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i want to play the violin so bad. Is there any hope? Should I learn the notes first or should I work on the handling of the violin and its parts?
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It is not too late. Hello and welcome. It is a beautiful and wonderful thing... The violin. Don't think of it as too late.. Or that you are too old... Think of it as how lucky you are to want it!!! It will become your greatest pleasure and longing. 
Best of luck and cheer
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
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Reesesr ... go for it. @68 I began with a free violin with cracks, no bridge and needing strings. I learned to fix those things and play a few tunes on the violin. Between 68 and my present 70 I switched allegiance to the mandolin (and the group let me stay) and the tunes are beginning to come and I am having a huge amount of fun. So you have a 10yr headstart and I do wish I had started that little bit earlier. We most probably wont become world famous players but playing a musical instrument has become a great outlet for my creative side. The folks here at Fiddlerman and Fiddlerman 'Pierre' himself are a straight up welcoming and helpful bunch and you will find a number of us for whom weekends and birthdays have become just another day to make music.
Octave Ray
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I'll let the others answer your question about whether it's too late because I know we have a lot of players here who asked the same question a while back and are enjoying their journeys and participating in projects and performances.
Start off by learning to hold the violin and bow properly, then begin drawing open strings on the violin. When you are comfortable with that proceed to learn notes.... etc..... There are plenty of great beginner books and videos. A teacher helps too but is not completely necessary. It all depends on your discipline and time put in.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
Honorary advisor
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Howdy Reesesr ,
Yer good to go at any age ...go for it buddy ...welcome to Pierre's family...you'll find everything ya need here with great folks that love violin ...
I played briefly in grade school and then took up violin when i retired some fifty years latter ...keep a fiddle out all day long and play whenever i get a few extra minutes ...it all adds up and makes fer a nice day ....soo much fun ...
Pierre has many videos and tunes here ya won;t have any trouble finding tunes ya like .
Honorary tenured advisor
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Do you think you're too old?
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. ~Herm Albright
Advanced member
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I think Uzi's right. How old you are is largely how old you think you are. Unless you have debilitating arthritis, it's mainly your mind that you have to convince.
If you're lucky enough to be retired with time on your hands, then you're in a nearly ideal position to learn something new. And if you're still working, there's probably still time.
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It's never too late to be what you might have been. - George Eliot
When the work's all done and the sun's settin' low,
I pull out my fiddle and I rosin up the bow.
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A Greed, never to late to lean!
Welcome to the forum and enjoy you new passion.
Mark
Master the Frog and you have mastered the bow.
Albert Sammons
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It's never too late to learn something new, whatever it might be. Unless your health limits you, I believe you should just get a violin and start to learn right away! 
Welcome to the forums, by the way.
Skype: augustoad Email: augustoaguieiras@hotmail.com Phone number/whatsapp: +55 42 9861-4084. I'd be happy to talk anything fiddle-related to anyone! :)
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@reesesr .... so what do you think? Are you ready? yahoo.... jump in and start playing and posting. Welcome again to the forum.
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
Honorary advisor
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I believe there are two things in life that don't have an age: love and learning something new. If you love the violin and want to learn it, go for it! 
Welcome to the forum!
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I just turned 59 in Sept and it's never too late. You just realized all you've been missing out on! Ha.
I started almost 3 years ago now and I'm so glad Pierre had this site, it has helped me more than you will ever know, and everyone here (except Pierre of course) has been down your road before.
Enjoy the ride, it's fun.
"If you practice with your hands you must practice all day. Practice with your mind and you can accomplish the same amount in minutes." Nathan Milstein
New member
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Thank you my newly violin family for your words of encouragement during the beginning of what is a part of my life now and forever.
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Well, hello and welcome reesers!!!
Are you too old? Let me answer this way. When you feel you no longer want some pleasure in life, feel you are unable to bring yourself some measure of joy and comfort, to never start something you have wanted to do for nothing other then just doing it, Then absolutely you are too old.
On the other hand. If you pick it up now, make do with what skill you have and learn, be able to say, i am starting a dream, then absolutely you are NOT too old. Will you become a world renowned performer? The odds are against you, me and most of the people here. Becoming a famous violinist isn't my goal. I crossed the 50 yard line earlier this year and am going into my 3rd year playing. I still sound like a live cat is still attached to my strings. I don't play because I am super awesome, I don't play because I am better then everyone on the face of the earth. I play because it brings me a measure of joy and happiness. In this world we cannot change or affect many things without really going out on a limb, and then your chance at real change is small. Music, however, is completely in your control. The joy of learning a piece (even at whatever ability you have) learning about your instrument, music and enjoying it all with friends. A lot of us will probably never see each other in real life, it doesn't mean we cant share in our experiences, help each other along and offer words of encouragement. More then likely a joke now and again too. So, again, Are you too old? Without knowing you are all, I would most assuredly say, "Absolutely not". You are never too old to start playing. Just don't make unrealistic expectations and always remember to have fun. Its not a race or a test. It's life and we only have 1. Enjoy the moments you have, when you can. If you're able to do something you enjoy along the way, so much fuller your life will be. I hope to see you here as a regular. Most of us don't bite.
"I find your lack of Fiddle, disturbing" - Darth Vader
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This sort of question seems to come up so often with violin.
I mean, do fishing forums get people wondering if they are too old to start fishing? In art forums do people ask if they are too old to be able to draw?
"This young wine may have a lot of tannins now, but in 5 or 10 years it is going to be spectacular, despite the fact that right now it tastes like crude oil. You know this is how it is supposed to taste at this stage of development." ~ Itzhak Perlman
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@reesesr NO! I started learning the violin just after my 58th birthday!
@FiddlerMan is right learn to hold the violin and bow properly. As an adult I was able to realize no this is not just a way for one person to torture another - there must be a reason.
Well I confess I did think for a while it was a way to weed out those who aren't really committed to the idea of learning the violin!!
I have discovered though it is easier to find the right notes, tone is good and a person is comfortable for extended periods of time when positions are correct.
Relax, loosen those muscles and dive in!!
Violinist start date - May 2013
Fiddler start date - May 2014
FIDDLE- Gift from a dear friend. A 1930-40 german copy, of a french copy of a Stradivarius. BOW - $50 carbon fiber. Strings - Dominants with E Pirastro Gold string.
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If you think about it.. what if you told someone exactly how many years and days old you are and ask if it is too late to learn violin.. (or anything else, for that matter).. and they take out a calculator and a book with a chart in it and look things up and calculate for a minute then look up and say "Yeah.. Sorry. Definitely too late. You missed it by just one day. If you had started yesterday, you might have had a chance. But now? There is just no way.."
Ok would you actually accept that? Really? Just nod and hang your head low and walk away, never to try?
Or would it be more likely to just get your attitude up, and tick you off enough to get you to set your jaw and say "We will see about that... Youngster." and get busy on the work it takes to make them eat some of your dust ASAP?
"Stubborn" is one of those character traits that tend to improve with age. It can be your very best friend when practising. Whether you aim it at success or failure is entirely up to you.
@Schaick: I like it!!
"This young wine may have a lot of tannins now, but in 5 or 10 years it is going to be spectacular, despite the fact that right now it tastes like crude oil. You know this is how it is supposed to taste at this stage of development." ~ Itzhak Perlman
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I've seen adults at all ages, and you'll find there here too, begin learning to play violin and are very happy they did so. However, if you think it will come easily and expect absolute perfection, think again.
If you are looking for a fun hobby and think you can enjoy the journey, then you are at the best age possible. Perhaps you have more time than you did when you were young. Perhaps you know more what you like and appreciate music in a better way now.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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