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Hi, I am Bill and I am from the Panhandle area of Florida. I am 45 and have decided that I want to learn to play a musical instrument. I have always been a closet fan of violin music and decided that would be the instrument for me. I have absolutely no musical training and am probably an idiot for attempting the violin this late in life lol. I was a little skeptical at first so I decided to rent a violin from a local music shop. I am not sure about the quality of the one that I was given, a Scherl & Roth, to start with. I was told that if I do decide to stay with it they can either get me a better one later or point me in the right direction. I did follow the advice of someone here, and rather than playing it myself and scaring away all of the cats, had the rather attractive young lady behind the counter (who as it turns out is in our local symphony and teaches as well) play it a bit to see just how it can sound in the right hands. Sadly I am not sure that I brought home the same instrument that she played as all of the feral cats (of which we have an overabundance) have left the area for good.
I have been following the beginner videos here and while the bow hold feels natural now my biggest issue is that I have big hands, and while my fingers are usually fairly nimble, it feels like I am trying to play with over stuffed sausages lol.
Anyway thanks for having me and I look forward to asking many questions off the community here in the future.
Bill
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Welcome Bill. Most of us here are adult starters so you'll fit right in.
Opportunity is often missed because it wears suspenders and looks like hard work.
Regulars
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Welcome to our wonderful little hidey hole. As 1stimestar said, most of us have passed the crest in the hill and some don't even remember what it looked like.
You'll find it fun, encouraging and enjoyable here. We all struggle at points, make light of it, and keep plugging away. As tempting as it might be to chop wood with your violin at times, someone here always pulls your sanity back before the wood splinters start to fly. join in anytime.
"I find your lack of Fiddle, disturbing" - Darth Vader
Regulars
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Hi Bill, Welcome to the Insanity of Strings. I to am a beginner at the violin. I started this year, and I'm 59. I will warn you that they are ADDICTIVE. I now own 4 in my first year of learning. And what wrong with scaring cats, little old ladies and children with your playing I think its fun...lol I hope you enjoy your experiance.
With violins there is no fretting over the music.
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Welcome ! Good to have another Bill around ! 45? heck you're a youngster here (OK, talking for myself! )
Enjoy the journey - it can be super-frustrating and at the same time super-rewarding.
The other Bill LOL
I seriously recommend not copying my mistakes. D'oh - 
Please make your own, different mistakes, and help us all learn :-)
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Bill,
Welcome to the Forum, yes indeed many adult players here some just starting up others coming back after 30+ years away from playing the violin. Sit back and participate and have fun.
Mark
Master the Frog and you have mastered the bow.
Albert Sammons
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Well Bill, as you can see, you are not alone with your late journey. Many successful fiddlers here that started at a more mature age. 
Also, welcome to the Florida gang. 
Look forward to hearing about your new start.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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Thank you all for the warm welcome and the words of reassurance. I will keep you guys posted with my progress, so far my biggest issue is that my hands must be larger than average , because I have to be very precise with finger placement inorder to not put my fingers on two strings at once lol.
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Most of us have fingers that cover more than one string at once. The important thing is to keep the fingers off the other string if you're playing double stops or chords that require different intervals than perfect 5ths. If you are playing single notes it doesn't matter at all. If you play double stops, bring the fingers more to the side that won't be bowed.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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