By Mairi Loynd
Violin is a very popular instrument in this country; it is the seventh most popular in the world. Scotland has produced many great violinists, like Nicola Benedetti, and other string players. However violin is one of the hardest instruments to play according to many studies.
The violin is played with a bow which draws on the strings. It is one of the hardest because you must hold it in the right position, keeping the right posture.
“I started playing the violin when I was 7 years old but, I wanted to start when I was 5, but there was no opportunity in school. I think the younger you are the quicker you learn music,” said Jenny Cz, an S2 grade 5 violinist. Mrs Grant is Jenny’s violin teacher she said that she started the cello when she was 6 years old. She said that then the auditions to play an internment were different, “they looked at your hands and if you had the right hands for the cello you would play the cello. So I played the cello and loved it as soon as I started.”
Mrs Grant is the teacher at Fortrose Academy, and teaches in primary schools in this area. She has done all the grades on the cello, Diplomas on singing, and is on O-Grade level on piano. She also leads the orchestra at Fortrose Academy; “My favourite instrument to teach is the cello, but I do love Orchestra because everyone gets together and is sounds great.” She said, “I have had many great achievements but what really makes me feel proud is when my pupils go off and do incredible things. My best ever pupil plays in an orchestra in New Zealand and is a very good professional cellist.”
Jenny, on the other hand, is a pupil at Fortrose Academy who plays the violin. She has just done grade 4 and has successfully passed her exam with merit (which is better than a pass but not quite as good as perfect). Although she is only 13, she can make lots of money by going busking in the streets of Inverness, “when I go busking I make around £70 an hour.” But to get to the level Jenny is at, she has to do lots of practise, “I practise five times a week for around an hour.” Jenny is also part of two different orchestras: the Fortrose Academy orchestra and the Highland Youth Strings. “I think it’s a really good to play as part of a group, you get to meet lots of people and play different styles of music.”
Many people quit music before they are able to play well as they find it too hard. However all they need to do is practise, even Mrs Grant has to practise. Look out for Jenny as she could be the next Nicola Benedetti.
“I started playing the violin when I was 7 years old but, I wanted to start when I was 5, but there was no opportunity in school. I think the younger you are the quicker you learn music,” said Jenny Cz, an S2 grade 5 violinist. Mrs Grant is Jenny’s violin teacher she said that she started the cello when she was 6 years old. She said that then the auditions to play an internment were different, “they looked at your hands and if you had the right hands for the cello you would play the cello. So I played the cello and loved it as soon as I started.”
Mrs Grant is the teacher at Fortrose Academy, and teaches in primary schools in this area. She has done all the grades on the cello, Diplomas on singing, and is on O-Grade level on piano. She also leads the orchestra at Fortrose Academy; “My favourite instrument to teach is the cello, but I do love Orchestra because everyone gets together and is sounds great.” She said, “I have had many great achievements but what really makes me feel proud is when my pupils go off and do incredible things. My best ever pupil plays in an orchestra in New Zealand and is a very good professional cellist.”
Jenny, on the other hand, is a pupil at Fortrose Academy who plays the violin. She has just done grade 4 and has successfully passed her exam with merit (which is better than a pass but not quite as good as perfect). Although she is only 13, she can make lots of money by going busking in the streets of Inverness, “when I go busking I make around £70 an hour.” But to get to the level Jenny is at, she has to do lots of practise, “I practise five times a week for around an hour.” Jenny is also part of two different orchestras: the Fortrose Academy orchestra and the Highland Youth Strings. “I think it’s a really good to play as part of a group, you get to meet lots of people and play different styles of music.”
Many people quit music before they are able to play well as they find it too hard. However all they need to do is practise, even Mrs Grant has to practise. Look out for Jenny as she could be the next Nicola Benedetti.