Why Violin has no Frets | It’s not what you think it is

Frankly, frets are pretty convenient for any stringed instrument. You can squeeze a string’s fret to shorten or lengthen it to your liking. This is why it has always been a mystery as to why the violin has no frets?

The answers to everything related to strings and frets of the violins have a lot to do with human perception, musical theories, and physics! Yes, all the aspects are pretty interesting to know about, especially if you’re on a journey of learning the violin. Let’s not delay any longer and see how do violinists play without frets.

While comparing all the string instruments, often musicians question can violin has frets. Violinists don’t play multiple chords. On single-note melodies, it’s possible to train your fingers on a fretless instrument like the violin, which is a good thing because Frets can also be a struggle to keep in tune and aligned.

What Are Frets & Why Instruments Need Them

Frets are the spaces between two consecutive fret bars at the neck of any stringed instrument, like guitars. Frets are generally placed across the entire width of the instrument’s neck. In western instruments, frets are the junctions between each metal strip inserted in a fingerboard.

This leads to a bigger question; why do instruments have frets while others don’t? For example, on classical, electrical, and acoustic guitars, the fretboards commonly have a series of frets or metal bars. These metal bars run along and across the length of these stringed instruments. Frets are needed to guide the performers so they know where to place their fingers while creating diverse chords and notes.

In contrast, violins have no frets as violinists only play single notes on them. Therefore, violinists don’t need frets to guide their finger styles to play any chord.

Reasons Why Violins Don’t Have Frets

There are basically four reasons why the violin doesn’t have any frets. and spoiler alert: It’s a good thing.

Interference

Frets can interfere with the vibrations that violin strings are supposed to make. Moreover, violin strings can also be damaged due to this interference, raising the need for replacements.

Intonations

Violins don’t have fixed intonations by design. Having frets means that the instrument would have a fixed intonation and fixed tones. This restricts the players from playing pieces such as glissando.

Physics

When a string is plucked, waves are formed. We can hear the sounds that correspond to each of these wavelengths. Therefore, we must fit only half of the wavelengths. This leads to empty strings such as L, producing the smallest yet, loudest frequency. That’s another reason why heavier strings make the lowest sounds, whereas the tightest strings make the highest pitched sounds.

Music works based on the ratios of these frequencies. We can differentiate music and sounds based on the frequency ratios.

However, the strings’ ratios don’t depend on the tightness or the composition but only on the lengths. In reality, frets don’t always work. Pure harmonics are produced in integer numbers of frequency ratios. This is what we perceive as harmonious and pleasant in violins.

High Notes

The closer you move to your face or high on a string, the notes become more and more bunched up. This cram-up makes it impossible to fit in frets in the correct positions. When frets are placed on the higher ends of an instrument, it also messes up the pizzicato.

Advantages & Disadvantages Of Not Having Frets

Advantages	Disadvantages
Produces warm and softer sounds	Tough to play chords
Easier sliding while playing	Increases margin for errors
Wider tonal range	Not possible to check fret markers
Can cover up flat or sharp tunes	No guidelines for learners
Trains your muscles to memorize without looking at frets	Increases the chances of fretboard damage
Best for professionals	Dampened sounds

Playability Of Violins With & Without Frets

Usually, violins can create a wide range of tonal subtleties because they don’t pose frets. But, what if we wanted to change that? Can violin have frets and still work the same way?

Unfortunately, techniques such as glissandi and portamento or any other gentler notes that require slow gliding will not be possible with the addition of frets. If frets are added to violins, the enormous range of tones that violins can play will be compromised, reducing their playability.

Now the question has to be asked – How do violinists know where to put their fingers?

Since the violins don’t have frets like any stringed instrument, the right sound and note can only be produced if the violin is adequately tuned. Moreover, the string must be appropriately pressed and set in the correct position to acquire desired sounds.

Another added bonus that professionals have is their years and years of practice, which imprint their motor and brain skills about the strings and notes. Therefore, they don’t need fret markers either.

Unfretted & Fretted Instruments

Most confusions arise when we try to distinguish between fretted and unfretted instruments. Unfretted instruments such as cellos, violins, or violas differ greatly from fretted ones such as guitars or mandolins. Let’s see how they differ.

Unlike violins, guitars are fretted with six strings and a larger body. Violins have a smaller mass with no frets, a chinrest, and four strings. If you ever wondered why do guitars still have frets, it’s because guitars are primarily used in rock or pop music and the sounds are produced by striking the strings with fingers.

Fretted instruments such as mandolins are double-stringed with frets. They have two strings, each of them positioned carefully to emit liquid and warbling tones and sounds.

Similarly, banjos are drums with one long string and neck attached to them on each end. The bridge supports the string on the banjo, and along with the frets, it creates a metallic, bright, and twangy sound when played. Banjos are played using a finger or pick, unlike violins which need a bow.

On the other hand, several bowing techniques would be impossible to play out if frets are involved. The reason is that you can easily slide and glide on fretless violins, violas, or cellos, which adds and heightens the character of the music, making them more detailed and smoother.

Imagine you’re in an orchestra with cellos, violas, or violins. You could already have an idea about what they could sound like because of their build-in character.

Techniques You Can Use Due To The Lack of Frets

An advantage of having no frets is that it optimizes the scope of techniques played on a violin or fretless guitars rather than fretted instruments. When sliding between two varying notes such as ‘portamento’ or ‘glissandi’ needs a bend or continuous slide along the fretboard.

And with frets, it would be extremely tough to follow through. Adding frets to these fretless instruments would alter that completely. Therefore, by not adding too many frets in one place of the violins, it’s made to be more user-friendly.

Additional Support for Beginner Player

If you’re a beginner or someone who’s transitioning from learning the guitar, this could get a bit tricky for you. Even though we’ve seen the techniques you can use due to the lack of frets, it can still be harder in reality to reciprocate.

For that reason, many users purchase extra hand supports online to give an impression of learning and practicing with frets even though violins don’t have any. Moreover, professionals don’t need finger guides or frets as they’re very well trained in frets and fretless instruments, which leaves beginners or guitar experts in a sticky spot.

Worry not; to release you from this murky situation, I’m here to suggest a few user-friendly finger guides that will ease up your experience.

Fantastic Finger Guide for Violins 4/4 Size

This FFG guide comes in four sizes and is dedicated to taking the stress out of learning a violin. With practical and visual aids, it can improve and train your ears to the correct tune, making it perfect for beginners and intermediate students.

Each of the notes comes self-adhesive, so you can easily stick them on or take them off. The best part is that they don’t leave behind a sticky stain or mess. For the best improved navigating skills, this guide is a must-have.

Fantastic Finger Guide for Violins 1/2 SIZE

The FFG guide is fantastic if you want to expand your palette and switch between ukulele, violas, violins, and more. It offers top-tier musical information at the learner’s fingertips. FFG finger trainers such as this are applied on the side for quick views and are super easy to install and remove. Moreover, the design is so intuitive that you would never miss a single note.

Fantastic Finger Guide for Violins D Major and All Notes Guides 4/4 SIZE

Our last FFG suggestions include two-finger guides with an all-note finger guide and a D major scale guide. This helps many intermediate and amateur users with different expertise levels. All you have to do is peel and place it and start playing. You can install this guide in under 30 seconds!

The best catch is that this combo deal contains all the methods that start from D to A string. Therefore, it’s guaranteed that you will never miss a beat.

Final Words

Here’s to hoping that all your speculations regarding why violin has no frets have vanished by now. The basic idea that many musicians and amateurs lack while questioning the design of fretted and unfretted instruments are that each of these varies heavily in terms of weight, frequency, and sound. This is why having or not having frets can make a huge difference.

To be honest, once you read through the mechanics of it, they all make sense. Whether it’s a guitar or a violin, these instruments have different tones, characters, and sound quality. And they’re constructed in a manner that makes each of these elements unique and exclusive.