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Double Bass Dragonetti's Bow

Bassguy87564

Bassguy87564

Jul 5, 2006
187
0
NJ
#1
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I was in Venice, I was checking out a museum near San Marco cathedral and I came across this. I'm assuming it's the real deal but I thought the frog would be larger.
Still awesome though.
 
#4
I believe that is a "Dragonetti style bow" and not one that actual belonged to him. There are actual bows he used in existence. Here's someone actually playing one of his twelve waltzes using his Gasparo da Salo bass (strung with three gut strings) and his bow.

- Steve
 
#5
I have more pictures of some basses that were made in the area I will put up later.
MomTheRoadie said:
Funny, my son was there on Tuesday. Were you there recently too?
Click to expand...
I'm still here. Just about to leave for the airport in an hour or so. I took these pictures on Thursday but I was also in Venice on Tuesday as well (Small world) but I dont think I would have be able to run into your son (very crowded place).
Steve Boisen said:
I believe that is a "Dragonetti style bow" and not one that actual belonged to him. There are actual bows he used in existence. Here's someone actually playing one of his twelve waltzes using his Gasparo da Salo bass (strung with three gut strings) and his bow.

- Steve
Click to expand...

I was looking at this video a day ago. I wanted to make sure it was really his bow. I'm thinking that this bow wasn't his main bow but one someone made for him and he just held onto. The frog almost makes the bow look like it was a French style bow but I would have liked to try it to see which way would be better to hold it. I will do some further research to prove you are right Steve and Ill let you know once I find out. But awesome video!
 
#6
I think that bow is definitely meant to played with an underhand grip. It looks like the bow in this picture of a Plumerel bass:

MUS1340B1.jpg


- Steve
 
#8
Steve Boisen said:
I believe that is a "Dragonetti style bow" and not one that actual belonged to him. There are actual bows he used in existence. Here's someone actually playing one of his twelve waltzes using his Gasparo da Salo bass (strung with three gut strings) and his bow.

- Steve
Click to expand...


That's spectacularly beautiful playing - thanks, Steve! ;) I'm going to have to track down some of Ettore's recorded work.
 
#15
Frbass that's awesome. Were you there this Wednesday? I didn't get to go inside the basilica unfortunately but if I knew that was in there I would have checked it out. I went by what a women, that owned a music store in Venice I walked past, said. But Steve you are most likely right about the grip, I just felt like the frog was so small (the smallest I've seen on a German style bow, if you would call it that). As you can see I'm not to proficient with my classical side, I do more jazz :D
 
#17
It's interesting that the scroll was designed for four strings but Dragonetti chose to play it with three and removed one of the Baker gears. That scroll was attributed to Giovana Battista circa 1824 and it's likely that this instrument was originally a six-string violone. You can read more about it Link Removed

- Steve
 
#18
that thing is absolutely horrifying.

dragonetti disagreed with french grip, from what i understand he did a bit of badmouthing bottesini for the use of this grip. he was oldschool and thought a bass was to be played with a bass bow, and overhand-grip is something violinists use.

i could be wrong in this, but i wrote a paper on the evolution of double bass technique years ago, and i'm fairly certain i recall reading this about dragonetti.
 
#19
groooooove said:
that thing is absolutely horrifying.

dragonetti disagreed with french grip, from what i understand he did a bit of badmouthing bottesini for the use of this grip. he was oldschool and thought a bass was to be played with a bass bow, and overhand-grip is something violinists use.

i could be wrong in this, but i wrote a paper on the evolution of double bass technique years ago, and i'm fairly certain i recall reading this about dragonetti.
Click to expand...

IIRC Dragonetti and Bottesini's dates barely overlap (April 7, 1763 – April 16, 1846 for Dragonetti and 22 December 1821 – 7 July 1889 for Bottesini according to wikipedia). Bottesini didn't visit England until 1849, after Dragonetti had been dead for three years. While he had had some success as a soloist in America (most notably, in Cuba, where he was also the music director of the Italian Opera), the amount to which Dragonetti would have known or cared about this 20-some year old man when he was in his late eighties is definitely up for debate.

As for Dragonetti being old school, well, of all instrumentalists I've met, string players and bass players in particular are the least accepting of change, so it wouldn't surprise me in the least if Dragonetti looked at an overhand bass bow (such as the one in Bottesini's photo on wikipedia, and quite a club in its own right) and dismissed it as a foolish idea.

They both agreed that a 3 string bass was the way to go, however. They did tune it differently (ADG or higher scordatura for Bottesini and GDG or ADG depending on the occasion for Dragonetti) but both preferred the lesser tension on the top for optimum sound.

eerbrev
 
#20
eerbrev said:
IIRC Dragonetti and Bottesini's dates barely overlap (April 7, 1763 – April 16, 1846 for Dragonetti and 22 December 1821 – 7 July 1889 for Bottesini according to wikipedia). Bottesini didn't visit England until 1849, after Dragonetti had been dead for three years. While he had had some success as a soloist in America (most notably, in Cuba, where he was also the music director of the Italian Opera), the amount to which Dragonetti would have known or cared about this 20-some year old man when he was in his late eighties is definitely up for debate.

As for Dragonetti being old school, well, of all instrumentalists I've met, string players and bass players in particular are the least accepting of change, so it wouldn't surprise me in the least if Dragonetti looked at an overhand bass bow (such as the one in Bottesini's photo on wikipedia, and quite a club in its own right) and dismissed it as a foolish idea.

They both agreed that a 3 string bass was the way to go, however. They did tune it differently (ADG or higher scordatura for Bottesini and GDG or ADG depending on the occasion for Dragonetti) but both preferred the lesser tension on the top for optimum sound.

eerbrev
Click to expand...

good info here!

thanks,

t
 

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