Hi there,

I'm a 26 year old and started learning the violin about 3 years ago. I have been through 3 different teachers and im still confused about how to hold the violin. Nothing ever seems comfortable and i get neck and shoulder aches after playing for only 10 minutes. My head faces diagonally down onto the violin and my shoulder seems to tense up and raise the violin to hold it so it doesn't fall down. All this tension causes my fingers and hand to tense up and my shoulder and neck. The problem is, is that i don't know what is right and what is wrong and each teacher i have seems to say different things.

Please someone give me some advice as i love the instrument and want to be able to progress and with it.

Thanks matt

Hi -

Unfortunately, there is pain involved in playing the violin, which you will get used to over time. It's simply not a natural thing for our bodies to be doing, and I know of several middle aged players who have developed neck and shoulder problems from playing.

The thing to do is to try to minimise the pain, as you will never get rid of it completely. Go to a good music shop and get a range of shoulder rests, try each for a few days and see which works for you. It sounds like you might need quite a high rest - you can get ones which have adjustable legs which might be a good idea too. I'm afraid it's just a matter of trial and error. You should also concentrate on your posture, and avoid "drooping".

Em

Em, I disagree. If you're holding the violin correctly then you shouldn't feel pain at all while playing it. I know I don't, and I've been playing for many years.

To the creator of this thread-Do you have a shoulder rest? A shoulder rest helps most people with holding their violin and feeling more comfortable while playing. Make sure you're not depending on your left hand to hold the violin, you should be able to balance the violin on your shoulder without your left hand.

<Added>

Also, the people you know that have developed shoulder/chin pains from playing the violin most likely are not holding their violin correctly.

I agree that there should be no pain or tension when holding the violin. Take a look at the site
www.uvm.edu/~mhopkins/string/ . On the left hand side of the page select 'left hand'...there are many pictures to illustrate common mistakes and proper positioning of the violin as well as overall posture. I hope this helps.

Hi- my name is Catlin I'm only in 8th grade, but i believe everyone has different opinions on how you should hold the violin. I've been through 11 teachers in the four years I've been playing, and they are all part of really big orcastras and none of them held the violin like the other one. Hold it where its comfortable and make sure you have a shoulder rest. If that doesn't feel comfortable get a large sponge and rubber band it to the violin where it rest on your shoulder (I know it doesn't look great but it works and you don't have to use it forever, just until you get comfortable)and practice everyday, the pain will stop and make sure when u hold the violin that your wrist is NOT touching the neck, keep your arm and hand in line, this might help with the pain...NO NOT BEND YOUR WRIST unless you are doing vebrato and then it shouldn't bend hardly any!

http://www.alfred.com/frameset.cfm?sub=strings <go to that link if nothing else works and the book on there shows you how to hold the violin and everything...

Hi -

Sorry, perhaps I didn't make myself clear. Simply holding a violin up should not be painful. I have played for 25 years, and experience pain in my left arm on holding my violin up for long periods such as during a long symphony. I think this is an ache that everyone experiences, but you get so used to it that you stop noticing it. Next time you all hold your violin up for a long time, see if you can apot it too. It's simply not natural to hold your arm out in front of you for this long, and "drooping" your arm down to get relief from it is viewed as a sloppy thing to do.

The people I know with neck and shoulder pain are professional players and teachers in their 60s who have developed arthritis. I don't think this is down to incorrect posture, just the effects of doing something so unnatural for a long time, something you can see in many musicians or people who do a manual job for many years.

Em

No need to go get an attitude with anyone...jut trying to help...yes pain is part of playing the violin but if it's holding the dang thing up and it hurts she needs some other way to hold it...

Wow!

Thank you to all of you for helping me out with this problem. It might be something to do with the fact that my shoulder rest is not high enough for me and also my left hand never holds the violin up.

The links that some of you put in this thread are fantastic and i will study them carefully.

Thanks everyone

"my left hand never holds the violin up"? It's not supposed to. You're supposed to hold the violin up depending on your shoulder and chin, not your left hand. This is because you need your left hand for shifting.

I don't think you should get a shoulder rest. A shoulder rest works for some people, but if you ever get in a situation where you need to play without one - you never know - it could mean trouble. The last thing you want to do is become dependent on one, because there might be a time when you don't want to use it anymore, or you want to try playing without it again. In which case, you would probably be stuck with it, and it would be very hard to adjust to playing without one. I am 12, I have been paying for six years with the best teacher around, who is known worldwide. And her method is to start without a shoulder pad so that you never have to worry about adjusting to a violin without one if you have to.