Does anyone here play guitar and violin?

kentuckyklira · October 2020

If so, what was first?

If guitar was first, was violin hard to learn?

guitars4you · October 2020

Violin is accepted as one of the hardest instruments to learn to play

A piano is a mechanical instrument in that the note is already there, you just press the appropriate key
Guitar is semi mechanical - Yes the note is there, but you still need to fret it and pick it
Violin is like a trombone - You have to develop a good ear to obtain the correct pitch - And that is only for starters

Certainly one of the worse sounding instruments in the hands of a complete beginner

EricTheWeary · October 2020

guitars4you said:

Violin is accepted as one of the hardest instruments to learn to play

A piano is a mechanical instrument in that the note is already there, you just press the appropriate key
Guitar is semi mechanical - Yes the note is there, but you still need to fret it and pick it
Violin is like a trombone - You have to develop a good ear to obtain the correct pitch - And that is only for starters

Certainly one of the worse sounding instruments in the hands of a complete beginner

Having attended many school orchestra and group performances the progress of kids on violins, cellos, etc, in terms of getting a recognisable tune is tiny compared to anything else. I was always amazed at how quickly they could progress with the harp but the string groups would be cacophony.

Still not answering the question, sorry.

I seem to recall that Pat MacManus was a very accomplished Irish fiddle player before picking up guitar ( and still incorporates it into his rock bands) and found the fretted beast to be a piece of piss to play in comparison.
Seth Lakeman is the only other person I know of who plays both although on guitar he tends to stick to a tenor instrument. I think violin came first with him, general competence in guitar certainly looks a lot easier than what he can do with a fiddle.

camerondavidsonmusic · October 2020

I played violin before guitar, I agree that recognising pitch by ear is important. The bowing technique and vibrato make a massive difference as well. It can sound godawful if they aren't good.... Think screaming cats. I recommend a viola to learn on, it's a little less pitchy..

AlbertC · October 2020

guitars4you said:

Certainly one of the worse sounding instruments in the hands of a complete beginner

Presumably though, if you're a competent guitarist already, then there'd be some (left hand) technique that would overlap. You'd have a head start over a complete beginner

And if you're used to alternate tunings, or say tenor guitars tuned in 5ths, then that would be useful for knowing a little about how to get round the fingerboard?

Teyeplayer · October 2020

camerondavidsonmusic said:

I played violin before guitar, I agree that recognising pitch by ear is important. The bowing technique and vibrato make a massive difference as well. It can sound godawful if they aren't good.... Think screaming cats. I recommend a viola to learn on, it's a little less pitchy..

This^

I also found that transition to mandolin was incredibly simple as it’s the same tuning as violin and like a guitar having frets makes a hell of a difference. I soon put the violin down after discovering guitar and never really returned, although I have occasionally messed about with a viola and a cello.

Flanging_Fred · October 2020

I got up to to grade 5 on violin when I was a kid. I always remember my violin teacher giving me constant grief about keeping my wrist down.

Then I badly broke my arms (yes plural) and after that I couldn’t get my wrist down correctly and eventually packed it in. I took up trombone instead for a few years before taking up guitar in my teens.

i too found it easy to switch from violin to my brother’s electric mandolin, as it has the same fingerings. In fact playing a bit of electric mandolin through an Arion chorus pedal and a delay was probably my gateway into electric guitar. I wanted to play Iron Maiden and not R.E.M though!!

DartmoorHedgehog · October 2020

My daughter plays violin so I occasionally sneak a quick go. Pitch-wise I'm not too bad (if I stay in first position) but I've not mastered the bowing technique - sounds utterly pants when I play it, vs really nice when she plays the same violin with the same bow. It's not just playing the right pitch, there's a lot of HOW you play it as well.

Having said that, I wouldn't really call myself a very good guitarist (although I play a lot and gig guitars more than anything else at the moment - well, when we were allowed to). I'm really a wind player who blags it on guitar. Clarinets and saxophones (and to a lesser degree recorders) need to played to pitch as well (you can't just expect each note to be in tune) so adjusting by ear is a part of that as well. But bowing technique on a violin eludes me so far.

EricTheWeary · October 2020

Sorry, bit of reminiscing. Some NWOIHM ( New Wave of Irish Heavy Metal), go to about 3:50 to see the fiddling. I had the original version of this on cassette in about 1768.

And the lovely Seth making folk sexy again, just one instrument this time

guitars4you · October 2020

AlbertC said:

guitars4you said:

Certainly one of the worse sounding instruments in the hands of a complete beginner

Presumably though, if you're a competent guitarist already, then there'd be some (left hand) technique that would overlap. You'd have a head start over a complete beginner

And if you're used to alternate tunings, or say tenor guitars tuned in 5ths, then that would be useful for knowing a little about how to get round the fingerboard?

my daughter, at the age 7 or 8 started the violin at school - Brought one home - As I played guitar I thought I'd be able to use some simple knowledge to play a tune on the top E string - Even a simple tune - catch a falling star - Far harder than expected - Yes I could recognize what I was trying to do - I only tried twice, so hardly can I call it an effort

So yes you can use some of that logic and it puts you at a stage that is above that of a total entry level player - But after that be patient

Mark1960 · October 2020

I was encouraged (forced) to play violin at about 8 or 9 really hated it - would only practice if dragged kicking and screaming into the sitting room, and refused to continue after 11. At 13 I picked up my mums guitar one summer holiday, and taught myself how to play it, and loved it. The kind of music I wanted to play was guitar based. I suppose if I was into Irish fiddle / jig music, I may have continued with the violin. Paradoxically I wrote and performed an Irish Jig on the guitar in an early band performance for some reason!

VimFuego · October 2020

I went to fiddle after guitar. The violin is an instrument that is very easy to play badly. It is very unforgiving of even the slightest mistake, either in pitch or bowing. That said, I find the fiddle immensely satisfying. Just getting back into it after a break of nearly 2 years when Mrs F was unwell.
And by way of light relief, a short vid on the progress of violin compared to other instruments:

Pabcrane · October 2020

Not at the same time.

Pabcrane · October 2020

Sorry, I thought that was funny.

One of my favourite musicians plays both; Warren Ellis - violin and tenor guitar. He played violin first.

Tenebrous · October 2020

I bought one thinking "ahh I can hear the pitch, I'll be alright." Couldn't get a sound of it, so moved it on.

The late great Roy Clark could play both, & pretty much anything else with strings on it.

EricTheWeary · October 2020

Tenebrous said:

I bought one thinking "ahh I can hear the pitch, I'll be alright." Couldn't get a sound of it, so moved it on.

The late great Roy Clark could play both, & pretty much anything else with strings on it.

Ahh I’ve watched a bunch of RC videos on YouTube recently. He makes everything look easy.

I had a friend with a cello and I thought I could probably plunk out a root and fifth or something on it. But apparently not.

viz · October 2020

Going from violin to guitar is easy. I wouldn’t think the other direction is as easy!

Sassafras · October 2020

Violin was my first instrument. Didn't seem all that hard to learn. Mastering it is a different matter.

cj73 · October 2020

I took a hankering for Violin about a year ago after 30 years of guitar. (by a strange turn of events i wound up with my step-great grandfathers violin but anyway) and I've found...

Pros of being a guitarist first: Left hand dexterity and strength. Understanding of music (at some level). An idea of synchronisation of left and right hand to make a noise.

Cons. Reliance on shapes in relation to frets gets you almost no where. The big/wide/ wobbly Zakk Wylde vibrato gets you no-where- see also bends.

And no matter how hard I try I can't do proper vibrato. I can do it on guitar but can I do it whilst bowing a violin? Can I stuff!

I should add that lockdown put paid to lessons so I've been relying on a book from the Oxford Library Press and the good old fallback of working out pentatonic shapes and playing roots folk stuff

EDIT I should say it's great way to make yourself listen to what you're doing

Sassafras · October 2020

Don't forget to rosin up yer bow.

Jim54 · October 2020

Tenebrous said:

I bought one thinking "ahh I can hear the pitch, I'll be alright." Couldn't get a sound of it, so moved it on.

The late great Roy Clark could play both, & pretty much anything else with strings on it.

Thanks for that Tenebrous, I thoroughly enjoyed that and made me grin like an eejit for the duration.

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Does anyone here play guitar and violin?

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