The violin (also known as the fiddle) is a wooden string instrument.
It is the smallest and highest-pitched instrument in the violin family in regular use. Smaller violin-type instruments are known, including the violino piccolo and the kit violin, but these are virtually unused. The violin typically has four strings, G, D, A, E, (which are tuned to G3, D4, A4 and E5), and is most commonly played by drawing a bow across its strings (arco), though it can also be played by plucking the strings with the fingers (pizzicato) and by striking the strings with the wooden side of the bow. It is held between the left collar bone and the chin. Different notes are made by fingering with the left hand plucked string instruments while bowing with the right.