A Question For Those Good Violinists Out There.?
ok well…N.Y.S.S.M.A. is coming up (a thing where u play an instrument for a judge & they grade you) & i need to start practicing my violin….BUT the only problem is that i don`t know how to really tune it & that i am afraid that if i twist the peg too much it will snap. wat do i do?
Tags: ...question, Good, There, Those, Violinists
September 25th, 2009 at 6:51 am
well ask your music teacher to help teach you to tune ur violin thats what i would do & i think that will help
September 25th, 2009 at 7:05 am
I hope you know what note each string is (E, A, D, & G). You start with the A string. If you are scared of the string snapping, make sure you tune down before you go up. Get an A note & (I’m assuming you are strumming the string while tuning) keep plucking with your left thumb & tighten it with the peg. DON’T FORGET TO TUNE DOWN BEFORE YOU TUNE UP. You probably can loosen the string until it is about 1 note flat (if that makes sense) before you start tightening it. This keeps the string flexible & less prone to break.
Don’t stop plucking or you might pass the note, increasing your chances of breaking your string. The other strings tune to the A, but if you don’t know how it’s supposed to sound, just get each note individually & tune the strings one by one.
I know, it’s a little confusing, but I think it would be best if you had your teacher teach you how to tune or have someone tune it for you right before the performance. The only problem would be if you are playing with an accompanist & your violin’s A is not tuned to the piano’s.
I’ve been playing the violin for 14 years, & my G string has popped on me once when I was tuning. When it did, it was only because the peg had worn through it. It wasn’t scary either — no blood, it just went “limp.” Unless your violin is really old or you have razor-sharp fingers, the chances of your string snapping is pretty slim. Good luck with your competition.