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I have so many problems with my fingering right now I'm very frustrated over it. Apparently my out of wack tuner messed up my fingering so much that now I'm fighting the automatic bad finger positions. I'm so out of tune and struggling to find the notes that I can't keep my hand in the right position on the neck. I eventually wind up with my first finger on C# after hunting for B. Which is really bad because that's over an inch out of place.
I spent 2 hours practicing today and I went from awful, to horrible, to ok I'm improving, back to where awful would be a major improvement, and finally ended up where I was in the beginning. My bowing is terrible and I'm sliding the bow all over the place on the strings too.
It's like I'm where I was at back in November and trying to figure out what I'm supposed to be doing. So I put the fingerboard tapes back on to see if that would help me put my fingers where they're supposed to be.
Lots of recording today. Ewww doesn't even come close to describing how nasty I'm playing right now.
I'll get it, I know will. Right now I'm just not sure how far in the future that will be.
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yeah weve all been there.. still go there lol. get used to it. but it gets better. and as much attention you seem to be giving probably will be quick recovery. I will say maybe check your rosin on bow since its sliding around. only help can give other than i know its frustrating.
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@RDP : That sounds SO frustrating! I knew when I read that you were using a faulty tuner to help with intonation it was not good ... but, you WILL persevere! I'm only a beginner, far behind you, but I think it will come to you quicker than you think. Today was one bad day - but you already have the fingerings, just have to do a little relearning on the placement. The good thing is that the correct placement will SOUND better to your ears. I can imagine that you have been fighting with yourself over time - one placement sounded better to your ears, but you adjusted to match what the tuner was telling you. Now with some time, your ears and the tuner will start to match up. I think your fingers will follow before too long.
Just my 2 cents - good luck and have some patience with yourself
LinDee
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RDP
We All struggle with intonenation, ever fantastic players like Tessa Lark, she said after a good night's sleep she had a hard time remembering where her first finger was supposed to go.
Keep at it, it will get better.
Mark
Master the Frog and you have mastered the bow.
Albert Sammons
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I am managing to get a few in-tune notes out of the violin every once in awhile. Then it all goes sour again.
I've lost all ability to add expression too. That's probably because I'm concentrating on tone almost exclusively but even so, I was having issues with that already. I can't even seem to go back to anything I've played with expression and still have expression. Which is probably the most frustrating part of all of this.
I'm a mess. I know it's temporary, but I'm still a mess at this point.
@ABitRusty - I'm not liking my rosin right now. It's forming icicles on the undersides of the strings yet I get almost no dust. However, I will make sure that I have enough rosin on the bow during practice today. The biggest problem with my bowing is my lousy bow hold, using my shoulder instead of my wrist/elbow, and my tremors. Basically, everything about my bowing is bad and I'm wondering if I should ask ThomasB for tips. Can I play better than a 10 year old? No.
@LinDee I started in Mid-November last year so you're not that far behind me. You also inherited your violin. Which means you have musicians in your background somewhere, while I have no one in my entire family history who has ever wanted to play anything. That's a tiny little thing which I'm thinking puts you at a major advantage.
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I think you are doing really well RDP keep going !!!
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@RDP -
Look, you can do this.
I think you are getting way too frustrated right now.
Can you do a search to see if there is ANYONE within driving distance that can give you a private, in-person, lesson?
I believe you could probably be set on the right path by trying ONE.
It's not worth beating yourself up over all this, but it IS worth learning to play the violin.
No excuses!
...1 hour could change your life.
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ELCBK said
@RDP -Look, you can do this.
I think you are getting way too frustrated right now.
Can you do a search to see if there is ANYONE within driving distance that can give you a private, in-person, lesson?
I believe you could probably be set on the right path by trying ONE.
It's not worth beating yourself up over all this, but it IS worth learning to play the violin.
No excuses!
...1 hour could change your life.
Yeah, I really should take a step back and relax.
I don't live in a big city. Or even a medium sized city. Los Angeles is an hour away when the freeway is clear, more than an hour most days. Music lessons around here are usually for guitar or piano and I've yet to find anyone who gives private violin lessons. No one I know knows anyone who plays a violin and the local music stores looked at me like I'd grown 2 heads when I asked. Covid destroyed one-on-one teaching.
The there's the local luthiers. I'd like someone to look at my violin regarding the wolf and what can be done about it. I have called several of them within a 40 mile radius and left messages and not a single one of them has returned my call.
And I know it sounds like I'm about ready to throw my violin off the pier into the ocean and be done with it, but that's just the frustration coming through. I will learn this and learn it the correct way. I can ride a bike, sail a sailboat, fly an airplane, drive a big rig, rebuild a car/motorcycle from the ground up, hunt, fish, draw/paint, build custom furniture, do home repairs and remodels, and all kinds of stuff like that** so playing the violin is within my abilities. It's just a matter of learning how.
**I also write fiction novels in my spare time.
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@RDP -
Covid restrictions are lifting right now.
See if the local schools teach violin - ask if the instructor knows of anyone or if they'd be willing to spend just one hour to help you.
Check here, doesn't matter if you aren't interested in Old Time fiddling - someone can help you or will know of someone:
California State Old Time Fiddlers Association - by District
Most of us here have at least a little music background from when we were kids - you don't need to make it any harder on yourself than it already is. 😊
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ELCBK said
@RDP -Covid restrictions are lifting right now.
See if the local schools teach violin - ask if the instructor knows of anyone or if they'd be willing to spend just one hour to help you.
Check here, doesn't matter if you aren't interested in Old Time fiddling - someone can help you or will know of someone:
California State Old Time Fiddlers Association - by District
Most of us here have at least a little music background from when we were kids - you don't need to make it any harder on yourself than it already is. 😊
Making life harder for myself than it needs to be is my personal specialty.
I'll check out the link and see if I can find someone willing to help sort me out. There's a meeting of one of their chapters this Sunday so I'm hopeful.
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Mark said
RDPWe All struggle with intonenation, ever fantastic players like Tessa Lark, she said after a good night's sleep she had a hard time remembering where her first finger was supposed to go.
Keep at it, it will get better.
Mark
@Mark - How did I manage to miss this post? Her playing is very clear on her notes while mine is, at best, harsh.
This video manages to capture what I'm striving for. Her fingering and bowing are exquisite. The best thing about the video is that I can see what she's doing better than most of the other videos out there that try to teach the techniques she is using. I don't know how she's doing it, but I can at least see it.
BTW, I added Pachelbel's Canon in D to my recital list after watching this video.
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Funny to hear it played NOT as a canon.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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Fiddlerman said
Funny to hear it played NOT as a canon.
It's actually a very popular wedding piece. Not that I'm into playing a violin at weddings.
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Fiddlerman said
Funny to hear it played NOT as a canon.
especially like around 2:40. lol... im guessing she is hearing the whole orchestra in her head..maybe? nobody knows but her obviously but id guess you would have to
..impressive
@Mark i really like that appalachian fantasy.. especially the 1st half or so where its slow.
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I think I'm getting somewhere. I've been spending all my practice time this week doing long bows on pieces I learned a couple of months ago while I try to get intonation. 50% of the time I'm ok and the other 50% of the time I'm still a mess but 50% is better than 0%. I've still got issues with unintentional double stops too.
I'm also working on my bow hold at the same time. That's doing about the same 50/50 split. Ok, more like 70/30 to the bad but I'm working on it. My wrist is too stiff and that's making me use my shoulder too much. Lots of video showing it.
The most interesting thing is that my hand frame has changed. It's softer than it was and the neck is all the way down in the valley instead of being gripped by my thumb. Unfortunately, I'm back to not quite being able to reach A4 with my pinkie unless I shift on the neck and that throws off my "index." I'll figure that out. Otherwise I'm a half step high on everything (except A4). With the looser hand frame I should be able to learn that "mini shift" without jeopardizing the rest of my playing.
I'm still going to go to the local fiddlers chapter meeting on Sunday and see if I can find someone to help me. If I can that might speed things up enough that I can get back into the groove and moving forward.
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@RDP said
I'm still going to go to the local fiddlers chapter meeting on Sunday and see if I can find someone to help me. If I can that might speed things up enough that I can get back into the groove and moving forward.
Thats exciting news RDP ! What style of jam/session is it? you said fiddlers chapter so Im assuming old time or bluegrass. Have a blast and let us know how it goes. Ill link a video that may be helpful. most of the stuff he says most people would know.. but he kinda covers how the flow is. take a recorder and ask if you can use it.. havent found one that doeant but always good to ask. Noodlng is a big no no...but everyone eventually wi do it without thinking ive seen. just be aware of it. noodling is playing or plucking on instrument in between the music.
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So, packed my violin into the car, just in case, made sure I had my phone with a recent video on it and went to the chapter meeting. 10 minutes later I pulled into the parking lot at the community center where the meeting is supposed to take place. Not a single other soul in sight. No cars, no walkers, no loiterers, no nothing. I waited 15 mins, still no one there but me.
This is the same old problem. Everyone around here talks a good game but when it comes time to show up, everyone is MIA. Covid didn't help, but this was a problem even before then in other situations just like this.
I have been working on my intonation. I made a video just this morning of me playing Inisheer again. I think I hit all the notes this time (and a few extra too!) so it's not completely awful sounding. Or, at least I don't think so. The long pauses are me losing my place and trying to figure out where I was in the score. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?.....LRQFTOVybo
My bowing is still very bad. You can see me sliding the bow around all over the place. But I'm working on that too and once I have the intonation down solid, I'll concentrate more on my bow hold and control.
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You didn't contact anyone at the Fiddler Association, beforehand?
Even if to find out they've been meeting online, word of mouth that you need help - should be enough to get a response.
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ELCBK said
You didn't contact anyone at the Fiddler Association, beforehand?Even if to find out they've been meeting online, word of mouth that you need help - should be enough to get a response.
Didn't think I needed to. It was supposed to be their monthly meeting, I will try to reach out this week to see what I can discover.
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@RDP yeah with any the fiddle type groups always get the leader or coordinator..whatever.. on email and make sure. alot of times they have a standard type schedule but depending on things may cancel and either use fa ebook or a group email to notify. i know youre in another state but seems fairly common with groups like this to communicate via a bulk email.
sorry it didnt go well..bummer. dont give it up though! give 'em another go after contacting.
your great on intonation on this. sounds in tune. in the last video you were good too..there were some minor off notes on the B part but youve corrected that here to my hearing. even in the last video is wasnt way off.
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