Help...first bow!

[funkybassplayer]

Alright. There are going to be a couple of questions here all helping me decide on what to order for my first bow. I have been playing EB for the past 15 years and about 12 months ago i purchased a NS WAV4 that i have been becomeing familiar with the change in scale length. While still building my pizz tech i have decided to grab my self a bow and work on my arco too.

1) French or German? I have "played" with both and can see the pros/cons of both as far as power and tone and manuverability while playing. The german felt more like a "basses" bow as opposed to the french which honestly felt like an longer violin or viola bow. Which would be easier to learn on/build strength for playing.

2) Glasser Fiberglass bow or (insert exotic wood name) bow?
I have $100 that i am willing to spend on my first bow. I know that this won't be my last bow so i wanted to try and find something cheaper that won't break my bank if i break my bow. I have seen the Glasses bows for around $75 but o keep asking my self if i should spend a little bit more and get a wood bow. Any suggestions?

Thanks guys for your help.

[tww001]

If you're just starting out with a bow, don't waste your money on an expensive bow. On the other hand, don't buy a cheap p.o.s. that will discourage you from practicing. I have a few friends that have found decent wood bows for $100 (Edgar Meyer is supposedly in love with cheap Chinese bows). Whether you decide on wood or fiberglass (there are also affordable graphite composite bows to consider as well!), definitely make sure it has horse hair. Synthetic or nylon hair can cause lots of problems and frustrations with getting a good sound because it stretches more and grabs less than real hair. Lemur.com always has good deals (and I think they'll send you three bows to tryout before you decide on one), as do Bob Gollihur and Upton.

As far as German vs. French, it's completely personal. I learned on German because my high school had a wood German bow and a Fiberglass French bow (ha!), and the German simply was easier to get a decent tone with. It seems as if you may already be leaning towards German, so go with it. Then again, if you can get Lemur or someone else to send you three bows for a week or two, try both!

Best of luck!

[funkybassplayer]

BUMP

[thedbassist]

I personally think that German is easier to get a bigger sound out of, but is harder to control than a french bow after you learn them because of the hand position(fast bow strokes are much easier on french than German imo and you have to change your grip somewhat when playing on the lower strings to keep a straight bow). But you should go with your teacher,

[Kaden]

I started out on french bow but soon switched to german (french is all that my school had). German bow in my opinion is way easier to control and it helps me draw a much more strong, even sound on the lower end than the french bow. It seems like you are more in control in with the german than the french. I would highly recomend german bow, but again you should talk about it with your teacher to see what he/she thinks.

[mjt0229]

First, and most importantly, I think that these days inexpensive wood bows are available and you should prefer those (or an inexpensive carbon fiber bow) to any fiberglass bow. Second, you should find a teacher to help you choose a bow.

To answer the question you asked:

I started on French, switched to German after a few years, and then back to French in college. I felt that German was easier to reach an intermediate level with but that ultimately my growth was starting to hit limits that switching to French helped me to overcome. I feel that I can play more quickly and precisely and make larger string crossings more smoothly with a French bow.

All that being said, when I switched to German, my teacher at the time was a German bow player and when I switched back to French my teacher was a French bow player. My current teacher I chose from talking to a number of local French bow teachers in the area. It's best to have a teacher that plays the same bow that you do.

I think that if I were advising a new student, I'd say find a teacher whose ideas make the most sense and whose abilities are closest to your goals, then pick whatever bow that teacher uses. Finding a good teacher who can help you improve will make a bigger difference than which bow you choose.

As one last addendum, I've often though of buying an inexpensive German bow so I can practice playing both ways - if nothing else than as a fun experiment every once in a while.