Free printable chart
Violin fingerboard chart, free printable first position
A selected first-position pattern on all four strings, with the finger that takes each note. Built to be printed and pinned somewhere you can see it while you play.
Practise one string at a time
Each string has its own note table, short exercise and one-page PDF. These references show the selected first-position pattern, not every accidental or higher position.
Save it as an image
The same chart as a single picture, for a phone lock screen, a slide, a class page, or a group chat. It carries its own title and address, so it still says what it is after it has been forwarded three times.
- Format
- PNG · 1200 × 1500
- Licence
- Free to use and share
Prefer paper? The version above this one is built for a printer and comes out clean in black and white.
Every note on the chart
The same information as the diagram, written out, open string first, then each finger.
- G string
- GABCD
- D string
- DEF♯GA
- A string
- ABC♯DE
- E string
- EF♯GAB
How to read it
The chart is a schematic diagram: strings run vertically, lowest on the left, with the nut across the top. Open strings sit above the nut as hollow circles; stopped notes are filled, with the note name inside and the finger number beside it.
On the G, D and A strings, the selected first-position frame places first finger a whole step above the open string, second finger a whole step above that, then a half step to third and a whole step to fourth. The E string is the exception you should notice: its second finger takes G natural rather than G sharp, which is why the spacing there looks different from the other three.
Fourth finger on the G, D and A strings sounds the same pitch as the next open string up. That is the single most useful intonation check on the chart, if your fourth-finger D on the G string does not ring with the open D, the hand frame has drifted.
What a chart cannot tell you
- This is one selected first-position frame. Low second finger (F natural on the D string, C natural on the A string) changes the finger spacing within first position; it does not require shifting the whole hand.
- Fingerboard charts show relative spacing, not exact millimetres, the real distances shrink as you go up, and they differ on a fractional-size instrument.
- Tapes or dots can provide a temporary reference, but they cannot replace listening. Decide how to use and remove them with your teacher.
Printing and sharing it
Open the print dialog
Press Ctrl+P on Windows or Cmd+P on a Mac, or choose Print from your browser menu.
Check the preview
The chart appears alone on one sheet, the navigation and the text around it are removed automatically, and colours are set to black on white so it photocopies cleanly.
Print, or save as PDF
Print it directly, or choose "Save as PDF" as the destination to get a file you can email to a student or a section.
Teachers are welcome to print these for a class or a section and hand them out. The chart carries its own address in the footer, which is all the credit we ask for.
Violin chart questions
- What are the notes on a violin in first position?
- On the G string: G, A, B, C, D. On the D string: D, E, F sharp, G, A. On the A string: A, B, C sharp, D, E. On the E string: E, F sharp, G, A, B. Those are the open string plus fingers one to four, in the selected first-position frame.
- How do I print this violin chart?
- Choose Download the PDF for a ready-made one-page file, free without an account or email. Print it at fit-to-page scale in black and white, or use the browser print button for the on-page chart.
- Should I put tapes on my violin fingerboard?
- Tapes can give beginners a temporary visual reference, but their placement depends on instrument size and the note pattern being learned. Ask your teacher whether they will help, and practise listening as well as looking.
- Why does the E string have a different pattern?
- Because the notes of the scale fall differently there. On the E string the second finger takes G natural, a half step above F sharp, where on the other strings the second finger sits a whole step above the first. Same hand, different spacing, and it is the pattern beginners most often get wrong.
A chart shows you where. Arco shows you why.
The violin curriculum builds the hand frame this chart describes, with the staff, the keyboard, and the fingerboard shown together on every concept.