Just wondering what made you take up a string instrument, since most of you began when you were teenagers, unlike most piano students who begin much earlier, and would therefore choose no.1 as their answer.

I loved the idea of drawing the bow across the strings to make a sound.

i wz 9 when i started th violin nd i dunno y i wantd 2 play it, i jst did. itz a mint instrument, much betta than th viola BUT mind u, havin sed that, am doin grade 8 on it, and a hav 2 say a much prefer th viola 4 its tonal qualitiez but prefer th violin 4 th choice of music.

my friend played it so i did! i moved so have lost touch with the her now but she is prbably grade 8+ now whereas i gave up!

I actually started to learn violin about 6 years ago when they started violin lessons with a peri teacher in my primary school. I already played piano, and wanted a second instrument so violin just happened to be it. My sister already played which helped me.,
Unfortunately my teacher at primary school was an absolute £$%^&@P$*)!%&¬$"£ but we knew that I would get a lovely teacher at high school. So after many arguments and much persuasion from my mum, i stuck with it and it's one of the best things i've ever done!!!

well i started learning the violin on my tenth birthday but i had always wanted to play since i was eight...i think got interested in it cuz i just had a bit of the natural passion to it...hehe

My parents made me learn but I'm so glad they did!

A teacher came 2 my primary skool and played us some music on the violin and viola and then let us have a go on one of them. He said that there were very few people who played the viola so i thought, "hmm, i think i'll play that!" i wanted 2 b different and here i am now!
jess

I saw someone on tv play the viola.. and I thought, hey that sounds better than the violin it's not as high .. hehe no offense to the violin players out there. My friend also said there was a shortage of viola players at our school so I decided to pick it up!

I wanted to play an instrument, ne instrument... and you could have violin lessons at my primary school...

That's great. Actually I think my decision to learn was based on two choices... one, seeing my friend learning and taking Grade 1 sparked my interest... I'm so glad I did... now we're both Grade 3 ... secondly I knew I wanted to learn it long before this... but seeing my friend was what pushed me to actually enrol for classes.

I was in a music lesson and one of the teachers got out their violin and played one chord... and I was hooked! It had to be my next instrument..... five months later here I am!

joy

lol...
violin - i was 4 and i thought it was the most amazing sound in the world. begged and begged my parents to let me have lessons.
piano - i was 6 and my violin teacher thought it would be a good idea. now i never stop playing it.
singing - i was 11 and wanted to show off.
viola - i was 14 and was tired of the violin being so squeaky... LOVED the tone of the viola
french horn - i was 16. it's a grooveh instrument!!!!!
recorder - everyone plays that. i just never stopped.

WOW!! Cheeble that's a FANTASTIC no. of instruments you're learning!

QUOTE (violin-ann @ Sep 18 2004, 02:48 PM)

WOW!! Cheeble that's a FANTASTIC no. of instruments you're learning!

thank you v much! :D i don't have much of a life otherwise though... although music is a great way to meet people!

I remember what inspired me to pick up violin. I was in Sydney Australia walking in Pitt Street Mall when I heard 4 girls playing violin and cello. They played Pachelbel Cannon in D and from that day I decided to do somehting about it.
Now I'm in England, started lesson in April this year and will take grade 1 exam in Nov, while my little nephew is taking grade 4 exam. My sister is a piano teacher and when I was little, I was forced to listerning to her playing everyday. I didn;t like it at that time but now this is somehting I missed the most. I guess it's family thing and me the big uncle has lots of catching up to do.
Wayne

QUOTE (violin-ann @ Aug 14 2004, 06:22 PM)

Just wondering what made you take up a string instrument, since most of you began when you were teenagers, unlike most piano students who begin much earlier, and would therefore choose no.1 as their answer.

Wanting to play the best chamber music (e.g. Mozart and Schubert quintets). (I didn't see that answer on the questionnaire.) I tried viola at age 22, but found it too difficult because of stiff shoulder, elbow and wrist. I achieved a better relationship with an instrument when I took up 'cello at 35, bass at c. 40.

That's really interesting. Keep your replies coming! I love reading them.

Sorry, kenm, I just didn't think you would pick up a string instrument from wanting to play the best chamber music. I guess that would come under "after watching a master play". To be frank, I have never heard chamber music before until I started learning classical piano and it was some years before I learnt how to appreciate it. But that's quite an achievement, you have learnt 3 stringed instruments so far. How about trying the violin, it's smaller?

Good for you Wayne! I was in Sydney too, but I only saw a couple of teenagers singing pop songs with guitar on Darling Harbour. But it was nice too. But you are setting a good example I'm sure. The kids will love it that their uncle is also trying to learn something like themselves. I wish I had an uncle learning something so that we could learn together. And perform duets. In the pipeline... my piano student and I might perform something... she'll be on the piano and me on my violin. Hee hee.. but I gotta get my positions perfected first!

Hey I can't imagine life without music, Cheeble! That would be worse than being blind. Yes, look at all the friends we have here because of music.

QUOTE (violin-ann @ Sep 22 2004, 04:36 AM)

Sorry, kenm, I just didn't think you would pick up a string instrument from wanting to play the best chamber music. I guess that would come under "after watching a master play". To be frank, I have never heard chamber music before until I started learning classical piano and it was some years before I learnt how to appreciate it.  :D  But that's quite an achievement, you have learnt 3 stringed instruments so far. How about trying the violin, it's smaller?  ;)

I may have misled you. I gave up the viola after 6 months, when I discovered that I would never be able to do vibrato with my left arm locked solid in that curious spiral configuration the instrument requires, and the violin would give me the same problem, as well as the competition from all you clever people on this site. I have never been really competent on 'cello, though I enjoy playing it. Double bass is a bit of a transport problem, so if you play it and can move it around (an estate car helps) you are welcome in lots of orchestras. My daughter's violin teacher used to say, of the music profession before about 1970, "If you can hold a bass you can make a living; if you can play the bass, you can make a fortune". I don't think that's true in the profession any more, but there are still rather few amateur players.

They did a kind of listening test when i was in year 5 at primary school and the top four in the year were given the oppertunity to learn the violin. Two of us took it up, but i was the only one who kept on going and here i am now!

Now I would LOVE to know who began violin lessons because playing one would make you look classy? I just put in that option because one of my colleague's students said that, I was rather surprised that after one month of voting, SOMEBODY FINALLY voted for that. Good for you!

Well Kenm, that's the advantage of having cellos and double basses.. for those who can't play in that position. But I too, am having trouble with vibrato. I just can't seem to, even after purchasing Viva Vibrato from some of the member's suggestions. Some of the exercises I don't get either.

I started learning violin after we found a dodgy 3/4 in my grandmother's attic. It's not a great reason, but was probably quite lucky since none of my family is musical and I wouldn't have started learning for any of the other reasons listed.