5 Things to Tell Your Child before Learning the Violin

Learning violin is challenging, especially for young learners. While working with great violin teachers is a must, you can also help your child prepare for learning the violin by sharing a few pieces of wisdom with them.
The following are tidbits that many experienced violin players say they would have loved to have been told upfront. Knowing them can help learning the violin fun. Here are a few of the things you should share with your child before they start their private violin lessons.

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1. Your Violin Won’t Always Sound Pretty, and That’s Okay

Some instruments don’t sound horrible even when played by a beginner. The piano, for example, usually doesn’t make your ears hurt unless someone is pounding on the keys.
That’s not really true with the violin. It’s not going to sound great at first. In fact, there are times when it’s just not going to sound very good at all! Even professionals have a scratchy, noisy violin every once in a while.
It’s important to remind children that learning an instrument takes time and that no one is perfect right away. They also need to know that what they hear isn’t necessarily what others hear. The violin is much closer to their ears than to the audience, and small noises that are audible to the player are completely unnoticed by others.

2. It Will Feel Awkward at First

Holding the bow is going to feel very awkward to beginners. Let your child know that they may not feel very comfortable for a few lessons, but that’s something everyone goes through.
As they play more and more, the position will begin to feel more natural and comfortable. Soon, they won’t find it awkward at all.
This also ties in with the scratchy sounds of playing. As your child becomes more comfortable with holding the bow, they will start to play better.

3. You Have to Take Care of Your Violin

Many children don’t realize how much care their violin is going to need. The bow must be tightened before playing and loosened when finished, which is easy enough to do but also easy to forget for new players.
The bow hair needs to have rosin applied before playing as well, which then needs to be cleaned after practice. The strings may need replacing periodically, too.
While there’s not a lot of major maintenance to do, it’s important for new players to understand what does need to be done regularly.

4. You Don’t Need to Compete with Others

Some children are naturally competitive and will do everything they can to be better than everyone else. This competitiveness can be harnessed to give your child the drive they need to practice the violin, but it can also go too far and make them frustrated when someone much younger than they are plays better.
Early on, talk to your child about why they’re playing the violin. Remind them that it’s not about playing better than someone else. It’s about learning a skill and enjoying their love of music.
There’s always going to be someone better, but that’s true of many things—there are always people faster, stronger, and smarter out there. The joy of playing the violin is its own reward, and they should not be discouraged just because someone else plays it better.

5. Work with a Great Teacher

A great violin teacher can make all the difference between how much your child loves the violin and how much they don’t. That’s why we hire only the best violin teachers in the area, for example, we have the best violin teachers in Atlanta, period. Our teachers will come right to your home for every lesson, plus we virtual music lessons, too. However, our online music lessons are being taught by local music teachers with live lessons tailored to your child! Contact us today to learn more.