The violin is one of the most technically challenging instruments to play. For example, the movement of the right arm holding the bow and stroking it across the strings is not one that comes naturally. There's a certain way that you have to position your arm and move it within the three parts that it breaks down into: the shoulder joint, elbow joint, and wrist joint. I could go on.
Because of the physical demands of playing the violin, a violinist's body becomes altered-- maybe not noticeably so, but still the change is there. It may appear on the neck, as a violinist's (or violist's) hickey. It might appear on the left hand fingertips, which have become slightly flattened and calloused, with the fingerprint lines blurred. Maybe their right arm is more developed than the left arm, although I can think of a few other activities that might cause and exacerbate this issue. Or maybe the person may favor to physically lean to the left as a result of having the violin on the left shoulder. I'd say the last three of these four apply to me, and that I've only recently noted the last one. Whenever I braid my hair on one side I like to leave it hanging on my left side. I've always felt more comfortable with it there, and after thinking about it one day realized that it's probably because I've spent 10+ years with a violin on that same shoulder and having extra weight on the other one just seems...wrong. Also, I've noticed when staring off into space during class lectures I tend to glance to the right, and it's just more comfortable and natural for my head to pivot to the left.
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