This is going to be some strange, if not funny, advice. 

   How do you hold the violin? Well, let's start again: how do YOU hold the violin. Take a look at any of the videos of the major violinists today and one thing you will see is that they all hold the violin differently. Some use a shoulder rest, some do not. Some hold the violin high , some hold it low. (Have you seen Hilary Hahn?)

It matters not. What matters is that they are all totally relaxed. And you must be also. So, don't fret about "the right way" to hold your violin. You are you. Hold it so that you are comfortable. If it droops a little, try holding it up. If you hold your violin very high, let it droop and try that.  Who are you? Do you have to do what they say? Do you think the gypsies are told, too high, too low, bend this, straighten that? Nope. They are taught by ear, most cannot even read music, but they listen real hard.

Still, that being said, there are some "principles" that everyone must know. Playing the violin is easy. Yes. IF you know the angles. Every snooker player alive knows the "angles" of a table. As a violin player? You should know your OWN angles. There are some bow strokes that are pretty impossible if the angles are wrong. Correct the angles and everything becomes really easy.

What are angles? These angles? Easy. It is the angle, or the angles between the violin and the bow, and depend on your height, the length of your arms, your weight etc, so, ONLY YOU can figure these out. here is a hint. Watch every video you can on youtube of great violinist. Do you EVER see them doing something "funny?" ie, is their right wrist bent out of shape at the heel of the bow? Never. Why? Because they have figured out, and are using their own best angles!

So, how to do that? Easy. Holding the violin. Try this! Hold the violin as much to the "right" as you can. Then, place your bow at the heel (frog), (thick-end) of the bow, and go further and further to the right with the violin, all the time trying to keep the bow parallel to the bridge. Pretty soon it will become impossible, not to mention painful.

Now, from the position of far-right, start to move the violin to the left. And keep going. Notice how, eventually, your right wrist will "flatten out?", ie, it will no longer HAVE to bend to keep the bow parallel? Keep going until it becomes silly. Now, feel that strain? Well, ease off. That's it. just let the violin come to the right, and, wow!! how easy does THAT feel! AND, your bow is parallel! AND, your right wrist "looks!" correct! That is because it is.

From here? you can easily go all the way down to the point of the bow. All the time keeping the bow parallel. Now, notice what happens? NOW you know WHY they say, you have to "push" out from the middle to the tip! It is just , and only for this reason, to keep the bow parallel with the bridge! EVERYTHING comes from the shoulder, but you let your "forearm" hinge and unhinge by pushing and pulling to keep the bow straight. That is it. That is everything. So, EVERY bow stroke becomes the same. Just shorter or longer. Everything from the same starting point: The Shoulder!!!

    The point is that there is no "right" way unless that way is giving you the maximum amount of freedom. Play with your violin. Do daft things. Hold it way to the left, or way to the right, and see how you have to change your bow arm to accommodate the new position. (If you move your violin way to the left? Your right arm will have to follow!) closer? Pinched? Ja, you get it. Your violin, your body. Your choice.

(They will not tell you this! But, see, if you go to a real academy? Conservatoire? They will ask you WHY, and how you feel.   What feels good? What feels easy? What feels more difficult? Try different things. It is your body and your violin. If you continually think about being relaxed and free to move when you play you will eventually find the correct hold for yourself. And that fantastic feeling of freedom. They will never "tell" you to "do" something that they have read in a book. They will ask you how YOU feel, and ask you to experiment. "Play in the dark, how do you feel?", said Shevalov.

Everything else is a lie. You must do this work yourself. Nobody can tell you how it feels. You must feel it for yourself.

By the way, don't forget to watch, to notice, how every change in how you hold the violin affects how you hold and move the bow. Study what you do. I used to be hooked on a shoulder rest. Until I had a concert and forgot it. I had to play without it. It was not very "easy" but I got through it. After that I started just picking up a violin without a shoulder rest. I gave up trying to work out "how" to hold the thing (the violin) and just played. Eventually I held the violin differently. How differently? Just enough to allow me to play easily without a shoulder rest. Always keeping relaxed!

Now, I can choose. Sometimes I play with a shoulder rest. Sometimes I can't be bothered and it disturbs me (less contact with the violin). Other times I enjoy the "added security."

Point is this: do what feels right for you at the time. The most important thing is that you know how to RELAX! It is so often overlooked, but watch ANY video on the internet of ANY "famous" person play? They are ALL totally relaxed!

So, holding the violin? Pick it up. Put it down. Hold it while watching TV. Take it for a walk and stick it under your chin. Let it talk to you.

   Let go, have fun and watch the video! (I am going to change that! Was messing around with a viola, and new video software!

Btw? here is just some detail about that shoulder rest!!

Ok! I was hired to do a TEDx in Ethiopia, in Addis Ababa. It was for three months! Thing is, I had a PC Laptop with me and it crashed!! Now, as anyone who has been to Ethiopia knows the internet is terrible! And there I was, with no music program! Ableton Live, which I had been using, is a huge download and would have taken DAYS!!!! Well, imagine my surprise when I found the Reaper DAW (Digital Audio Workstation!!! Tiny at 11MB full download. And free to try for 3 months, then only $60 for the full license?? And, oh Lord was I in for a surprise!! I thought Reaper was a kiddy program! I could not have been more wrong!! It did EVERYTHING Albeton could do, just faster and more reliably.. (It never crashed!). Result? I used it for all of my concerts in Ethiopia: I played at the Alliance Francais, Radio and TV, 5* Hotels, Restaurants, all with 1) No shoulder rest!! and 2) Reaper!!

(Ps, there are many free videos of my concerts there. so, google is your friend. As I said, I don't say things like "I won many international competitions (there are acutally not that many, and, I DID actually win some!! lol!!) and, well... google me.