Sep 7, 2025

How to play in tune without using tapes

Meghan Faw
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To use finger tapes or to not use finger tapes is a heavily debated topic in the adult violin learner community.

I used to hold a very strong opinion on the matter: all students should use tapes, no matter what.

However, as I have become a more experienced teacher, worked with over 200 adult violin students, and interacted with hundreds more, I have since changed my mind (isn't it great how we can do that?!) 😅

Now, I believe you should do whatever works best for you.

There are certainly pros and cons to using or not using finger tapes.

Pros of using finger tapes

You are going to sound better quicker. Since you have a guide for where your fingers should go, you will land them in tune more often and therefore sound better quicker than someone not using tapes.
You will build muscle memory faster. Since your fingers are landing in the correct spot more often than not, they will learn where that spot is quicker and be able to land in tune when you decide the finger tapes should come off.

Cons of using finger tapes

Becoming too reliant on them. One major danger of using tapes is not truly listening to the pitch of your notes and simply relying on the tapes.

Pros of not using finger tapes

Your ear will develop more quickly. Those who are not using finger tapes are forced to listen more intently than those who use them, which helps them develop their pitch quicker.

Cons of not using finger tapes

It may take awhile to develop both your ear and your muscle memory.

Tip #1: Listen!

Listen to both the music and yourself. One of the quickest and least labor-intensive ways to improve your pitch is to listen to classical music. Ideally, you would be listening to the piece(s) that you're currently playing and classical music in general. Two of my favorite pieces are the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto and the Bach Chaconne. If you haven't heard them, I highly recommend giving them a listen.

Additionally, when you're practicing, you need to truly listen to the pitch of every single note and be hyper critical of your intonation.

Tip #2: Use a tuner

I have seen other professional violinists online bash the idea of using a tuner, but I think it's incredibly important and useful, especially for a beginner. If you don't know what the pitches should sound like (yet!) and you don't have anything to tell you if you're right or wrong..how will you ever improve or learn?

The tuner that I personally use is the Korg TM-40, but there are a ton of free online tuners, too. All tuners are a little bit different, but your goal is to get the green light to turn on when playing each one of your notes-that tells you you're in tune. When the light turns on, try to internalize how that pitch should sound.

Tip #3: Play with backing tracks

Playing along with others is one of the best ways to improve your intonation; however, not all adult learners have a musical community around them, or even access to a private teacher. This is where YouTube comes in! I have several recordings of me playing different pieces, both classical and popular, on my YouTube channel for you to play along with. When playing with backing tracks, your goal is to match the pitch of the person you're playing with. This is a little bit trickier than playing with a tuner, because even if you can tell that you're off, you might not know which direction you need to change to (if you're too high or too low). My best tip for that is make your best guess, and if the pitch is getting worse rather than better, you need to go back the other way.

Tip #4: Practice landing the note in tune

When you hit a note out of tune, what do you do? Do you just wiggle your finger around until you find the right spot and then move on? It's ok, I've been guilty of that too 😅 What you need to do instead is go back to the previous note and practice landing the note in tune. If you just wiggle your finger around, you're practicing adjusting, not hitting the note in tune in the first place, which is the ultimate goal.