Weekend Vote: Have you tried playing your instrument with the opposite hands?

September 20, 2025, 11:30 PM · On one hand - the left, we have the violin. On the other - the right, the bow. Have you ever tried the experiment of switching it up, and playing your violin (or viola, cello or bass) with the opposite hands?

This might sound like a joke of a question, but I'm serious. As someone who is left-handed, I am frequently asked, "Have you ever thought of playing the violin left-handed?"

I'm always flabbergasted by the question - I'm tempted to say, "The violin is already left-handed, what are you talking about?" I feel like being left-handed has always been an advantage, with the finger dexterity and vibrato.

However, the truth is more complicated - both hands are assigned a seriously specialized task in playing the violin, and it takes years to get the hang of it on either side of the equation. While my left hand may have caught on a little faster, I still had to work pretty hard at both hands.

So back to my original question - have I tried putting my violin in the right hand and bow in the left? Yes, I have on a number of occasions, for teaching purposes. That is, to teach myself how wickedly difficult it is to learn this instrument!

I work with very young beginners on a regular basis, and I occasionally try things the opposite way, just to see that they are going through. Try it - and you'll gain a great deal of empathy for the beginner - the basic violin hold, placing the fingers, balancing the bow, drawing it across the string - and forget about vibrato! It's so flippin' hard!

So please participate in the vote (and it's not cheating, if you want to go and try it, and then you can vote "Yes!") Then in the comments, you can talk about anything related to this topic - the issues of "handed-ness" as well as your thoughts on what it's like to try this novel experiment!

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Weekend Vote: Have you tried playing your instrument with the opposite hands?

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