Congratulations ! Enjoy your new violin.

You have selected a good starter instrument which should get you through a year or so of learningthe violin.

If you stay with the violin you may want to buy a proper instrument after a year or so.

Now then how do we define proper instrument? Really after a year, you only want something good enough to take you on for a few more years until you know enough about violins to choose better, so what you really need after a year or so is a better beginner's instrument. Even an instrument good enough to see you through to G8 could still be a beginner's instrument - my luthier considers most of the chinese instruments, even those costing several thousand euro, to be study instrument with only handmade, single luthier benchwork violins being 'proper' fiddles - but I'm sure we're not suggesting that the original poster should pay the price of a small car after a year of study!

You won't 'need' a professional instrument until well after grade eight (which is just as well given the cost!) - and the stenor will keep you happy until grade three - probably even five if you had it set up and bought a better bow. Then you can buy something good enough to see you to grade 8 and buy a proper (professional) instrument once you've got beyond that standard and if you feel the need.

Enjoy!

Soon you'll buy a slightly better one and then another slightly better one until you run out of financial resources or decide that the one you have is good enough.

I started on a stentor 2 so one model up from yours and after i changed the strings on it, it was a great starter instrument. I did upgrade to a ""proper"" violin (seeing as thats the term we're using on this thread ) before my grade 4 but that was cause i wanted to not cause i really needed to. It was quite an upgrade going from a £90 violin to a £450 one but it lasted me until my grade 8 (I got a new violin a few weeks ago )

Have fun with it and it's a good one to start on =]

I'm on my 4th, the first two (1/2 and 3/4 size) were nasty cheapy ones but did me just fine up till grade 4 when I got a new (well new for me but about 100yrs old) one. This lasted up to grade 8 and I still have it, but I then got an even better instrument which got me through grade 8, will last a lot longer yet and I will keep it for ever cos I love it!

x

Will see what happens. Pretty happy with my progress so far today. I'm getting there on Au Clair de la lune and twinkle twinkle. I'm self teaching till I start lessons and just trying to get a few tunes practiced. Although reading the notes and keeping the bow inbetween the bridge and fingerboard is a bit hard! I'll get used to it though ^^

I haven't tried it on violin yet, but Clair de Lune is a grade 6 flute piece and it goes up to the 4th ledger line A if not higher! I'd better go and hide in a little hole for inadequate violinists because I've barely got out of first position so far...

I had a go last night at the Faure Morceau de Concours that was originally written for violin, and I really struggled with the bowing on that because I couldn't fit all the notes into each slur on a single bow - not sure if the slurs were editorial though, as it was in a flute book.

Umm it's only in page 18 of Abracadabra violin book 1 lol. There is no way I am grade 6 standard, I expect that it is a variation.

It's a different tune!

W

I was talking about the Debussy Clair de Lune? I don't have the music in front of me, but I seem to remember the tune covering a large range between a bottom C# (adjacent to middle C) and a top Bb on the 5th ledger line above the stave?

I was talking about the Debussy Clair de Lune? I don't have the music in front of me, but I seem to remember the tune covering a large range between a bottom C# (adjacent to middle C) and a top Bb on the 5th ledger line above the stave?

Look here Clicky

Thanks Willobie and rosfrog.

I had a bit of a fright there at Terra being able to pick up the violin and play the Debussy straight off without even having had a lesson, so I'm glad it's a different tune.

I know some people can do difficult things straight off without ever having learnt, but it's really discouraging for the rest of us...


That's totally different to what I was thinking of.

Hey! lol. No I am not that amazing. It is the easy version!

It's not the easy version, Terra, it's a completely different piece to the one I was thinking of.

The Debussy is a lot longer (around 2 pages of melody line only on average sized priniting) and is a different tune.

You did give me a shock though!

I am too sentimental with things like this, i'm probably more then too attached to this guy

the Stentor is a great instrument for beginners, but i suspect that by the time you're ready to upgrade, you'll have noticed its shortcomings, and it won't be a difficult decision...

(this is what happened with me, anyway--sadly, it'll be another while until i can afford something better ;-)

I was actually saying that my way is probably the 'wrong' way of doing things!
I think you will be better off this way, to have the stentor and then choose a violin that's good 'for you' when you reach a higher level, possibly with the help of a friend/teacher who can advise.
Happy learning with the violin
ps you have not told us if you gave your violin a name and if so, what is it?

In reply to your question JoJo, I decided to call him Valen. My husband helped me chose the name as I like latin names and wanted a latin name for him.

That is a very unusual name I must say, never heard of it! Excellent

I know that I'll stick at violin, it's just that ocational chance or the fact that I don't have £800 odd to spend right now. I must admit if I did I probably would have brought a violin that would have seen me past grade 8.
I'm really happy with my violin. I'm quite attached to it and the next one I get I'd like to be a really good one that will take me to grade 8 or further.

Speaking as an experienced violinist and teacher of the same, I would advise taking both your playing and violin purchasing one step at a time. While I do not want to dampen your enthusiasm of wanting playing to a high standard, on a bowed string instrument it's a long long road - a never ending one even.

Additionally, if you buy now what you think you'll like playing in a few years time, the chances are you'll have changed your mind by then. You have to nuture and improve your skills and technique first, before deciding what type of violin suits you best. Bear in mind that bow choice will also become important, it's not just the violin that will need consideration.

Speaking as an experienced violinist and teacher of the same, I would advise taking both your playing and violin purchasing one step at a time. While I do not want to dampen your enthusiasm of wanting playing to a high standard, on a bowed string instrument it's a long long road - a never ending one even.

Additionally, if you buy now what you think you'll like playing in a few years time, the chances are you'll have changed your mind by then. You have to nuture and improve your skills and technique first, before deciding what type of violin suits you best. Bear in mind that bow choice will also become important, it's not just the violin that will need consideration.

It's an interesting dilemma; good equipment certainly helps you play better but it is hard to know what 'good' means until you can play better...

This is a particularly common occurance where many a new player will fork out for a violin that they can't play to its full potential, or indeed know whether it will do what they want in their hands - because they don't yet have the skills.

Your bow purchase is the perfect example.

The guidance of a teacher is helpful, providing they give an objective view.

I should qualify that really; it's a very nice bow which admittedly sounds better in the hands of an expert, but I meant that I might have looked for different qualities for the same money at the time had I known a bit more - I wouldn't say it was a disaster! Some time in the next few years I'll upgrade though, and take some time over it.
N