Virtual Violin Online
This virtual violin is a keyboard with a violin sound that covers the instrument's usual range, from G3, the lowest string, up to G7. The screen shows two, three or four octaves depending on its width, and the octave buttons take you through the rest. Each note sounds for as long as you hold the key, with a soft, bow-like attack and a vibrato that fades in, and stops when you let go.
How to use it
- Tap the keys with your fingers or click them with the mouse. A note keeps sounding for as long as you hold the key, and you can play several together to make intervals and chords.
- On a computer, Z X C V B N M play C D E F G A B from C4, and Q W E R T Y U I go from C5 to C6. The sharps sit on the row above each one: S D G H J and 2 3 5 6 7. If you change octave, both rows move with it.
- Use the octave buttons or the arrow keys to move up or down. A phone held upright shows two octaves, sideways three, and a wide screen all four.
- Tap Record, play, then tap again to stop. Then use Play, ↓ MIDI, ↓ WAV or Share.
- With the MIDI keyboard button you can play the violin from a keyboard connected over USB.
Help and explanations
The sound is synthesized on your device by adding harmonics. It is not a recording of a real violin, and there is no bow, no strings and no positions to find: you play it like a keyboard, including your computer keyboard. Use it to work out a melody by ear, hear a passage before you practice it on the violin, or just play for fun. Anything you play can be recorded, downloaded as MIDI or WAV and shared with a link.
The violin's open strings
The violin is tuned in fifths: G3, D4, A4 and E5, from the lowest string to the highest. On this keyboard you can play those four notes to remind yourself how they sound or to hear the perfect fifth between two neighboring strings. To actually tune, use the violin tuner, which listens to your instrument through the microphone.
The lowest note on the keyboard is G3 because that is the lowest open string: the violin has nothing below it. At the top, the keyboard reaches G7, high up on the E string.
Virtual violin and a real violin
On a real violin the sound comes from the bow: pressure, speed and contact point change the tone and the volume. Here a note always sounds the same, and you only control when it starts and stops. So the virtual violin is for learning a melody and the pitch of the notes, not violin technique.
The MIDI file you download uses the General MIDI Violin instrument, so it opens with a violin sound in MuseScore or your notation app.
Tips
- To hear the open strings, play G3, D4, A4 and E5 one after another: in the four-octave view they are all on the same screen.
- In Settings, Chord or scale lights up the keys of a scale and Listen plays it for you. D major and A major are among the first scales violinists learn.
- Play the melody along with the metronome to lock in the rhythm before you take it to the instrument.
- To sharpen your ear, ear training gives you intervals and chords to recognize.
Frequently asked questions
How do I play the virtual violin with my computer keyboard?
Z X C V B N M play C4 to B4, and Q W E R T Y U I play C5 to C6; the sharps are on S D G H J and 2 3 5 6 7. It's the same on a phone and on a wide screen. The arrow keys change octave and Esc releases everything.
What notes does the virtual violin have?
G3 to G7: four octaves, the usual range of the violin. The open strings are G3, D4, A4 and E5.
Is it a real violin sound?
It's a sound synthesized on your device, not a recording: harmonics close to those of a bowed string, a soft attack and vibrato. It doesn't imitate bow strokes or pizzicato.
Can I practice with my own violin?
Yes. Open Challenge: play the note, turn on the microphone and play the note the site asks for on your violin: it recognizes the note by its sound, on your device, without recording.
Can I record and share what I played?
Yes. Tap Record, play and stop. The Share link carries the notes in the address, and the ↓ MIDI and ↓ WAV buttons download the file.