hi

my daughter is just about to do her grade 3. shes been told by her violin teacher (through her school) that she needs a full sized violin. shes currently using a stentor student two which has been fine for what she has needed. im looking for some advice for what to buy. on one hand im thinking that maybe i should splash out a bit more as its full size and will last a little longer and on the other im thinking that another student violin will do for now. could anyone give me any advice on to what they would do or have done and also what kind of prices im looking at. any info would be appreciated even if its slightly off topic.

thanks

Well it all depends on how long she might keep going with the violin and how much you are prepared to spend. I can't tell you how much to spend as that depends on your circumstances.

If this is her first full size I'm guessing she is maybe 12 ish and as she is doing grade 3 she is doing fine and has worked at it for a while. If she is keen on violin and there is a reasonable chance she will carry on playing through school to year 11 or longer then I think if you get another Stentor Student II you will want to upgrade it before then, possibly quite soon. If you go for a bit of an upgrade now then you should be able to get something to take her through past grade 5/6 and possibly beyond. You really can get quite a bit better quality for not too much more money I think. Stentors are OK if there is a risk a beginner might not take to it and give up (or for smaller sizes which will be replaced) but it would seem your daughter is beyond that point

I suggest you talk to Liz at Elidatrading about the Gliga violins. I think even the bottom end of the gliga range is worth the extra money over a Stentor II. Talk to her about what you want from the violin and she will give you an honest recommendation.

I'd go up from a Stentor 2 if it were my daughter.

Basically you have two options. One is to go for the minimum that you need on the grounds that you're going to upgrade again in a couple of years - in which case go for something like a Zeller Poller Stentor Conservatoire, Gliga Genial etc (think in terms of a budget of £150 - £200). Another is to take the line that you don't want to upgrade again and therefore (assuming your daughter is perhaps 11 now) that you need something to go up to grade 8 or possibly dipABRSM. If that's the case then you need to be spending at least £500 now, by the time you've gone for a bow and case as well as a violin (a lot more than that in many shops), and bear in mind that by the time you get to grade 8 you're going to need to get a full professional set up done unless it is done first (if done first then obviously the price goes onto the violin at that stage, one way or the other, if done later then you spend less to start with and the violin can mature before you get it set up - that is my recommendation but others will vary). Bow tastes will probably change with time as well which won't help, though of course a spare bow is always a good idea so the propsect of getting another bow later need not be too offputting. Or you could perhaps go somewhere in the middle.

My usual recommendation is simply to come up with an amount you want to spend and take it from there. Any reputable shop will talk you up or down from there if they need to (I usually talk people down rather than up!)

That said, I did grade 8 on a humble Poller (admittedly with a full professional set up, the best strings and a better bow) and I know someone else who did it on a Zeller.

Liz

thanks for the advice. ive read a some very good things about elida.

your spot on about my daughter. she is 12 and has been playing a few years. i think it would be worth spending a bit extra to get her through her higher grades. she doesnt take her music lightly. she also plays the piano and flute and even saved and payed for her own (£300) flute so i know shes not just going to quit.

The thing is, even if your daughter is not likely to quit the violin, as her playing improves, she will develop a taste in sounds and violin characteristics and if you've bought her an expensive fiddle that is destined to take her to grade 8 and beyond, you may well saddle her with a sound she's not really keen on once her taste develops.

My advice would therefore be to get her something that will take her to grade 5/6 or possibly even 7 then to upgrade it by letting her play a load of different fiddles in the price range you are prepared to pay - then she can choose (perhaps with her teacher's help) the one that best suits her.

If this approach seems reasonable, I would recommend buying another stentor for now, or a gliga gems from Liz at elidatrading, alternatively you could consider rental until she knows more about the kind of sound she wants.

Best luck choosing!

Allan

thanks liz

her teacher has given us an approx time scale of 3 months for having to upgrade so plenty time to get lots of good advice.

ive been having a look on your website and wondered which instrument you would recommend for my daughter if i didnt want to upgrade again.







there is the possibility of renting through her teacher. i think i would be a little cross if i bought her an expensive violin now and in a few years she turned round and said she didnt like the tone. something to think about. thanks

Yes, that's fair comment.

Liz