I have an 8 year old violin pupil (private), who's had about five lessons so far. She's decided she hates the E string (literally flinches when it's plucked or bowed). This week both her and her mother asked if she could learn the viola instead.

Now, here's the problem. The child is VERY tiny for an 8 year old and is been playing a 1/4 size violin. If I string the violin as a viola, does anyone know where I'd get a small (short) enough C string from? I could possibly track down somewhere that sells a 1/2 size viola C string and chop a bit off the end, but would prefer to avoid doing this if possible.

Does anyone else have any 'pint sized' pupils who've insisted they want to play the viola, not the violin?

I think you can get Corelli Crystal in that size.

Liz

Sorry I've nothing really useful to suggest here, but I am pleased to know that someone else has the same reaction to the E string as I have! When I've had chance to 'prac' on someone's violin when I've been away from home and I've been doing a quick 2 octave G scale to get myself into the fingering, I actually wince when I turn on to the E string and there's a pause!!

E-string-o-philes! There's more than one of us!!

I sort of agree with the whole E-string thing

I decided after my grade 8 violin that I wanted to learn something new that i could teach myself. I still play the violin, but i love playing the viola and not haveing an E string but C instead.

About the string, I sturng my 4/4 size violin as a viola, and the C strin was a bit long, but i just turned the peg more until it was playing a C. could you do that?

x

Are these hated E strings plain steel with no winding? or is it just that they are the top string? On both my 'cello and my bass, the open top string has a more strident character than the others, even though they are both good instruments with decent sets of strings. The bass G is a bit of a wolf, fiercest on the third string, but the 'cello wolf affects F and F#, so not all that close to the A.

Regrettably that's been investigated, but to no avail. On a 1/4 size violin, there's simply not enough space in the pegbox to wind any sort of C string into it, even the shortest available, which according to every string supplier I've spoken to, would be for a 1/2 size violin. It is not possible to simply cut a string down to make it fit - the windings don't allow that to be done.

I'd thought about trying to swap pegs - putting the G on the C peg, and the C on the G peg - but this causes a fouling of the strings against each other, which is equally damaging to the windings.

I did find out about a so called 10" C string, but in actual fact, the total length of it is nearly 14 inches, which is still way too long.

I think it's just that we're not into very high notes and prefer the lower ranges to the upper ones. I have no problems with my viola A string at all.