Katharine Rapoport

With all of its different parts and its beautiful, delicate-looking body, the violin can feel a bit intimidating at first. This Cheat Sheet helps you get to know your instrument by introducing the most important parts of your violin, provides some easy steps to keep it in tip-top condition, and takes you through the process of taking the violin out of its case for the very first time.

You know that tuning your violin is something you need to do, but what exactly does it mean? The word tuning refers to adjusting the strings of the violin to their proper pitches. All sorts of factors can affect the pitch of each string — temperature and humidity changes, drafts, playing loud music where the bow pushes heavily on the string — so you need to know how to tune effectively, right from the start.

A good time to start on vibrato is when your violin hold, bow hold, left-hand balance, and some shifting skills are comfortable and working well. Although it may seem almost magical when you see and hear a player making a beautiful vibrato, the approach to vibrato is logical and involves some step-by-step preparation.

You will want to have a firm grasp on the different types of shifts to be a successful violinist. The intermediate-note shifts and finger-substitution shifts will help you become a well-rounded musician. Intermediate-note shifts Another type of shift involves using an intermediate note, which is an extra note that a player creates very discreetly to help make shifting smooth in two particular instances: When you’re shifting up from a lower-numbered finger to a higher­numbered finger When you’re shifting down from a higher-numbered finger to a lower-numbered finger A careful sequence of actions conceals the sound of the slide very discreetly so that the actual notes of the music are clear to the listener.

Playing three notes in a bow is just like playing two notes in a bow on the violin; you just fit in one more note. The big difference involves dividing your bow length (well, just the horsehair bit, really) into three parts when you try the preliminary stopped versions, until you feel in control. This is what you see on the music when three-note slurs are coming up.

Keeping your chin and jaw clear of the top of the violin means less damping of sound and less damage to the varnish from the heat and sweat of your chin. (You can see patches of lighter or darker wood on the tops of old violins where the players’ chins used to rest. Modern violin makers sometimes imitate this look when building new instruments so that the violins look “antiqued.

Crossing to different strings on the violin with your left-hand fingers is a bit like steering a boat, because your left arm works like a rudder to bring your fingers over the relevant string. The movement, called arm steering, or elbow steering, is very subtle and keeps your left hand working well when you need to cross strings.

When you’re actually playing the violin, you’re most comfortable when your left hand forms and holds a well lined‐up frame. Holding your left hand correctly is important to achieve the right sound. Here’s how to do it: Stand up and hold your violin across your waist just like a guitar, with the violin’s neck cradled in your left hand.