"Come across" is very sloppy reading and thinking. Read here again, once again, over again, yet again, one more time: Smart has nothing to do with it. Instea

"Come across" is very sloppy reading and thinking. Read here again, once again, over again, yet again, one more time: Smart has nothing to do with it. Instead, to know how to hold a violin, just look at some good pictures. They worked for me. Then Galamian's book helped some more. Don't have to be very smart to look at some pictures. All the old 33 RPM record stores had lots of record jackets with great pictures. One extra point: Really SHOULD be able to hold the violin in its correct position using just the chin and left shoulder without either hand. So, this way the left hand is free to make music instead of holding the violin. Frequently at concerts can see the performer, say, between pieces, holding their violin without their hands. One more point: The left thumb should be relaxed and slightly, naturally, comfortably curved and NOT stressfully bent backwards. Again, yet again, once again, over again, one more time, we HOLD the violin with our chin and left shoulder and NOT with our left hand. The left hand is relaxed and making music, NOT stressfully holding the violing. For GREAT details, just look at the video clips of Fischer and Hahn. These are all standard, common, first day violin lessons and can nearly all be seen easily in long readily available pictures with more from good books, e.g., Galamian. Every beginning violin student has to struggle for a while learning how to hold the instrument. So, the task is well understood. The solution? Easy, just look at some readily available pictures as I illustrated with several examples from old record jackets. For the audience here, if anyone wants to start violin or has a child that does, then a good way to learn how to hold the instrument is just to look at some pictures, including the ones I gave here. And now, much better still, look at the two videos I gave, Fischer and Hahn. Any good violinist can confirm that those two are doing JUST FINE. So what I'm saying here, just dirt simple, look at some pictures, could have helped the author of the OP and anyone starting violin now. Don't look at some good pictures of good violinists, e.g., Heifetz, and maybe have the pains and horrible problems in the OP. Look at the pictures and avoid all that. Simple. And somehow you object to my little contribution here?????? Bizarre.