Yet another Maltese violinist calling from little sunny Malta. I'm Miguel, 15, from Malta. I've been playing the violin for around 7 and a half years. I've been having recent thoughts of giving up the violin, but I guess that's just the tension of having to study so much everyday. I hope I never actually give up the violin, especially since I'm preparing for my Gr 8 exam. It would be a shame to have all that talent wasted into nothing, and that doesn't go only for me, I'm speaking out to all those guys and girls who gave up violin not because they were lazy, but because they worked hard. Can't blame them though, nowadays it's keyboards, guitars, drums, and computers. Anyways, like I said, I've been studying for 7 and a half years and I'm preparing for Gr 8 (no idea how that happened :S) at the moment. I can't identify violins and bows so I can't tell what brand my violin is. I think my bow is Stenter though. Anyways, I like playing the violin because it's not a "structured" instrument like the flute or the piano. If you press a key or cover a hole, you'll hear a note no matter how you do it, but if you make the tiniest shift in your finger when playing the violin, it can make the biggest difference. So this will mean that the violinist will be facing much more than notes and decorations, s/he will also be facing a sense of discipline in the hands, as well as proper posture. Of course, this applies for all instruments as well. Well, I hope I didn't bore you all to death, catch you all later ;)