Blog archives for September, 2009

I want to buy a violin to play, and a flute for a present.
Are there any stores you recommend? Or good trustworthy websites?
I thank anyone who trys to help!

go to any local musical stores like yamaha, there’s sure to be these instruments available. for flute, get a yamaha/geiminhardt/jupiter if you’re under budget and your friend is a beginner/amateur in flute playing, those brands are quite good for beginners to learn and grasp the concept of flute playing. i’m not sure about violin cuz i dont play it, but if you want it to play make sure you invest in a good one that gives you good tone, you’ll be depending on it during performances.

My daughter is 3 and a half and very interested in my violin: but she is a tiny poppet! What is the absolutely smallest sized violin that I could get for her? Is it a quarter size?

Many thanks!

Most children start at a 1/16th, but if she’s very, VERY small, there is a 1/32nd.

See:
http://beststudentviolins.com/violins.html#K500

You should have your teacher measure her.

or see:

http://beststudentviolins.com/StringCareSpecs.html#7

and

http://beststudentviolins.com/StringCareSpecs.html#5

the top of the scroll is broken nd we want to fix it at home

If you try to fix it yourself, you will just cause further damage and it will be even more expensive to actually fix it correctly later. Unless you have an extraordinarily cheap factory-made violin, you’re better off going to an actual violin shop. If your violin really is that cheap, you could probably just glue it on, or something, because the top of the scroll mainly just makes an aesthetic difference, assuming the pegholes are still intact, but again, not recommended.

I have no clue what to get my boyfriend for x-mas. We have been together for 10 months now. We are both 14. Music is practically his life. He plays the violin,oboe,sax,flute,piano. His main instruments r violin and oboe. He is a computer nerd too he just built his own computer. He said that he didn’t want anything electronic tho and he wont give me any ideas on what he wants. So if you guys have any suggestions plz let me know thnx

I’m an oboe major in college and there is nothing musicians love more than those funky shirts or stickers with our sayings on them. like "Here comes treble" or "Got reeds?". Music belts are cool, musical magnets, signs….go to a music store and there are alway those fun things

If you lived in italy and had the chance a violin, would you buy a hand-made violin or a violin made from Shar? Price is not a problem, but which is better quality?

Italy anything from Italy is always going to be better. Thats why we always pay for so much more when it comes to things from there. Hand made violin. Its much more personal to know someone made this by hand. You appreicate it more.

He always signed his name with a white marker on the back.

This excerpt is from Tomas Vitali’s Ciaconna (Chaconne) played on a special Stradivarius model by Salvadore de Durro.The player is actually sight reading! (I think very well too) She’s trying out the violin. She hides the imperfections with vibrato Notice how small the chinrest is too. Altogether a beautiful sound…

Technorati Tags: stradivarius copy

Okay, you music people out there, help me out here. I accidentally dropped my viola (on carpet) but it hit a wire and chipped the edge. My teacher said I’ll have to pay to fix it. But I need to know before my mom kicks my butt.

first of all, go to a place/shop that is JUST for violin or stringed instruments. Fixing just one chip should be mininum 15 max 50 depending on how big it is. Also, usually a chip will just be filled in with some black stuff (i dont konw what it is but my violin has a lot of them cuz it’s more than 100 years old) and then polished. Im not sure though, maybe sometimes they do fill it in with actual wood.

Sorry…It should read "Cellists" and not "Ellists"..Don’t know what is wrong with YA…

Whenever they start taking coffee in the mornings, this type of mistakes are usually made..!
Theyi have also duplicated my question…! Sorry !

Well, I’m a violinist, and while I normally don’t play electric violins, I have before. My friend has a 7-string Viper violin, so the obvious difference there is the number of strings. There are also a number of pickups available, so there are a lot more things stylistically that can be done. The violin is, as you can imagine, is a lot louder too if you turn the amp up. Other than that, there aren’t a whole lot of differences. They’re kind of fun to play around with, but I definitely wouldn’t switch over completely to electric.

My sister is planning to buy and learn how to play a violin, any advice?

Any advice would be appreciated. I’d just like to know some guidelines or things to know when it comes to buying a violin. Some information about learning how to play it and when and where to buy it. Especially here in the Philippines. Any advice? thanks

Used instruments can be a very good choice for a beginner. One of the most important things with a violin is to be sure that it is the proper size for the person using it. A reputable shop will assist you by measuring the forearm and guiding you to instruments of the appropriate size. If your sister is young still, it is not a good idea to spend too much money, as the violin will need to be replaced with a larger instrument as she grows. If the forearm is exceptionally long, it is usually necessary to have an instrument custom made, which can be rather pricey. Regarding learning how to play one, check in your area for music teachers – you can sometimes connect with them through schools. If you cannot afford to pay for lessons, you can sometimes work out an arrangement with the teacher to do yardwork or housecleaning in exchange for the lessons. Good luck to you!

NN