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I know one of the things I struggle with is pressing way too hard on the finger board. I’ve been watching a Nathan Cole vid which is really good. I think I’ve found the pressure point where I get a clear sound but I’m finding I get a bit of a whistle. I’m wondering , how do I know if I’m not pressing hard enough or is the whistle where the hair isn’t catching the strings ? I’m definitely making progress and I think this will really pay off I’m just a bit unsure of the difference between the two.
Thanks for any suggestions.
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@Katie L -
Hope this helps (I've posted this a few times) - Prof William Fitzpatrick is still my favorite video for this.
How much pressure to use on the violin with your left hand?
He shows you that you don't have to smash the strings to stop the vibration - my image of a 'bungee jumper'. (lol)
I try to keep in mind it takes VERY little pressure for the E string & more for the G string.
...and every once in I while, I still have to take a few moments to remind myself that my left hand is supposed to be completely independent from my right hand. (lol)
I still work on articulation.
It's natural to want to press harder to 'accent', but I find it's really about the extra split second of time you sustain a note to accent is what's important - especially when faced with playing fast notes of equal value. ...at least I'm trying to get better at this.
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Thanks for the link Emily.
I definitely feel better about my playing now that I’m paying attention to the finger pressure. I have to practice it everyone I play. It feels much more relaxed and liberating .. I think.
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Though it's common that players press more than they have to, there is a time to put down more pressure. With too little pressure your sound will suffer. To get an idea of what I am talking about, do a bit of experimenting. Play with your finger lightly pressing on the string and then do the same thing with more pressure and you'll see a difference.
A deep juicy sound usually not only comes from your instrument, bow, volume, vibrato, but also from good solid downwards pressure.
I'm not saying that you should press hard or not work on pressing less, just that you should avoid going too far in the direction.
A time for not pressing hard is when you play fast. Unless you want the crisp hammered fingerboard sound, you press less and lift less. 😁
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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I love your advice Fiddlerman much appreciated!! I am working on an epic piece at the moment that I’ll put in critique corner in a few weeks time! Also on vibrato which is hard going ! I’m taking it slow. Thanks again
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@Katie L -
Glad you aren't giving up on the vibrato!
I'm still doing some every day, all over the fingerboard - it's slowly feeling more natural, even on my Viola.
Btw, how long have you had your strings on?
I've mentioned elsewhere on the forum - when I start feeling like I need to press more than usual, it can be time for me to put on new strings. 😊
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Emily , had them on 4 months. Yes my vibrato hard to explain but if I do a slow bow I can do 16 oscillations in 3rd position. I’m practicing in 1st position too. I think it’s getting a bit more controlled maybe less erratic.. maybe .. who knows !! I’m not really in a hurry to get it into my pieces just doing the exercises,
Thanks for the update on yours… sounds like it’s going well.
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@Katie M - I'm glad to hear it. Looking forward to following your progress. 😁
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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Here it is, over a YEAR later... thought I'd add some of my more recent observations about my finger pressure.
First of all, I don't want callouses on my fingertips!!! 😤 I think it makes a big difference in tone if I'm stopping a string with a hard callous vs. a soft finger-pad. I don't really have any cushion in the tips of my old fingers, so just doing my best with lotion - constantly battling dehydration. 😞 I'll file or peel off hard skin, but lately this is more troublesome.
🤔...but the more I think about it, maybe if I was better at using vibrato/using more of it - maybe that would change my outlook on this.
How much does the condition of my fingertips matter when using vibrato? ...not that I'm keen on using vibrato for every note played.
My point to all this? I'm trying to alleviate some pain while practicing.
I obviously try to use the least amount of finger pressure on each string AND for the least amount of time - but still get good tone. Sure, pressure is next to nothing on the 'E' string, but by the time I get to the 'C' string on my 5-string Violin I have to press quite a bit - at least at the beginning of bowing! ...I also have a low 'F' Violin string. 😵
Now this usually isn't a big deal IF the lower strings aren't used much - which is usually the case. I confess to deliberately playing MORE on the 'C' string since I got my Viola - this is where it gets weird... the difference between pressure needed on my 5-string Violin 'C' and the Viola 'C' string!
I've been wondering, how much difference does string length make?
The low, thicker VIOLA strings seem to be easier to get started vibrating with the bow AND don't seem (to me) to need as much finger pressure to stop them vs. the shorter, low VIOLIN strings. Granted, some string brands are thicker than others, some just respond better, but there's not much of a choice available for 'C' strings and there's only one low 'F' string.
Not sure I can really ask anyone here, unless someone can feel the difference between 'G' strings on Violin vs. Viola - maybe?
Ever since I changed the tuning on my VIOLIN to F,C,G,D,A (a few months back) - it's been a bear on my tender fingertips... playing hurts, because I use the 'C' & 'F' strings quite a bit & it takes more finger pressure to get clear, clean tone on them!
🤔...if an 'F' string was available for the Viola, it might make a huge difference in my instrument preference! Don't think I'd hesitate to buy a 6-string Viola! I've gotten very attached to the extended range I have with my added 'F' string on VIOLIN & no reason to go any farther, like with a 7th string, but I want that range on VIOLA.
So, yes, finger pressure IS VERY IMPORTANT - I'm just bummed out it's sore or calloused fingertips for me, unless I want to resort to guitar practice gloves. 😒
Think I need some fingertip augmentation! ...wonder if I can get botox, or a 'boob job', for fingertips? 🥴
- Emily
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I know guitar wise its important to get callouses.. or should a say in the 1st few weeks its painful UNTIL callouses develop. THEN its a deal where you have to take care of the edges because theyll catch. or they did with me..
Ive wondered about tone on violin with them. It sorta almost doesnt matter now because ive neglected regular guitar practice and theyve almost faded. sad really 😔
You may be on to something though with playing a 5 string viola. Your question may be something someone with a cello can address better.
I just thought Id add that some of the pain may fade IF you let a small callous develop. Thats a normal beginner thing in the guitar world. granted we are talking about a viola, and I understand the worry about it affecting your playing.
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The frequency at which a string vibrates is inversely proportional to length, directly proportional to the square root of tension, and inversely proportional to the square root of mass per unit length.
In theory, assuming the exact same thickness and composition, a shorter string should require less tension to sound the same frequency, not more. So if all else is unchanged, it should be easier to stop the string on the 5-string violin, not harder.
However, that can create a different problem: if there isn't enough tension in the string, then it may strike the fingerboard as it vibrates. In order to prevent that, the manufacturer would make a heavier string so that it sounds the correct pitch at a higher tension. What you end up getting, especially as you go farther and farther below the instrument's intended range, is thicker and thicker strings with the tension not dropping below a certain point.
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@AndrewH -
Thank you!
I can only say those 2 lower violin strings do 'feel' like a higher tension, but it might just be I've never favored Thomastik Vision strings, to begin with. Be nice if someone else, like Larson, made these strings for an alternative choice.
I know I can lower my C string a couple whole steps & that's playable - wish the string industry would experiment more with these.
Strings are too expensive for me to experiment much - read somewhere flat-wrapped guitar strings could be tried, hard to believe that's going to help me. 😖
@ABitRusty -
My fingertips have hardened from 4 years of playing - even without callouses!
Just to be clear, it's the low strings on my Violin causing pain.
Kinda scary that I have lost some tactile sensation compared to my right hand fingers - lets just say if my eyesight ever goes I'll be a one-handed braille reader! Doesn't prevent pain though.
I'm just grumbling... hate I have to quit practicing because of my fingertips - usually when everything is sounding good & I want to keep going! 🙄
...come to think of it, it does kinda feel like when I first start playing - all over again! I used the thin knit gloves for a while (advertised for guitarists) back then - helped. Maybe I'll have to resort to that again for practice - save my fingertips for recording & playing during holidays.
Thought about switching back to my old tuning... for about 2 seconds.
Neosporin cream with pain relief (Pramoxine HCL?) helps some.
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@ELCBK - Botox is probably the better option since it would probably numb your finger and will eventually wear off in case it's a disaster. ROFL
Disclosure: Fiddlerman does not recommend botox injections in your fingertips.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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@Fiddlerman -
Uh huh... 
...you know what happens when you tell people NOT to do things. 😈
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ELCBK said
@Fiddlerman -Uh huh...
...you know what happens when you tell people NOT to do things. 😈
That's just my liability disclosure. 😁 You can certainly do it (disclosure: on your own will) and let us know how it works for you.....
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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@Fiddlerman -
...think I'll opt for my old practice gloves - they're thin, stretchy/supportive & make my whole hand feel good.
😬 Guess I'm really getting old when I enjoy 'support hose' for my hand! 🤔... leotards for hands - a MUCH better visual. 🥰
Wondering if by NOT allowing calluses to protect my fingertips - am I running the risk of permanently damaging sensory nerves? I count on my fingertips for discerning tiny surface details for fine craftsmanship outside of the music realm - and now I have a HUGE difference between my right & left hand fingertips.
All my strings, with my Violin tuned this way, are sitting a bit higher on the bridge. Didn't think it was enough to make any difference in finger action, but maybe I'm wrong. Now that I'm pretty sure I'd like to keep this string tuning, maybe it's worth a tiny bit of bridge reshaping at this point. That could also fix it so some of my strings aren't so darn close to being the same bowing angle! I don't have a big difference in bowing angles on my 5-string Violin to begin with - a change in string thickness makes a noticeable difference, in this case it's worse. Means just digging into one string makes my bow hit another one!
I might also be using more finger pressure while I'm learning something new - hard to tell when I'm concentrating on everything else.
Anyone else notice themselves doing that?
Still wish there was more of a variety of tensions & brands for low strings! ...just not much for violin. There's more C string brands for Viola, but VERY rare to find any in a short scale to try on Violin - no F Viola strings.
Waiting to see what the Fiddlershop comes up with! 🤗
...playing violin - the best way to feel younger!
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I’m not sure I understand the rationale for not allowing calluses to develop. As I understand it, a callus is simply a thickening of the skin in response to repeated pressure or friction. The callus allows us to press on the string without feeling pain in the fingertip.
Calluses that are abnormally thick could present a problem, I suppose, especially if they develop sharp edges that could catch on the strings and make unwanted noises. But that seems unlikely, at least for most people. YMMV.
Possibly interesting story: When my father was young, he worked construction in the daytime and played banjo in a band at night. He wore gloves at work, either deerskin or goatskin -- I don’t remember which -- and reported that the oil in the gloves softened his calluses, making it more difficult to play banjo.
That story has stuck with me, and I am careful to take care of my calluses. I use Eric Clapton’s recommendation for beginning guitar players to wet their fingertips with alcohol to remove oils or anything else that could soften the developing calluses. Consequently, I have little calluses that are almost invisible but allow me to play without pain.
So I don’t think about calluses when playing my fiddle -- I have plenty of other issues to worry about, haha!
FWIW
Strabo
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I don’t have hard calluses. Not what I’ve always known calluses to be (prior to violin playing)—hardened dead skin.
I remember having more hardened calluses when I first started playing, but they went away. What remains is what I’ve heard described as a leather-like feeling—thickened, but not hard, and somewhat desensitized to the string pressure (it doesn’t hurt to play, but I feel the strings when I press on them).
I think some people are more prone to developing hardened calluses than others.
Characterize people by their actions and you will never be fooled by their words.
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SharonC said
I don’t have hard calluses. Not what I’ve always known calluses to be (prior to violin playing)—hardened dead skin.I remember having more hardened calluses when I first started playing, but they went away. What remains is what I’ve heard described as a leather-like feeling—thickened, but not hard, and somewhat desensitized to the string pressure (it doesn’t hurt to play, but I feel the strings when I press on them).
I think some people are more prone to developing hardened calluses than others.
Same. The appearance of my fingertips is not noticeably different from my right hand, but they are tougher with slightly less touch sensitivity.
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Jim Dunleavy said
SharonC said
I don’t have hard calluses. Not what I’ve always known calluses to be (prior to violin playing)—hardened dead skin.
I remember having more hardened calluses when I first started playing, but they went away. What remains is what I’ve heard described as a leather-like feeling—thickened, but not hard, and somewhat desensitized to the string pressure (it doesn’t hurt to play, but I feel the strings when I press on them).
I think some people are more prone to developing hardened calluses than others.
Same. The appearance of my fingertips is not noticeably different from my right hand, but they are tougher with slightly less touch sensitivity.
Thank You!
That's what I'm experiencing (skin-wise).
As for the pain, think I've just gotten too carried away playing EVERYTHING on the 3 lowest strings. Switched over to mostly playing on the G, D & A (which is very fine, like an 'E' string) for the last 2 days & fingertips feel MUCH better.
Think I've convinced myself to dress the top of my bridge... VERY slightly.
...still wishing for a different 'F' string than Thomastik Vision. 😶
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