I ran into some videos that demonstrate proper tail piece placement. Turns out that the strings behind the bridge need to be tuned in order to get the most out of your violin sound. Mine was completely off. About a month after using my violin, the tail piece fastener was damaged. The threads on the fastener were stripped and I could not keep the violin tune for more than a few seconds.
I rushed to my local music store (which is a store that I will never enter again). I asked them for a violin tailpiece fastener. They sold me a tailpiece fastener that looked similar to the one that my violin came with. I replaced the fastener myself, and was able to play my violin without a problem. Last week (about 4 months later), I found out that the fastener I’ve been using is far longer than the original. As a result – this whole time – I’ve had a tailpiece that needed to be tuned and adjusted farther away from the bridge.
I decided to visit a violin shop I have never been to before (Metzler Violin Shop in Glendale, CA). They were so helpful! They sold me a good solid tailpiece fastener that was compatible to my violin size AND allowed to try on some of their chin rests. (Got a new chin rest too)
I adjusted my violin tailpiece myself – it was a bit of a pain because it takes a lot of work to get the strings back in tune. Once that was accomplished, I was able to try out my violin. Viola! The sound is better! The tunes sound more clear. I’m so excited and happy about this and look forward to recording my progress with my improved violin.
