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Please provide more info such as; where does it hurt?, Are you relaxed? What are you playing that makes it hurt? etc etc
1. Use a lot of sticky rosin (Kolstein soft is my favorite).
2. Only use the weight of the bow.
3. Slow(er) bowspeed.
4. Bow near the fingerboard and don't try to play over mf.
5. Hold the bow as if it were an uncooked egg.
Once you can consistently do this then you can start the more advanced technique of using arm weight and more bow speed.
2. Only use the weight of the bow.
3. Slow(er) bowspeed.
4. Bow near the fingerboard and don't try to play over mf.
5. Hold the bow as if it were an uncooked egg.
Once you can consistently do this then you can start the more advanced technique of using arm weight and more bow speed.
do you have your thumb flexed? that can make your muscles fatigued quickly. try bending your thumb at the knuckle. Should fix the problem
Check out these Andy Anderson videos from Contrabass Conversations. A lot of good information there.
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Thanks for pointing at Andy Anderson. Great stuff. Only had time to listen to #1 and #2 so far.
DP
DP
Man, I've had this problem for such a long time. And I've tried everything people have already said in this thread. I want to try a German bow so bad...
Everything has to be relaxed. No squeezing, just a firm, spread hold. Drop your right elbow down and use the natural weight of your arm to activate the strings, rather than pushing into the string and trying to force sound out.
Like Andrew said, stay relaxed and loose... with your bow grip, think of a baby's grip.. if you've ever held a baby and that baby grabs one of your fingers, you know they have a very relaxed yet strong and firm grip. This is pretty much a different way of saying the same thing John said above, about holding the bow "as if it were an uncooked egg".
Most importantly, see if you can get a lesson or two.
Most importantly, see if you can get a lesson or two.
I've had the same problem too, off and on. I find that there are two things that help:
1.) Get a good soft rosin (I like fresh Pops), and put enough on so that it grabs the string. The better the rosin grabs, the less work your hand has to do. A good rule is to put enough on so that you can wiggle the string just by resting the bow hair on it.
2.) Practice relaxing your grip. If you're tense all the time, your thumb will kill you. A good exercise for this is to set a metronome to 3 beats, at about 50 bpm. On 1, set the bow firmly into the string. On 2, draw the note. On 3, relax. You might be surprised how hard it is to relax.
1.) Get a good soft rosin (I like fresh Pops), and put enough on so that it grabs the string. The better the rosin grabs, the less work your hand has to do. A good rule is to put enough on so that you can wiggle the string just by resting the bow hair on it.
2.) Practice relaxing your grip. If you're tense all the time, your thumb will kill you. A good exercise for this is to set a metronome to 3 beats, at about 50 bpm. On 1, set the bow firmly into the string. On 2, draw the note. On 3, relax. You might be surprised how hard it is to relax.
I have copied this from my response to a much earlier thread, Not Enough Bow.
"There is a reason I feel for the corner of the silver ferrule with the end of my second finger in the French bow hold - it lines up with the end of my thumb.
Try this trick. Press your index finger against the end of your thumb and rotate your wrist in all directions. Feel the tightness and clicking in your wrist. Repeat with your pinkie pressing against the end of your thumb. Still tight and tragic. Now press anywhere along your second finger with your thumb and again rotate. Feel the freedom no matter how hard you press.
One way I guide my students into a French bow hold is to have them form a gentle fist with their right hand then open it slowly seeing how the thumb tracks to opposite the second finger. After they open their hand slightly more have them drop it over the bow stick, searching for the corner between stick and frog withe the thumb end , and the corner of the ferrule with the second fingertip. The last pad of the bent Third (ring) finger end rests near the eye on the side of the frog and last joint of the bent pinkie just hooks over the top of the stick. The hand turns in slightly on the stick and is a natural extension of the forearm ( no big wrist pronations). There is a line of power coming down your arm from your shoulder to the end of your index finger.
The index is ahead of the 2nd and thumb, not far enough to tense up the hand. The hand is cupped with bent thumb. Most finger bending is done with the second line of knuckles so the hand in profile looks almost like a snake's head. Again, relate the cupped hand shape to the way your fist opens. It is important to keep the hand cupped, to relax the large thumb muscles and also relax the heel of the hand. This in turn avoids tension in the wrist which will block musical messages to and from the brain.
How far ahead your index finger is advanced ahead of your thumb is a balancing act between leverage and sensitivity needed, and avoiding tension. Too far or not far enough both result in unwanted tension, tiredness and insensitivity for the bow and string "springs"
I hope this helps you.
DP
ps Andy Anderson's videos in "Contrabass Conversations" give you an excellent alternate way into this bow hold
"There is a reason I feel for the corner of the silver ferrule with the end of my second finger in the French bow hold - it lines up with the end of my thumb.
Try this trick. Press your index finger against the end of your thumb and rotate your wrist in all directions. Feel the tightness and clicking in your wrist. Repeat with your pinkie pressing against the end of your thumb. Still tight and tragic. Now press anywhere along your second finger with your thumb and again rotate. Feel the freedom no matter how hard you press.
One way I guide my students into a French bow hold is to have them form a gentle fist with their right hand then open it slowly seeing how the thumb tracks to opposite the second finger. After they open their hand slightly more have them drop it over the bow stick, searching for the corner between stick and frog withe the thumb end , and the corner of the ferrule with the second fingertip. The last pad of the bent Third (ring) finger end rests near the eye on the side of the frog and last joint of the bent pinkie just hooks over the top of the stick. The hand turns in slightly on the stick and is a natural extension of the forearm ( no big wrist pronations). There is a line of power coming down your arm from your shoulder to the end of your index finger.
The index is ahead of the 2nd and thumb, not far enough to tense up the hand. The hand is cupped with bent thumb. Most finger bending is done with the second line of knuckles so the hand in profile looks almost like a snake's head. Again, relate the cupped hand shape to the way your fist opens. It is important to keep the hand cupped, to relax the large thumb muscles and also relax the heel of the hand. This in turn avoids tension in the wrist which will block musical messages to and from the brain.
How far ahead your index finger is advanced ahead of your thumb is a balancing act between leverage and sensitivity needed, and avoiding tension. Too far or not far enough both result in unwanted tension, tiredness and insensitivity for the bow and string "springs"
I hope this helps you.
DP
ps Andy Anderson's videos in "Contrabass Conversations" give you an excellent alternate way into this bow hold
Whenever my hand hurts, it is because of one of two things:
1. Thumb is not bent enough
2. Hand is not pronated enough
Bear in mind that the bass is one of the quietest classical instruments out there, so it takes a lot of effort to play it loud. Just don't over do it
1. Thumb is not bent enough
2. Hand is not pronated enough
Bear in mind that the bass is one of the quietest classical instruments out there, so it takes a lot of effort to play it loud. Just don't over do it
