Please share tips!

Jozeca · 05-31-2002, 01:55 PM

Share your tips on playing stringed instruments. Specify the instrument then explain your tip. I'm sure they would be much appreciated!
Thanks,
Jozeca<><

wanaBragamuffin · 01-19-2003, 11:06 PM

Hammered Dulcimer
Tip: Take lessons...find music festivals to goto, they're most all over the place

Flyguy · 02-06-2003, 01:29 PM

Wow..there's a huge lack of posts in this forum...so I'll post something. And this is actually a good tip

Always wipe off the violin body before you put it in the car or other place. The rosin can melt at a very low temperature and get the body all sticky.

And for the same reason, never leave your violin case in the car on a hot day or in direct sunlight.

Also, just for a safety tip - if you are going crazy with bowing...be sure that all bystanders are at least 4 feet back.

:klol:

Jozeca · 02-06-2003, 04:26 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Flyguy
Wow..there's a huge lack of posts in this forum...so I'll post something. And this is actually a good tip

Always wipe off the violin body before you put it in the car or other place. The rosin can melt at a very low temperature and get the body all sticky.

And for the same reason, never leave your violin case in the car on a hot day or in direct sunlight.

Also, just for a safety tip - if you are going crazy with bowing...be sure that all bystanders are at least 4 feet back. :klol:

Cool, that's for posting. When you said that about bowing, I thought you said bowling. I'm like "Huh? Bowling with your instrument?

Anyhow, good tips. My rosin cracked the other day. It's pretty cheap stuff, in a wooden thing, and it split in four peices. Moral of the story: don't drop your rosin. Just kidding. I didn't even drop it. It probably really cold or something. Oh well. It doesn't matter.

Flyguy, do you have advice on how to get that sticky rosin off? I'm not very good about cleaning my instrument. . .

Bill the Pony · 05-19-2003, 06:43 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Jozeca
Cool, that's for posting. When you said that about bowing, I thought you said bowling. I'm like "Huh? Bowling with your instrument?

Anyhow, good tips. My rosin cracked the other day. It's pretty cheap stuff, in a wooden thing, and it split in four peices. Moral of the story: don't drop your rosin. Just kidding. I didn't even drop it. It probably really cold or something. Oh well. It doesn't matter.

Flyguy, do you have advice on how to get that sticky rosin off? I'm not very good about cleaning my instrument. . .

as far as getting it off i'd say give it a good wipe down, and sometimes instrument polish or whatever they call it might help, it just depends on HOW sticky it is or whatnot

dulcigal · 07-05-2003, 01:17 PM

As to the post about hammered dulcimer...sounds like you're doing violin, but if you ever consider playing one of these beauties, you don't necessarily have to take lessons. I know in my area no one even offered lessons in like a hundred mile radius! I taught myself by listening to dulcimer cds and was performing within 3 months.

But anyway, do NOT get a 12/11 model (means twelve string courses one side, 11 the other) because there's no bass courses, and the resale to upgrade is hideous. Go 15/14, with a good company. Not something you pick up at your local music store, because 9 chances out of 10 it's been sitting there so long without tuning that it'll take you weeks just to be able to play in tune. Not fun, I tell you.

And definately, with any stringed instrument, NEVER LEAVE IT IN THE CAR!!!! I have a friend who's soundboard cracked right across the middle from the humidity.

And save an old sock while you're at it--these things are the absolute most pains to dust! Not that you have to dust it, but the finish looks alot better without a coat of gray on the top, and no one likes to see a cloud forming as you play.

Born2Worship · 07-10-2003, 01:25 AM

Okay this may seem somewhat irrelevant..but my rosin suggestion (on bowed instruments) is dark rosin... it doesn't last as long as light rosin on the bow but it crumbles too easily.. the other day my light rosin exploded!

B2W

astromonkeyx · 08-24-2003, 12:13 AM

i'm sure most people know this, but make sure your bridge is always in the right place/position. and don't restring all your strings at once. i know it seems like a no-brainer, but i did...and it cost me my bridge and violin for a week or two. I did get a much better bridge as a replacement (though a rip-off), but it's bad when the bridge snaps. I was lucky my instrument didn't crack

Ashleigh · 10-25-2003, 07:39 PM

Ok well dont really got any tips for mandolin, but heres a wicked website with some free mandolin tabs http://jaybuckey.com/

vball_lita_21 · 11-27-2003, 09:20 PM

yeah one thing to make sure of.... every time u put ur violin away make sure it's closed b4 u pick ur case up!! it's a very important little detail but it'll save u much stress and prolly money. cuz this happened to me b4 i had to play a piece and my violin broke so yeah. well hope this helped

bass · 12-15-2003, 02:17 AM

OK, so you've got your violin all clean and ready for your next performance/practice session. What next?

Here's a bit of advice: don't neglect the importance of classical etudes! Sure, some of them make horrid pieces of music (Wolfhart, for one, has some etudes that just sound weird, man), but they prepare you for some of the more tecnically demanding pieces of music. And trust me, even if you don't do classical music, you've got nothing to lose by studying it...and you will end up using the things you learn one way or another.

Case in point, if I had only been a little more dedicated to my position studies, I'd have realized that some of the nastiest parts of Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No.3 are easily navigated if I would only stick to third position more often

Oh well.

Jozeca · 12-31-2003, 05:23 PM

Hehe... yeah, watch your bridge.

If your bridge comes down, you're violin almost falls apart! *gasp* The tailpiece comes off, the strings fall off, and sometimes *cringe* the sound post falls down. That stinks. I'm so glad I have an orchestra director.

So true about the etudes. They have a lot to offer. I haven't done a ton, but I do have a book of Wolfhart sitting on a shelf... somewhere... dusty...

Born2Worship · 01-01-2004, 08:13 PM

Hey, since this is the "Please share tips!" thread, does anyone have any advice on playing the cello? I got one for Christmas, and I don't read music... so 1st position, 2nd position, and 3rd position mean nothing to me on the violin or cello... only on piano... in other words... does anyone have any advice for the cello that I'm likely to UNDERSTAND?! lol. Thanks in advanced!

Jozeca · 01-01-2004, 09:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Born2Worship

Hey, since this is the "Please share tips!" thread, does anyone have any advice on playing the cello? I got one for Christmas, and I don't read music... so 1st position, 2nd position, and 3rd position mean nothing to me on the violin or cello... only on piano... in other words... does anyone have any advice for the cello that I'm likely to UNDERSTAND?! lol. Thanks in advanced!

My best tip... go out there and get a couple of good position books.

Sorry if that doesn't help a ton, but it'd probably be the easiest way to learn. I don't play much cello (in orchestra small group we got to about an... um... 7th grade level...). So I dunno how much I could help but if you have more specific questions I could maybe help you out.
Congrats on the new instrument!

bass · 01-05-2004, 02:01 AM

You got a cello for Christmas!!! Wow! I am so jealous! Hahahaha!

You know, I've got a nasty little secret for you...classical musicians will kill me, but hey, if it helped me, it might help you:

think of the cello as a really big violin that you've got to play upright and inbetween your legs

The positions on the cello are the same as the violin (Yeah, yeah, I can hear the collective moan coming from the orchestra); there's a spacing adjustment, of course, the notes of the cello being wider apart than they are on the violin, but not much else.

"Into the teeth of the storm." ~ Sally Brown

The reason for this is because the violin, viola, and cello are tuned in fifths (i.e, for the cello and viola, C-G-D-A: G being the fifth of C, D being the fifth of G, and so on)! Therefore, the position of your fingers is the same for all three instruments, just stretched apart a bit more than on the viola

Isn't that neat?

Try this: play any tune you want on the violin in the key of G. Next, play the same tune on the equivalent strings of the cello (if you began on the first string of the violin, begin on the first string of the cello) using exactly the same fingerings you used on the violin (just stretched apart a bit). You'll have played the tune in the key of C. Of course, if you wanted to play the tune in the key of G, the fingerings WILL be different.