Double Bass Switching rosins...is that ok for the bow?

[James VW]

I've been meaning to try out other rosins, that's decided. But, multiple rosins on one bow? I think I heard somewhere that you shouldn't use multiple rosins on a bow; does that sound familiar to anyone?

It kinda makes sense, even if it isn't detrimental; if you're trying a different rosin, how can you know how much of the change in feel is from the new rosin when there's still the old rosin left on there. And once, I heard Gary Karr talk about how he uses cello rosin, but that doesn't work unless cello rosin is ALL you use.

Granted, I'm not going to be doing that, but I just got a re-hair, and put a dose of Pops on it for rehearsal. Before I try others like Carlsson and Nyman and whatever my colleagues have, I want to make sure that the frequent swipe switching won't damage my hair or do anything irreversible. And I have heard that some rosins darken the hair color....




PS - now I KNOW I'm rambling: what if combining rosins is the answer!?!?!?!

 

[harmonicon]

I don't think it should be a problem. I've heard that some people purposefully mix rosins and find that to work well. Yeah, things will be different if there's a bit of pop's on there and then you put something else on later, but each rosin will also be different depending on temperature, humidity, etc.

... and I should add that I've never once heard that it's somehow bad for the bow to use different rosins different times that you play. I do remember that - years ago - when I used dark, sticky rosin, it did darken the hair... well, because it's dark and you're putting it on the hair!

I'd been away from bass playing for a few years. I'm using Carlsson now, because it's what I had handy, and I'm loving it.