Violin finger positions

Having the correct violin finger positions on the violin is crucial to successful violin playing. If you place your finger on the fingerboard and it is just slightly off yes even 1 mm, you will get a false sound. It is important to get the right finger positions when playing the violin.

This involves both how and where you place your fingers on the fingerboard. First we will start on how you place your fingers on the fingerboard.

To get your violin finger positions right, your fingers need to be curled and the tips of the fingers need to press down as in the image below. But, since the violin does not have a fretboard, it makes it quite hard to put the fingers in the right place, even if how you position your fingers on the violin is correct.

The next thing you have to do is to make certain that you know where the fingers need to go. With a trained ear and many hours of practice, knowing the correct violin finger positions will come naturally. But for beginners, it is important to have markers to show where the finger positions are. Teachers will generally place these on the violin in the form of stickers. But in the case where you are attempting to teach yourself, you will need some help.

You can place the stickers yourself, but you need to know that it does have to be in exactly the right position. The measurements are at the bottom of this page, but they are measured from the nut as in the image that is also below.

The alternative to get your violin finger positions right is to get a violin fingerboard sticker or sometimes called a violin fretboard sticker. This is easy to put on and a quick fix. There are links below to these on Amazon.

Whatever you decide to use to get your violin finger positions right, you need to remember that the measurements or fretboard stickers need to be placed in exactly the right spot, measuring from the nut.

Always remember that practice makes perfect. I know that violin finger position aids are unsighly but in time, your ear will get trained and you will be able to remove the stickers.

Full Size Violin (4/4)
Tape 1 – 35mm (1 3/8 inches)
Tape 2 – 66mm (2 5/8 inches)
Tape 3 – 80mm (3 1/8 inches)
Tape 4 – 106mm (4 1/8 inches)

3/4 Violin
Tape 1 – 32mm (1 1/4 inches)
Tape 2 – 61mm (2 3/8 inches)
Tape 3 – 75 mm (2 7/8 inches)
Tape 4 – 100 mm (3 7/8 inches)

1/2 Violin
Tape 1 – 28mm (1 1/8 inches)
Tape 2 – 54mm (2 1/8 inches)
Tape 3 – 68mm (2 5/8 inches)
Tape 4 – 91mm (3 5/8 inches)

1/4 Violin
Tape 1 – 25mm (1 inch)
Tape 2 – 48mm (1 7/8 inches)
Tape 3 – 60mm (2 3/8 inches)
Tape 4 – 79mm (3 1/8 inches)