A small innovation on the Violin

Ideas and innovations in Indian classical music
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vittalk
Posts: 5
Joined: 25 Jun 2014, 11:08

A small innovation on the Violin

Post by vittalk »

Hello Rasikas and especially Violinists,
I'd like to share a small innovation to the violin that helps improve violin playing. I am a violin student and I find this little change has improved my playing, especially getting certain gamakas -- those originating from Sa or Pa. Pls take a look at this video.
Greatly appreciate your feedback at this youtube site.
http://bit.ly/violinInnovation

thanks,
-Vittal

msakella
Posts: 2127
Joined: 30 Sep 2006, 21:16

Re: A small innovation on the Violin

Post by msakella »

Dear brother-member, vittalk, I have gone through the following yotube-link of your video:
http://youtu.be/CFeHapcwZC8

I profusely appreciate you for the pains you have taken not only in efficiently bringing out a solution for a major problem but also revealing it out for the benefit of all the violinists in general.

In general, either such technical problems of instruments or their playing methods or methods of teaching of the different techniques of playing are not at all discussed at length by any of our instrumentalists. More over, even though many such things have to be discussed at length in the forums like our ‘rasikas’ even for the benefit of our aspirants, very sadly, even many of our maestros also have never been used to do such things for the benefit of the aspirants. All are more bothered about many other things than such beneficial things in helping our eager aspirants. Having born almost in a desert of music, Andhra Pradesh, I felt very unhappy and faced umpteen problems in learning different techniques of violin-play. In this respect in which you have very kindly and very appreciatively came out and gave the above details me too have struggled a lot and found a way for this nearly more than 30 years back.

If you kindly go through the play-list ‘AMS-Violin-lessons’ of ‘youtube.com/user/msakella’ you will find some violin lessons and some violin-exercises too. Even though there is much to discuss about such intricate technical details of this instrument in this forum for the benefit of our kids I have almost lost my interest in doing such things basing upon my past experiences in this forum.

However, having become inspired by your appreciative post, I couldn’t resist myself and came out to respond. If you go through the videos of the above play-list and observe the violin I have played you will find a machine-head fixed from the left side of the violin entirely removing the peg of the ‘E-string’ which gives lots of space to move up and down to the index-finger of the left-hand of the violinist. I have always been used to fix this machine-head to the violins of all my students to facilitate them play the different finger-exercises vigorously.

There is one main draw-back in fixing your screw as it should be operated with another detached part of it in which there is scope to the violinist to forget in carrying it along with the violin. If it is accidentally misplaced or forgot to take along with the violin it brings out another problem to the violinist. That is why, to avoid such things, I think that a machine-head is more convenient to fix it to the violin.

Hope you will kindly verify and write your valuable opinion for the benefit of the violin aspirants all over the globe. amsharma

vittalk
Posts: 5
Joined: 25 Jun 2014, 11:08

Re: A small innovation on the Violin

Post by vittalk »

Thank you very much AmSharma,
I saw your modification and I like it. There is more than 1 way to solve the same problem! I find mine to be less intrusive (no external attachments -- thereby avoiding any fitting in the violin case kind of issues) Ofcourse, I agree that one might miss the tunable knob but as long as one carries his violin case, chances of loss/misplacement are similar to the rosin box or the oil box.

I thought of another improvement over mine. Instead of having the allen hex head and allen wrench, u can have a regular flat or phillips screw. Then, u can use a regular screw driver. There are many small versions of screw drivers available ubiquitously. Makes it even better and easy.

thanks,
-Vittal

msakella
Posts: 2127
Joined: 30 Sep 2006, 21:16

Re: A small innovation on the Violin

Post by msakella »

Dear brother-member, vittalk, I need not tell you what happens if some of our limbs of our body are not included in our body right from the beginning to facilitate immediate use and not to give scope to forget them at all somewhere at some time or the other.

Even in respect of a violin-case which includes the rosin-box or the oil-box there is no guarantee that the violinist will never forget to take them along. I have my own experiences in this regard. To avoid even such embarrassment I feel that it is always better to keep it in a single piece like this machine-head I have already used. More over, this kind of machine-heads are available plenty in the market being used for guitars. The same I have used for the violin also.

In our great country, our people mostly prefer to follow the conventional or traditional way but not any other convenient way even though it is beneficial to the aspirant. In general, the teachers have the upper hand and the poor students are supposed to follow the instructions of the teachers and the teachers will have their own way to follow not to incur any loss or inconvenience or trouble.

Some violinists hesitate to use even adjusters to the strings of the violin as they are of metal. Such violinists follow the same even in respect of these machine-heads. We cannot do anything in respect of such adamant conservatives. amsharma

violin_balan
Posts: 13
Joined: 22 Feb 2016, 06:16

Re: A small innovation on the Violin

Post by violin_balan »

Thanks Vittal and AMSharma for both techniques on this issue. I have been attempting to find a good way to do this myself. The constraint being that I don't want to tamper with the violin.

Dear AMSharma, Can you please share a picture of how the guitar tuning peg is fixed on both sides? I'm trying to fit it in but the shaft has a diameter of 6 mm compared to 6.5 mm of the violin pegs. Do you bolt it in some fashion?

I like Vittal's method because I want to do this without screwing into the scroll.

Thanks again for sharing your techniques.

vittalk
Posts: 5
Joined: 25 Jun 2014, 11:08

Re: A small innovation on the Violin

Post by vittalk »

Namaskaram AM Sharma-garu,
I have been wanting to contact you regarding the videos and lessons you have created, where you have poured out your experience for the benefit of the students. Can you pls let me know where I can get more info.

thanks a lot,
-Vittal

sriram1974
Posts: 36
Joined: 17 Jun 2018, 07:49

Re: A small innovation on the Violin

Post by sriram1974 »

You could simply use Guitar Tuning pegs similar to this picture:
https://4.bp.blogspot.com/--J67H-oe2vI/ ... ertr-3.jpg

-Sriram

Nick H
Posts: 9379
Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 02:03

Re: A small innovation on the Violin

Post by Nick H »

I think that some people do already.

And fine tuning is adjusted by small screw devices at the other end.

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