August 3, 2013 at 7:14 AM
This week was inspired by a discussion post by V.com member Madeline Davis: How much does the instrument matter?It may seem like the most important thing is how well you play; but it is true that the very best players jump through all kinds of personal and financial hoops to get their hands on very fine instruments.
So what do you think? How much does the instrument matter? This week's poll gives you options on a scale of one to five, with one being that the instrument is the most important factor of all, and five being that the instrument does not matter at all. Please vote and discuss!
My best guess (as a one year "player") as to relative importance:
Bowing - 50%
Left hand - 20%
Instrument - 20%
Bow - 10%
On the other hand, this may have been my best guess before I began playing a string instrument:
Bowing - 10%
Left hand - 70%
Instrument - 20%
The difference between the two perceptions is more interesting to me than the percentages for each.
If you play in an orchestra I don't think it matters that much - the bow (and the player of course) are far more important.
However, if you are to play the Beethoven violin concerto in Carnegie hall...
Now, the player certainly matters a lot too. My mom, who plays a little violin, could play Twinkle Twinkle on my $2,000 violin while I play the same piece on her old $50 violin, and I would still sound a lot better. But if someone closer to my level played Beethoven's Romanze in F on a professional-quality violin and I used a cheaper violin to play the same piece, the other violinist would probably win the competition.
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