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What's a definition of second and third position please? ......

- well, one way to easily get used to changing positions is when you place your third finger, and then moving it up two notes (according to the scale you play in), of course, the first finger is now at the exact spot the third moved away from
- you probably know, but just to say that whatever position your first finger finds itself in, that's your position, so here it would be third, which is used very often.
- i also sometimes play in a half position, this dissolves some impossible scales
- i think the best way to get used to playing positions is to stop playing all those open strings, and instead get your pinky to work, once you're airborne, it's way easier to move up
- finally, i would get far, far away from humanity, from fear, and just have your fingers take the big leaps until they simply follow your intentions

go for it!

hi.

about the choise of strings; i personally always buy 'Dominant' strings (made in Austria). They're probably available where you live, last long and just sound ok. you often hear about how experimenting is encouraged, but for that i don't change strings often enough. Cheap strings will get out of tune quickly, be thinner and therefore snap quickly. Metal strings will sound a little like metal.

i think Dominant's will be the easiest and best choice; this is what it says on the pack:
'The Dominant string is a highly flexible, multi-strand synthetic core string for tonal warmth and feel of gut and is impervious to changes in humidity, allowing for stable intonation and long life. The sound is soft, clear and rich in overtones. Dominant strings, widely recognized as 'the reference standard', are legendary for distinctive tone and playability'.

hope it helps.
also: when applying the new strings, make sure the pegs turn in the right direction and pull the strings quite a bit to get any stretching out of them (or they will drop like crazy in the first few days)

Hi everyone, what is your opinion of which strings are best for fiddling?  Good old time fiddle music.

Check out the post on Fiddle Tips - Pictures and Charts...he has a pic posted with all the positions on a violin.  Made my head spin!

I agree.  It does have to do with the player, BUT, the bow is an integral part of it as I recently found out.  I bought my violin and it came with a bow...well that's what they were passing it off as anyway.  It was garbage.  I purchased an Academy carbon fiber for $95.  It was good...for a while.  As I started to develop my ear, I noticed that it wasn't up to par anymore for me.  So last week i began mu pursuit for a new one.  I tried the Mark Wood "Turbow" ($116), also carbon fiber and the Coda Diamond NX ($355).  Both were great bows.  Both had excellent balance.  I sooooo wanted the Turbow to be the one, but Coda beat it out by only a fraction and it was over tonal quality.  SO this morning I purchased the Coda.  It hurt, but I am glad I did it.

I also noticed that the shoulder rest seems to be a big factor in my playing ability.  I started with an Everrest...it was ok, but I upgraded this week to the Bon Musica.  Little pricey, but the difference in my playing ability was night and day!  So, for me personally, I think I now have the right combination to further my fiddle education.

BTW, hi all, I am new.  Just joined.  Glad to be here.

What's a definition of second and third position please?  Is there a single second and third position, or does their position vary according to what key the instrument is being played in? I've been scraping away in first position for years and I'd like to improve my playing.

edit:  Well I think found part of my answer at least, in the Left Hand development videos!

When I took a look at the posts on how to hold the instrument, I found that photos were on top of the text.

It would be very interesting to have a breakdown of bows vs ability and manufactures.  To say there are good carbon fiber bows without any more claification it does not give anyone a starting point to look at.  Granted for sure a beginner (say up to 3-4 years) doesnt need a $1000.00 bow.  Some guidelines would be nice to see.  What is a good starting point in a beginners bow?  Mine was $100.00 brazil.  Where should you go from there?  Or at what point should a bow be in order to keep advancing?  I know when I bought my Cadenza It tracked much better, had better tone and was easier to handle....just some thoughts...chuck

There are quite a few ways to finger a 3-octave scale. The older schools taught shifting through a tone (eg 1-2-3-1-2-3 or 1-2-1-2-3-4) each time. Modern teaching sometimes advocates shifting through the semitone gaps in the scale, which means less distance covered in each shift, but more shifts in total. Hope that makes sense ...

Jim

Hi,
I've been wondering what the best fingering is for a 3 octave scale in
the key of G... giving the fingering for each finger and which strings
to do the correct shifts....I have seen the charts which give the
first finger and its shift but that leaves me wondering if I'm doing
the other fingers correctly.