A while ago I had found on this site a handy listing of all the scales someone had posted. For some reason I've not gotten around to learning/practicing scales but the time has come. I've got what is probably a real newbie question. I've posted an image from the A Major scale page. There are numbers posted under each string which I think are finger positions. I get what the numbers 1-4 are.... but there are also numbers 5 and 6. I'm assuming maybe they are notes played on that same string, but perhaps not first position?? Like after the 4th finger, why not move on to the next string? Guess I need a little help here. Thanks very much.
John
Edited by - capefiddle on 03/18/2025 07:05:48
Looks to me like the numbers are stops, not fingers, what would be equivalent to frets on a fretted instrument like a mandolin. So 2 would be what is called first "finger high" on a violin. So 5 would be third finger low, and 6 would be third finger high.
Coming from fretted instruments, I find the finger high and low terminology annoying and prefer the stop number instead.
1 first finger low
2 first finger high
3 second finger low
4 second finger high
5 third finger low
6 third finger high
7 fourth finger low (equivalent to the next higher string open)
Yes, those charts are for a fretted instrument, like a mandolin. Tuned in fifths, there are seven frets between strings (the sevenh fret is the same as the next open string). They were made by somebody for mandolin, or by someone who erroneously thinks of the violin as a fretted instrument.
There are still seven half seps between strings on a violin, but stopped with four fingers, placed higher or lower as needed, as Ken indicated. You can still think of them as half steps, not necessarily "frets," but its really more direct to indicate which finger to use, and where to place it.
BTW, I'd expect your teacher would know when to introduce scales, and advise you on how to play them.
Edited by - DougD on 03/18/2025 08:25:00
Be careful, some modal tunes have notes that are a bit sharper than the minor 3rd and flatter than the major 3rd, but it seems like the right note to me.
Father Google led me to this site which has several violin fingering charts for free downnload that look like they'd be very useful - especially the scale charts: violinspiration.com/free-violi...arts-pdf/
Open G is Doe. Index is Rey. Middle is Mi. Etc.
I started with open strings as Doe. But eventually Doe can be any finger.
Don't just drill ascending scales. Tunes use descending scales too.
Thanks for the replies/help. The "violin Inspiration"site you noted DougD, I've previously taken screenshots from her site and have watched some of her YT videos. She's a good instructor. I had recently purchased a Gordon Stobbe scale and arpeggio book. I think what I'll need to know about scales is in that book. It was just seeing the numbers on the scale sheets in my original post that was throwing me off.
Thanks.
John
Not to be a weird spelling stickler or anything but Do is spelled Do, Re is spelled Re, and Mi is spelled Mi.
John, it looks like the "Violin Inspiration" materials are available as free .pdf downloads, which seems like a good idea to me, and quite generous.
quote:
Originally posted by Lonesome FiddlerNot to be a weird spelling stickler or anything but Do is spelled Do, Re is spelled Re, and Mi is spelled Mi.
No. Do is for Do-wop, etc. Ray is for Ray-gun.
Mi, continuously tries to get 'fixed' by my text editor. So what was the question? Can you pick fly droppings out of black pepper? Oh look! You won the 'DougD like award!'
Edited by - farmerjones on 03/18/2025 17:12:09
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