@@pluutoop The dirt: he constantly gives me advice and assistance on things that I didn't even know I was doing wrong, so annoying 🤣. . . the fact that I've been doing those things wrong as long as I've been playing is anyway 🤪
Damn, my fourth finger is just so bad, it collapses when touching the fingerboard. I came up with the little exercise you suggested some weeks ago, and practiced that. The results are still dreadful though, but I hope I'll get better if I keep working on it. It's nice that You suggested the exercise. Thanks for all the valuable info 😊 (PS. ❤)
Number 5 reminds me of a lesson I had with the concertmaster of the LA Phil. I shifted up to a high note on the g string with my third finger and he told me basically that I should try to use my fourth finger for things like that so it doesn’t get weak.
great video. I am an older adult and play mostly folk, celtic style violin. most tunes played are often in 1st position . so I began playing tunes in Bb, Eb so that I had to use my 4th finger. still am working on improving my 4th finger skills and playing in other positions. scale work too
Thank you so much. I've been playing violin for years and I just could not find out why my fingers kept coming so high off the fingerboard, especially the fourth finger. I always draw it back really high for some reason as I go to put it down. Turns out it's because of how I was putting it down. I have a collapsed fourth finger!! 😭
THANK YOU for this video. I just started learning 9 months ago and I don't even practice much but i started developing trigger fingers in varying severities in my left hand 3/4 fingers. The pressing down instead of pulling motion you mentioned is exactly what I was not doing and caused my trigger fingers. I'm wearing some finger braces to prevent this pulling motion to let the tendons heal right now, and hopefully i can go back to playing soon!
Hi Murphy...! I watched your video fix 4th finger on violin.... I found it very useful. I want to learn violin from the very beginning I just stated to run a bow on strings...
Literally today I noticed I can't seem to use 4th finger well with 'regular' thumb position. I can get it done with thumb-under, but it hurts. I can also get it done with high thumb and it doesn't hurt. But then I'm thinking, 'who do I think I am, trying to play with the high thumb like that?' ... Glad you mentioned that we should experiment.
Hey, very articulate and clear video! I really like it! I am currently (still) working on my collapsing knuckle on the fourth. But I wonder, if you can remember, was yours stuck as well (or just collapsing)? Because I am working on wiggling my last knuckle up and down as my all other fingers are able to do this and as you use this motion for vibrato for example. I can wiggle it already, lets say on one certain level (depending on my other fingers alignment) and since I am able to do this, I can keep my finger stable round, when all other fingers press the string down, lets say I can uplift my last knuckle. Without this, it was quite hard for me, to even being able to do your exercise. But I am doing it already 1 year and wonder how I can speed it up. Maybe I can now again try to add your exercise. Its just a really weird trained finger since I started using it in my childhood. 🤦♀️ because my teacher said "round finger" and I was "overmotivated". Was a good teacher, but she didnt see this. For the handpostion: I like how it helps the fourth finger, when the hand is more on the fourth, but as you say, it causes loosing flexibility for the first finger. Now I try to find a middle way :D just sharing:D Thanks for your great content! :)
testing the pinky against the thumb I realized that if you "point" forward with the pinky instead of going downard to the thumb it will collapse this also can happen when you try to move your pinky knuckle forward, everything is normal but the pinky get kind of "stuck" and wont go rounded until you unstuck your knuckle. This could actually be used for fast passages because it gets closer to the string and more isolated from the 3rd, but is bad for vibrato and probably in the long run is slower xd
I’ve been a violinist 40+ years, pro for 10 of those. I’ve found many useful tips from your videos, and passed some on to my students. However, one of them asked me & so I must ask you: in that little excerpt at the beginning of each of your videos, is that very last ascending arpeggio really in tune? Really? It makes me wince each time I hear it, but the rest of the info on the channel is very solid, so I keep coming back. For a student to ask me that, though, gave me pause. Is there any to fix that or choose another excerpt? No satisfaction in mediocrity, and all. 😉🎻
That record is from an old Master’s recital, so unfortunately, I can’t redo it, but also fortunately, no, I don’t hear it being out of tune. Which note or notes, exactly? Do you think it’s flat or sharp? You did convince me to pull out the tuner and double check what I could, which is really just the final, high A. With my tuner at least it’s on, if maybe 4 cents flat, though at that octave that’s a decent margin of error. A slight tilt in the finger could produce a greater change than 4 cents. If it is within the whirlwind of notes rising up to the end of the arpeggio, no I don’t hear it there either, but I can’t prove that with the tuner. Still it sounds fine to me. I’ve certainly improved my intonation since this recording was done, at least I certainly hope so! But of all the things I’ve listened to, of myself or others, I have many more gripes about intonation than I ever did with this snippet. Maybe it’s just bias, but I’m usually very hard on myself and hear every little thing I don’t like. I just don’t hear it here
I thought the same. I presumed it was a live recording therefore just a passing ‘blip’. The arpeggios and playing are still seriously impressive in that audio clip - so clear and brilliant. I isolated the note in question to the penultimate C# in the final arpeggio (NOT the super high C# but the lower one on the E string). It sounds quite flat and I hear it every time. Easy for me to say - I can’t play the ending of the Saint Saens anywhere near to your level! I too love your channel and am learning so much from your videos - thanks!
How do you get such a great sound when you're on 3rd, 5th etc... Position ?? I can't get a nice sound when I'm in 3rd (and higher) position and it's very annoying, no matter how hard I press the bow against the string it sound weird, as if there was wind or something...
i altered my thumb to go a bit lower than it normally is and found it a bit easier to curve my finger, but i found that i was now squeezing the knuckles against the fingerboard. am i doing it wrong, is it not the correct handshape for me if it is uncomfortable, will it take time getting used to, etc??? im trying to fix this bc my finger collapses. is there any way you can answer my question above or give me tips? thanks a lot!
I’m just under 6’, which makes me the shortest guy in my family, unfortunately 😅. That being said I am one of the biggest guys in my family in terms of shoulder breadth, so the violin might look smaller because of that as well.
So once I've started to solidify my 4th finger on single strings, now I'm learning double stops and the current practice is... scales in 5ths, with one finger on two strings. I simply cannot hit two strings with my skinny 4th *unless* I flatten it to use a larger portion of the fingertip. Of course, this defeats all the hard work I've put in over the last few months. Advice? Maybe a video on double 5ths using one finger on two strings (I don;t think it has a name)? Tricks for skinny fingertips? I've just started this, and I am sure my teacher will help me solve it, but was thinking it's a topic that many others have, and I could not find anything about it online. So maybe a useful lesson for all.
I have rarely encountered anything in the repertoire requiring me to play double stops with my 4th finger. Other than scales is there a piece you are working on that requires it? My point is if there isn’t any practical reason to practice it maybe your time is spent better elsewhere?
@@ioana938 in that case I highly recommend you focus on other things that will pay out more in the long term. Find some octave double stop scales - that will get your pinkies strong and you’ll be glad you have the skill when you do something like Mendelssohn.
Another thing you can do is do Trills with your pinky finger untill you feel fatigue but have your first 3 fingers pressed down on the string and trill your pinky while keeping the first 3 fingers pressed down (edit: also make sure your pinky is curved not flat)
My problem is that often when I put my third finger down, my fourth finger pulls back away from the string. It's almost a reflex. I think it would be an extremely difficult habit to break completely. Is it realistic and worth the time and effort to work at never, ever doing that?
@@ViolinistJeff this is a common problem and yes, it’s something you should try to conquer as quickly as possible. Doing very slow practice finger patterns (like in Sevcik Op. 1, book 1) should help you practice overcoming this.
My old teacher, who was/is a phenomenal violinist, had an incredibly short pinky. He never collapsed it, but instead made it straight and rigid whenever he wanted to use it and then pivoted his entire hand in this incredible, mechanical motion. It was really amazing to see, and not applicable to most violinists unless your pinky is almost half the length of your 3rd finger the way his was.
@@MurphyMusicAcademy Hmm, and that is kind of my problem. Mine is a bit longer, but when i really want to keep it round it forces me into a much more unnatural hand frame and my 'finger-aim' just gets all messed up... That is why i was wondering what is more important. Collapsing it, leaves the rest a simple technique but keeping it round when reaching far notes add much more complexity to my hand motions. So i thought that keeping it simpler would be better. Also i find myself beeing able to play easier hand vibrato when collapsing. So is it really still better then? (If i don't have to stretch then a round 4. is no problem, but when stretched it is...)
@@andreasschau4215 There isn't a hard and fast rule about not collapsing the 4th finger. I've known some very good violinists that play that, BUT I generally have found it to provide less flexibility for most students. If it is truly working for you then don't worry too much about it.
