How to choose the right size violin… www.mpviolins.com

What to know when purchasing the right size violin for yourself or your child… the violin comes in various sizes 1/16 – 1/10 – 1/8 – 1/4 – 1/2 – 3/4 – 4/4, which are the most common sizes applicable when buying a violin. Depending on your child’s height or yours, depends on what size violin to purchase, although most adults will use a 4/4 size violin.

Choosing to start to learn the violin is definitely the right choice, but for a parent with a young child, it will take investment through the years. This is because as your child grows, they will need a variety of different size violins to suit their size and height. A violin player beginning on a 1/16 size violin (usually 3-5-year-old), as they or your child grows will require a larger size instrument. So, you have a couple of options either when starting you could invest in the purchase of an instrument or you could hire a violin depending on how you wish to progress. It is very important that you or your child has the right size instrument for various reasons,

You could cause your tendons damage by an overextension of the fingers if the violin is too big.
You could also with a larger or smaller instrument have bad posture so it is essential also that the size is correct for this reason.
For technique, sound and comfort too, if your violin is too big you will struggle to play correctly, this is because the intervals between notes will be larger and with smaller hands, this could be a problem. If too small, then when playing the intervals could be too tight thus creating complexities to achieve the desired note.

Overall having the correct size violin should give you the correct posture, comfort in the hand, and ability to apply the correct technique, and given this, should inspire you or your child to progress further.

MP Violins below will explain the basic information you should know before proceeding with the purchase of your next instrument. We will explain the various different sizes and how to gauge the correct size violin that you will require.

The first thing to do is to measure the arm length. Do this from the base of the neck to the middle of the palm of your’s or the child’s hand. Make sure that the arm is first fully extended and perpendicular to the body.
From the chart above you may also see the measurements in centimeters that are correct for the arm length and height. e.g. if your arm length is 35 – 39 cm then your violin size should be a 1/16, if it’s 43 – 44 cm then it’s likely you need a 1/8 size violin.
When holding the instrument under your chin, make sure you are comfortable and with the correct posture. You should be able to hold the violin without it feeling too heavy, if it does it is likely that the violin will lower or dip from its original position under the chin.
Stretch your arm out with the violin under the chin, reach with the left hand around the scroll and into the pegbox, to see if the middle finger is able to be placed into the pegbox without overextension of the arm, neither with ease as this would create the elbow to be bent.
With the arm extended completely you should be able to see the scroll at rest on the wrist.
The body of the violin should just cover the left shoulder when holding it in position under the chin. If it is too narrow on the shoulder it is likely it is too small, if too wide then you will struggle to control the violin in place, it is likely it will lower or dip.

With this in mind, when you know the correct size violin you require, it is important that you try a variety of different violins in the same size you require. Different violins have different weights, they should be similar but can vary in comfort, look, and sound. Don’t buy the first violin you see or try, trial a variety of violins before your purchase, make sure the violin is right for you or your child, and make sure it sounds good! For more information see our article on how to buy a violin…

When the above is taken into consideration and the below chart utilized, you should be making the correct choice in size for your next violin and can rest assured, you’ve made the right purchase. If in any doubt talk to your luthier or teacher before you purchase your next violin, as I’m sure they will be more than willing to help.