Katharine Rapoport

With all of its different parts and its beautiful, delicate-looking body, the violin can feel a bit intimidating at first. This Cheat Sheet helps you get to know your instrument by introducing the most important parts of your violin, provides some easy steps to keep it in tip-top condition, and takes you through the process of taking the violin out of its case for the very first time.

You know that tuning your violin is something you need to do, but what exactly does it mean? The word tuning refers to adjusting the strings of the violin to their proper pitches. All sorts of factors can affect the pitch of each string — temperature and humidity changes, drafts, playing loud music where the bow pushes heavily on the string — so you need to know how to tune effectively, right from the start.

More than 70 parts go into making a complete violin. This hourglass-shaped string instrument consists of several basic parts, including the 21 important elements explained here. Back: One of the most important parts of the violin, for both aesthetic and acoustic properties. The back of the violin can be made of one or two pieces, and it’s arched for strength and tone power.

When you’re used to playing, your fingers know instinctively where to land on the strings to get the right notes. But at first, they may need some pilot training. Don’t worry; most violinists’ hands are a little tentative when feeling their way around the fingerboard for the first time. After all, your view of the fingerboard when you’re in playing position is telescopic (which is kind of weird), and violins don’t have frets for guidance like guitars do.

When it comes to the violin, you need to have certain accessories, while other accoutrements aren’t necessary but may be really cool to own. How do you separate what you need from what you want? Necessities A whole lot of accessories are available on the market to keep your violin healthy and to make your practice time easier and more fun.

Now that you’re up and running with your violin (just don’t sprint too fast — you might drop it!), you can look beyond traditional teaching out into the big, wide world. Subscribe to a magazine A fun and easy way to keep up‐to‐date on musical topics is by subscribing to a magazine, where there’s certainly plenty of info to interest you.

Often at the very end of a piece, the composer asks for an even richer sound from violins by writing three and four notes to be played at once (or as close as possible to at once), which means you’re actually playing chords on your violin. You use your bow in special ways to make these chords sound as clear as a bell.

Taking the violin out of its case (and putting it away again safely) is a skill; mastering the art ensures that your instrument will have a long and happy life. To open the case, follow these steps: Place the violin case on a stable, flat surface, such as a table or a sofa, with the lid facing the ceiling, and then turn the latch-and-handle side to face you.