Hi all!
I just bought a new violin! I have a few questions. Hope some of you could give me advice:)
1) To fine tune the violin, we should turn the small circle stuff clockwise to make it sharper is that right?
2) Is it alright if I put the shoulder rest in the same compartment as the top of the violin, at the side of the tuning pegs? Will it affect them in anyway?
3)When playing, is the left palm supposed to come into contact with the violin?
4) Is it advisable to loosen the hair on the bow when it is not in use?
5) A friend of mine advised me to place my violin next to my piano when I'm practicing the piano. In what way will it make the violin better?

I currently can't afford lessons, so my friend who has learnt the violin for almost a year will be teaching me some of the basics next week.

1) Yes

2) Yes you can put it in the top compartment...it wont affect your violin - you may just want to twist the ends of the shoulder rest so they dont interfer with the pegs.

3) No. The left hand palm should not come into contact with the violin. The wrist should be extended outwards at all times. Go onto this website for more information about posture and other violin techniques: http://www.violinmasterclass.com/

4) Yes... EVERYTIME you finish playing the violin and put the bow back in the case, always loosen the hair. This appplies to all string instruments.

5) Hav no idea what your friend was on about, but maybe your piano won't get lonely..

As for the shoulder rest...it depends on shape of your case (in mine there IS NO ROOM for it) and whether the violin is secured well enough not to bump into the shoulder rest when you pick up your case and walk along. Make sure nothing gets to knock/touch/scratch your violin.
As for the violin next to piano...maybe your friend said that as he/she knows where your piano is and knows it is not near a radiator or a source of dampness, violins should be kept away from radiators and dampness and should avoid sudden changes in temperatures or being exposed to extreme temperatures for too long.

Enjoy your violin

Re. the piano - it's a matter of the wood vibrating, improves the tone. Mind you, so does subjecting the instrument to lots of humidity changes.

Liz

I was thinking more along the lines of the wood vibrating too. Fawnfawn, you're taking up the violin? Cool! =) Another fellow Singaporean beginner hehe! I'm not sure what you mean about the shoulder rest being in the same compartment as the violin. I'd say the shoulder rest cannot be in the same compartment as the violin as it might scratch it of if it's 'on top', it might make the bridge collapse. I'm not sure how your case looks like. Many cases have a little pocket on top and that's where I used to put my shoulder rest for my old violin. For my new violin, there's a separate compartment next to the violin for me to put my other stuff. How does your violin case look like? If you could provide a description, we could help you better. Your friend's really helpful to give you lessons! =)