An Introduction to the ViolinBy Richard Romando
Violins are among the most versatile musical instruments, evidenced by their use in many different musical genres. Some types of music that commonly feature violins are classical music, pop, bluegrass, country, and jazz.
A violin is the smallest of the stringed instruments. Other stringed instruments include the viola and the cello. It has four strings, tuned, from low to high, G D A E, each note being a perfect fifth of the one below it. A violin looks like a hollow wooden box with a long neck protruding from one end. The body of the violin is usually made of a couple of different types of wood. The top of the violin, also called the belly, is customarily made of spruce, which is a strong type of softwood. The sides and back are made of maple, which is harder and more durable than spruce. Ebony is most commonly used for the fingerboard, but sometimes ivory is used. Some less expensive models have other types of wood that are merely painted to look like ebony. Traditionally, violin strings were made of gut, but they are usually made of metal now.
The violin is played by pressing the strings against the fingerboard with the left hand while rubbing a bow across the strings with the right hand. The bow is a long wooden rod with stands of horsehair tied to each end. A violin bow looks similar to a bow used to shoot arrows, but is much smaller. Violinists usually play one note on one string at a time, but they can play chords by holding down and bowing more than one string at once. Some pieces of music require the violinist to pluck the strings with the fingers of the right hand rather than bow them, producing a short, staccato sound.
Violins have been in use for many centuries and are still common is contemporary music. The sounds produced by a violin can compliment many other musical instruments and enrich a piece of music.
About the Author
Violins Info provides detailed information about antique and electric violins, violin music, sheet music, strings, and shops; violin makers and repair; and explanations of how to play the violin and a short history of the violin. Violins Info is affiliated with Business Plans by Growthink.
Full List of Articles
Latest Violin Sheet Music News:
iPad 2 pushes sheet music, and page turners, off the stage
The iPad continues its dizzying rampage, decimating netbooks, dayplanners and 90-pound textbooks. It now claims its most awkward casualty: the concert hall page turner. The inevitable future of classical performance arrives in Washington this week when violinist Joshua Bell and pianist Sam Haywood enter the Kennedy Center Concert Hall . They’ll blend contemporary gadgetry with the repertoire ...
Read More ...
Fiddlers gather for weekend of listening, learning and loving music
If fate had different plans for Elke Baker, today she would be pouring over chemical equations, not sheet music. This weekend, Baker will be a featured performer and teacher at the Upper Potomac Fiddle Retreat in Shepherdstown. The three-day event kicks off Friday night with a concert, followed by two days of workshops and jam sessions. Baker said she was introduced to the violin when she was 7 ...
Read More ...
Musicians in the making
Nanaimo Conservatory of Music welcomes students of all ages, abilities to learn
Read More ...
A Trio of Siblings With a Classical Sound
The siblings who form a string trio have played in concert halls, cathedrals, even the White House, but a neighborhood pool hall presents a different kind of challenge and reward.
Read More ...
City Room: For the JoSunJari Trio, a Life in Music
The siblings who form a string trio have played in concert halls, cathedrals, even the White House, but a neighborhood pool hall presents a different kind of challenge and reward.
Read More ...
The score on the music desk
I’ll be spending the weekend in New York City at Chamber Music America’s annual conference.
Read More ...
First plays showcase new group’s talent
Flawless beauty takes tremendous work — at least, that is the message conveyed in 'Opus' by Michael Hollinger and 'Speed-the-Plow' by David Mamet , the first plays to be produced by the Repertory Project, an independent theater group headed by Emma Johnson '14 and Skylar Fox '15. Both plays, by disparate means, showcase the role of sacrifice in the pursuit of great art. Where 'Opus' explores the ...
Read More ...
Virtuoso at 17
APPLE VALLEY The room was quiet while his hands rested against the keys, ready in position.As his fingers began to dance across the keys, notes seemed to flow as though from a virtuoso who had been playing piano since birth.Driven by a love for music, Apple Valley High School student Tayari...
Read More ...
Study finds new violins equal to classics
When the two young stars from the Curtis Institute of Music were summoned to a hotel room, one by one, to try out some high-quality violins, they were met with an odd sight.
Read More ...
|
|
