Newbie question on "bouncing bow"

[Enzo]

Hi Patrick,

I am a recent convert to double bass, and have started taking lessons with a qualified teacher. I am very keen to learn bowing, and have been practicing a lot around this. My teacher has commented that, like a lot of beginners, I have bben "bouncing" the bow off the strings, particlularly when shifting strings - do you have any practice patterns I could use? My teacher says it will improve with practice..

Thanks

[PNeher]

Originally Posted by Enzo

Hi Patrick,

I am a recent convert to double bass, and have started taking lessons with a qualified teacher. I am very keen to learn bowing, and have been practicing a lot around this. My teacher has commented that, like a lot of beginners, I have bben "bouncing" the bow off the strings, particlularly when shifting strings - do you have any practice patterns I could use? My teacher says it will improve with practice..

Thanks

I am assuming from your question that you mean "unintentional" bouncing. This, on a down-bow, is due to lack of maintaining weight toward the tip. You need to "torque" your arm towards the tip as you draw the bow to the right (down bow). If you have the bounce going up bow, again you are not starting the stroke with enough "weight" on the tip.

On a down to up to down to up set of strokes, your elbow (right) needs to travel in a bit of an arc .. rising, as it were, on the down bow, and lowering on the up. Because your hand and arm apply more weight to the bow at the frog, you must compensate for the fact that the arm/hand is traveling away from the bass on the down bow ... so you torque toward the tip, by raising the elbow (and the twist you can feel in your wrist and fingers ... aplying the weight to the tip). The opposite is true on the up bow. The elbow will lower, reducing the twist toward the tip, allowing the natural weight of your hand and arm to apply the grip of the string.

I have many exercises which examine and clarify this technique. One is sextuplets and such, slurred, across open strings. This gives you the arc required of the bow on all strings, and the level of the elbow for all strings.

If this is not clear, look for video on Francois Rabbath doing simple legato strokes. I will post some YouTube stuff someday soon too.
Best!
Patrick

[dneubert]

When we draw the bow across the string, we tend to lift up and push down at the same time - trying to control the sound. What you need to develop, as your teacher will point out to you, is feeling the DEAD WEIGHT of your arm as it hangs from your shoulder. Let your right arm completely relax, hanging limply from your shoulder. Pick up your right arm with your other hand or better yet, someone else picks up your arm and then lets it suddenly drop. If it is completely relaxed (as if someone shot novicane into your shoulder) then it should immediately drop to your side. If it sort of hangs there for a second and floats down, then you are not completely relaxed - and your bow will "bounce." The reason you noticed this bouncing more when crossing strings is because you are trying to lift the bow (to maintain control). The trick is to maintain that "DEAD ARM WEIGHT" feeling without lifting or pushing into the string. Watch how RELAXED Francois Rabbath is when he plays - totally effortless.