How does a violin work? The brilliant Violinist Jamie Hutchinson will tell you all about it.
Jamie covers all the basic mechanics of the Violin, including:
- What strings are made of (and what they used to be made of…)
- How to pluck strings
- How to use a bow
- How the strings vibrate to make the sound
- How wood can change the sound quality
Jamie shows how a violin works by demonstrating on her 300-year-old Italian violin.
Watch the footage now, filmed at Abbey Road Studios, then head over to look at our Beginner’s Guide To The Violin.
So How Does a Violin Work?
A violin produces sound by the vibration of the strings. Violinists need two techniques using the player’s two hands to make a sound:
- The left hand is used for producing specific pitches by pressing down the strings at different points along the fingerboard.
- The right hand is used to vibrate the strings by either plucking them (known as pizzicato) or by bowing them (known as arco).
- The bow is made from horsehair and has a wooden back to keep the hair tight in place.
- The player tucks the instrument between their chin and shoulder. Use your right hand to bow or pluck, and the left hand on the fingerboard.
- When you bow or pluck a string, it makes that string vibrate very fast in a circular motion (look at our video to see slow-motion footage of the string).
How sound is produced through vibration
The vibration from the strings is transferred to the hollow body of the violin through the Bridge. The Bridge is a piece of maple wood that balances underneath the strings and transmits vibrations from the strings into the body of the instrument to create sound. The Bridge of the violin is held in place by tension. The force that the strings exert on the Bridge is equal to about 90 pounds (40Kg).
The Bridge of the violin transmits the vibrations to the top plate first. The type of wood, age and even shaping can create a radically different sound for the violin.
The sound post lies between the top and bottom plates, underneath the Bridge. The main job of the sound post is to send the vibrations from the top plate down to the bottom plate. It also helps keep the shape of the violin, and gives it structural strength. The sound post prevents the tension of the strings from collapsing the top plate, and channels the energy of the Bridge to the top and back plate of your violin.
Other parts of the violin
Scroll and Tuning Pegs | The neck of the violin is carved out from a single piece of wood. At the end, the wood curves around – we call this the scroll. The strings are attached to the tuning pegs, which are inserted into the scroll incredibly tightly, and held in place only by friction.
Nut | A small piece of wood between the pegbox and fingerboard. It has four notches, one for each string to emerge over the fingerboard.
Fingerboard | The surface where the fingers press down on the strings.
Ribs | The thin strips of wood that wind around the sides of the violin, connecting the top and the back to form the soundbox of the violin.
Strings | The length of the string affects the frequency. The violin has four strings; E, A, D and G. They are made from steel, although in the ‘old days’, they were made from dried out sheep intestine! Yuk!
Purfling | A thin strip of three-ply wood in a channel around the edge of the violin, protecting the instrument from damage.
F-holes | The two holes from which sound emerges are called the F-holes. They are shaped like curved f’s.
Fine tuners | Small tuners located on the tailpiece. They tune the violin but in smaller increments than the pegs do. Smaller violins have fine tuners for all strings, but full-size violins tend to have them only for the E string.
Chin rest | A shaped piece of wood or plastic on which you rest your chin and jawbone. It’s attached near the tailpiece.
Bass bar | The bass bar is a part that runs the length of the body, from the bass side of the Bridge to the neck. The bass bar allows the energy from the Bridge to transfer to a large area of the top plate.
Other parts of the violin
A violin bow is a wooden stick that is strung with horsehair. There are five parts of the bow that a string player needs to know:
- The bow stick | The wooden backbone that runs down the length of the entire bow.
- The bow hair | Horsehair string parallel to the bow stick; creates the vibration against the string.
- The tip | The uppermost portion of the bow.
- The frog | A small piece of wood attached to the handle of the bow; this is the other place where the hair is attached to the actual wood of the bow.
- The grip | A rubber and metal part near the base of the bow stick.
Summary
The violin is an incredibly complex instrument that is massively versatile. Understanding how the instrument works and what the individual components are will help you become a better violinist overtime…
Let us know in the comments below if you liked the video.
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Great article. Thankjs.
The ‘How does a violin work’ video should be required viewing for all of my former students! It’s crystal clear explanations like these that demystify the magic of music for beginners. Bravo to the creators for making the mechanics of music accessible and engaging. The part about ‘col legno’ was a fun addition — not many know of such nuances!
I didn’t know about col legno either, although to be fair to me, I am a beginner!!!
Fascinating article on the mechanics of the violin. The segment describing sound production through vibration was particularly well done. It’s intriguing how physical principles are applied to create such beautiful sounds. I appreciate the emphasis on other parts of the violin as well, not just the strings. Understanding the role each component plays in sound production adds a deeper appreciation for the instrument.
hey, i’m new to the whole music scene. this article about how violins work really caught my eye. can someone explain more about how vibration leads to the sound we hear? i get the basic idea but more detail would be awesome. and what’s this special effect ‘col legno’? sounds cool 🙂
Hey there, glad you’re interested! Vibrations on the violin strings are transferred to the body of the instrument, which amplifies the sound. As for ‘col legno’, it’s when you use the stick of the bow instead of the hair to strike the string, creating a unique sound. Keep exploring music, it’s a journey worth taking!
Really dig how the article breaks down the violin’s mechanics! Especially the bit about ‘col legno’. It’s little nuggets of info like this that make learning about music so fascinating. Would love to see more about how this compares to the viola!
Such a great video and article. I recently started playing the violin and wondered how exactly it worked and now, I do!
Thanks Robin. Glad you liked the article and video! Make sure you subscribe to get more updates…
I loved the video! I was wondering if the bow was breakable and if so, how easy is it to find a replacement?
Thanks Dylan. I’m really pleased you liked the video. As for the bow, they are pretty robust and you’d have to try really hard to break one! Eventually, you’ll want to re-hair the bow, and that’s really easily done at your local music shop.