Hi Dr Goh, I also have a very dry skin and my fingers slide on the string when I try to do vibrato. Do I need to press my fingers more on the strings to avoid sliding?

Matur suksma

Hi Dr.Goh, Would you please explain what you mean by upper arm not crossing the line of ribs in the high register? Many thanks in advance!

Thanks friend this is just what I needed!

I wish more people see your fascinating videos and learn so much from your excellent advice and experience. Thank you so much!❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

Thank you Dr.Goh, you have answered my question perfectly!Very clear analysis! As always I am grateful to you. ❤❤❤❤❤❤

non-greasy fingertips. fascinating observation. thanks.

Very useful and informative! Thank you so much!

Excellent teaching! This is the secret of violin playing! Well done! You are a gifted teacher and instructor. Please keep on posting your fantastic videos!

I keep watching this video. You are explaining the art of violin playing in a correct and beautiful way. Please keep on posting and share your fantastic knowledge and experience. Many thanks!❤❤❤❤❤

Really useful information for one of the physical problems that our beloved instrument can cause, thank you very much!

Excellent!

Thank you Dr. Goh for your invaluable support and advice. Please continue to share your knowledge and experience.

You are a great communicator, well done!

Excellent!

Thank you for sharing!

Excellent teaching!

Thank you again for your excellent teaching!

Excellent advice! I’m really grateful to you! Would you please also advise me on how to use vibrato without finger pressure?

Thank you for putting these experiences out there. It’s really hard to get to grips with shifts when the string is aging and the target note position changes. I change strings roughly every 6 month which I guess for some is often. I do enjoy new strings once they settle. The start is a pain though. Right now I have to decide if I want to change strings early since March - position of mid point notes has changed but sound is really still quite pleasant especially with my improved skill 😂. Do you recon the first finger position changes in same relation to mid point such as B to G on A string? So everything moves up the finger board constantly? No wonder violin playing is so hard when we have a moving target to hit/ chase 😂. I also notice that the A needs tuning significantly more than any of the other strings at the start of every practice session. I wonder if it’s just this brand or a general thing? I shall continue to observe and see if I can notice more things. Thank you for great content 🙏

Thank you dr. Goh. I kinda forgot when it’s time to change. I just had a period of not playing violin, then this year i took it again and did warming up with scales and etudes. Then I wondered if my strings needed to be changed. The thing is when I last changed strings in 2017, I didn’t play my violin that often, and then I didn’t play it until this year. From one of my violin teachers he told me that if the strings don’t resonate it’s time to change. But somehow when I took my violin up again, my strings set (Larsen Virtuoso) still had resonant, although i did notice that my E string got a different brownish color. Then I tried to play scale in G string (until 7th position, I believe), it developed a weird bass tone (I don’t know how to describe this), and the interval between notes on D string to G string became weird, even when the strings were tuned correctly. I finally decided to buy new set (Dominant GDA and Gold E). So, the change of seasons also determined the life of the strings. I thought I had stored my violin in a good conditioned room. (Edited: I also had difficulty playing certain bowing, like spiccato, etc. So difficult to project on the strings and I developed pain. In the end I have my own opinion that it’s quite dangerous to play on outdated strings, not only that the violin’s neck can get bent but can injure me)

I got calluses on my fingers until my previous teacher and my orchestra buddy said that I didn’t have to push hard on the strings. Then there was a few years of gap that I didn’t take up violin. Nowadays i took it up again doing scales and etudes. Got calluses again and now I found this video as a reminder for me that i iust have to touch the strings. Thank you so much!! ❤❤

This is pretty cool. I always thought variation 9 had to be done as a mix of bowed notes and left hand pizzicato or right handed and left hand pizz. I never realised it could all be done with left hand pizz with extensions!

Great tips! Another exercise I've personally found helpful has been lateral raises with light weights. I've struggled for years with tension and shrugging in the right shoulder, so I turned to raises to isolate the deltoid without excessively engaging the traps.

Thanks. Interesting advice which makes sense. I used to do a lot of push-ups when I was younger, but now I am older, I have realised I really need to lose weight first before going at them again in the same way. Never done them on my fists and never wanted to do half push-ups. The main point is I think everyone needs to listen to their body especially as we get older. Personally I gave up marshal arts in my twenties because it I thought it to be incompatible with advanced violin playing, the same with some contact sports like rugby. You have a very strong physique - so I definitely respect you as a sportsman and a violinist. Not many people do both! I think Vengerov injured himself some years back but I don’t remember the cause. However he took a break and came back stronger contributing to the musical world which is amazing.

I have really small hands and can't reach a tenth lol. Even my mom and Granny have bigger hands and they're shorter. Unfair!😂

I’m learning this on the guitar. I’m trying to do an exact replication. But I was struggling to figure out how to get 3 notes on one string. On the guitar these are just exaggerated pull offs. But the stretches were too big. I found this video only to realize the 3rd note is an open violin string. So I’m going to have to figure out a way to replicate this. For most classical guitar covers they palm mute but don’t stick to the same left hand pizzicato pattern as Paganini does. They throw out the pattern and play it all uniformly. My best guess it to either tap the first note on the guitar with my picking hand or alternatively fret the open violin string with my picking hand and use my left hand to hammer the initial note and pull off to the fretted note.

For me i do not eat pork, shell fish etc., or sugar (only maple syrup) no gluten, very little beef, i do eat fish that has fins and scales, only goat milk i drink or goat cheese.

Thank you

I've been struggling with vibrato since the mid 00s - even though it was my secondary in college. I watch your videos quite a bit, and notice your fingers are always over the string - mine were not, and I have no idea how I was able to play in tune back then. I picked up the viola after years away (Thailand), and came back to it last year off and on. Today I did what you did, fingers over the string - much better tuning ... but a solid left hand frame was there - practicing vibrato my entire left arm was much less tense, and I was able to get a fluid motion without shaking the viola. If the fingers are over the string, it helps the fingers travel along the direction of the fingerboard - I don't get how my professor never fixed that. I didn't do it for long as I need to build up that muscle and position gradually, but that was a big eye-opener. That and your advice as well about the left arm not swinging too far too right when going into higher positions. Your channel is a huge help!

Excellent lesson thank you

Too many teachers don't teach this. It is fundamental to playing well.

this is some of the more unconventional advice ive seen online but it what ive seen makes sense anatomically so i will apply this advice!

Thanks a lot! 💪👍

I was desperately searching for your channel, trying to find a very important video you made about shoulder blade weight with the bow. I spent over an hour trying to find you via KZfaq and Google! Lesson learned, I just subscribed! I'll be following your advice from this vid as well!

Can you show it closer please

What I point out to my students is that the Chinese violin, the erhu, has no fingerboard at all.

Thank you, Dr.

This is one of the most detailed violin tutorials I have yet seen. Great video!

I'm curious - what is the similarity between violin and martial arts? Or you just mean you're into both? I'm asking because I started learning violin 6 months back and now feel a pull towards martial arts (hopefully start in September). So not sure if there's supposed to be a connection between both.

Could you play it all the way through please❤

I'm 70 and have been learning for a year. I have callouses on my left finger tips, and my fingerboard is already wearing out. This is the FIRST time that I learned that you don't need to try to weld the string to the fingerboard when you are playing a note. So, from this old boy - THANK YOU!!

New subscriber here. Just thought you should know that when I clicked on the 👍 button, the counter stayed on 0 even though the button showed it accepted my 👍. Odd. Don't you think.

Very interesting! Thanks!

Thanks for sharing your knowledge on music by teaching on how to play . God Bless You.

Praise the Lord!

Very interesting! Looking forward to experimenting with this tomorrow.

really good explanation! Thank you

Thank you Dr Goh.. just tried it ..amazing

Keep it up👍