Three-Year-Old Violin Lesson?

Violin lessons for a three-year-old? You've got to be kidding me. That, at least, is what I told Gunnar's violin teacher, who is set to start teaching him in two weeks. She describes a lesson with a three-year-old as "busy." And, she says, "we are a teacher, parent, student triangle." Which means I attend all lessons and supposedly learn alongside him.

At which point, I recalled my one and only experience with a violin -- an experience I did not share with her, but I'm about to share with you:

I have always been intrigued with the instrument, so I visited the violin shop off of Church Street several years ago. I taught myself how to play guitar with a beginner book and a cheap guitar; how hard could violin be? I explained this to the violin shop people, and they agreed; and they said I could rent a violin for 30 days to "try it on." Interesting!

I asked if I could see the instrument, and they handed me one of the rentals. I opened a "Violin 1" book, which I'm sorry to say didn't really make much sense. Still, here I was: in a violin shop holding a violin and a bow. Now or never, right? I positioned the instrument on my shoulder and held the bow in place. I placed fingers on strings and paused, holding the bow inches about the strings ready to slide.

There were probably six other people in the shop (employees included) that were exposed to the... the sound... ("screech" would probably better describe it) that came off that instrument at the moment when bow hit string. There was no second try: I put the beginner book down and returned the instrument to the counter without making eye contact or communicating in any way. I immediately left the shop.

Hopefully Gunnar's first violin experience is better!