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I have previously written some tips for preparing to play the violin for children – things you can do before your child actually starts playing the instrument. I wanted to follow up this post with some thoughts on what age to start violin lessons!
Violin Lessons For Kids
If you ask just about any violin teacher, they will usually say, “It depends.” And it’s no different here. It depends on!
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After teaching beginner violin for nearly 20 years, there are a few signs I look for to see if a child is ready. To be clear, this is specifically for violin and other string students. I know piano teachers, for example, children often start a bit older, so I can only talk to young string players.
Before accepting students, I always do a trial session to assess whether they are likely to be a good fit and also whether the child is ready to dive in. And while it obviously varies from child to child, here are 5 things I look for to see if a child is ready to start playing the violin. (I always start with this beginner violin. It’s nothing fancy, but it has everything you need and is cheap.) I hope they help you decide at what age to start violin lessons!
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While it’s certainly possible to teach a child who isn’t the least bit interested, it’s usually not much fun. It is so much easier to get started when the child has some self-motivation and interest.
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To be clear, playing the violin is difficult. Most children will feel discouraged, “hate it” and want to quit at some point. That doesn’t necessarily mean they should (although sometimes they do). But a child who
It is absolutely not necessary to have a child who is passionate about music above all else (see “what I don’t look for #3 below). But to prepare your child, playing music at home, singing songs and building a general interest in music through exposure is helpful. You’ll be surprised how much it helps.
While some teachers expect children to sit still and listen for a full 30 minutes, I never expect my beginners to stay completely focused for more than 10 minutes. Depending on age, that’s what makes perfect sense, and it’s amazing how much students can improve with even 10 minutes of consistent, dedicated practice each day.
Of course, this time increases as they develop and they strengthen the training muscles, but 10 minutes is actually sufficient at the beginning when deciding at what age to start playing the violin.
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This is not a hard and fast rule, but it is a useful fine motor test to see if your child can hold a pencil properly. Your child will be using many of the same small muscles to hold the bow and play the notes, so it’s helpful if they can already do this. (Oddly enough, I have a few very favorite pencils…and colored pencils too, for that matter!)
If you are wondering at what age to start cello lessons, our experience has been a little older than the violin. The cello is a larger instrument that requires a bit more rough movement than the violin. With my cello-playing child, we started when he was about 4.5 (as opposed to 3.75 with my two violin-playing children). This is the point where he could control the larger instrument and press his fingers down on the thicker strings.
Again, this is not something that is absolutely necessary, as pitch-matching is definitely something I work on with early learners. Still, it’s always helpful when a child has a basic understanding that notes get higher and lower and can fit under basic notes.
Especially with the Suzuki method which is very dependent on hearing notes and melodies, it is very helpful when a child can distinguish between different notes when starting violin for children. It is even more helpful if your child knows how to hear and/or sing the songs in Suzuki Book 1.
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Learning the violin is so much fun, but it’s also a bit complicated. Especially in the first few weeks and months, a new student will have to practice the same skills over and over because it is unwise to move on until they are cold. It requires patience and, yes, following instructions from a teacher.
Toddlers are notorious for wanting to disobey instructions. Although this also happens to other children, of course most children should outgrow the need to regularly push against instructions and run away before they start playing an instrument. A child should be excited to listen and generally be comfortable following instructions. It is important not to practice these early skills in the wrong way, so a child should be ready to receive feedback and willing and patient to follow these guidelines.
There are a few things parents sometimes ask that I don’t think correlate very well with a violin student’s early success. Here are some of those factors.
While I know this may be more important for other instruments (e.g. piano), it’s not really relevant for most early string players. I teach a mixed Suzuki method which involves a lot of ear training. Students usually learn songs by listening to them for a significant amount of time anyway, so the ability to read is pretty irrelevant.
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If your child can read, you can have them start practicing music reading (this is my very favorite simple and easy book for teaching music reading, along with my favorite music stand), but I would do it separately from the instrument.
Honestly, young children tend not to have a good sense of what most instruments need until they actually start playing them. I firmly believe that a child can succeed on the violin, even if it was not something they made an effort to choose for themselves.
Music is like most things – it takes a lot of practice. And most children who start playing the violin do not become child prodigies or professional musicians. And that’s okay!
Just because your child isn’t the next Mozart doesn’t mean there isn’t great value in a strong music education. Your child can still learn a lot and have fun even if he doesn’t want to be concertmaster of the National Symphony.
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Of course, there is no perfect age to start playing the violin. Different students will succeed at different times. Generally speaking, the best age to start violin for my students is between 5-7 years old. I have started students as young as 3 years old, including my two oldest children. However, violin lessons for a toddler will require a lot of supervision and assistance for each practice. So unless there is a parent there willing to put in a lot of effort, I wouldn’t recommend starting that young.
Some 4-year-olds are able to learn and follow instructions for exercises, but usually still need good guidance.
The biggest advantage of starting young is that young children have a wonderful ear and usually pick up tactical sounds very easily.
The reason the Suzuki method works so well with young children is that they are trained to listen to sounds and imitate them. Consider language acquisition, a large part of early childhood. Kids are in a listen-and-repeat mode, which means good on the violin too.
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Young guys are also generally compatible and aim to please. They want to perform well and are excited about making sound. It also has several advantages for developing the ear at a younger age – it creates a good foundation for lifelong musicianship.
I have also started students at 8, 10, 15 and even adults! Learning the violin is not a time-limited hobby.
There are also certain advantages to starting older. An older child in particular will be able to listen and concentrate for longer periods of time. They also tend to pick up the physical elements and rough movements associated with the violin much more easily. The violin requires a lot of coordination! Between holding the bow, holding the violin, and posture, not to mention using the fingers and the bow correctly, it’s a lot for a small child (or anyone).
And an older child knows his body better and is usually able to understand the physical aspects of the instrument more quickly. An older student will also be able to transition more quickly to reading sheet music, although I still like to start without music at the beginning to focus on nailing down all the other skills without adding.
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After all, students can really benefit from playing
