Alright, so you’ve made up your mind that you want your child to start with the violin lessons. Or perhaps you’ve noticed your little one has a musical gift, and the violin seems to be their calling. Whatever your motivation, when it comes to professional musical education, a crucial question arises: when is the best time to start? The answer, however, varies for different children. In this article, I’ll delve into the physical and psychological criteria that define it.
In my nearly thirty years of teaching the violin, I’ve seen many cases where mothers are almost obsessed with starting their children’s musical education as early as possible – at age three, before kindergarten, before they start speaking etc. While professional musicians usually know when and how to proceed, others often don’t, leading to less-than-ideal decisions.
So where should you begin? First, let’s take a look at what violin lessons consist of. In the beginning, a child can sing along some songs with a pedagogue, clap the rhythm, take the instrument into his hands and try to make separate movements by the left hand and by the right hand. This stage can last from one or two lessons to three months and more – depending on a child in question and their readiness to move forward.
There are three qualities which a violin teacher expects from a potential student to begin the violin tuition:
- Ability to concentrate: Yes, the first violin songs will be very short – for a minute or so, as all violin teachers know that children in the age of four to five can concentrate for only two minutes. For this age there are usually three to four songs for a lesson to switch the child’s attention.
- Ability to physically manage their hands: Unlike playing the piano, where a student can push a key and a corresponding note would sound even at the very first lesson, producing a first decent violin sound takes some time. Why? Because a piano stands still, and the violin has to be held – as well as the bow. It’s not as easy as it might seem to move the bow across the violin strings. For example, some children begin to move the violin – not the bow. For others, it turns out to be difficult to hold the violin because the position in which the violin must be held is very unnatural.
- Ability to hear their sound and to be able to improve it: Typically, in the beginning of the violin tuition the student’s natural grasping reflex is triggered, and the teacher is trying to overcome it and make the movements and the sound softer. So the student’s task is to hear that sound and to try to reproduce it naturally.
Please keep in mind that for achieving quicker and better results, I recommend starting with at least two violin lessons per week, even at a very early age. For four or five-year-olds, I suggest two 30-minute lessons each week, with adequate breaks between them. For instance, scheduling lessons on Tuesdays and Fridays is more effective than, for example, on consecutive days like Wednesdays and Thursdays. Having two- and three-day breaks between the lessons is much better than having smaller or no breaks at all.
This implies that a child must be both physically and psychologically ready to sustain two violin lessons per week over an extended period and should possess the discipline to practice the violin at home between the lessons.
So What is the Right Age to Begin?
From a professional violin education perspective, the ideal age to begin is when a child is both physically and psychologically ready for regular violin lessons. Since children develop at different rates, the answer to this question varies for each individual. As a general guideline, the age of five is commonly considered suitable for regular violin classes.
However, if a child demonstrates readiness earlier, it makes sense to start earlier. For instance, I began teaching the violin to several students at the age of four, and a decade later, they were well on their way to establishing professional musical careers, having performed at concerts with orchestras in various European countries and beyond.
At the same time, starting at six or seven doesn’t mean it’s too late. Take Maestro Vadim Repin, for example, one of the greatest violinists of our generation (and yet another alumnus of Professor Zakhar Bron). Known as the Siberian Paganini in his youth, Repin began his violin lessons at seven and became a true virtuoso by fourteen.
So there isn’t a fixed right answer to the question for everyone, but there is a right answer for each child. The best way to determine this is to consult with your violin teacher. A professional will advise you on whether you should start next semester, next year, or if the opportune time to embark on your violin journey is right now.
