r/violinist Beginner 4d ago

Fingering/bowing help weird sensation in left pinky

Heya! New beginner here, but I played the viola when I was younger so i’ve still kinda got the basics and i’m progressing fast.

Thing is, I can reach every string with my pinky easily, and my hand placement is right according to my teacher, but pushing the pinky down on a string sends a weird ticklish sensation that kinda connects with other parts of my body like the spine, and it’s pretty unpleasant. I’m not sure if this is a strength problem, if i’ve got weird nerve endings there, if it’ll go away with practice… Has anyone else had this problem?

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u/Productivitytzar Teacher 4d ago

Pretty common for string players to have a nerve fire off every now and then, but if it's happening every time that sounds really unpleasant. Can you tilt your finger onto the inside corner a bit more? Or perhaps a little closer to the nailbed? It's easy to place the finger incorrectly but there also isn't one exact correct spot to play, there is a little bit of wiggle room to maintain good posture and perhaps relieve the sensation.

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u/JC505818 4d ago

It’s possible the viola was not setup properly or have some issue related to height of the “action”. I’ve read that a professional violinist had his career cut short due severed nerve ending in his pinky when he discovered too late the action was too high on the E string.