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BillyG said
Hi @Selflearnerviolinist -

  If you mean the actual first scored note, the note itself is a "B" fourth finger on E string - and the slashes through the stem indicates tremolo - check out FiddlerMan's tutorial here - 

  I assume it's the slashes through the stem that you're curious about ?

  Tremolo can mean slightly different things on different instruments and may sometimes involve a change in pitch, alternating between two adjacent notes.   

  Apparently, the number of "slashes" on the note may give an indication/hint to the player as to the repetition rate, here the 3 slashes would suggest a repetition rate of a demi-semi-quaver or 1/32nd note - although I suspect it's often just interpreted as "play it as fast as possible" given other circumstances ( like bow speed, pressure ).

  Having said that, await feedback from others, I'm often on the wrong track myself, but that's how I currently understand it !   LOL

EDIT : ROFL - I would have silently corrected the above but I'll say it here (proves I'm human after all - what a let-down ) - the note is NOT a "B" - hahahaha - the piece is in alto clef - hadn't noticed until I reviewed the post - it's a "C", second finger on the top A string !   Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr     The rest of my comment, I'll leave unchanged.    I give up.....   

Hi Billy,

Thanks for your help here. It's clear now.

Quick question, how do you know it's a C not the B as i suspected.

Happy Violining!!