Despite being one of the most beautiful stringed instruments ever created, the violin is usually used as comedic fodder in movies and sitcoms with children horribly screeching through their practice. Now your child wants to join the school orchestra, and you can't help but fear this may be your reality.

One way to avoid, or at least shorten the time your student makes those ear-piercing fundamental mistakes, is by getting them eMedia's My Violin. Designed for kids ages six and up, the animated character Val the Violin and the real-life teacher Sabina Skalar, a New York City Ballet violinist, will help them learn what notes are found where, how to read notation and, eventually, how to play songs well enough to make any parent proud.

An animated fingerboard and MIDI tracks show your young pupil where to place their fingers and allows them to speed up or slow down the live recorded tracks so they can learn the songs properly at their own pace. The Finger Tracker feature is a handy tool which listens to their playing and shows whether fingers were placed correctly or not. Additional features include an automatic tuner, metronome and digital recorder to help them work on their ear and rhythm.

After finishing My Violin's lesson plan, your child will be ready to take the stage, and you'll be able to leave the earplugs at home.