Rosin and Bow - Solo vs. Orchestral Use

[goodgig]

Hey TB soloists, What are you looking for in the sound/bow action for playing solo vs. orchestral?

Why is there a distinction between orchestral and solo use when it comes to deciding on rosin and bows? Is there a certain sound preference or action that you are looking for?

I know that Gaston Brohan's Oak Rosin comes in soft, medium and hard. Is a harder grade better for the higher positions and not so good for lower positions?

[shostkontrabass]

I prefer a long, relatively heavy bow for either orchestral or solo playing. However, while I find Pops perfectly suited for orchestral playing, especially for those low, loud passages (think Mahler), I tend to prefer a bit of a harder, "lighter" rosin for solo playing. Lately I have been using Carlsson rosin for solos and love it. It seems to lead to a more pure, smooth tone in the upper register. When the string is shorter, less stickiness is needed. You wouldn't see a violinist using Pops!

That's my opinion, and I'm curious to see what other people have to say.

[quenoil]

I use the same rosin (Kolstein all-weather) for both orchestral and solo playing. The big difference is the amount of rosin. My orchestra bow gets rosined pretty seriously almost everytime I play. My solo bow probably gets one swipe of rosin every two or three weeks.

In terms of the bow itself, I always prefer a bow that is balanced to be very light in the tip. My orchestra bow is brighter and a bit less agile than my solo bow. Maybe my orchestra bow is brighter just because of all the rosin? Maybe. My solo bow (Bazin) is responsive to much more subtle things than the orchestra one - the orchestra one I need to be able to hit harder, and generally be a bit more aggressive.

[goodgig]

Thank you for sharing your experiences. What prompted this post a while back was this. I bought a new bow and really liked it for both orchestra and Bach. However, I treated myself to some "soft" Oak rosin, and, while OK for the orchestra, I wasn't crazy about the sound - especially for solo playing. I've since ordered both the "medium" and "hard" cakes For strictly solo playing, the hard version was recommended. I have found that here in sunny (but humid) Florida, the medium is a happy medium for both situations when used sparingly.

[LeoFenderBender]

Thats part of it...

The hardness of rosin should also correspond to the strings you use. Medium or soft rosins work best for synthetic core strings, hard rosin is traditional for gut.

Hard rosin forms more dust under the bridge, medium or soft rosins stick better to the bow - wax is part of the formula. You don't need to load your bow as frequently with soft rosin.

Hard rosin gets more "bite" which may be a characteristic you are after when soloing; some people prefer a mellower attack.

Is mellower a word?

[Kaden]

For solo playing i use jade solo bass rosin. It tends to produce a more clear, soft tone. But as far as orchestral playing goes i use carlsson or nymans because they use are tackier than jade rosin and help produce that bite needed in fast heavy passages like beethovens 5th third movement and many other beethoven and mozart pieces.

[toman]

Like most, I think the stickier rosins lend themselves to the orchestra. If one were doing a significant amount of solo performance, I think a second bow and rosin would be a good idea. I don't play much solo work, but if I did, I'd even go so far as to get back to my French bow technique. Point is, different types of music call for different gear. My all around rig is simply my favorite German bow with some good, fine silvery hair and Carlson, a fairly sticky rosin.