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Step 1
Begin by learning the basic violin very well. Solidify your understanding of the violin through private practice or some sort of intensive study before moving on to learn jazz violin.
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Step 2
Listen to some recordings of examples of the jazz violin. Recognize the difference in the style of the classical violin and the jazz violin. Performers like Stephane Grappelli and John Blake are just two significant artists.
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Step 3
Become comfortable with playing solo. Jazz violinists, because of their rarity, often have important solo parts and so work on your soloist confidence. Memorize a piece of music you have to learn. Get in the habit of memorizing your music so you can tinker with the tune.
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Step 4
Be very familiar with the pentatonic scale as this scale variation is the most commonly used in jazz chords and music. Learn jazz theory as well as learning basic theory. This theory includes the pentatonic scale and other commonly used blues chords in music.
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Step 5
Learn proper jazz phrasing. Improvising while still staying with the music is important. Learn chromatic scales as fillers in between riffs and solos and to swing the notes when you play songs to help with a more "jazzy feel".
