I`m a 14 year old violinist and I started playing about 5 years ago. I pay for violin lessons through my school but recently, the new intake of students who want to play has shortened everyone elses lessons meaning that I now only get 15-30 minutes tutor time a week! I will be getting private tutoring soon but my parents can`t afford it for a while. My teacher doesn`t really have enough time to teach me certain techniques, so I was wondering if anybody out there had some tips about playing vibrato. I found a few websites offering a little help but I tried and I can`t do it fast enough to make it sound good :P. I`m not expecting too much but please answer if you can help!

Hello??? *echoes* is anybody there? *dust ball blows past*

You are new on this forum and replys take a while for people to answer. Like maby a few hours, day or week.

Other people have asked your same question on this violon forum about vibrato soo just check out other peoples answers.

U cant teachs yourself Vibrato coz it doesnt work (trust me i tried it) just wait till your teacher teach it to you, It will be much easier for you!

hiya
i play the viola, it is the same technique though, here goes:

1) first make sure you have your left hand in the correct possition
2)practise shifting, (no bow)
3)gradualy, start shifting quicker (3rd finger is easiest to start of with).
4)dont shift as far, try to stay in the same place.
5) when you feel ready ask some one to hold your violin/viola and practise with all 4 fingers.
6)practise your vib` with scales at first, then move on to pieces.

good luck
p.s i only have 15 minute lessons!!!

Beth (14)

This teaches you how to use vibrato with your fingers and wrists which i think sounds much better than the vibrato described above (no offense).
First learn 1st 2nd and 3rd finger vibrato in third position, unless you don`t yet know third position. It`s easiest to start in third position because the violin is a rest for your hand as you rotate your fingers and wrist. start with first finger third position on the A string ( The note D). Play this note solidly and get it in tune, check it to your open D string if you want to. Now VERY slowly roll your first finger back and make the note flat. Then roll it up to a sharp slowly. Continue rocking it slowly back and forth. This will sound bad, but all vibrato is is this technique much faster. Speed up the rolling and roll back and forth slowly about 20 times on that finger. You can use rythmes or just rotate steadily. Once you`ve done this place your second finger down and repeat the rolling slowly back and forth. do this for 1st 2nd and 3rd finger in third position on all strings. When you have perfected it you can use the fourth finger in third position, which is slightly more dificult. U should be getting a sound of verbrato in slow motion. every day speed this up more and more until u hear the desired vibrato sound you`d like. Then you`re ready for first position vibrato. Use the same exercises but progress faster as you`ve begun to train your fingers and wrists. Once you can play a nice clean vibrato on all strings and fingers just work on keeping your vibrato perfectly steady. Play scales and vibrate each note. This process may take a while but it will give u the best sounding vibrato. Start slow and train your muscles, speed it up and move to first position, then perfect it in songs and scale work.
reply to this comment if you have further questions.

-VITviolinist

Here`s how my violin teacher taught me to play vibrato...

First, use a pen or pencil (or something like that) and just place one of your right hand fingures (it was easiest for me to use my 3rd fingure at first) like you would with a violin.

Then, slowly move the pencil in a north-south type of movement (couldn`t think of another way to describe it) so the pencil moves toward you and away from you. This gets the joints in your fingures used to moving more freely in that side to side movement.

After you can move your joint freely like that, then practice it on a violin. It`s easiest to pracice with 3rd fingure in 1st position or 1st fingure in 3rd position.

Amanda (14)

By the way, the thing that blows past when nothing is happen is called a tumbleweed, not a dust ball.

This is how i learnt it

1. Tke your left hand and place it on the neck like you would usually when playing it
2. Place a finger onto the fingerboard ( third feels the best for me)
3. rapidly stroke your violin in and out (towards u ???) hope fully u get what i mean
4. Keep on doing it spreading lesser along the way
5. Soon enough u should have gotten the feeling of it and had your finger placed on one particular spot while its moving
6. Try and play!

Don`t attempt to learn vibrato on your own... by no means!!!!!

You need a professional to show you the correct way, or else you could develop bad habits that could lead to damage of the wrist (i.e. Carpal Tunnel and Arthritis).

BTW vibrato doesn`t come fast at all, it took me 6 months to develop a nice sounding vibrato. And there`s no point in learning it at all if you can`t put emotion or feeling into your playing, because vibrato is just a means to make music more emotional (all it really is is bending the strings so it changes pitch).

Try talking to someone in your city`s orchestra, or your teacher could help you.

Ok, well..This is how I learned. People tend to "shake" their hand in the wrong position. I have to always have a space in your left thumb and the violin, which is called the chimacle. Because you can hold your violin w/ out your thumb. So once you have established this you start to move your hand back and forth. be carefull that is coming from you wrist and upper armish area not your elbow b/c that is wrong. And just practice slower vibratos and faster ones with your metronome. But remmber that a slower vibrato the better you dont want to sound like you are going crazy! Although it does depend on the music. Practice your vibrato with each finger. 1 2 3 4 shift 1 2 3 4 ..so on and so forth. Well I have to go peace!
~Amal

Well My nick name is vibroto girl because I can do it so well!

Well, first shift to 3rd Position,
Then use your middle finger on the e string cus; thats the e-zey way.
And rollyour fingy to the scroland towrd you then each day you will get faster.
And Make sure that your nothing but the thum and the fingy you are vibroting with is there.
Please tell me if that works!
Best Wishes, ILOVPAGANINI AKA VIBROTO GIRL

I`ve only just started to get fairly good at vibrato, and I`ve been playing 5 years, so please take my word on this, don`t try to teach yourself, it doesn`t work! Vibrato is a thing that takes years to perfect, and I noticed you said you couldn`t get it fast enough, that`s what I thought at first. You actually vary the speed of vibrato but at first you do it slowly so you can hear the changes in pitch. If you really insist on teaching yourself (which I don`t think is a good idea) try what my teacher taught me, start on a finger you feel comfortable with, and rock backwards and forwards on it. Do rhythms, first crotchets, thetold men quavers, triplets and finally semiquavers. That should end up with a steady vibrato, of course, that sounds very simple, it`s not as easy as that, and please don`t think that you use semiquaver vibrato for everything, there are different speeds depending on the mood of the pieces, I really think you should get your teacher to show you.

Oh, one important thing I missed, out, it should never be just hand vibrato, by that I mean, don`t just wiggle your hand, you just get a feeble vibrato, you`ve got to use the whole of your arm, use a mirror when you practise to make sure your arm is moving too. This can go very wrong if you don`t get even the slightest bit of how to do it, so please please please get someone in the flesh to show you.

Caroline (14)