> ...To clarify, I mean normal mostly in the plane perpendicular to the string (across the body)... Ah, we're talking about exactly the same thing. Just a ques

> ...To clarify, I mean normal mostly in the plane perpendicular to the string (across the body)... Ah, we're talking about exactly the same thing. Just a question of how we phrase it. > After lots of practice (perhaps less for you, since you are already accustomed to playing without a shoulder rest -- I wasn't yet), you can get it to a minimum even in Concertos like the Tchaikovsky. I tried to go full Baroque first where I shifted around an immobile thumb. Despite having big hands, there's that down shift in the first movement of the Mendelssohn. I spent a few weeks trying to figure out how to reliably make that shift without using the chin, and never found a way. So at this point I ideally only apply pressure to the chin rest when I need to do a downshift, and only just enough to keep it the violin from pulling away from my neck. I've found Ricci's recommendation of glissando scales to be a great way of training this (as well as so much else): ascend without touching the violin with your chin. Descend with as little pressure on the violin as you can manage.