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Double Bass Sandalwood?

LouisF

LouisF

Supporting Member
Apr 21, 2003
5,400
3,943
Los Angeles, CA
#1
Recently I've seen several shops advertise "sandalwood" bows - these are generally student/conservatory level sticks in the $200-400 range; and are either "yellow" or "green" -- other types/species(?) are "red" and "white".

In some violin posts I've read that sandalwood bows produce a very warm tone, but one without a lot of focus. Other than that, I know nothing about the wood. I've had bows in the past of snakewood, ipe, osage orange, and (now) purpleheart.

Anyone have any experience with sandalwood?
Thanks.

Sandalwood | Description, Uses, Species, & Facts
 
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#2
I haven’t heard of anyone making bows out of sandalwood until now. I went on to the online wood database to check out its properties- density, modulus of elasticity, etc. to see how it compared to ipe, massaranduba, snakewood, and pernambuco. When I was on the site, it directed me to a wood called zitan and it did not have any data.

After some further reading, it seems as if Zitan from China is on CITES, appendix II- so it cannot be exported for commercial use. Extremely slow tree growth would make it an unreliable source for local bowmakers in China, so it is likely that the bows advertised as being red sandalwood are being made with a different species - otherwise, the bows would be prohibitively expensive. Just my take on it.
 
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#6
So...
A couple of months I bit the bullet, and bought an "S. Pierre" sandalwood German bow from Jon Paul bows (the folks in Utah). The bow has very much the feel of an old-school German "shop" bow, a little hefty (138 gr), but not the stiffest stick.

Having said that, it is well made (as all JP bows are), was only $300, and pulled the WARMEST sound I have ever gotten out my bass (raw gut GDA/Spiro Weich E/C). If all I was doing was playing Bach at home or drawing a few notes on a jazz gig, this would be the perfect bow (it is certainly an excellent student bow), but it's orchestra chops tend to give out when you need them most.

Still, I was really surprised at how "warm" (again) the bass sounded. All in all, a good experiment, but it's going in the classifieds tomorrow.
Thanks
 
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#12
Again like the sandalwood, it was a very warm bow - and long. And also like the sandal wood, when you needed that extra oomph (end of a Brahms or Tschaikowsky symphony) the gas just wasn't there.

Still, it was superbly made - and more important, these woods should be serious contenders in 90% of a bass player's needs as an alternative to pernumbucco (rather than "just" a carbon fiber bow).

The tonal warmth of the sandalwood (and, as I remember, the osage) is well worth exploring.
 
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#13
LouisF said:
Again like the sandalwood, it was a very warm bow - and long. And also like the sandal wood, when you needed that extra oomph (end of a Brahms or Tschaikowsky symphony) the gas just wasn't there.

Still, it was superbly made - and more important, these woods should be serious contenders in 90% of a bass player's needs as an alternative to pernumbucco (rather than "just" a carbon fiber bow).

The tonal warmth of the sandalwood (and, as I remember, the osage) is well worth exploring.
Click to expand...

It's really hard. I spent the last year bow shopping and would have loved to have ended up with something other than pernumbucco but my ears could never get used to the way alternative woods sounded. I am not an orchestra musician but still I seemed hardwired to expect the kind of lively sound I am used to with pernumbucco. I wanted to like them - they often looked very nice. I think carbon fiber might have come the most close to sounding "right" to me.
 

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