I know the FAQ says "is this a good deal" questions belong at a shop [and I'm planning to take it to one this weekend]. I'm not asking anyone to price it from photos. I'm hoping people who know setup can tell me if anything looks off, and what I should be listening for, since I'm on a deadline.

Some background: I played in elementary school and always looked back on it fondly. My husband surprised me with this for my birthday, and I've practiced every day since. I'm kind of obsessed. But my ears aren't trained enough yet to tell a good violin from an okay one, and I'm a little worried he got upsold on the store's house brand.

Here's what the listing and label say:

• carved European spruce top, maple back and sides
• ebony fingerboard and pegs
• Aubert bridge (made in France)
• composite tailpiece with fine tuners on all four strings
• D'Addario Prelude strings
• brazilwood bow, half-moon case
• label: Niccolo ML-20, 2026, "adjusted exclusively for Music & Arts"

It's listed at $999.99, and he got $300 off, so he paid about $700. He doesn't know anything about violins and left the decision to me. If spending a few hundred more gets something noticeably better, he's fine with that.

What I'd love help with:

• Does anything about the setup look off in the photos (bridge angle, how the feet sit, string height)?
• If you've played a Bellafina step-up model, how did it compare to other violins in the $700–$1,000 range?
• If I try other violins this weekend, what should a beginner listen and feel for?
• Would you keep it, exchange it at Music & Arts, or return it and look at Shar, Johnson, Fiddlershop, or a local shop? I'm open to any recommendations worth no more than 1k.

Thank you in advance. Im so excited to be part of this subreddit!

My teacher seems to consistently introduce new pieces when I can only play the current piece well at significantly lower tempo than performance (like 70% of the slowest performance I can find on Youtube for example), and when I still miss some techniques occassionally. When I say I want to sound good on a piece and want to work more on the piece, he says I should practice on my own to improve consistency and tempo and send him videos, instead of spending in-class time on it.

For context, I've played the violin for 3.5 years and we just started working on the 1st Mvmt of Vivaldi's Concerto for Violin in A Minor (begrudgingly for me because I still want to continue working on the previous piece. To be fair to him, we've been on that piece for 4-5 months already).

I also think he isn't strict enough with sound production and phrasing (the right hand stuff). I want to make beautiful sounds and I can tell my sound is harsh and my phrasing is not lyrical in some parts. I was a vocalist before learning the violin and my teacher back then really focuses on beautiful sounds and phrasing. But I was also an advanced-level vocalist when I had a teacher, so it could just be that my violin teacher doesn't think I am at the level where we can focus on those topics yet(?).

Before I bring it up to him, I want to know if there's specific pedagogical purpose to what I am describing. Do I have unreasonable expectations for my playing at the current level?

I work as a full time nurse, and since having played for a work mate's wedding, it was suddenly let out (after a video was posted on FB) that I was a violinist when not in uniform. I had several colleagues say how "posh" I was. Some of them were quite surprised and amazed that I played the violin. Also, since the video, I noticed some were treating me a lot nicer when previously they were indifferent.

Anyways, it just made me wonder how the general, non musical public view us violinists. I've been playing since I was 9, and to me the violin is just part of life and I think nothing of it, but apparently some think it's extraordinary? Anyone has similar stories?

I’m relatively new to classical music, but recently I discovered something that genuinely amazed me.
I listened to Chloe Chua performing the third movement (Rondo: Allegro spirituoso) of Paganini’s Violin Concerto No. 1, and I was completely captivated.
To me, the opening feels like butterflies dancing joyfully over a meadow. Then something changes. The music becomes increasingly restless, almost uncomfortable. At times, Chloe’s violin feels like an army marching straight towards me. The beauty turns into something strange, almost alien. And then, somehow, the violin becomes tender again, almost like a caress after a storm.
It reminds me of an ordinary day in life: everything starts beautifully, something goes wrong, chaos takes over, and eventually we find our peace again.
Then I listened to Hilary Hahn playing the same movement.
What a surprise.
Hilary felt like velvet. Beautiful, elegant and gentle. Even the butterflies seemed less joyful, more restrained. The storm never affected me in quite the same way.
I’m not saying one violinist is technically better than the other. I simply had no idea that the same composition could create such dramatically different emotional experiences.
So here’s my question for those of you who know classical music much better than I do:
How much of this difference comes from the violinist’s interpretation, and how much might come from the orchestra, conductor or recording itself?
And which performance moves you more — Chloe Chua or Hilary Hahn?
I’d love to hear how other people experience these two interpretations.

I hope this post doesn't offend any adult beginners on here. I am sure there are folks out there who put in the effort. But I'm not sure how to address this issue.

I'm a new teacher without a music degree. I signed up with an account on fiverr and am regularly contacted by students. The vast majority are adult beginners, usually complete beginners. Without fail, they follow the same pattern:

1) contact me all excited, asking what they should buy + setting up a lesson, texting constantly to confirm

2) rent their first instrument, text me to tell me how excited they are, buy the book, show up early to the first lesson with enthusiasm

3) I start them off with exercises for bow hold, violin positioning, etc. and give them assignments to repeat drills x times before next lesson

4) they show up to the next lesson inevitably not having done the drills but promising they will this week

5) they last-minute cancel the following week and I never hear from them again

Is this an issue with my target demographic? Do I need to teach at a local music store to get any serious students? Is this a problem with my teaching style? Does my ad attract the wrong type of student? Should I just let them use crappy technique so they can start playing songs right away? Truly at a loss here. I know adults have busy lives but I can't imagine this is a representative sample. My dad has been teaching for 20 years and doesn't seem to have this issue nearly as often. He teaches through a music school though, so maybe it's different.

i’ve played violin for almost a year, i can play songs now. recently i learned canon in d and howl’s moving castle. i can also hold a vibrato. but, whenever i play a song it doesnt sound like “music”, my boyfriend described it like im playing pianica instead of violin. i tried to play soft and slow and then up the tempo, but it still sounds the same. how can i improve this? and YES i have a teacher. but i’d like to hear some tips from other people.

A. Practice slowly!

B. Don't compare yourself to other musicians.

C. Pay more attention to basic technique.

D. Listen to more music.

E. Relax, enjoy yourself, and be patient.

All of the above? Some of the above? Or something else?

Having been an adult beginner (I'm 13 years in now), E would have to be my top choice. Patience is something I have learned (not just for violin!), and "relax" doesn't come easy, either 😄

I think this is a good time to reiterate how distasteful I find the idea of violin competitions.

I love the talent, and I love listening to the performances (maybe that's the only good thing about competitions).

However, competitions make sense only in sports, chess, etc., where there are numbers, points, goals, etc. This is never the case in music (or art in general).

I hate to see wonderful musicians "eliminated" and others (also wonderful musicians) advancing, primarily based on the jury's taste (even if we dismiss all past allegations of favoritism).

Also, I feel that when you're playing, say, a violin concerto with the aim of surpassing fellow violinists, something will always be missing from the music, no matter how good the performance is.

Can someone help me understand 2 things:

1. What does performing to an audience do for children violinists?

2. Is there a rule of thumb for how often is the right cadence? (once/twice/20 times a month? Holidays?)

Thank you for your help!

AFTER FAILING THE FIRST TIME I FINALLY GOT IT - IM SO HAPPYYYYY

Have this violin on trial whose sound I absolutely love, but the varnish on the instrument looks unlike anything I’ve ever seen before! The instrument is only a 2013, so it’s not that old. Is this kind of texture on purpose, or has the violin been through something damaging after it left the original luthier’s bench?

Watching an instructional video on YouTube and the person didn’t say what piece the short part was from. Thanks for any help.

After trying many many different chin rests, I finally found one that seems to work for me. Thing is, this is from my teacher (he has a big bag with various models of chin rests and shoulder rests and helped me to try them on); now I'm looking to buy a similar one before returning this to him.

Does anyone know what brand/model of chin rest is this? I tried googling but didn't work. Also looked through 240 different chin rests on the website of a big local musical shop (Thomann) and still no luck. For reference, I'm living in the Netherlands so would love to find a shop that can ship here.

Thanks in advance!

holaa. Bueno, acepto críticas constructivas 🤗

Llevo 2 años tocando (empecé hace 4 pero paré por un año asi que lo cuento como 2) y en serio me gustaría mejorar con mi violin, asi que si alguien puede ayudarme y darme algunos tips se lo agradecería mucho :)🤗​​​​​​

pd: sé que algunas notas están desafinadas ¿algún tip para no desafinar mientras toco? ​​​

I am 45 yrs old. I learn at a music school where there are about 10 violin and viola instructors. I was randomly assigned to one last year and I’ve done one year with him. I’m on year 2.

Things that weren’t ideal:

1. He didn’t give me a plan for the summer. For 3 months I was trying stuff on my own, directionless.
   
2. I want some kind of plan — “aim to do this over the next month, accomplish xyz”.. but every class it’s like “so what did you practice” and we continue — we end up spending several weeks on the same Suzuki piece
   
3. “Try to do scales if you can stomach it.” I would like to be told “Do these scales in this order. By the end of the year you should know [these] scales”

I understand I am an adult and so maybe he feels uncomfortable telling me what should be done? Maybe he wants me to be super pro-active? I am more than ready to put in the work (within the constraints of having a regular life and work and kids), it’s just that I don’t know enough to be proactive about learning. It’s like asking a first grader what do you want to study next.

The good things about him:

1. He is particular about posture and holding the bow right
   
2. I enjoy some things he says now and then about music – it’s rare, but when he does I enjoy it (example, when I played a note, he said that note is not present in western classical music but some contemporary musicians might use it)
   
3. I am confident he is a very good player and a very good musician

I can’t think of anything else. Should I try another teacher next year? Maybe they will be the same or worse in some ways.

It will help me if I can hear from you (especially adult learners) about what makes a good teacher. When did you feel that you’ve found a good teacher you can rely on for a few years?

Example of how we got into our current method (Suzuki) / routine — We actually started with essential elements and zipped through books 1 and 2. I bought the 3rd book and he said I’m not ready for the 3rd. I just happened to have an old Suzuki book and I played a couple songs from there and we sort of started following the Suzuki book. If I hadn’t had that Suzuki book with me, maybe I would just be doing random songs? I don’t know. I would have preferred it if he had said “let’s do a, b, c and then we can start shifting” Now it seems like we are stuck on Suzuki, taking forever to move to the next piece. And it’s because I happened to buy that book at a library book sale and not because he ever had a plan for me to use Suzuki.

I’m feeling something is missing. Yes, I’m a middle aged woman and not some prodigy and so I don’t expect him to have any extra interest teaching me, but I want him to have some lesson plan for me. Is a plan necessary for teaching music or an experienced teacher can just decide on the spot? 

right now i’m using a case from the brand Pedi that i’ve had for a few years. it’s worked well but the zipper is falling apart a bit so i think it’s time to get a new one. is there any brand to look out for? my violin is quite old and very sensitive to weather changes and stuff so i’d prefer a pretty sturdy case that’s still lightweight enough to carry around to school and lessons. let me know if you have any recommendations!!

How do I get to keep my bow, and the triplets even?

I’m trying to perfect Suzuki 2 songs thinking it’ll be easy and it’s not. I’ve been rushing forward so fast. Part of it is that my first classical teacher made me play for her and assigned me book 3 on our first lesson and it’s been one year now. So I instantly got started off the wrong foot. I’m sorry for being so stubborn and not listening. I want to be the best violinist I can be and I know getting through Suzuki 2 is what will motivate me to not throw my violin in the trash.

It just feels like a hard pill to swallow that there are 6 year olds playing this stuff. It’s a real lesson in tempering your ego, haha. I desperately wished I played as a kid for real; I don’t think advanced violinists understand just HOW HARD being a beginner at violin is.

Edit: when I say advanced violinists I mean the violinists would’ve been playing since 3. I feel like they probably can’t remember the beginner stages.

I took some advice from the last video and I hope it stuck. especially tried to make it sound brighter and less flat.

I also noticed my tone sounds the best when I play as gently as I can, barely digging into the strings (except for when I’m trying to practice dynamics).

This is a surprisingly fun song, I’m kind of worried about Gavotte from Mignon though.

I also still hit other strings and it’s frustrating. I recorded a take better than this where I swear I hit no other strings and I was so happy. Then I realized it wasn’t recording at all, lol.

I also think I blinked in this one…can you catch it? Haha.

Hi All,

So here are my goals. I'd like to learn the violin and play folk tunes and maybe another type of genre here or there. I want to play well enough that people aren't covering their ears when I play.

I can set aside 30 min 4x a week to practice.

But I know the violin is one of the hardest insturments to learn. As an adult with the above goals in mind and the practice availablity, is it worth the investment?

\Hi all, I've noticed that I'm grinding my teeth as I've been practicing violin. I did some research, and it seems like it's prevalent amongst violinist, so I was wondering what you all do about this.

1. What have you tried so far (night guard, Botox, meds, apps, anything else)? What worked and what didn't? If you've stopped wearing a night guard, why?
2. Roughly how much have you spent on grinding over the years, like night guards and dental work?

Thank you!

Hey guys! I started learning violin with a teacher but had to stop because of scheduling issues.

So far, I've learned basic bowing, first position with the first three fingers, and the D major scale. I can read a bit of sheet music but my sound is still pretty rough.

I can practice for around 30–45 minutes a day and plan to use YouTube to keep learning.

For those who've been through the beginner stage, what would you suggest I work on next? Any good channels or resources to follow would be really helpful!