I really depressed with my violin playing at the moment. I started 2 years ago after wanting to play for 16 years and made quick and pleasing progress. I'm now working towards Grade 6 but really find that I'm frustrated with my sound and progress now. People around me who have been playing the same length of time are so much better, their vibrato is good and they're just so confident in their playing.

I was supposed to be doing Grade 6 at Easter but my teacher said the session was early next year so I don't know what to do. I want to keep progressing but it's just not happening - help!!!!!

I think getting up to grade 6 in 2 years is very impressive. But why do you want to just rush through the grades? So what if you take your exam a few months later.

Take your time, go at your own pace rather than everybody elses. Also, with vibrato, if you feel you are not making the tone you wish to create, ask your teacher to help, I'm sure that he/she would be more than happy to help, once you feel that you are playing how you want to play I'm sure that the confidence will come too.

What instrument(s) did you play before taking up the violin? If you didn't play another stringed instrument, then to expect to pass grade 6 after 2 years is over-ambitious. As Isabel says, why the rush?

I'd slow down, choose repertoire you really love for its own sake, and work on your tone and vibrato. Good, expressive violin playing is something that develops over time - years, really. And never forget that it's the bowing hand that creates the tone, and I sense from your post that it's richness of tone you're after, so you probably need to put your best energy into your bowing.

Read up about bowing and how to improve it. Is your wrist relaxed? Do you keep your thumb bent, and your little finger curved and relaxed with your whole hand inclining towards your left? Does your wrist sort of flow as you change direction with the bow?

And with your vibrato, are you aiming for a finger, hand or arm vibrato? Have you done any practice with the scroll against the wall, systematically vibrating each finger on each string, 4 to a bow, then 8, then 16 etc etc? Have you got exactly the right movement going?

You probably need to isolate the problems and then work on them individually, slowly and with real focus; and stop worrying about achieving in a rush!!!

Violinia

Don't get hung up on vibrato. Continuous vibrato is a 20th century fashion (started by Kreisler). The Spohr (c.1845) and Joachim (c. 1905) Violin Methods describe vibrato as an embellishment, to be used on certain notes of solo works. It is probably quite authentic to play all Baroque and Classical and most Romantic orchestral parts and chamber music without it. Accurate tuning is far more important.

Don't downplay the importance of vibrato - just use it in moderation. Smiling all the time would be weird but so would never smiling.

Violinia

Hello. Thanks for everyone's comments. I've not played a stringed instrument before the violin, but I'm diploma level Clarinet so have a good musical background.

I'm pretty good at arm vibrato but have been told to use wrist vibrato and this is what I'm struggling with.

I suppose I'm keen to progress quickly as I want to keep up with those that are younger than me. I know this is silly and the key to becoming a good player is correct technique and building up a repertoire. It doesn't help having a teacher who goes on about all his other pupils and how well they're doing and what grade they're on - he makes it a sort of competition.

Get a new teacher - I'm serious. No good teacher makes his pupils feel inadequate by going on about how good their other pupils are - unless they also infuse you with the confidence that you can get there too.

And anyway, isn't music about creativity and self-expression rather than merely passing exams?

Violinia

Violinia, you say to "read up about bowing"...any reading recommendations? Robert Gerle? Son Viohazard is left-handed, and some concrete advice on gaining more bow-hand control would help him too.

Grade 6 level seems like a good time to start worrying (i.e. thinking for yourself)...I suggest taking your time and worrying all you want . Just keep your worrying focussed!

Have you tried taping yourself?

As for comments about other students, let's hope they were just passing indiscretions rather than a campaign of harrassment!

They're not cheap but I recommend the books by Simon Fischer:

"Basics" and I think the other one is called "Practising". Fischer puts together all the top advice from some of the top violin teachers ever, like Galamian and Dorothy Delay. There are detailed descriptions of every single aspect of violin playing - a positive wealth of information, even if it is put across in a somewhat joyless fashion.

There are also lots of websites with good and detailed advice - just go to Google and type in "violin bowing advice", or something, and several sites will pop up.

Violinia

PS Yes I've taped myself and it's very revealing!

QUOTE

They're not cheap but I recommend the books by Simon Fischer

I've got both of these and they are very useful, not just for sorting out any niggly problems of my own, but when I need ideas to help sort out my students' problems too.

QUOTE

PS Yes I've taped myself and it's very revealing!

Quite scary to listen to yourself I think although home tape recording doesn't do anything justice. Just listen to how squeaky everyones voices come out.

Two recommendations...will have to look into this!

As for taping...one day when we're rich, I'll buy Viohazard a flash memory music player with recording capability, so he can hang the remote round his neck and flick the switch without having to put his violin down every time...I'm noticing with English students that it's no longer cheap or easy to buy tape recorders, though it's an easy option if you already happen to own one.

dunt wry. u'll catch up in good time. trust me, u r so not slow. i worked for ages on my violin and im just progressing toward gr 8!? u just DO NOT know wad slow means. and u cant rush. take ur time and work reallyreallyreally hard on ur instrument. tt way, u will do really well in ur exam. slow and steady wins the race. wads the rush? chill and try ur best.

QUOTE (Violinia @ Dec 12 2004, 11:09 PM)

Get a new teacher - I'm serious. No good teacher makes his pupils feel inadequate by going on about how good their other pupils are - unless they also infuse you with the confidence that you can get there too.

Amen to that. My first piano teacher spent her whole time complaining that I played too many instruments and that I should concentrate on the piano and that I was not progressing fast enough and... you get the picture. After 3 years, and getting through G3 quite respectably, at age 13 I gave up because I was basically sick of her - especially when, after my G3 exam, which I really was not ready for and was scared I would fail, she said I "didn't do that well" - I got 112, when I hadn't expected to pass and couldn't actually play one of my pieces reliably (ie being fairly sure I could get it right, let alone WOULD) going into the exam room!

To this day I rue not going to a new teacher rather than giving up - if I had been offered the chance after G2 I probably would have, but by the time I'd been with her 3 years I ended up hating the piano.

Now I have a really good and encouraging teacher, (after a break in lessons of about 13 years!) who laughs with me when I mess up, applauds when I do well, and appreciates when I have obviously practiced, and I actually look forward to my lessons, which is new! It took me a couple of months to get used to not expecting criticism having played a piece... my new teacher tells me what I have done right, and only then moves on to helping me where I have messed up; my old teacher used to always just say "well you did THIS wrong, and..." I'd forgotten what it was like to actually enjoy a lesson.

So bottom line... if your teacher makes you feel bad about your playing (esp after getting to G6 standard after 2 years, which is really really good) then you deserve better - better teaching, and better treatment, and someone who will encourage you for doing a grand job.

QUOTE

PS Yes I've taped myself and it's very revealing!

If you think that's revealing, try camcording yourself. Now THAT's revealing!

I've had a chat with my violin teacher and although he says I will be ready by Easter to do my Grade 6, he'd be happy for me to wait till July if I want to (only thing is I'm doing a performance diploma in clarinet them, so won't have much time for violin). I think I will wait as at least I won't get so stressed and have time to work on technique and perfect my vibrato.

Oh, I've a mini disc that I record myself on but I tend to make mistakes when I know I'm recording so don't know if that actually helps me or not. Perhaps if I just left it running every practice session I'd get used to it!


Thanks for all your help guys.

i had the same problem, i couldn't improve and because of that i didn't want to play. my teacher said i'd hit a learning wall but i'd suddenly improve again and i did.
in case you didn't get any of that babble, just keep playing nd you will improve.

edit-whoops i was a bit late replying lol! oh well