Lots of violinists, and especially some younger players, seem drawn to the idea of a five-string electric violin. So many of our customers, especially parents buying an electric for violinists in their early teens, wonder if playing a five-string electric violin will be detrimental to the player's classical technique. We've even had a couple of adult beginners who had to trade in their five-string electric for a four string, when they were unable to find a teacher willing to take on a beginner who was starting with a five string. For younger players and adult beginners, we usually suggest that they ask their teacher's opinion. The problem is that many studio violin and school orchestra teachers have little or no experience with a five-string instrument, so they often stay in their comfort zone, and recommend a four string. We recently had this inquiry from an Australian customer whose daughter's teacher plays a five-string acoustic. As usual, we suggested she ask her teacher whether he thought a five-string electric would harm her classical technique. His answer wasn't terribly surprising to us, except that it ran counter to what we'd heard from some teachers. He told her that, if anything, playing the five-string violin would improve her G string technique. This answer resonated with me, personally, as it never made sense to me that the additional attention to string crossing technique a five string requires would harm my four-string technique. Since, in the past, we'd heard the opposite advice from some teachers, we took the question to several well-known string educators, players, and clinicians, to see what they thought of a younger player taking up the five-string electric. Julie Lyonn Lieberman said that, "Playing a four string and a five string fosters the development of spatial acuity in the right brain, creat(ing) a vital and useful mental heirarchy betwen the motor cortices and both hands." Both Daryl Silberman and Scott Laird felt that the five-string violin was a different animal. They agreed that the five string wasn't an instrument for classical study, and both stressed that a young player would need the self-discipline required to keep up their classical studies while learning what was, essentially, a new instrument. Scott said that, even after playing 5-string violins for 20 years, he still has to warm up before he's comfortable making the transition from his traditional acoustic. All three of the educators we spoke to agreed that a five-string electric was better suited to an advanced or advancing player. Julie stated that, "The young players I've met who have the most awesome abilities are the ones who can acrobatically hop on and off of a number of instruments without being phased. Our idea that fixed position reigns supreme is a misnomer." Daryl felt that the five string was best for a student that was "specifically interested in the technical challenges" of a 5-string violin. Both she and Scott agreed that a 5 string was more an instrument for exploration and improvisation; Scott specifically mentioned that "reading notes on a five is harder than improvising or playing by ear. (Players reading on a 5 string had) a tendency to drop to the C string when they saw notes on the G string." Scott Laird said that getting your first electric "is different enough that getting a five is just too much change at once," and felt that players should "get a five when you're finished with your preparatory life. Why have the extra issues to deal with?" In the end, only Julie Lyonn Lieberman came down solidly in favor of teen players taking up a five string. "Yes, there might be some awkwardness at first," she said, "but the outcome is spectacular: multi-leveled skills that truly prepare our students for 21st century strings." But none of the educators we spoke to said that playing a five-string would directly harm a player's classical technique. So, does that mean you should go ahead and get a five-string electric violin? That depends on you -- on the type of music you play, and what you want to do with it. Learning to play a five string can be a challenge, especially in the area of bow technique. Before you decide to make the leap, ask yourself: how strongly are you drawn to the lower pitches of the five-string violin, and how much will you really use that extra range? If you get a five string but really only play on the top four, you've made your life harder for nothing. Additional practice is required to master the new bow angles of the five string, and you'll still have to keep up your practice time on your four-string acoustic. But if the extra range is important to you and the music you want to make, then check with your teacher to make sure they have no objections, and then get the instrument that will inspire you to take your music to a deeper level.

About Our Panel of Educators

Scott Laird has been performing on five-string electric violins for more than 20 years. He is nationally visible as a Education Specialist for D'Addario Strings, NS Design Violins, and Coda Bows where he is a noted as an authority on string education as well as electric string instruments and their applications in the classroom. He is an Instructor of Music and Fine Arts Coordinator at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, where he directs the orchestra and teaches courses in Recording Technology, Classical Guitar and Piano, and Music History. He is an active string educator, performer, recording artist, and conductor. His orchestras have been recognized at the local, regional, and national level for their superior and musically mature performances.
Eclectic styles maven Julie Lyonn Lieberman is internationally known as an educator and clinician specializing in alternative styles, improvisation, and ergonomics for string players. The Artistic Director for the summer program, Strings Without Boundaries at Duquesne, she is an eclectic styles violinist and vocalist, who specializes in improvisation and American vernacular as well as world styles. Ms. Lieberman has helped build what she calls 21st century music education over the last thirty+ years through her work as an international educator, author, radio producer, composer, recording artist, journalist, and performer. Ms. Lieberman is the author of two National Public Radio series, eight music books and six DVD titles, including Improvising Violin, The Contemporary Violinist, and Techniques for The Contemporary String Player, to name a few. She helped develop the Alternative Styles component for American String Teachers Association in 2002/2003, was chair of the 2004 committee, and wrote and produced ASTA's DVD, "Alternative Styles in the Classroom." She has introduced improvisation to programs for important institutions like Juilliard and Carnegie, is on the American String Teachers National Curriculum Committee as creative consultant, and is a D'Addario Elite Clinician. Alfred Publishing publishes her alternative-style string orchestra scores and Hal Leonard distributes her books and DVDs.
Daryl Silberman has recorded or played with diverse groups and artists ranging from baroque ensembles, chamber groups, and regional and movie studio orchestras, to stadium acts such as Guns 'N Roses and Depeche Mode. First as Product Specialist for Yamaha and then in more than a decade as a national clinician for Knilling, Daryl has performed on both traditional acoustic violins, five-string acoustic-electrics, and five-string electrics. She has presented workshops and clinics nationwide, served as Alternative Styles chair for the national ASTA conference, and been invited to present clinics at the Australian String Teachers Conference. She is currently the Orchestra Director at West Salem High School in Oregon, a program comprised of three string orchestras and a full symphony orchestra.