Violin Technique
G
D
A
E
A
E
B
F
B
F
C
G
C
G
D
A
D
A
E
B
Posture
Sit straight up on the edge of your chair with both feet flat.
Avoid any posture that creates tension in your body.
Guitar position: set violin on right leg, leaning against body.
Rest the neck on your left hand, touching the big knuckle of your first finger.
Gently rest thumb on the first tape, with the tip extending past the neck a bit.
Left Hand
Fingers must be curved, not collapsed.
To press the first finger, curl it up into a box shape.
The other fingers curl, but each one less than the one before it.
Leave lower fingers down when playing higher fingers.
When a finger is not pressing down, keep it close to the string.
Only push down as hard as you need to make a good sound.
Right Hand
Pluck the string with your right thumb near the end of the fingerboard.
Plucking is called “pizzicato” or “pizz.” for short.
Two Note Finger Pattern Exercise
D 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 2 1 2 1 2 2 3 2 3 2 3 3 4 3 4 3 4
A 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 2 1 2 1 2 2 3 2 3 2 3 3 4 3 4 3 4
Play slowly, making sure to use correct left and right hand technique. Later,
try to speed up as long as you are still playing well.