Hi, I have just bought a new violin and am planning to turn my old one into a viola!!
Any tips on how to start learning??

You can't turn a violin into a viola and make it sound right - the body of the instrument is too small for the lower strings to carry the depth of sound a viola needs! Otherwise, why do you think stringed instruments need to get progressively bigger the lower the sound? Sell the original violin and buy a proper viola instead!

If you're worried about adapting your fingers to a viola, it's no different than changing position on a violin - after all you have to change the gaps between your fingers as you move higher up the strings, using your ears to keep you in tune. The clef - now that's another matter, but you'd have had to cope with the new clef in any case.

Violinia

Eeek, a small violin strung as a viola would be even worse!

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[quote name='benjaminja' date='Aug 13 2006, 06:48 PM' post='375222']

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Eeek, a small violin strung as a viola would be even worse!
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I quite agree...however sometimes you don't have a choice and you have to resist until the time comes when the pupil is 'big' enough to be able to handle a properly sized viola.
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That might not be a bad option, though...

The violin is a full size one (actually slightly bigger! ).Would it make a big difference in the sound quality if i tried to string it a a viola?

You know, Gliga manufacture violas as small as 11 inches. It might be worth bearing them in mind for future pupils. They're very good and, owing to the deeper ribs, have a much fuller sound than a restrung violin.

Allan

I'll second the Gliga recommendation: I have a 15" (and yes I know that's a lot bigger than most children will manage but it's small for a viola) and it has a better sound than some bigger and some more expensive violas that I have played. Definitely worth a look, they would be closer to a "real viola experience" than a restrung violin.

Stringing a violin as a viola is an ok idea in the short term, ideally it would be best to play an actual viola but to start off with, stringing a violin as a viola is a good idea. I started playing on a violin strung as a viola, as a. I was not big enough to play a viola as I could barely manage a full size violin and b. I didn't want to invest in a new instrument until I was certain it was what I wanted. And I haven't really looked back to be honest. It's true that a violin strung as a viola does not, in general, create the distinctive tone of a viola, but it does give you a feel of what the instrument will be like before you start splashing the cash, so to speak.

You shouldn't play the viola like you would play a violin, as well, apparently. My viola teacher often remarks that I'm doing something the way a violinist would do it, not a viola player.

Incidentally, is there a term for a viola player, like a violist or something?

Playing Devil's Advocate for a minute. Might there be a problem with getting lots of children started on viola and not violin in the sense that it sets them up pretty much exclusively for symphony orchestras? In my experience, some children who want to learn violin are simply not interested in, or will never join, a symphony orchestra. I think with violin there is more scope for sociable musical activities outside the orchestral world (e.g. folk groups, even rock bands) in which violas rarely figure. I just wonder if starting people off as violists is pigeonholing them way too early...?

Either tends to be acceptable, but I like 'violist' better.

Benjaminja, surely there's no particular reason why a violist couldn't play rock or folk?

Of course not, but it's less common for a violist to be required in a line-up. I can't think of any folk fiddle groups that have violas in and I've never heard of a folk viola group (there's an idea...!).

My point was just that performance opportunities are much narrower, genre-wise. And that several options might in fact be closed off to a young learner before they have really decided what kind of music they like and what they would like to play.