Viola

When it comes to choosing a musical instrument, the most common philosophy would be that the more one would spend, the better the quality of the musical instrument. While that may be true at some degree, this rule does not always apply when choosing a viola for your child. There are some parents who would get a viola with excellent sound for a very low price while on the contrast; some people would get a viola with inferior sound quality for a considerably expensive price.

In choosing a viola for your child, there are a lot of criteria that you should consider. However, while tone is very important, it is not the single most important criteria when choosing a viola. With that, here are some important characteristics that you should look for when buying a viola for your child.

Size and Shape

Violas come in different sizes which would typically range from 15 � inches to around 21 inches in length. Lately, violas have begun to come in different shapes to provide maximum comfort for the one playing it. Some of these new shapes would include an inverted shoulder on the upper side to make it easier for the violist to shift as well as one that would have to be held in between the legs like a cello.

Size and shapes have to be taken heavily when choosing a viola for your child as having your child end up with the wrong dimensions could result in health problems such as carpal tunnel syndrome, back problems, and neck problems. With this, it can be said that a small 15 � inches up to a 16 � inches are some of the safest sizes.

While there are different sizes and shapes of violas, the length of the strings of these instruments were never given a standard to follow. Because of that, we can see large violas with short strings or shorter violas with longer strings that the larger types. For children, a shorter viola with considerably longer strings would be good to start with since this type makes the strings easier for short arms to reach.

Playability

For your child to be able to get the most out of his or her chosen instrument, the playability of the instrument must match your child's needs. When it comes to playing the viola, your child would want one that gives the easiest response possible unlike violinists who want their instruments to fight back a little. Since the viola is bigger than a typical violin, the sound would be more difficult to get out also, the strings are more difficult to stop with the left hand therefore, the viola is more physically challenging.

The violas that are easier to play are those that have a darker alto tone as compared to those with brighter tones however, the darker the tone is on the lower range, the more chances it will be that the tone will also be darker on the higher strings where brightness is necessary. That is why for beginners, a viola with a considerably dark tonal quality is recommended and as their skills in playing would progress, they could move to another viola with a brighter tonal quality.

Physical Appearance

Violas are made by different people from different places and with different workmanship styles. This tells us why a lot of violas would look different from each other or why some violas look better than others. While that is so, the thing to take note of here is that physical appearance does not affect the playability or the tonal quality of a viola. Aside from beauty, physical appearance has virtually no other use.

The gold standard for beauty when it comes to violas are the classical Italian looking ones and while craftsmen would dedicate their time and efforts into making each viola look like one, a lot of them would rather focus on the tonal quality they would produce.

Where It Was Made

Italy has the best reputation when it comes to producing violas, probably because Italy is the viola's country of origin. So if you are considering an Italian made viola for your child, there are great chances that that viola is created by one person. The magic word when considering a viola is handmade in opposition of machine made ones.