So my kid's school is offering free violin lessons.

[Lyric]

We've decided that the expense of getting him an instrument is worth it, even though it's something we hadn't budgeted for. My parents were far too poor to have afforded any kind of instrument, much less lessons. For this, the lessons are free--we need only supply the instrument, accessories, and a ride to the school early on Monday and Wednesday mornings (the latter of which our dear friend leftyclimber has generously offered to provide.) I know that I deeply regret never having the chance to learn an instrument myself, and I don't want my own child to go through the same disappointment that I have felt all these years.

So--any other violinists or parents of violinists around here? Any advice for how to be as supportive as we can would be appreciated, as well any personal tips you might want to share. We don't have his instrument yet--leftyclimber (who is also a violinist) is going with us to the music store tomorrow to choose his setup. I measured him today--22 inches from the middle of his left palm to his neck, which puts him squarely on the borderline between 1/2 size and 3/4 size. I'm thinking we'll probably get the 3/4 size, because kids his age tend to grow in spurts, and that would ensure a proper fit for the rest of the school year.

OktoberKid is reeeeally excited about this. He loves violin music, and seems so eager to learn to play. I'm so happy for him. :hi:

[old mark]

1. A lot os schools used to use what is called the

Suzuki Method to teach violin to young kids. It is a geat program, and teaches music theory as well as instrumental technique. Students involved in the program seem to do very well in school in general, and gain self confidence and ability to work with others.

It is a great program, and I am happy to hear you are taking advantage of it.

I believe you are right about teh 3/4 size instrument.

All the best.

mark

[Redstone]

2. Only one bit of advice: Practicing three times a day for 20 minutes each is MUCH better

than practicing once a day for an hour.

Trust me on that. Especially with kids - that makes it seem like much less of a "chore," and also minimizes the stress on their hands.

Redstone

[Lyric]

7. The handout that got sent home with him said

that for this year, they only expect the kids in the 3rd grade Beginners class to practice 30 minutes each evening, rather than an hour, in order to avoid any kind of ergonomic injuries to his hands/fingers while they're still adjusting to playing the instrument and gaining strength and flexibility. Now I'm worried--is an hour more "normal?" Or better for him? What if he *wants* to practice more than 30 minutes?

I guess these are questions I should be asking his teacher, but I'm a little concerned. He's so excited--I don't want him to "burn out" too fast due to sore fingers, you know?

[Redstone]

8. No, practicing for a solid hour USED to be considered "normal," but not anymore. You could

even break that 30 minutes into two 15-minute sessions, and the practice would still be of equal benefit to your kid.

The important part, especially for kids, is maing sure their hands are warmed up before they start to play. A bit of stretching, some squeezes of a rubber ball or the like, will do the job.

(Advice from a guy who managed to play instruments much longer than anyone expected, given the arthritis.)

Redstone

[Lyric]

11. And it is advice that is

well-taken and deeply appreciated. Thank you.

:hug:

[Redstone]

19. Oh, I forgot one of your questions: If he WANTS to play more than the half an hour,

that's great. Just make sure that he takes a break (10 or 15 minutes ought to be enough) between the 15-to-20-minute sessions.

(And that he's not wearing out his hands playing video games during those breaks.)

Redstone

[DarkTirade]

13. And it's a good way to keep it interesting and give them some variety

if you have them practice different things for each section of time.

[Redstone]

18. You betcha. Good advice you gave the OP, right there.

Redstone

[DarkTirade]

3. First off, avoid the Suzuki method if you can. But if it's free, I guess you'll take what you can

get. Second, remember that he will grow and he'll need new instruments as he grows. I fully support your idea of getting the 3/4 to start with. Even if you buy cheap ones, it can add up as you buy new ones time after time. :) I got lucky and got a good student quality full sized one for 550 (with bow and case), although it was probably worth at least a thousand or two. (it was a prototype, they were just seeing how well the design worked. Then once it went into production, they decided to get rid of the prototype for cheap. And I happened to know the right person at the right time. It's not the greated quality violin, but I've had it for 14 years and just now needed to have something on it repaired. And it's got a wonderful sound for that price) And with inflation, I'd wager a good student one nowadays for when he's fully grown will be at least two thousand.

Although if he's not serious about it by that age, you could always get a cheaper one. It might be worth the investment by the time he gets to college though, a lot of schools that have decent but not great music programs are hurting for string players, so he might be able to get a scholarship or two out of it. :)

Anyway, I'd have more to add but I'm on a public computer and I can't stick around all day. As soon as I get mine working again I'll be back online though, so I might be around to give more advice.

And even if he never earns a dime with it, I'd still say it's worth it... but then again, I'm a bit biased towards anything music-related.

*edit* Oh, and if at some point you can afford to live in an area that actually has an orchestra in the public schools instead of just a band, it will give him a huge advantage when it comes to getting into college. Just the act of playing in a group with other people on a regular basis gives a completely different experience than just taking lessons. I didn't have that option growing up, but my parents managed to find a youth orchestra in the area. We couldn't afford it, but thankfully they had scholarships for that too. It was only once a week, so I still didn't get the regular daily aspect of it, but it was better than nothing.

[supernova]

4. Learning to play music

is very very good for lots of things: stress relief (though, while learning to read music... not so much. :P), improvement in understanding of math concepts, wonderful social outlet.

Listening to music is great of course, but learning to play your own is like flying. :-)

Wonderful. Go for it! And earplugs. :D

[Gormy Cuss]

5. I hope that you can rent a 3/4 violin.

I learned to play violin the same way -- free lessons at school, but I had to get my own violin. Buying one was out of the question but through friends of the family we were loaned a 3/4 violin and I used that until junior high, when I bought a piece of junk full size violin at a pawn shop. I never was very good at the violin (good enough to play in school orchestras, but that's about it) but it did start me on a journey in music that lasted through college.

[madinmaryland]

6. Our daughter started out with a 3/4 violin for two years and then

moved into a full sized violin last year. She inherited two violins from her great grandfather, that had not been used in years.

There is also the option of renting, which is what we did with her first violin, and ended up buying it. Best of luck. Anytime you can get kids interested in, it is really motivational for them.

Making them practice will always be a pain in the but!

:thumbsup:

[Lyric]

9. We'd certainly *like* to rent one, but

I'm afraid that rental approval will depend on having good credit, and ours is, to put it bluntly, awful. We're working on that, but it takes time. We talked about it tonight and decided that if buying one outright is the only way to do this, then we'll do it and just hope that we can sell it again when he's outgrown it.

And yeah, I'm sure that making him practice is going to be barrels of fun after the first week (note the teasingly sarcastic tone, ha.) We talked to him about the commitment that you have to make in order to learn an instrument, and he has agreed that even if he gets tired of it/bored with it/whatever, he will promise to keep up with practice for at *least* one school year. After that, we'll talk about it again and see if he wants to keep going, etc.

[DarkTirade]

12. Getting me to practice was the hard part for my parents too.

Despite the fact that I loved playing. Go figure. :P

[madinmaryland]

14. That may not be a problem.

We have "less than stellar credit" (also known as horrible) and had no problem getting a rental contract. Even though renting is a rip-off, it does work, if the child decides in a year that they are not interested.

Also, if you buy a violin, many music stores will take the old violin as a trade-in towards the new violin. Have you gotten any estimates on how much a new violin is?

[Lyric]

16. Not from the music store, but I've been looking around online

finding places that sell decent beginner "setups" for between $170-$250. There are some cheaper ones, but I've been thoroughly warned away from them. Apparently, getting one of the really cheap violins will pretty much guarantee that your kid wants to quit--all of his classmates will be sounding better and better around him, while his own crappy violin still sounds awful, and he'll mistake that for a lack of progress and get seriously discouraged.

$200 is a LOT of money for us, but...sometimes a sacrifice is worth it.

[lady raven]

10. I played

From 5th grade through college. I started with a 3/4 size and my parents rented that one. When I graduated to a full size, my parents rented one from the local music store on a rent to own basis. That one is the one I took to college and that helped me get a substantial scholarship.

Good luck to your son- I hope he loves it!

[Rabrrrrrr]

15. Absolutely yes, get the kids involved in music! Especially violin.

Great instrument - I've played since I was a small child. Started with a rental, then got my own in sixth grade.

[WritingIsMyReligion]

17. Not a string player (woodwinds and piano), but I think you'll find it's a good investment.

I didn't start music until 5th grade and serious piano until the beginning of high school. I frequently regret not being allowed to start earlier.

:)

[Roon]

20. My Mother refused to allow me to take violen

I was disappointed at the time...but these guys really made me regret it decades later.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxXJ8iTzmyE

[Fox Mulder]

21. I would love to learn to play the violin.

I even have one I want picked out on Amazon.

Now, if I could just get some money, maybe I'd be able to get it. x(

[leftyclimber]

22. Prepare to have a howling dog and crying cats.

And try your hardest not to laugh. My mom always teased me when I practiced and the cat yowled in response and I to this day haven't told her how much it embarassed me. Fair warning: it's going to sound godawful for a while once he picks up the bow (if he learned the way I did, he won't use it for the first little while, and will just work on getting his left fingers to go in the right place). The best thing you can do during this period is to lavish him with praise and let him inflict concerts on whoever is willing to listen. :rofl:

Another vote for the 3/4 size (the rest of him is going to catch up with those big ol' feet real soon now), and for the taking breaks after half an hour of practice. Leave the violin in the case where it is safe from playing cats but where he can access it easily in case he wants to practice without any prompting from you or ThinkBlue. One of the first things he will do at school lessons is learn how to pack and unpack the instrument properly, so have him show you how to do it (you will, at some point, have to bust him for some sort of violin-icidal act, so this will give you leverage for said busting).

It'll be a while before he outgrows the 3/4, but I have a full-size he can use when he gets there (he can use the one I had in high school, which is adequate for high school orchestra -- if he gets really good, he can use my Roth ).

Once he gets rolling I'll give you a few things you can keep an eye on to help him develop good technical habits, which will also help reduce ergonomic problems.

[Lyric]

23. Copy-pasted!

"Violin-icidal act".... :rofl: I love your imagery. You should have been a writer, you know. :)

And yeah, I could use advice on how to "help" him as much as I can, because I'll really have no idea whether he's doing things correctly or not, which makes helping with practice difficult.

Yowling cats, howling dog...oh man. I wonder if subjecting them to Brendan's violin-playing would work as well as shaking a can of coins works? lol

:hug:

Happy birthday again!!!

[Midlodemocrat]

24. .

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=5700293

$149 and change.