Bowing percussion instruments

[Mikemm]

The percussion teacher at my university recruited me the other day to play in a performance where I would be using my bass bow to play a marimba and vibraphone by bowing along the short surface on the back (for sharps/flats) or front (naturals).

Is this kind of technique harmful to the bow? It goes through rosin really quick.


Thanks

[Zombbg4]

In high school band there was a piece that required bowing across a cymbal, made a screeching train brake like sound, was pretty cool but killed the bow. Are the keys( or what ever you call them) wood or synthetic? A friend did the same thing on a synthetic keyed marimba and it didn't damage the bow much at all, though I'd guess wood might be more harsh on the bow.

[Mikemm]

It's a rosewood marimba and a metal vibraphone

[ouija]

It's definitely harder on the bow than a string; you'd probably be well off seeing if your orchestra teacher or anyone has some crap, mostly useless, half-broken stick you could use. The amount of rosin you'll have to use is gonna make the bow, good or bad, hard to use either way too.

[thewhale]

just buy a fiberglass bow to use. It's hard to believe a university percussion studio wouldn't already have some kind of bass bow to use, band music calls for this technique quite a bit.

[Bass]

Watch here as Professor Julias Sumner Miller creates patterns in the sand by bowing a metal plate.

[bassist14]

Originally Posted by Bass

Watch here as Professor Julias Sumner Miller creates patterns in the sand by bowing a metal plate.