Double Bass left hand steel grip for arco

[sonicnuance]

I need to talk to my teacher about this... Played a gig where I did a lot of arco and my left hand was hurting. I found to keep the tone going on the long bowing notes I had to really press down hard on the fingerboard. I'm trying to reduce the pressure today during practice but I thought I'd ask y'all for advice.


Thanks,
mozar

 

[Istar]

You might need to your setup checked.

Normally you should need minimal pressure to hold down your strings.
Also it could be the it is not your lift hand but actually your right hand that is the problem. since hand action is usually the same for both hands it could mean that by pressing down harder left you also put more weight on the bow.
try bowing with a completely relaxed left arm and bow arm.
If you still need a lot of pressure it might be your setup.

 

[Mike Arnopol]

Make sure that your posture allows for the weight of your arm holding the string down as opposed to any "clamping" of your left hand.
It's about using gravity and balance---the muscles merely support