How to tune a child's violin: a guide for parents

A violin has four strings, tuned to G, D, A, and E. To tune one, clip on an electronic tuner, pluck a string, and turn the small screw at the bottom of that string until the tuner shows the right note. A parent who does not play can learn this in ten minutes. Small violins go out of tune every day, so it is a skill worth having.

What you need

• A clip-on tuner, or a tuner app on a phone
• A quiet room
• Two minutes before each practice

The four strings

Hold the violin upright, facing you, with the scroll at the top. From left to right, the strings are:

String	Note	Thickness
Left	G	Thickest and lowest
Next	D
Next	A
Right	E	Thinnest and highest

Children remember the order with a sentence such as “Good Dogs Always Eat.”

Two ways to change a string

Fine tuners. These are the small metal screws on the tailpiece, at the bottom end of the strings. They make small changes. Most small violins have one for each string. Use them for everyday tuning.

Pegs. These are the four wooden knobs at the top. They make big changes. A small turn of a peg moves the note a long way. Use them only when a string is far off.

Step by step with the fine tuners

1. Clip the tuner to the scroll or to the edge of the body. Turn it on.
2. Start with the A string. Pluck it with a finger and let it ring.
3. Read the tuner. It shows a letter and a needle or a bar.
4. If the letter is A and the needle is left of center, the note is flat, which means too low. Turn the fine tuner to the right, the way you would tighten a jar lid.
5. If the needle is right of center, the note is sharp, which means too high. Turn the fine tuner to the left.
6. Pluck again. Repeat until the needle sits in the middle.
7. Do the same for D, then G, and then E.
8. Go back and check all four. Changing one string can shift the others a little.

If the letter is wrong

If you pluck the A string and the tuner shows G or G-sharp, the string is far too low. The fine tuner cannot fix that. You need the peg.

How to use a peg

Pegs are held in place by friction. They slip if they are not pushed in, and strings snap if they are turned too far. Take your time.

1. Rest the violin on your lap, facing you.
2. Turn the peg toward you a little to loosen the string first.
3. Then turn it away from you in tiny moves, and push the peg in toward the scroll box as you turn.
4. Pluck the string after each tiny move, and watch the tuner.
5. Stop a little below the note. Finish with the fine tuner.

Never give a peg more than a quarter turn at a time.

How to avoid a broken string

• Tune up to the note from below. Do not go past it.
• Watch the letter on the tuner. If you pass the note you want and keep going, the string will snap.
• Take most care with the E string. It is the thinnest.
• Keep faces away from the strings while you turn a peg.

A broken string is not a disaster. Teachers and string shops replace them in a few minutes. It is wise to keep a spare set in the case.

When a fine tuner runs out

A fine tuner that has been screwed all the way down will not turn any farther. Unscrew it most of the way. Then bring the string back up with the peg, and finish with the fine tuner.

Check the bridge

The bridge is the thin piece of wood that holds the strings up. Tuning with the pegs pulls its top toward the fingerboard over time. Look at it from the side. The back of the bridge, the side that faces the tailpiece, should stand straight up.

If the bridge leans, ask the teacher to set it right. Do not push it yourself until you have been shown how.

When to ask the teacher

• A peg will not stay put, or will not turn.
• The bridge is leaning or has fallen.
• A string buzzes or looks frayed.
• The violin will not hold its tuning from one day to the next.

Pegs slip most in winter, when heating dries the air. A case humidifier helps. A string shop can treat sticky or slipping pegs.

How often?

Before every practice. A new set of strings stretches for a week or so and needs tuning more often. Changes in the weather and car rides knock a violin out of tune as well.

In time, your child will learn to tune. The teacher will say when to hand over the fine tuners, and later the pegs.

Things to do together

Which is higher? Pluck two strings. Ask your child which one is higher.

Too low, too high, or right? Turn a fine tuner a little out of tune while your child looks away. Pluck the string and ask whether it is flat or sharp. Then fix it together.

Sing the strings. Pluck each open string and sing its note name on that pitch.

Print and play

Keep a note of what the teacher asks for on a lesson notes page. Check the fit with the violin size finder. For the small items a beginner needs, read violin accessories for beginners. Read the violin for kids for the parts of the instrument, and the Suzuki parent guide for home practice.

For all four families, see instruments of the orchestra for kids.