Tuning Violin

Tuning a violin can be a difficult task.  With a little bit of practice, and a trained ear, you can complete the tuning process with little effort.  The good news is, the more you do it, the easier it becomes.  An accurately tuned violin will help you tremendously while you are working on finger placement and positioning, not to mention making your music sound a lot better.  This article will teach you how.

The simplest way to tune your violin is to use a piano or electronic keyboard.  This is a good method for beginners as you are only using “open” strings which allow you to use your free hand to adjust the knobs while the violin and piano are simultaneously resonating.  Playing an “open” string means to play it without fretting, or using your other hand to press the string against the neck, thus changing its tone.

Violin strings are tuned in perfect fifths.  This simply means that the next string is tuned to exactly five notes above its counterpart.  In addition to a piano, a pitch pipe, an electronic keyboard, or a computer connected to the Internet can be used to tune your violin.  The first string, the one with the largest diameter, is tuned to a G note.  Strike a G on the piano or other tuning device, and turn the tuning pegs at the top of the violin while plucking the G string.  The G peg can be found by tracing the string up to the peg box just below the scroll of the violin.  The pegs (of which there are four) are black and usually made of ebony.  When the tone gets close, complete the tuning by adjusting the fine tuning knob on the bridge.  Make sure that you are tuning to the G just below middle C.

It is usually easier to loosen the string (lowering the pitch) before attempting to match the pitch of the G string.  If the string is already too loose, you may want to tighten it a little before attempting to tune it. Please keep in mind that tightening a string too far above its designated pitch can damage your violin. The next string is tuned five notes up the musical scale, which is a D.  The process is the same for the D string, the A string, and the E string.

When the tuning of each individual string is complete, you can double-check the accuracy of the tuning by plucking each consecutive pair of strings together: D-A, G-D, A-E. Listen for the harmony of the strings and make necessary adjustments.

The  process of tuning a violin may be adversely affected by weather conditions (temperature and humidity levels), so you may need to retune your violin frequently, possibly as often as every 15 to 30 minutes. Your style and type of playing will contribute to this as well, so check to make sure your instrument is in tune often.

Although this process may seem a little intimidating and complicated at first, before long it will become second nature to you. Tuning a violin is well worth the effort in order to produce quality music.