A violin has four strings tuned a fifth apart: G, D, A and E, from the lowest and thickest to the highest. Once you know which tool to reach for, tuning takes about a minute. This guide covers the pegs, the fine tuners, the fragile E string and checking your tuning by ear.
01 The four strings
- G3, about 196 Hz: the lowest and thickest string.
- D4, about 293.7 Hz.
- A4, 440 Hz: the reference string.
- E5, about 659.3 Hz: the highest and thinnest.
These figures assume A4 = 440 Hz. Some orchestras tune a little higher, such as 442 Hz, and baroque groups often tune lower, at 415 Hz. Use whatever reference the people you play with use.
02 Pegs and fine tuners
The pegs in the pegbox make big changes. The fine tuners on the tailpiece make small ones. Student violins often have a fine tuner on every string; many others have one only on the E. Turning a fine tuner clockwise raises the pitch and counter-clockwise lowers it. A quarter turn is often enough.
03 Tune A first, then D, G and E
- Tune the A string to your tuner or reference note.
- Tune D, then G, then E. Bow or pluck each open string steadily and adjust until it reads in tune.
- Go round once more. Changing one string shifts the tension on the others, so a second pass usually needs only tiny corrections.
04 Using the pegs without slipping, and sparing the E
Turn a peg in small movements and press it gently into the pegbox as you turn, so it holds. Tune up to the note: if a string is sharp, lower it a little and bring it back up. The E string needs the most care. It is thin and tight, so even a small peg turn can take it far past the note and snap it. Get close with the peg, then finish with the fine tuner. If a peg will not hold, ask a teacher or a luthier rather than forcing it.
05 Check the bridge
Tuning pulls the top of the bridge towards the fingerboard. After a lot of tuning, look at it from the side. It should stand upright, with its back roughly at a right angle to the top of the violin. If it leans noticeably, ask your teacher or a luthier to show you how to straighten it, because a fallen bridge can damage the instrument.
06 Check your fifths by ear
Once each string reads in tune, bow two neighbouring strings together, such as A and D. An in-tune fifth sounds calm and steady. A slightly-off fifth has a slow wobble, called beating. Adjust the lower string until the wobble slows and stops. This is the same listening you will use for intonation every time you put a finger down.
07 Doing this with Soloist Violin
The free tuner in Soloist Violin shows how many cents each string is flat or sharp and suggests a fine-tuner turn or, when a string is far off, the peg. It warns you before a risky E-string tightening, and it won't suggest a peg turn when the reading is uncertain or an octave away. You can set A4 anywhere from 415 to 466 Hz, play a drone to tune by ear, practise tune-by-ear drills and switch to fiddle AEAE. It is free with no account, and listening runs on your iPhone.
Related reading
Questions
What are the notes of the violin strings?
From lowest to highest: G, D, A and E. In scientific pitch they are G3, D4, A4 and E5, each a fifth apart. With A4 at 440 Hz, the G string sounds at about 196 Hz and the E string at about 659 Hz.
Should I use the pegs or the fine tuners?
Use the fine tuners for small corrections. Use the pegs when a string is well off, has just been replaced, or the fine tuner has run out of thread. Many violins have a fine tuner only on the E string.
Why does my E string keep breaking?
The E string is thin and under high tension, so a small peg turn raises it a long way. Turn the peg in tiny movements, stop short of the note, and finish with the fine tuner.
What is fiddle AEAE tuning?
A cross-tuning used in some old-time fiddle music: the G string is raised to A and the D string to E, giving A, E, A, E. Retune to G, D, A, E before playing standard repertoire.