1) Strong left hand

Always play with a strong and sporty left hand. Slap your fingertips on the fingerboard, so you can even hear them when you’re not bowing. I don’t mean that you should pinch the neck of the violin or that you should have a tensed left hand. Actually your left hand is quite relaxed, but the action is sporty and determined. This doesn’t only benefit the clarity of your articulation, but learning this technique will benefit your intonation (playing in tune) as well.

2) Bow smoothly

Your left hand should be of steel and your right hand should be of velvet. This is one of the most difficult things of violin playing. While you make strong determined motions with your left hand, your right should make soft, fluent and smooth motions.

Don’t only bow with your (lower) arm. Really move your wrist and fingers along with the straight movement of the bow. It’s not only important to make the right movements and have the right bow hold, but you must perform all this with a relaxed arm and hand. In that way you don’t mute your violin and bow and will create optimal resonance.

Pinching your bow is like grabbing a singer by the throat when he tries singing a beautiful area. This creates a choking sound, while you should release the sound from your instrument.

Click here for some more videos around bowing technique on the violin.

3) Make small fluent string changes

A lot of violinists make string changes with large movements in their upper arm. Making small and compact motions with your wrist and fingers will give you more control and will make you able to do them in high tempo’s. Also it’s easier to maintain a full sound.

Certainly when you have a lot of string changes in a high tempo, make sure you minimize the movement and make the movement from your wrist and fingers instead of your arm.