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How do I learn violin without a teacher?

I have wanted to learn violin for a long time. My daughter (7) wants to learn also. I thought it would be fun for us to learn together. The only problem is there are no violin teachers around us. I think the closest one is in another state (around a 3 hr drive). I would love to find someone local who could give private lessons but unfortunately there are none. I am determined to learn and I want my daughter to have that opportunity also. Any ideas?

I think that if you try to learn without a teacher, you are just *begging* to pick up bad habits and bad technique. The violin is a very demanding instrument. There are some instruments you can teach yourself (to a point) but violin really isn’t one of them. I’ve taught myself a few instruments, but when it came time to learn violin, I went out of my way to get a teacher, and I think that was absolutely the right decision.

I think you should do two things:

1) Redouble your efforts to find a more local teacher. I can’t believe there’s *nobody* around you who plays violin. Even someone who has had proper training on the instrument but isn’t normally a professional teacher would be better than trying to go it alone. Maybe a high school student or something?

2) If there really isn’t anyone, I would drive the 3 hours to get to a real teacher. Even if you only did this, say, once a month, having *some* proper guidance will really help.

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 2nd, 2010 at 6:22 am and is filed under learn. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

4 Responses to “How do I learn violin without a teacher?”

  1. use books
    References :

  2. If you’ve learnt another instrument already, then it’ll be easier cos then you know about key signatures, rhythms etc. just get a beginning violin book and it should show you what note the string is and stuff
    References :

  3. I think that if you try to learn without a teacher, you are just *begging* to pick up bad habits and bad technique. The violin is a very demanding instrument. There are some instruments you can teach yourself (to a point) but violin really isn’t one of them. I’ve taught myself a few instruments, but when it came time to learn violin, I went out of my way to get a teacher, and I think that was absolutely the right decision.

    I think you should do two things:

    1) Redouble your efforts to find a more local teacher. I can’t believe there’s *nobody* around you who plays violin. Even someone who has had proper training on the instrument but isn’t normally a professional teacher would be better than trying to go it alone. Maybe a high school student or something?

    2) If there really isn’t anyone, I would drive the 3 hours to get to a real teacher. Even if you only did this, say, once a month, having *some* proper guidance will really help.
    References :

  4. I wouldn’t recommend trying to learn without a teacher. It is REALLY hard to unlearn bad habits, which you WILL develop. I would try again to find a teacher in your area. I highly doubt there is no one who plays the violin within less than a 3 hour drive. Check the Colleges or community colleges in town and the local musicians union (American Federation of Musicians)..

    Good luck. Studying th violin with your daughter will be a great experience for the both of you.
    References :

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