tone at first.
But trust me, take it up becuase it is so rewarding!
it really is a beautiful instrument. and you dont have to be able so play really complex stuff for it to sound good!
go for it!
xx

I know this thread has been sleeping for a while, but just wanted to add that I've been thinking seriously about taking violin as a second instrument and every of your comments have been much appreciated. Specially those about starting as an adult.

Enjoy, Boira, if you take the plunge. If you do - find a good teacher, have him pick out your instrument, and do not under any circumstance try to have a "head start". Your set-up is crucial because more than with the piano, you become part of the instrument as though you yourself are being sculpted into an ideal form. When that's done right, the rest becomes so much easier.

Thanks Keystring!
I'll talk with the violin teacher in the Studio. My main concern are the neckbones... mine aren't in their best shape...

Make certain that you are taught good posture and good holding. Do not get into the habit of turning your head to the side since this will hurt your neckbones. Actually, I worked on posture last year for the violin, and I have less aches and pains now than I did several decades ago because now I know how to use my body better. Best of luck.
KS

Because I have been playing piano, I found the violin pretty easy to learn..I have been learning violin in the school orchestra...and I have the best teacher!! We are currently learning a little on how to play vibrato...but that's another topic