V.com weekend vote: Would you consider changing your chin rest?
After Pirastro's big announcement this week about their new chin rest, the KorfkerSpring, I wanted to re-visit our vote about trying new chin rests: would you consider changing your chin rest?
I admit, I have not experimented all that much with chin rests - my violin still has the chin rest that I bought it with, some 20 years ago! Mine is a basic Guarneri-style chin rest that mounts over the center then has the chin plate on the left (in the illustration, it's the one on the upper right).
However, I am aware that a good chin rest can make a big difference in one's comfort level, especially for those with a long neck. A shoulder rest can provide more height for the violin, but it does so from underneath the violin, and that pushes the violin upward. If you provide the height via the chin rest, the violin can remain closer to the shoulder. Potentially this can be more comfortable, as you don't have to raise your arm farther to reach the fiddle.
The KorfkerSpring looks so very different from any other chin rest I have tried, I am very curious about how that would feel and how it would affect my comfort level. I would say I have medium-tall neck, enough that I feel that I benefit from a supportive chin rest.
What are your feelings about your chin rest? What kind do you have? Are you happy with what you have? Have you experimented a great deal with chin rests, to come up with the right one? Are you still on the search for the right one? (Maybe you don't use one at all!) Are you relatively happy, but still a little curious about other chin rests? Please participate in the vote, then share your thoughts in the comments!
You might also like:
- Pirastro Introduces Revolutionary New Chin Rest for Violin and Viola: KorfkerSpring
- Achieving a Pain-Free Setup on Viola or Violin
- Julie Lyonn Lieberman on How Violinists Can Prevent Injury with Proper Stretches and Set-up
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Replies
Difficult. I'm happy with the current Kaufmann, but I tried 4 others before I hit upon it. So I voted for happy, but change is not out of the question. I'm unlikely to get a korfker, though. I'm more interested in a comfortable shoulder rest first.
I have tried countless shoulder rests and chin rests before finally finding what works best for me. I have a short neck and it always felt like I was having to reach my chin out for the violin and it always felt like my violin was trying to slide off of my shoulder. I have found the best shoulder rest for me was the BonMusica shoulder rest because the curve really gives me some stability and it doesn't want to slip or slide but the Chin rest was another issue until I found the WAVE chin rest. They sent me one that was for shorter necks but it still wasn't right and after talking to their great customer service they sent out another one that was even shorter and boy what a difference. My chin just fits nicely and I don't find myself reaching or adjusting my height to make contact. Check them out!
I agree that the proper setup is crucial but if you are often trying different shoulder and/or chin rests the problem might not be with your equipment but how you are approaching holding the violin in general.
I would consider changing my chinrest and shoulder rest… but honestly, manufacturers are getting completely out of hand with their pricing. Pirastro’s new KorfkerSpring chinrest is ... $600 for a chinrest and their shoulder rests are already in the stratosphere.
I get that research, wood selection, and clever engineering cost money, but the premium is starting to feel disconnected from reality.
Until the industry comes back down to earth, my current setup suddenly looks perfectly fine.
One of my kids is happy with any chinrest.
The other has gone through 8 chinrests in 2 years.
At the moment my teacher won't let me abandon my Bon Musica until my hold on my violin is perfect, but when it is, I am seriously going to try out a car sponge.
Looks like the Korfker will cost around $600. I am certainly not interested in trying it at that price.
For a long time, I was using really short ones on the left of the tailpiece. Those came with the older violins. Modern ones tended to be the Guarneri model.
A few years back, I tried one of the center-mount Flesch chinrests, mostly for the 1”-plus height. I am now much more comfortable, and less dependent on shoulder pads.
I’m comfortable with the Kaufmann style chinrest I’m using: I like to have my chin closer to the instrument. I have thought if trying to play without a chinrest, but I haven’t got around it trying it yet.
I'm very happy with the chinrests on both my violin and viola so I have no need to get a new one unless one breaks or something, and yes, I did have to get a new chinrest about a year ago because one broke. I haven't needed to try a huge number of chinrests, but the typical stock chinrests, such as the Guarneri or low side-mounts that don't touch the tailpiece aren't right for me. I still remember when I first started playing violin as a youngster and found the stock chinrest, which was a Guarneri, uncomfortable because I felt like the bar that runs over the tailpiece was digging into my skin. After a while, I went some place and tried on a few because my teacher suggested it, and I found myself happy with a flat center-mounted chinrest. I've pretty much stuck to that sort of chinrest ever since and haven't needed to change it. In general, I prefer relatively flat chinrests, as deep-cupped models seem to dig into me in a way that I don't like, which is just an anatomy thing. My preferred placement is definitely something that is pretty much centered over the tailpiece or close to it. Side-mounts that reach over the tailpiece also work, but I do have to push it as far over the tailpiece as possible. My neck is medium-long, so I can use/do benefit from a chinrest that's just a smidge taller than normal, but I don't need a significant amount of height.
As for what's actually on my instruments, my violin has a Wittner Augsburg chinrest set to second highest setting, which is about half a centimeter taller than normal, and my viola has a Wittner non-adjustable center mount with a thin layer of rubber underneath to clear a very tall tailpiece. Violas are of course thicker so less height is necessary, which means I have no real need for a raised chinrest on viola, but the thin layer underneath to clear the tailpiece brings the height to a point that the space from chin to collarbone is totally filled with basically no gap. I have a Flesch flat that I really like sitting around, but it's currently not in action. I use a typical Kun shoulder rest for both violin and viola, and I've been happy with it all along, although I am quite particular about where I place it on the instrument.
Should manufacturers stop calling these devices 'chin rests'? I place the left side of the jaw on it to avoid neck and perhaps shoulder strain. I'm interested in what others think. What actually goes into your chin rest?
I for one am quite happy that $600 chinrests are being introduced because they make my cases, which are far more labor intensive and employ a plethora of costly materials, look inexpensive! :-)
It is interesting to see so many users of Guarneri chin rest who don't actually use the cup - they just use the part over the tailpiece. I second the recommendation for WAVE chinrests. It allows me to move the violin around so I don't end up in a locked position. I sometimes place the chin over the tailpiece, sometimes more to the side. It is shaped to follow the shape of the neck - not the shape of the violin. And even the high version I have fits into my "cheap" Musafia case ;)
As both a violinist and a violin maker, I design and craft my own chinrest based on my ergonomic needs and physical structure. Since my neck is relatively long, standard commercial chinrests usually do not provide the correct fit. For this reason, I take precise measurements of the head angle, the distance between the shoulder and the jaw, and the balance point of the instrument to create a chinrest that offers maximum stability, minimal muscular strain, and full freedom of movement. This approach allows me to maintain better control while playing and ensures that the instrument remains in a natural and healthy position.”
I'm fine with my SAS chinrest, it gives me apropriate hight for my long neck. Nothing against trying this new Pirastro model, but for $600? Thank you.
I'm a bit of an outlier since I play without CR…
I am the inventor and user of the kréddle fully adjustable chin rest. And I've recently mastered the process of taking an impression of the player's exact jawline and CNC carving it into flamed maple. Interesting idea Pirastro has there, but hard to compete with a chin rest offering your exact jawline (accuracy down to 1/3rd the thickness of a human hair) carved into maple and fitted to an adjustable chin rest that appears to have even greater adjustability. And....all for half the cost of the Pirastro! Anyone curious can see more at https://kreddle.com
I would definitely try this! Would you still use a shoulder rest with this chinrest?
Holy cow that's expensive ($600). But I think a lot of the "high tech" chin rests are too pricey. I don't know anyone who uses them.
I don't use a shoulder rest, and am quite picky about chinrests - I want a lip to hook under my jaw, but also for it to not be so restrictive it only works in one head position. I actually have a few I alternate between - when I am in a tinkering mood, I sometimes try to see if I actually like another one better.
The positive side of it is that (normal) chinrests are typically cheaper to experiment with than shoulder rests.
I think there are two types of people. Those that find something that works and stick with it, and those who like to experiment. The first category doesn’t offer much profit potential. The second group is a gold mine. For 600 bucks you should get a 10 day free trial period. Some people are built differently, and might need to try something like this. I’ll spend my extra 600 bucks for lessons
If your head starts bouncing on those springs, it might be even better than "magic mushrooms.
I'm pretty happy with my Guarneri chin rest on my main violin, but I'm still using the WAVE da capo chin rests that I ordered on my other two violins and viola. I used to use a WAVE on my main violin, but I lost a lot of weight so I had some extra room that I needed to fill, so I decided to try the Guarneri chinrest that came with the violin (like 99% of all other violins) and after a few months I'm still happy so I'll probably buy some Guarneri chin rests for my other violins. Not sure about viola yet since the ribs are thicker, but we'll see.
I haven't seen the pricing for the Korfkerspring, but if it's indeed $600 I'm probably not going to try it. I love my Korfkerrest Lunas that I use on my main violin and viola and my Korfkerrest Model 2 that I use on a different violin, but $600 is a lot. I'd have to be able to try it somewhere first before I bought it.
If we want to get specific about Korfker products, count me out - they are silly money. A Kaufmann and a firm cushion are all I need. I have been taught that the violin is a stable platform supported by the jaw. I don't want unstable springs, thanks. In fact a friend had a sprung-loaded shoulder rest back in the 70s and I hated it.
I'm done changing chinrests.
I tried several viola chinrests that weren't satisfactory, and even tried a Joachim violin chinrest that I retrofitted with viola clamp barrels. Everything was too tall except the Joachim violin chinrest, which was too flat. So I went for a custom-made one, which is a modified Brandt chinrest: ultra-low and half-centered, with a significant lip that covers only the inside part of the edge.
The total cost of my custom chinrest, including the fitting session, the actual chinrest, and shipping, was $183, a fraction of what's being reported for the KorfkerSpring.
On my violin, I use the Guarneri chinrest it came with, and actually use the cup. It's slightly higher than I'd like, but it's tolerable with the violin being smaller, and I rarely play violin anyway, so I haven't felt the need to change it.
I actually just changed my chinrest last year, when I purchased the Holstein Freedom Chinrest, and really love it. While I am open to others, I think I will stick with the Freedom CR for a while. I love the look on my violin and I still get the support, but more freedom of movement with it.
I use a small cloth tied to the tailpiece to create a bump instead of a chin rest. The example below takes the same approach of creating a bump on the tailpiece.
I forgot chin rests even exist. But being here reminded, now I also recall that some violinists also use a shoulder rest. I imagine these apparatii came into use for virtuosic shifts down, but why are they so de riguer for virtually every player? I have been quite comfortable without them.
I've set up quite a few beginner children and found the Guarneri style with the bar over the tailpiece to be the most problematic. Some children are fine with it but if anyone has an issue, it's always that one. If the "correct" placement is jaw on the bar part, the bar is likely to poke or bother them, they want to slide the violin down and towards center to get away from the bar, they crane or twist head to get jaw or chin into the cup, etc. I switch them to a Wittner, typically side mount, and also use that myself. For the children, $20 (I guess it's over $30 now) prevents us from having to spend/waste lesson and practice time trying to get them to tolerate the bar. For me, I have no interest or motivation to experiment more.
I checked the violins I have in my little flat, and I have one decrepit old violin minus strings, bridge, tailpiece, etc, that's also minus a chinrest - I'd bought it thirty-odd years ago, intending to remake it into a fiddle. One violin has a chinrest mounted on the side, the others are mounted on the end block but jut out into the side. I've never felt the need to change any of them.
Even a master like her is taking a risk without some kind of security.
I dislike the Guarneri style rests. I switched out mine for the Flesch style on two of my violins. I’ll switch the third when I get it playable.
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November 23, 2025 at 08:04 PM · I voted being open to change even though I am perfectly happy with my viola chinrest. It seems to be at its optimum comfort with my SR combination. However, I have been thinking recently to cha ge the CR on my violin. It takes quite a while to adjust and get comfortable each time compared.to my viola where it's straight away near enough.