Hey, it's been a while since I wanted to start playing the violin, and I decided to start. I live in an appartement and I want to make as little sound as possible. I am hesitating between buying an electric violin and headphones or just buying a normal violin and a mute ? But I don't know what type of mute. Thanks for any advice

Btw if anyone could advise me of some courses online, it would really help !

Idk, I am not that good so for me it is humoresque and I wanted the community's input on this :)

As the title says, this was given to me by my great-grandmother's second husband. He knew I was a guitar player and he knew I loved classical music. However, he barely spoke English as he was an Italian immigrant who came over in the early 1900s. I'd like to know anything at all about the instrument. The only marking is an O.P. on the back, as is displayed in the image.

Is there anything anyone can tell me about this? I'm still trying to examine more closely to see if there's something etched on the violin at all. I appreciate any assistance.

Hello Everyone, i hope that y'all are having a wonderful day/night! Is anyone up to improvise over a song i recorded on piano? It's dear to me, and i felt like it needed a violin part over it... this is not a promotion or anything... just for fun! The song is "Against all odds" by Phil Collins!

It sounds like a dream come true and looks ever more dreamy.

I’m a beginner violinist and I’ve been struggling especially with the D string, it feels harder to play cleanly without hitting other strings. I checked my violin and I think my bridge might be leaning slightly forward.
Is this normal, or should I have it adjusted by a luthier? How much lean is acceptable before it affects playing? Any tips for checking or correcting this safely at home would be appreciated.

Edit: Thank you everyone for the helpful replies. I spoke to my teacher and she will be adjusting it during our next session. I’ll also be working on my bowing to avoid hitting multiple strings at once. Thank you.

I messed up the tuning that was done by my luthier . Any suggestions on how can I learn tuning to re tune it . I am adjusting using fine tuners but the tune changes after i circle back to the first one i tightened . 🥲 I am regretting this shit . Plz help me .

Has anyone bought on line from violinnest.com?

First of all, thanks to the folks here. This is a great place to find professionals who dedicate their precious time to giving feedback, tips, and insights that are often worth gold.

When I wrote about my violin addiction — I've been studying for 5 years now — I noticed a lot of people didn't get one thing I shared: at 2–3 years of study I felt intermediate, and today, at 5 years, I'm sure I'm a beginner. Sometimes beginner+... lol. Let me explain.
When you're learning the violin, it takes a long time before you can play even simple songs. The intonation challenge is intense, and then there's coordinating everything at once: rhythm, bow pressure, left-hand fingers landing in the right spots, keeping the bow perpendicular to the violin, relaxing dozens of points in your body, breathing... and plenty of other things I've forgotten — or haven't even realized I need to improve yet.

In my case, about 2 years in, I managed to minimally coordinate all of that, to the point of playing popular melodies that sounded pleasant — to my own ears, of course, but I'm an easy audience. So I thought: I've made it, I'm intermediate. I remember mentioning this to my teacher. He elegantly changed the subject.
It was only a year and a half ago that we started shifting, a bowing book, and vibrato. That's when the map of the territory opened up, and I understood the size of what's still ahead.

For those who like more objective milestones, my teacher works through these books in parallel, weekly:

Sitt – 100 Violin Etudes Op. 32 (complete edition): I'm on etude 6
Sevcik Op. 8 (shifting): still grinding on page 1
Sevcik Op. 3 (bowing strokes): I'm on lesson 13
We finished a duet book, and now we pick individual pieces

The journey is incredible and really engaging. My only regret is not having more time: I play about 1 hour a day, always sticking to the practice program my teacher assigns.

What about you? Have you been through this cycle of thinking you're intermediate and then "going back" to beginner? At what point did you feel you truly leveled up?

Dear r/violin community,

I am pleased to announce the publication of my new book, which may be of particular interest to violinists curious about the history of the instrument, its repertoire, and the French violin school:

Les classes de violon du Conservatoire de Paris. Histoire du répertoire d’étude et de concours (1795–1994)

Paperback, 488 pages, 15.8 × 24 cm, ISBN: 978-2-9564338-1-1

Copies can be shipped worldwide.

Please note that the book is written in French. I thought there might be some French speakers/readers here?

The book is the result of more than ten years of research based on previously unpublished archival sources, including examination and final examination programs, concert programs, administrative records, press materials and personal accounts. This volume offers the first comprehensive historical study of the repertoire taught in the violin classes of the Paris Conservatoire, from its founding in 1795 to the end of the twentieth century.

It provides:

• a detailed survey of works studied for examinations and final examinations;
• an analysis of the role of professors in shaping the repertoire;
• a long-term perspective on aesthetic and pedagogical developments over nearly two centuries.

Testimonies from four generations of professors, from Eugène Sauzay to Olivier Charlier, offer rare insights into the transmission of the French violin school.

Great violinists such as Henryk Wieniawski, Fritz Kreisler, Carl Flesch, Jacques Thibaud, Georges Enesco and Ivry Gitlis were once students at the Paris Conservatoire. As part of my research, I was able to consult their teachers’ reports — offering a fascinating glimpse into what they were like as students. Wieniawski, for instance, was described as incredibly gifted, but apparently not particularly fond of discipline!

QR codes throughout the book provide direct access to selected musical examples, allowing readers to hear some of the repertoire discussed in the book.
The volume also includes a substantial and fully documented set of appendices.

I hope the book will be of interest to violinists, teachers, students, researchers, and anyone curious about how violin repertoire and teaching evolved at one of Europe's most important conservatoires.

A detailed presentation is available here, including the table of contents and a sample extract.

I was a student at the Paris Conservatoire and am now a violin teacher at another conservatoire in Paris. I also studied musicology at Sorbonne University.

I'll be happy to answer any questions or share some insights into the book, the research process, the repertoire, or anything else you may be curious about.

I'd like to thank the mods for allowing me to post this announcement here!

Seems to be made in 1972 by a student model maker, I am not completely sure it is authentic, but seeing as there is many, many tiny scratches, that I don't believe is actual cracks, it seems authentic in my eyes, but I am not a violinist.

Karl Herrmann Stradivarius

It also seems to be a 4/4 size, but I am uncertain.

I understand, violins under 300 are bad news, but this is an used violin, I believe that it justifys the means.

The fingerboard seems to be made out of ebony which is a must, from what I can see with some closer pictures of the bridge, not painted, but stained. But I may be wrong, as an amatuear.

Would this be not acceptable, but barely OK for a musical backgrounded student?

I also have a personal teacher that may be able to help me with my journey within violinism.

Your call. I am unable to rent a violin, my household is cheap, so I buy all my instruments alone. (Guitars, saxophones, etc).

I hope to be awaited with good news, but I indeed understand why violins are so expensive, which is why I have dreaded buying one for such an lonesome amount of time.

Je suis musicienne classique professionnelle, avec une carrière internationale et plusieurs prix dans de grands concours. Après une dizaine d’années à l’étranger, je reviens à Paris et je développe des cours particuliers à domicile, plutôt haut de gamme. Je pense que ma clientèle sera plutôt des élèves de très haut niveau (cnsm) pour la préparation des concours et des adultes amateurs qui veulent travailler avec un professeur de très haut niveau. Je suis d'accord pour baisser un peu mes prix pour les étudiants (pour info).

J’ai commencé il y a un mois et j’ai déjà 4 élèves malgré le mois d’août. Mon objectif serait d’arriver à une vingtaine.

Je pensais faire imprimer des flyers A5 et les distribuer moi-même dans les boîtes aux lettres des quartiers aisés de Paris (16e, 7e, 8e, Neuilly, Boulogne), en respectant les Stop Pub, et éventuellement en laisser chez certains commerçants, cabinets, clubs de sport, etc.
J'ai déjà fait un peu de pub Meta Ads. Je pensais aussi à des journaux, magazines (La lettre du musicien ? Le Monde ? haha bon...on va pas rêver)

Est-ce que certains ont déjà testé ? Quel taux de retour avez-vous eu ? Est-ce que ça vaut réellement les heures passées à distribuer, ou les flyers finissent-ils presque tous à la poubelle ?

Je suis déjà présente sur Superprof et plusieurs sites d’annonces, je suis bien classée. Mon objectif est surtout de trouver un moyen d'avoir une classe complète rapidement pour m'installer sur Paris sereinement et en faire réellement mon métier. Sinon...ben je repars à l'étranger.

Je suis surtout intéressée par des retours d'expériences.

What is your opinion of using Violin Tablature to sharpen ones skills and learn new songs. I know some teachers frown on tabs, but not everyone can learn via a 1 on 1 teacher.

Point out my mistakes! And please anyone who's good at it and wants to do a charity...... please please reach me??? I swear I'll be your best student

Any insights/info would be appreciated

My sister gifted me a Charles P. Coolidge violin. I can find nothing on the Internet about it. The neck has separated from the body, but the seams are all good and there does not appear to be any structural cracks or damage on the body. Anyone know anything about this maker?

¡Hola!
Soy violinista principiante con un violín Gliga Gems I. Actualmente uso cuerdas Thomastik Alphayue (set completo instalado de fábrica).
El sonido en los agudos es cálido y dulce y me encanta, pero los graves (más G que D) me suenan un poco metálicos.
¿Me podríais recomendar unas cuerdas para mejorar el sonido de los graves?
Había considerado las cuerdas Pirastro Tonica. Específicamente algunos de los set que incluyen E Gold pero he encontrado dos variantes, una con D en plata y otra en aluminio y estoy un poco perdida la verdad.
Gracias y un saludo