What does instrument sizes mean in music?

The instrument

Instrument sizes

Also: fractional sizes, 1/2 size violin, 3/4 size cello

String instruments are made in fractional sizes, 1/16 through 4/4 for violin and cello, chosen by the player’s arm length and hand span rather than by age, and the fractions do not describe physical proportions.

A 1/2 size violin is nowhere near half the length of a full size; the naming is traditional rather than mathematical. Sizing is done by measuring from the neck to the palm or wrist with the arm extended, and it should be checked in person by a shop or a school orchestra director rather than inferred from a height chart.

An instrument that is too large is the most common hidden cause of a struggling young player: it produces a poor tone, forces the left hand to collapse, and can cause genuine strain, and the student usually assumes the difficulty is their own fault. Most children move up a size every one to two years.

Double basses are sized differently again, with 3/4 being the standard full-size orchestral instrument rather than 4/4. A 4/4 bass exists but is unusual.

Bow hold: The bow hold is the way the right hand contacts the bow, a flexible, curved grip that lets the fingers absorb pressure changes rather than locking them out.
Position: A position is a fixed placement of the left hand on the fingerboard, numbered by which note the first finger falls on, so that a set of pitches is reachable without moving the hand.
Double bass tuning: The double bass is tuned in perfect fourths, E1, A1, D2, G2, unlike the rest of the string family, which is tuned in perfect fifths.
Bridge: The bridge is the shaped piece of maple standing under the strings that transmits their vibration into the body of the instrument, and it is held in place by string tension alone.

Every term in this glossary is taught in context somewhere in Arco's curricula, on the staff, on the keyboard, and on your own fingerboard at the same time.

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