Slow going

I've been working on this Network Learning Project - you know, the one where I thought, "Hey, I'll learn how to play violin!" Turns out, that is a tall order.

One of the things I learned pretty quickly was that playing violin isn't easy. I found a great quote on Reddit (Cici, 2021) that helped me understand how much WORK goes into learning violin.

As I dug deeper in online resources, many of the forums that I found pointed me to on violin maintenance and preparation before I even begin practicing. I've also realized that I'm skipping LOADS of steps related to practicing scales, learning proper finger placement and bow-hold technique, as well as scads of other practical techniques and skills I should know before ever attempting to play an actual song.

But I also have found that I don't really care that I'm ill-prepared. I have approached this task as a true hobbyist, knowing almost nothing upon entry, just enjoying the feeling of picking up the violin, trying different positions to see what feels comfortable, running into issues and exploring solutions on the web (peg slipping is super frustrating!).

I have mentioned "affinity spaces" (Gee, 2018) a lot the last few weeks, and the more I've spent time reading about 21st Century Learning and different theories regarding how to best promote understanding, I believe affinity spaces are such a cool template for allowing learners to jump in at any level and start participating, and I feel that is how I'm engaging with this endeavor.

So here is a quick video of where I'm at so far. It's not exactly a "before and after," but I'd say the "before" is my preconception of how easy this would be, and the "after" is how it's going. I'm loving every minute.

References:

Cici. [Cici_Lane]. (2021, August 20). should i learn violin or not？[Online forum post]. Reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/lingling40hrs/comments/p8419b/should_i_learn_violin_or_not/

Djawadi, Ramin (2011). Game of Thrones Theme [Recorded by Ramin Djawadi]. On Game of Thrones: Season 1 [Album]. Varèse Sarabande.

Elmer, S. (2021, October 10). Epic GoT violin solo [video]. Imgur. https://imgur.com/a/XwGqPHy

The Online Piano & Violin Tutor. (2015, January 10). 5 ways to stop violin pegs from slipping [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiizJ6K3rPE