How to Play Violin & Tighten Strings

The violin is the smallest instrument (and highest "voice") of the string family. While many violinists learned how to play in childhood, it is never too late to learn the instrument if you are willing to practice on a frequent basis. With stringed instruments, it's just as important to know how to tighten---or tune---strings so that the notes played are correctly. Here you will learn the basics of how to play violin and tighten its strings.

Things You'll Need

• Violin and bow
• Metronome tuner

Instructions

1. Tune the violin strings to the appropriate pitch before you begin to play. This is done by either tightening or loosening the strings' tension using their accompanying pegs. Hold the violin in your lap facing towards you. To tighten a string (creating a higher pitch), turn its peg clock clockwise, and to loosen a string for a lower pitch, turn it counterclockwise. Strum the string in between each peg turn until its pitch matches the tone of the metronome tuner (see Resources for more information).

2. 

   Hold the violin in your right hand by the neck, and grasp the bow in your left by its frog (located at the bottom of the bow). The violin should not be held in a vice grip, but mostly with the bottom of your left hand and thumb so your remaining fingers lightly curl around the other side of the neck.

3. 

   Lift the violin onto your left shoulder so that the bottom left-hand side of the instrument lies between the shoulder and your chin. Adjust the shoulder and chin rest on the instrument as necessary until you are totally comfortable.

4. Bring the bow down to rest lightly on the furthest, lowest pitched string to the left, the G string. Apply gentle pressure to the string with the bow and slowly draw it across to produce sound. Drawing the bow to the left is called an up bow, while drawing to the right is a down bow. To create increasingly higher pitches on the same string, press the four fingers of your left hand on top of the string beginning with the index finger.

5. Repeat step 3 with the next three strings. From left to right as well as lowest to high, the remaining strings are D, A and E. Once you become comfortable bowing the strings, try plucking the strings (pizzicato). Cradle the frog of the bow with your right pinky, ring, and middle fingers. Pressing your right thumb against the right side of the fingerboard, use your right index finger to pluck the string(s) of your choice.

Tips & Warnings

• Learning how to properly hold the violin and the bow is something which will take practice in and of itself. Take your time to learn the right technique so you don't form bad habits. If you are learning violin without the aid of a school course, it's wise to enlist private teachers, lessons and experienced players who can teach you what you cannot glean from videos and books.

• Violins are very delicate and often expensive instruments, so handle them with care. Never leave them outside of its hard case, near high heat sources, or exposed to humidity and extreme cold as this can warp the wood.

Resources

• Locate violin teachers and lessons in your area
• Free violin video lessons online
• Purchase a combination metronome/tuner online