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Hello everyone,
Last night I was practicing and I decided to make a video to post to the forum and play a couple of new songs I had learned for everyone. I had been hard at it for a few hours already
, and I was crossing over into area where even though you know which notes to play and how to play them your body and mind are fatigued and don't want to cooperate.
I guess the best thing to do at that point is to put the violin down and come back later. The video starts off well enough, but by the time I get to the fourth song it has become a blooper reel.
When I was watching it back I thought it was pretty funny and imagine that a lot of beginners out there can probably relate.
P.S., On a more serious note, I realize that I am still using lots of shoulder. My wrist just seems to be frozen sometimes.
Never mind maneuvers, just go straight at them.
Ha-Haaaa! 
Yep, that was fun! You actually look pretty much like me there when something's going wrong...
Little advice about that: when some part persistently doesn't want to be played correctly - don't return to the beginning! Play only this part over and over untill it gets better, then add several previous notes and only when it satisfies You, go to the start and play it all =)
Don't forget about the intonation!
Well done =)
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I feel your pain at the wrong notes!
My girlfriend learns a new word every time I cock it up!
I am amazed at how old people of my age are.....
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I love the fact that you actually posted all of that. Most people would have cut the frustration part out. LOL
Two things for now:
1) the fourth finger E, on the A string, much higher.
2) Use your right elbow when you bow.
Your bow speed and contact is great. The sound that you produce is nice.
Thanks for the post.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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@Mad_Wed
Thanks. I kept starting over because I want badly to have an entire version of the song to post. Normally I do exactly what you suggest.
@Terry
I new someone out there would.
@FiddlerMan
Thank you. I will be working on exactly what you say.
Never mind maneuvers, just go straight at them.
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Hi, this is my first post here and I'm the rudest of beginners still (until 3 weeks ago I had never so much as touched a violin).
Regarding the elbow/wrist/shoulder issue when bowing, this is a similar issue to learning to properly cast when flyfishing... It should be done with the elbow and not the shoulder. One of the training techniques in flyfishing is to put a rolled up newspaper or somesuch under the arm about midway between the elbow and armpit. If you drop it while practicing, you are doing something wrong. Something similar should work for bowing on the violin, although in order to get your elbow in the correct location you may need something a bit larger than a rolled up newspaper... maybe a foam pillow or a cardboard tube that reaches from the middle of the upper arm to just near the bottom of the ribs? Anyone with more experience commenting on this would be greatly appreciated because I worry that I may be training myself with bad form...
Nice to meet you all and just wanted to say I look forward to getting to a point where I feel comfortable to participate in some of FiddlerMan's community activities... I think that the christmas project and the pirate project are really cool and a truly great way to interact with other members of the site!
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Welcome to the forum Thefrood.
Look forward to your participation in the projects too. 
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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Great video, Lyle! As Fiddlerman said, your 4th finger is a little flat, the others sounded pretty good to me.
I also agree with Mad_Wed that you shouldn't start over from the beginning when you mess up -- it's one of those weird things with the brain. When you're playing a song like that over and over you are setting neural pathways in the brain and each time you play it incorrectly, you are reinforcing that wrong note. It can be tough to break that habit -- that finger will keep going to that wrong note, like it has a mind of its own. It might also help to circle the problem spot on your sheet music (if you're using it) to trigger your mind to remember that finger likes to go the wrong way.
As per the rolled up newspaper under the arm idea, I'm not sure that would work, since you do need to raise your elbow somewhat to reach the D and G strings. So even though you may not be bowing with your shoulder, raising your arm you may still drop the paper? I'm not sure... it may be worth experimenting with!
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sdsalyer, sounds like you've read "The Secret"
Actually the way to go in my opinion is to practice exactly the spot in which the problem occurs at over and over and when you get it right play it 1000 times again. Or as many as you feel like 
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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