Why are there so many viola jokes? I'm not a musician and I don't mix with musicians so excuse my ignorance.

I think the viola produces a very beautiful sound and if I ever had the time to take up another instrument, this would most likely be it but I'm curious as to why the viola seems to take the brunt end of so many jokes.

G

I've wondered that myself, but then there's always something that people dig at, like the English get at the Irish, the French at the Belgians, the Germans at the Frisians, many people at blondes etc...

I think there's also some idea that violists are failed violinists and that may be at the root of some of the jokes. Someone here will have a better idea.

I think it's the failed violinist thing, plus also probably jealousy of our C strings coming from the violinists who are stuck with that nasty E string

I'm surprised you need to ask

There are historical reasons behind at least some of the viola jokes.

Back in the 19th century the viola went through a bit of a bad patch. At this time viola was not taught as a separate instrument at conservatories (strange when you consider that a typical orchestra requires about half the number of viola players as violinists). Many of the orchestral viola players were incompetent performers and musicians ( usually elderly violinists who could no longer play the violin parts and thought they could get away with hiding in the viola section ) and they also played very small violas which lacked sonority, particularly on the C string, or even violins with the strings tuned down a fifth. So these ex-violinists, in addition to sounding terrible, couldn't even play the viola parts. At the end of the 19th century this situation got so bad that the Paris Conservatoire introduced separate study for the viola to raise the standard of viola playing. Other conservatoires followed. This raised performance standards amongst viola players. Initially viola players were taught by violinists, who had no understanding of the differences in technique between violin and viola, which didn't help.

There is also a perception that the viola does not have much repertoire, which is not true. The repertoire is just not well known and most of it is never heard.

Also there is a perception that orchestral viola parts are easy. Some are indeed mind-numbingly boring but most aren't.

Drummers are the viola-players of the rock world, as in "How do you tell the stage is level? The drool is coming out of both sides of the drummer's mouth."

Uh-hum. What's that supposed to mean????

Remember, there are lots of keen violists here.......

...and its from those keen violist's that I've heard the best jokes, as a singer I make singer jokes, I leave the viola jokes to viola players.

My stepfather plays viola (he started off on the violin) and we've played some wonderful stuff together. (I arranged some show tunes by Sondheim for Viola and Piano -" Loosing Your mind" works like a dream!) I personally love the viola it has a lovely mellow tone, that C string is something special.

So generally speaking, would you say that the viola is easier to play than the violin? Again, generally speaking, are the viola parts in an orchestra less challenging than those for the violin?

I haven't lernt violin, so I have no personal exp to draw on, but I would suspect that the viola is actually harder than the violin owing to its size. It's heavier for one, which makes it harder to hold and tends to fall forward more than I understand a violin does. Also, the distance between notes is further, so larger stretches for our poor fingers!!

I understand that many orchestral viola parts are easier/duller, yes, but I wouldn't say the instrument was.

I hate viola jokes personally!! You'd never catch me telling, reading or laughing at them. I'm just not into 'let's get at a certain group' type of jokes, but each to his/her own.

I just think that its better to tell jokes about what you do play rather than what you don't. Anyway the viola part at the start of Mozart's 40th symphony may look as dull as ditchwater, but is vital for the harmony and atmosphere of that opening.

Jod, if you don't mind sharing them I would love to have a copy of your arrangements of show tunes.

Personally I find the violin much easier to play than the viola, because it is so much lighter and generally it requires much less effort (don't need to work so hard with the bow arm). Also, because the finger positions on the violin are closer together the fingerings tend to be simpler. I just don't enjoy playing the violin as much as viola.

The difficulty of orchestral viola parts depends a lot on the composer. Composers who actually played viola, for example Dvorak, Vaughan Williams and Beethoven, and also many modern composers generally wrote interesting viola parts. Excruciatingly boring viola parts were written by composers like Handel, J. Strauss and Sullivan (as in Gilbert and Sullivan). I try to avoid playing in concerts involving works by these composers.

The best viola parts are of course those for pieces that do not have any violin parts such as Brandenburg no. 6, Faure's Requiem and Cantique de Jean Racine (original versions) etc.

Like Elizabeth_rb I do not like viola jokes. I have heard most of them so many times that they just aren't funny.

I'll write them up properly... What about the role of the Viola's in the Brahms German Requiem. If it wasn't for the stirling work they do in the first movement, then the addition of all the really high and low stuff in the second movement just wouldn't be as magical.

Must look out for this piece, sounds great! I never seem to be able to hear the viola in the works I know, (except those with viola solo, of course!!).

I hear that Mozart loved viola and wronte interesting viola parts for his orchestral works, so that accounts for the comment about one of his pieces earlier. Don't know much of his work yet though. I'm still in the 'coming out of being a Philistine' stage!!!

Glad to hear someone else dislikes viola jokes too! I have a keen sense of humour, but I just don't find things like that funny at all.

Me too. Let's have a club!

OK, we hearby declare the inauguration of the Forums Reformed Philistine Club

How about starting a 'We Hate Jokes About Viola Club' ??

Of course, as all viola players know:

all viola jokes can be transposed up a fifth and down an octave

i am a violinist but i sometimes play the viola and i love it. one of my favourate concertos has to be bartok viola concerto. it must be anightmare to play but it sounds amazing.

Have to say I'd no idea there was such a genre as 'viola jokes' - what form do they take? I've no idea why a viola should subjected to jokes - what exactly is the nature of the joking? It's bigger than a violin - mmm - what's funny about that - it's smaller than a cello - mmm - that's not very funny either. So where's the joke? I think I must have led a sheltered life - I can't even begin to think of a joke with a viola in it!!

I would think its basically like the bassoon - oboe jokes like why is a bassoon better than an oboe. Answer the bassoon burns longer. Viola version why is a cello better than a viola. Answer the cello burns longer.

I liked Amanda's answer to violinsts bagged viola/violists:

Why is a viola bigger than a violin?
It isn't, it's just the player's head that smaller!

Not that this is true, of course.......

People joke about the viola because they are jealous and narrow minded of course!