My hands are now sore because I've been tuning my violin painstakingly for an hour. I've given up. After I've tuned two strings, there's a cracking sound and when I pluck the supposedly-tuned strings, they've already slipped. I'm pushing the pegs really tightly to prevent them from slipping.

I wonder what causes the cracking sound? I'm guessing the strings are too tight and the bridge is giving in. Is that plausible? Should I get a new bridge? Or the thing that holds the strings to the body (I don't know what it's called) is slipping because of the tension. I'm not sure. And if the strings are too tight, what can I do?

Any ideas on how to fix this?

I had the same problem with my school violin (it was a Lewis and Son) the pegs kept slipping. The cracking you're hearing is the strings going from alot of pressure to not very much pressure. (its the same thing as when you stretch a rubber band then let it go) I took it to the shop to be repaired. Im not sure what they did to fix it though. I think all that needs to be done is for you to take it to your local luthier (stringed instrument repair guy) and they should know how to fix it. It is very annoying. Good Luck!

Thanks a million! I was planning on doing that also, after another hour of vain effort. XD