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I have been playing violin a couple months (no lessons, learning off the web, practicing an hour or so per day) and it is mostly going okay,.
But playing a sixth stop is usually unpleasant to me, and that is my worst stop for intonation, meaning that the pitch is often wrong.
I have been playing sixth stops only with my third finger. I have been using my pinky only for playing the seventh stop on the E string. So my pinky does not get much use.
I have been trying to keep my thumb in the curve of the neck near the peg box for tactile reference, as Pierre does. Fingering lower than the fifth stop, I tend to either bend the wrist or let the thumb roam free.
I am thinking I should instead either be switching to third position-first finger or using the pinky in first position. I basically have never used third position before.
From the crease of my wrist to the end of the second finger is 7 1/2", and to the tip of the third finger is 7", in case it helps to know that.
How should I be playing sixth stops?
Uh oh ... sorry, I thought I was using standard terminology by numbering semitone positions as stops--by counting the number of semitones from the nut.
I was trying to ask how to finger a note that is six semitones higher than the open string, for instance C# on the G string or D# on the A string.
In that case you have a choice. In first position you will usually play with a high third finger, or a low fourth finger.
Now what are some of the conditions that would make it better or easier to use one finger or the other? I want to avoid getting into some bad or weak or nonstandard habit.
That would depend on the music you are olaying.
Sometimes a 3rd finger stretch would be better than a low4th, I reckon.
I have recently been playing a couple of pieces where my teacher told me to slide a finger up a note for ease of playing even though the text books say use the next finger. I guess it's just like playing in 2nd position for a note or two.
I suppose knowing when to be different is all part if becoming an accomplished player rather than a follower of music.
I was born with nothing,
and to my surprise I still have most of it left!
It depends very much on what key you are playing in.
<informative examples omitted>
There are many exceptions.
Okay, thanks! So I have to stop thinking like a touch typist or a cornet player.
Now can I ask you about the terminology that I seem to have gotten wrong in my OP?
I want to number the semitone "places" or "points" on the strings starting from the nut, like this:
0th place - open string
1st place - semitone interval above open
2nd place - whole tone interval above open
3rd place - minor third interval above open
4th place - major third interval above open
5th place - perfect fourth interval above open
In my OP I was calling them stops. On the guitar we would call them frets.
How can I use numbers as above to refer to these semitone places on the strings?
We usually use the word "position" and number of finger which we use for a note of current position. 'Cause sometimes it's quite hard to count semitones if someone talking about 5th position for example. This is hard to explain and i guess more hard to understand, but i'll try.
I position (D string example) - E-1st finger + F(F#)-2nd finger + G(G#)-3rd or 4th finger + A-4th finger.
II position: uses 1 finger on the 2nd finger's place of I position. So: F- 1st finger (F# could be played with 1st or 2nd - depends of music)+ G - 2nd finger (G# could be played with 3rd as well)+ A- 3rd + B - 4th.
Second position used not so often as Ist and IIIrd... And as FiddlerMan said there are exeptions.
III positon starts with 1 st finger on G or G# etc. So You use your 1st finger in the place of 3rd finger of Ist position (damit, i'm hopeless ). G -> A -> B (Bb)-> C
It's quite hard to explain at once. And i'm not a teacher, LOL!
FiddlerMan made videos about positions. Yep. Don't read it - watch this:
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