In this post we will be discussing your primary options, along with the pros and cons of each.

There are two main categories, and a couple of options below each.  The first category is self-taught.  The second is taught by a teacher or instructor in person.

Self Taught

Those who are looking into these options will generally be faced with more personal challenges and fewer financial ones.  For self taught you only need to buy one set of materials and you never need to pay for them again.  The individual lesson costs otherwise can rack up some serious dollars over time.  The personal problems come when you need to be disciplined in your scheduling and practicing, not giving up.

With these you can practice or review what you’ve learned any time and any where.

The options under this category include various books and manuals, videotapes (for those who still have VHS), DVDs (slightly more expensive) and online violin lessons.

How to learn violin cheapest overall is through violin lessons online, as they can be complete courses covering a wide range of topics and skills.  To learn about some of the best options for these, visit our home page below.

Reviews of the Top Violin Lessons Online

Pro/Con Bullet Summary

Pro:

-Cheapest option

-Can be reviewed and practiced any time

-Convenient

Con:

-You have to judge your own progress

-You have to motivate yourself (or at least be creative)

Teacher Taught (in person)

With this option, you have direct, immediate feedback for private lessons.  This is often of less benefit in groups, though the group option is cheaper, often at about half the price.  These help to keep you scheduled and on the right track.  Teachers can help to keep you from getting discouraged while you’re trying to learn.  Generally you have to drive to and from your lessons at a specific place though.  You can theoretically learn via webcam, but that’s rare.

For more information on finding personal violin teachers, you may find this site useful.

How to Find a Violin Teacher

Pro/Con Bullet Summary

Pro:

-Immediate feedback from a professional (or whatever skill level of teacher you’ve chosen)

-Paced expectations and some help with motivation

Con:

-Expensive over time

-Can only be reviewed in memory (or notes)

-Have to be in a certain place to learn

Your options aren’t as limited as you might believe, but not all will be correct for your situation. Your selection will depend on your learning style and your budget. One of the ones you almost certainly already know about is the option of group instruction. It has a very hands-on approach style that ensures you get at least some of your practicing done. This is one of the better options on a budget.

Another choice you have is private fiddle lessons. These are the most expensive route, and vary widely in price with the experience of the teacher. The benefit of these is they allow you to truly tap into the experience of the teacher. You can go at your own pace and get immediate feedback during the lesson.

There are a few drawbacks to both options though. Should you forget something, you’re more or less out of luck until your next lesson. Additionally, whenever you have a set number of lessons in a certain amount of time, your growth rate is set. If you’re learning slower than expected, you’ll end up wasting money for some of your lessons, if you’re learning faster, your growth is restricted.

The final option doesn’t have these restrictions. It allows you the best of each style for a comparably low price. It is the choice of studying how to play fiddle online. These are set courses and videos designed by masters, outlining the best pathways to success. How fast you progress is entirely up to you as you can watch any lesson again and again or all of them in 1 day.

One particular such course was produced by Eric Lewis of the Manhattan String Quartet. Even if you had the option of getting private lessons from this man, it would no doubt be hundreds of dollars per lesson. But the cost isn’t what you’d expect it to be for such high-quality information. This is because online there is little overhead to deliver the product to you and the fiddle teacher need only invest his time once.

These are complete courses from start to finish with no extras needed, and often for less than the cost of a single private lesson. The primary two I know of costs around $30 total.

I’m Ready to Learn More About these Online Violin Lessons