difficultly bowing A string cleanly

It seems like the curvature of your bridge may need to be adjusted. If you were to make a template of your bridge curvature, does the shape match the curvature at the end of the fingerboard or does the bridge seem to be more "flat"?

If you are having difficulty with only the A string, then most likely the A string is too low, or the D and E strings are too high in relationship to the A string on your bridge.

If your teacher doesn't have a problem, maybe it is more your technique. How long have you been playing?

 

My first reaction was to question the arc of the bridge, but reading further that you tense up in anticipation makes me think it's a correctible problem with technique.
Try a few things:
1. Put a straight edge touching the underside of the A and the G. Check the elevation of the D. Then put the edge touching D and E, and check the elevation of the A, comparing it to the D.
You could do the same thing with your teacher's bass and see how they compare. By the way, do you have the problem when you play your teacher's bass?
2. Practice bow angles, and bow angles only: bow long tones on open strings. Keep your left hand out of this - no fingered notes. Don't look down at the bow. Do this both in a lighted room and in the dark. The goal is to gradually put the feel of the correct angle in your subconscious.

Let us know what you find.

 

Your comment here really throws me off. When he plays your bass again, ask him to use your bow and see what he does. Maybe he'll do something like tighten your bowhair up some. I can't offer anything easier than that for you.

I've had a similar experience with unwanted strings getting brushed, and I have been able to clear it up with practice. Now I like to play around with double stops and drone while I run a scale up and down. Can't win for losing...

 

I dont know if you're playing french or german bow, or if it would matter, but you might try checking out the angle that your bow is meeting the strings at, (should be close to 90 degrees) and how close to/ far from the bridge you're playing. I used to have a bad habit of pulling the frog end of my (german) bow up when crossing to the lower strings, which really screwed things up. I ended up needing to fix my wrist position, which took a lot of time and concentration, and I also re-evaluated my stance and made some changes there. I found that having the bass closer to vertical and a bit lower helped me get a straighter pull and also relax my whole right arm/ wrist/ hand combo as well as put less stress on my left hand muscles with my rather large bass. I also like to check out my techique in a full length mirror when I'm having problems with something; I usually find that I'm doing something that looks really goofy and that if I fix it it helps correct the problem. Same goes with having other people check out your technique; playing for as many people as possible and having them critique all aspects of your playing is a really great way to improve your playing all the way around.

 

try long bows on one string, combined (i.e. two notes sounding together, bowing two strings at the same time) with shorter notes (say, quarter note, rest, quarter note, rest, etc.) on an adjacent string. So for example, you could do a long, sustained open D, and and combine quarters notes (A, rest, A, rest) on the open A string.

Try to pay attention (simultaneously!) to

1) the tone quality on the sustained note, both when the other sring is sounding and when its not)

2) a clean attack on the second string

3) a clean note end on the second string

4) the path your bow arm must take to make this work well, upbows and down

5) all the other normal bowing parameters - speed, pressure, angle, soundpoint, etc.

6) relax !!!

Get so you can do this eyes-up, with a good sound and a confident, relaxed motion.

Try a variety of permutations. Long note on the D or E string, intermitent on A; or long note on A, intermitent D or E. Use a metronome and do it slowly, real slowly, until its gets real easy; only then speed it up a little. Later, try fingering something; instead of open strings, say a fifth interval with 1 and 4 in some position, or even something with harmonics, because this will require a different bowing feel.

Do this for a few weeks and mix it up with more conventional string crossing exercises (such as repetitive patterns back and forth between notes on the E, A, E, A strings or D, A, D, A strings). I guarantee you'll know eactly where that A string is and how to approach it with the bow.

 

several weeks have passed since the foregoing exchange.

interested to hear how you've been getting along with that A string, yor123?