Playing a Violin, From the Violin’s Perspective

A good musician makes it look easy. But his instrument knows the truth.

Pavel Frumin hit the streets of Kiev, Ukraine, with a GoPro at either end of his violin. The cameras reveal his fingers racing up and down the instrument’s fingerboard as if in some crazy finger tap dance. Watch it in the video above.

When instruments like violin and guitar appear in videos, the camera is typically trained on the bowing or picking hand, much to the frustration of musicians. This video shows where the action really is.

Stringed-instrument players engage all the time in the kind of micro athleticism you see here. It’s fascinating to watch, once you know where to look.

Oh, yeah, and Frumin sounds great, too.