Thanks Emily , and thanks for the vid I will take a good look at that, love that art work by the way, right up my street that style.

Thanks for the support Mark, your not wrong when you say its frustrating👍

Thanks katie, my vibrato and intonation  has gotten a lot better now, that vid was 8 months ago, and I was just getting the hang of it, vibrato thar is,  but I now have more control whearas I didnt then. I use annies song for practising vibrato its really good for that, as well as sheebeg sheemore, thats another good slow practice one, they are both good for improving intonation. I didnt realise at the time but apparently annies song is supposed to be played as a waltz, or so I am told. Lately I have been playing the Bach pieces from suzuki book 3 in third position instead of first, as well as a few baroque ones from a book I have on that particular style of music, one of them call aria amorosa is particularly beautiful and is quite a good workout for reading music.

I had a teacher lined up and was hoping start with her this year but it isnt happening now, which is a pity as she has played with kanye west, but due to family commitments and the plague isnt taking on any more students now

Play it however YOU like it, dont be influenced by anyone else, use it for practice like I do.

Yes I am self taught on violin, I do play many other string instruments though, so it gives a slight advantage in that I didnt have to get my fingers flexible and used to moving in an unfamiliar way with my left hand, much more difficult otherwise.

I have played guitar for instance for about forty years, been in bands and taught the instrument itself. Violin is a very difficult instrument to learn, much harder than guitar, banjo or any other fretted one, as you now know thats why I love it, if it was easy I woulďnt bother with it.

Practice, practice, practice,  you are getting there.