Play Viola

The viola is a wonderful, beautiful instrument, and being able to play can benefit you in several ways. It is a sign of intelligence in music to be able to play the viola, and because of that, viola players are some of the most sought-after musicians for symphonies, orchestras, chamber ensembles, and even recording studios. Many colleges and universities love musicians coming to their schools and they might give you scholarship money to play in their orchestra, even if you're not a music major. If you follow this article and take some time to learn the viola, you will enjoy it for years to come.

Steps

  1. Take lessons or classes. Some elementary schools have orchestra programs, most starting in the fifth grade. Most Junior High Schools, High Schools, and Colleges and Universities have Orchestra programs, but if your school does not have an orchestra program, you are no longer a student, or you are not in a grade that offers an orchestra program yet, you can probably get lessons. Look in your local phone books and online for lessons in your area. You may also want to purchase a beginner's music book.
  2. Learn the parts of a viola.

    • The wooden part of the viola is the body;
    • The black or brown, oval-shaped piece of wood or plastic near the bottom of the viola is the chin rest;
    • The long, skinny, black or brown piece of wood or plastic that is skinny at the bottom and fat on top attached to the chin rest is the tailpiece;
    • The four silver, gold, or black colored circles on the tailpiece are the fine tuners;
    • The holes on the front of the viola are the f-holes;
    • The silver colored strings are the four strings;
    • The light brown, wooden piece holding up the strings near the bottom of the viola is the bridge;
    • The top part of the viola where the wood kind of curves upward is the upper bought;
    • The long, black or brown wooden piece a few inches away from the bridge is the fingerboard;
    • The long, skinny wooden piece where you hold the instrument, near the top, attached to the body of the instrument, is the neck;
    • The curly, wooden piece at the top of the instrument is the scroll;
    • The black or brown, oval-shaped wooden pieces sticking out near the scroll are the tuning pegs;
    • The nut is where all of the strings join together by the tuning pegs;
    • The end pin (or "end button") - it is a small black or brown circle located on the side of the instrument at the bottom, near the chin rest;
    • And last, the sides.
  3. Learn the parts of the bow:
    • The long, various colored (it can be black, brown,red or blue) stick on the bow is the stick;
    • The white hairs are the bow hairs;
    • The normally black or brown piece of rubbery plastic near the bottom of the bow is the winding;
    • The normally black or brown rectangle with a chunk out of it near the bow hair is the frog;
    • The "chunk" out of the frog is the ferrule;
    • The silver and black screw at the very bottom of the bow is the tension screw;
    • And the tip of the bow is the tip.
  4. Hold the neck of the instrument with your left hand, not loosely, but also not too tight - just relax. Put the chin rest under your jaw - it is called a chin rest, but you really place it under your jaw. The chin rest should be on the top of the instrument (use the diagram below to help you). Hold the instrument slightly slanted downwards, where you can balance a rubber bouncy ball (If you have one) on the C and G strings. Your wrist should be straight and not collapsed against the instrument. then turn the instrument is off to the side.
  5. Learn the different styles of play.

    • To play pizzicato, or pizz., you pluck the instrument's strings - put the thumb of the hand you are not holding the instrument with on the corner of the fingerboard, and pluck the string with your first finger. If you are playing guitar position (you are playing the instrument like a guitar - you can't play with the bow like this), you pluck the strings with your thumb only.
    • To play arco, play on the strings with your bow - hold the bow with your right hand, on the bottom with your thumb in the ferrule; your middle finger and ring finger over the grip and frog, slightly angled toward the screw; your first finger over the silver part above the grip or on the grip, bending over the bow gently; and your pinky finger on the bow on top of the screw. Then you put the bow hairs on the instrument's string, in the space where there is no fingerboard, while holding it up in up position; place it on the side of the bow hairs, with the bow angled towards the scroll a little bit. Pull the bow up and down as straight as possible to play the viola.
  6. Learn the strings. The strings on the viola are, in order from left to right(thickest/lowest string to skinniest/highest string) are:
    • --------------------------------------- C String
    • --------------------------------------- G String
    • --------------------------------------- D String
    • --------------------------------------- A String
      • In other words, the thickest, lowest string on the left is the C String, the next string is the G String, the next String is the D String, and the last, skinniest, highest string is the A String - the D String is probably the most commonly used string.

  7. Learn about fingering. If you take classes, you may need to ask your teacher to help you label your finger positions with tape or stickers. If you don't take classes, then buy an electric tuner. Play with your bow (on the D String), your first finger, just a little bit away from the nut of the instrument, until the tuner says it sound like an E, then move on to an F - put your second finger about an inch away from your in-tune first finger and play until the tuner says it sounds like an F. Then put your third finger down next to your in-tune second finger and play until the tuner says it sounds like a G. Put stickers in the three in-tune spots. The first, second, and third fingers are in the same positions as the D String fingers are, just on a different string.
    • These are the fingering positions for the viola: {anything in all caps is most commonly played by a beginner and the notes in parenthesis are another name for a note.)

      • A String: 1st Finger (right by nut) - B Flat (A Sharp)
      • 1ST FINGER (IN-TUNE) - B NATURAL (C Flat)
      • 2nd Finger (right by B NATURAL) - C Natural
      • 2ND FINGER (IN-TUNE) - C SHARP (D Flat)
      • 3RD FINGER (a half step up - about half an inch to 3/4 inch up from C Sharp) - D NATURAL
      • 3rd Finger (A half step up- about half an inch to 3/4 inch up from D Natural) - D Sharp (E Flat)
      • D String: 1st Finger (right by nut) - E Flat (D Sharp)
      • 1ST FINGER (IN-TUNE) - E NATURAL (F Flat)
      • 2nd Finger (right by E NATURAL) - F Natural (E Sharp)
      • 2ND FINGER (IN-TUNE) - F SHARP (G Flat)
      • 3RD FINGER (RIGHT NEXT TO F SHARP) - G NATURAL
      • 3rd Finger (a half step up - about half an inch to 3/4 inch up from G NATURAL) - G Sharp
      • G String: 1st Finger (right by nut) - A Flat (G Sharp)
      • 1ST FINGER (IN-TUNE) - A NATURAL
      • 2nd Finger (right by E Natural) - B Flat (A Sharp)
      • 2ND FINGER (IN-TUNE) - B NATURAL (C Flat)
      • 3RD FINGER (RIGHT NEXT TO B NATURAL) - C NATURAL
      • 3rd Finger (a half step up - about half an inch to 3/4 inch up from C NATURAL) - C Sharp (D Flat)
      • C String: 1st Finger (right by nut) - D Flat (C Sharp)
      • 1ST FINGER (IN-TUNE) - D NATURAL
      • 2nd Finger (right by D NATURAL) - E Flat (D Sharp)
      • 2ND FINGER (IN-TUNE) - E NATURAL (F Flat)
      • 3RD FINGER (RIGHT NEXT TO E NATURAL) - F NATURAL (E Sharp)
      • 3rd Finger (a half step up - about half an inch to 3/4 inch up from F NATURAL) - F Sharp (G Flat)
      • remember there is no midway for 2 fingers on C, G, D, and A.
      • also remember that four fingers on the C string is a G and four fingers on the G string is a D. Four on D is A and four on A is an E.
  8. Learn vibrato. It's a matter of personal preference, but most violists tend to do arm vibrato. Arm vibrato produces a slower, richer type of vibrato used in Largo-Andante tempos. This prevents you from looking like "that maniac" trying to frantically vibrate the string while playing at 50 beats a minute.
  9. Learn to tune your instrument yourself. Some people feel like they'll never be able to, but its an inevitability. At the very least you should recognize and A and be able to tune in 5ths. Be careful. Turning too tight due to a hard to turn peg can easily cause strings to snap and break. Using pencil lead to draw on the tuning pegs can help loosen them up. However get the lead only on the tuning peg(s) needing to be loosened.
    • If the tuning pegs are not staying in consider buying some peg compound to help it stick. A lubricant like WD40 can be used on the fine tuners, but do not get any water on the body of your viola.

Tips

  • Clean your instrument at least once a week, preferably after every time you play. The rosin dries on the strings and the instrument, becomes sticky, and affect the sound if too much is built up.
  • Violists who switch over from violin are used to the smaller size and close fingerings, however true violists (those who originally learned viola) use larger viola (generally at least size 16). Be weary of going too large though, a size 17 is quite a bit larger (generally used by players who themselves happen to be a bit larger).
  • The viola is larger than the violin and therefor requires more effort to produce the strong rich tone the viola is known for. Always press down on the strings and use bow positioning to adjust dynamics instead.
  • Violinist and violist play differently: on the violin you need to keep your fingers tall, or straight up and down, however, on the viola you want you fingers more at an angle towards you so that you're playing on the side of your fingers that are closer to your thumb.
  • Violas do not always use the treble clef, which is the most common. They use the alto clef. If you intend to carry on with the viola though, it's a good idea to learn treble clef as violas switch clefs as you will sometimes switch into treble while using higher positions.
  • It's very important to have a relaxed left hand, thumb, and fingers.
  • If your fingers cannot stretch from Bb to E natural on the A string, your instrument may be TOO large.. on violin and smaller violas (15.5 and smaller) you can bend your with bending (although it's not recommended) however, on larger violas bending your left wrist can cause injuries (such as carpal tunnel) and just be painful to play. Please keep in mind that injuries involved with playing the viola or violin will not happen right away. So, if something hurts stop and tell your teacher. Prevention is the best way for you to avoid injuries. Never hold your wrist straight!
  • Make sure you have just the right amount of rosin on your bow-it's different for every player. Remember: it's better to have too much rosin than too little.
  • You can still take violin lessons and play viola in orchestra.
  • Many violists were switched over from violin. It might be easier to start with violin then switch over to viola, however, if you do switch over to viola be sure to get a teacher that play viola or else you'll play like a violinist and injure your wrist. Violinists switch to viola because their teacher made them, a violist was needed, their hands are too big for violin, or just because they felt like it.
  • Even if you are a violinist, it is a good idea to know how to play viola and vice versa.

Warnings

  • People will mistake your viola for a violin. Politely correct them.
  • When telling non-musical people what instrument you play, be prepared to explain what a viola is.
  • People will mispronounce viola. Politely correct them.
  • A common misconception is that violists are less skilled than violinists. This is not true, in fact, while they are equally technically skilled, violists tend to be more harmonically able than violinists.
  • The sound of the viola can be very loud and people may complain when you practice. A mute can help in this situation.
  • When playing with youth orchestras, be prepared to be in a small section (or maybe even the only violist!)
  • Musicians like to tell viola jokes. Don't get discouraged by those jokes!

Things You'll Need

  • Viola and bow
  • Shoulder rest (highly recommended)
  • Instrument case (comes with viola and bow)
  • Rosin
  • Soft cloth
  • Music book (optional)
  • Music stand
  • Electric tuner
  • Extra strings
  • Mute (optional)
  • Polish (optional)
  • Cleaning cloth

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Sources and Citations

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