# 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.

Tuning: G3 · D4 · A4 · E5. Clef: Treble clef.

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.

## Notes and fingers

### G string

- G3: open string
- A3: finger 1
- B3: finger 2
- C4: finger 3
- D4: finger 4

### D string

- D4: open string
- E4: finger 1
- F#4: finger 2
- G4: finger 3
- A4: finger 4

### A string

- A4: open string
- B4: finger 1
- C#5: finger 2
- D5: finger 3
- E5: finger 4

### E string

- E5: open string
- F#5: finger 1
- G5: finger 2
- A5: finger 3
- B5: finger 4

## What the chart does not show

- 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.

## 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.

[Download the PDF](https://arcosounds.com/charts/violin/fingerboard-chart.pdf)

Canonical source: https://arcosounds.com/charts/violin