A question for anyone who plays the viola...

[Fassa Albrecht]

I've been learning violin for some time now and something is beginning to frustrate me a LOT: my big hands. My hands measure roughly 7.25in from the tip of my longest finger to my wrist in length and 4.25in wide (roughly).

What I'm finding difficult is that my long fingers and large hands combined with the tiny fretboard of the violin is serving to make playing the thing very difficult.

I've been given some advice from a violinist friend of mine that it might be better for me to consider the viola. It's a good 2 inches bigger which might be helpful to me and is played in roughly the same way as the violin so there'd be nothing too difficult about transferring between one and the other.

Anyone know if with my big hands whether I should do this?

 

[bassbrad]

Viola might be easier but you might also consider cello. I have bear like hands too big for the smaller stringed instruments and have been playing bass so long that even a guitar is feeling small and cramped to play.

 

[Fassa Albrecht]

Problem with the cello is that it's a hefty size and more expensive than most instruments. That and I don't drive, and so need something I can easily carry.

 

[dhsierra1]

I say give it a spin

I play cello and upright bass (well, I do my best....) and have tried w/all my might the violin. Nope. Like you, the hands/fingers are just too big. I've messed w/viola and convinced it's doable. Just have to line it up in my music budget priorities to snag one......

One of the benefits of viola is that it's tuned the same as cello (I think you're a cellist, yes?) so that eases some of the learning curve, though obviously the scale size and positioning are quite different.

I prefer the voicing and sonority of the viola over the violin anyway, always preferred alto/baritone/bass registers, but that's just me .

 

[dhsierra1]

Problem with the cello is that it's a hefty size and more expensive than most instruments. That and I don't drive, and so need something I can easily carry.

at least out here in CA cellos aren't THAT much more than violas, esp if you're getting a good quality Chinese made student model. And they're only a little more difficult to tote around than an acoustic guitar and only a little heavier, really, esp w/a decent gig bag.

Though I readily concede the viola is a far easier schlep....

You really should make the choice more on whether or not you enjoy the sound as well as if it physically works for you in terms of playing.

 

[Fassa Albrecht]

I say give it a spin

I play cello and upright bass (well, I do my best....) and have tried w/all my might the violin. Nope. Like you, the hands/fingers are just too big. I've messed w/viola and convinced it's doable. Just have to line it up in my music budget priorities to snag one......

One of the benefits of viola is that it's tuned the same as cello (I think you're a cellist, yes?) so that eases some of the learning curve, though obviously the scale size and positioning are quite different.

I prefer the voicing and sonority of the viola over the violin anyway, always preferred alto/baritone/bass registers, but that's just me .

Yeah, I flail around on cello. If I can combine cello tuning with violin playing position and bowing technique, I shouldn't find it too hard.

And yes, I just like the bass and alto registers. Violin to my ears sounds too screechy and high, especially if you're the one playing the thing!

 

[dhsierra1]

Violin to my ears sounds too screechy and high, especially if you're the one playing the thing!

I forgot who it was but some well known violinist said that he preferred the sound of the instrument at least 10 or so feet away from it as all the squeaks and such died quickly at some distance from the source. So it's really the audience that gets the best sound, not so much the player. Certainly true of most stringed instruments in one degree or another IHMO.....

 

[Fassa Albrecht]

I forgot who it was but some well known violinist said that he preferred the sound of the instrument at least 10 or so feet away from it as all the squeaks and such died quickly at some distance from the source. So it's really the audience that gets the best sound, not so much the player. Certainly true of most stringed instruments in one degree or another IHMO.....

It's worse for the fact that the violin goes REALLY high in terms of note range.

 

[dhsierra1]

I think you've now answered your question: go forth and snag a viola and see what you think Certainly works for John Metcalfe.

Though you're going to really have to get your C clef reading up to snuff but if you've been playing cello a bit you should be on your way.

 

[Fassa Albrecht]

I think you've now answered your question: go forth and snag a viola and see what you think Certainly works for John Metcalfe.

Though you're going to really have to get your C clef reading up to snuff but if you've been playing cello a bit you should be on your way.

TIme to go viola hunting!

And I can read in the four major clefs, so that shouldn't be a problem!

 

[smeet]

I was a violinist for about 25 years, so I played with a lot of violists, and played their instruments from time to time.

Viola is a more difficult instrument than violin in a lot of ways. Because of the strange hand position in the violin family, violas actually feel VERY big, and a lot of people can't make the stretch needed. Also, tone production on the C (low) string can be difficult to control. Rent or borrow one and try it out to make sure you like the instrument first.

I will also say that on violin, you have to change the way you think about hand position. When I first started playing bass, it felt very strange that the notes were so far apart. Many great violinists have huge hands and banana fingers, so it can be done.

 

[dhsierra1]

TIme to go viola hunting!

And I can read in the four major clefs, so that shouldn't be a problem!

You're ahead of the game, then, excellent

Can you borrow or rent one first? For myself I'm going to go w/a rent to buy/trade in for upgrade credit thing just to make sure it's really going to work. I'm getting older now so have to watch it a bit with the tendons and such.....

 

[MikeBC]

Have you checked out Itzhak Perlman's fingers and hands? He certainly gets the job done.

Beethoven Violin Concerto, Movement #3 - YouTube

You may find that viola's come in more sizes than violin. So you may want to audtion several sizes to find one that really fits you.

I switched from violin to viola at the request of my high school orchestra conductor because they had few violists. I stuck with and rented a viola until I was about 30.

I picked up bass guitar in college. However I sometimes put a contact on the viola and played it for a few songs at certain gigs. (One of our guitarists would play up my bass. I trusted them.) Most of our singers remarked it was easier for them to do a duet with a viola than a violin.

These days I consider myself primarily as a bass guitarist. However I am seriously studying 6-string. I am seriously studying 6-string now and am toying with the idea of getting back into viola and violin.

I ran into a fiddler in Texas about a year ago who told me that back in the 30s and 40s, fiddle players used a combination of violin and viola strings on their fiddles. Partly because they liked the sound and partly because their singers preferred it too.

Point is there is much to recommend viola beyond the physical fit. It is sort of the forgotten member of the string family. I enjoyed both violin and viola. My recommendation is that you add the viola to your studies but don't give up the violin.

 

[Fassa Albrecht]

You're ahead of the game, then, excellent

Can you borrow or rent one first? For myself I'm going to go w/a rent to buy/trade in for upgrade credit thing just to make sure it's really going to work. I'm getting older now so have to watch it a bit with the tendons and such.....

I'm in a volunteer music group, so I will likely ask and hopefully be able to borrow one. It's almost certain that someone will have a spare instrument somewhere.

Have you checked out Itzhak Perlman's fingers and hands? He certainly gets the job done.

Beethoven Violin Concerto, Movement #3 - YouTube

You may find that viola's come in more sizes than violin. So you may want to audtion several sizes to find one that really fits you.

I've done a fairly quick check using an online sizing guide and from what I can tell I'd need a 16 inch viola.

I switched from violin to viola at the request of my high school orchestra conductor because they had few violists. I stuck with and rented a viola until I was about 30.

I picked up bass guitar in college. However I sometimes put a contact on the viola and played it for a few songs at certain gigs. (One of our guitarists would play up my bass. I trusted them.) Most of our singers remarked it was easier for them to do a duet with a viola than a violin.

These days I consider myself primarily as a bass guitarist. However I am seriously studying 6-string. I am seriously studying 6-string now and am toying with the idea of getting back into viola and violin.

I ran into a fiddler in Texas about a year ago who told me that back in the 30s and 40s, fiddle players used a combination of violin and viola strings on their fiddles. Partly because they liked the sound and partly because their singers preferred it too.

Point is there is much to recommend viola beyond the physical fit. It is sort of the forgotten member of the string family. I enjoyed both violin and viola. My recommendation is that you add the viola to your studies but don't give up the violin.

I can't remember who said it, but he was asked this question and gave it this answer:

Q: What's the hardest instrument to play in the orchestra?
A: Second violin because no-one wants to play it with the same enthusiasm as first violin.

He makes a good point- it's easy to find people to play all the showy instruments (look at how many people want to play guitar and then how many want to play bass) but with instruments like bass and viola, it takes harder work to do this and so a lot of people don't want to play. But those who do play these 'harder' instruments will find themselves getting more and more calls and performances/recitals.

 

[Pilgrim]

It's always easy to find a reason or excuse to say that you "can't" play a specific instrument.

The good ones play the instrument anyway, because they want to.

 

[Fassa Albrecht]

It's always easy to find a reason or excuse to say that you "can't" play a specific instrument.

The good ones play the instrument anyway, because they want to.

There comes a time when difficulties in doing something like playing the violin far outweigh the benefits. I CAN play the violin, but it's much harder for me because of my hand size and at present, I'm getting finger joint pain from playing and I've not got a teacher telling me any corrective techniques either. Persevering merely for its own sake isn't going to do anyone any favors.

I can either struggle and make my violin playing a miserable torture exercise, or I can swap to viola and make it easier all round, simply because I'll find it easier to play and I'll enjoy it more, and I'll likely get more out of it too playing wise because it's not easy to find a viola player.

 

[dhsierra1]

there was a thread here recently ruminating about whether the bass "called you" to play it. Without going into New Age mumbo jumbo (though I'm a fan of neurocognitive sciences), I do believe there's something to that so at the end of the day you'll play the instrument(s) that sit best with you regardless of how easy or difficult it may be. I've been playing instruments since I was a very young child and went through a few woodwinds and many years of piano only to find that stringed instruments, specifically bass and guitar were for me. From those types of instruments you can find the variants that are especially "you". Some you'll struggle with more than others, but if it's somehow right, you'll make it work. But you won't know until you try. Remember, too, this is art, there's definitely a rational component, but you can't rely solely on the rational, otherwise it wouldn't be art. IME, IMHO, etc.

 

[Fassa Albrecht]

there was a thread here recently ruminating about whether the bass "called you" to play it. Without going into New Age mumbo jumbo (though I'm a fan of neurocognitive sciences), I do believe there's something to that so at the end of the day you'll play the instrument(s) that sit best with you regardless of how easy or difficult it may be. I've been playing instruments since I was a very young child and went through a few woodwinds and many years of piano only to find that stringed instruments, specifically bass and guitar were for me. From those types of instruments you can find the variants that are especially "you". Some you'll struggle with more than others, but if it's somehow right, you'll make it work. But you won't know until you try. Remember, too, this is art, there's definitely a rational component, but you can't rely solely on the rational, otherwise it wouldn't be art. IME, IMHO, etc.

Yeah, I'm like this in that so far I've likely tried to play some 30 or so instruments and only a few of them have really 'spoken to me'. These are the ones I continue to play, and it's funny that usually it's a bass clef instrument (including piano, which is double staved) or at least on the lower end of the pitch scale.

I actually managed to actually go to the local orchestral shop today and try a viola out this morning and this 'the instrument picks you' theory seems to be very much accurate. Even holding the viola and simply bowing open strings felt way better than when I play violin. Something in my head was telling me that this was, as you put it, sitting right with me.

The viola to my mind sounds better to the player, has a far nicer sound the more I hear it and is for me the far nicer instrument to play.