If you want to find a topic about which most violinists will disagree, the subject of shoulder rests should be high on your list! Every violinist has their own preference about which shoulder rest to use, if at all. Shoulder rests have only been in mainstream use since the 1950s, and some players still view them […]
Sheet music shops, like bookshops for the avid reader, are a wonderful resource for the violin student. Since the advent of online shopping, they are also becoming a rarity. The tactile and satisfying experience of looking through shelves of crisp, new music has given way to a search engine, a click of the mouse and […]
Happy New Year from everyone here at ViolinSchool! We've got some exciting news to share with you for 2017... Sheet Music Publishing Partnership We're really happy to announce that the ViolinSchool team is taking over management of Musicland Publications, a leading publisher of sheet music and educational materials for string instruments. Musicland itself is a family business, established in […]
We've just published the famous Scottish tune Auld Lang Syne and you can download it now in the Sheet Music section - click here to go directly to the download page! Auld Lang Syne is sung around the world every New Year's Eve, so today, why not try playing it on the violin? Happy New Year from everyone at […]
At this time of great change, as people across the world celebrate this special time of year, it's more important than ever for us to remember the great human values that draw us together. At ViolinSchool, we celebrate our two 'guiding forces': Creativity and Community. Community binds us together through shared musical experiences and brings […]
As you can imagine, we see hundreds of violins pass through the doors of ViolinSchool each year, and for our London students, a lot of time and energy is spent ensuring that violins are in tip top condition. This page will give you the low-down on all the violin shops in London. We are in […]
The Violin Orchestra had so much fun in London last week playing the Pirates of the Caribbean theme tune, amongst other great music... if you missed the livestream, you can still see it on our Facebook page! (including the attack on our conductor by Domini the Pirate!) Here's another great interpretation of He's a Pirate by Hans Zimmer, by Mr Cool Violin himself, […]
So I'm deep in one of our research documents, examining some tiny detail of how the arm moves during a Tremolo stroke. I'm trying to make sure that I've got the best possible wording for an upcoming video script. If I use this word or that word, will it be clear enough? What about people who don't already […]
It's that time of year again... The Violin Orchestra is back today with a Christmas Concert & Livestream today, Saturday 10th December! To celebrate, we've made all our Christmas Carols free to download for everyone until the end of the weekend... you can grab them here! If you'd like to play along with The Violin Orchestra, join us on […]
The violin bridge is a device designed both to support the strings and to transmit their vibrations to the body of the instrument. Made from maple wood, the shape of the bridge varies from one violin to another, and its placing and fit have a significant impact on the tone and playability of the instrument. […]
Here's a lovely piece of music for a Sunday! The legendary jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli performs Blue Moon at a live trio recording from 1990. Enjoy!
Christmas is a-coming! Let's kick off the season with an old favourite, Jingle Bells! Click the image below to go to the free download page, and grab your copy today. O what fuuun it is to play our Jing-le Bells todaaaayyy.... !! Download it now! >>
Here's a wonderful piece of violin history! American virtuoso Itzhak Perlman reminisces about his first meeting, as a student, with the legendary violinist Jascha Heifetz, at the Juilliard School in New York. Heifetz tried to catch Perlman out (though Perlman is too modest to say it like that!), by asking for a really difficult set of scales. Luckily, […]
Yesterday we shared Benjamin Zander's wonderful TED talk, The Transformational Power of Classical Music. Here's another - actually the most viewed TED talk ever - about creativity in Education. It's now over a decade old, but has lost none of its power and urgency... Sir Ken Robinson's message about placing creativity at the heart of education is inspirational, […]
Here at ViolinSchool towers we're all buzzing with excitement... we've launched our new flagship Violin Course, we're cracking on with getting the online courses out to you, and our ViolinSchool Blog starts up again today on our new ViolinSchool.com website! And what better way to begin with one of our favourite ever videos, The Transformative Power of Classical Music TED […]
How to Practise Scales - useful tips, strategies and advice that will help you to increase the effectiveness of your scale and arpeggio practice on the violin!
How to play a G major scale on the violin. Use our free video guide, fingering guide, visual grid guide, and sheet music to master the G major scale!
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star Violin Notes - learn how to play this classic violin piece using three fingers and two strings on your violin. Free Video Lesson and Music Sheets!
Following a major upgrade on 5th November, we’re rolling out our long-awaited Online Courses between now and the end of the end of the year. Our new Online Community is now available for members once you’ve logged in, and our program of Live Online Classes begins from 7th November. Our twice-annual Violin Orchestra project is […]
ViolinSchool learner Susan Shaw reflects on the difference between advancing and improving, and explores how to effectively 'self-assess' progress.
