A poking device? A walking stick? A magic wand? Many a parent to tiny children has seen violin bows appropriated for various purposes. But what do they actually do? And how do they do it? Here is our guide to violin bows and the different types and styles available on the market.
What does a violin bow do?
A violin bow is a tensioned stick with hair attached to it, which is used to stroke the instrument’s strings. This produces vibrations that we hear as either heavenly or ghastly sounds, depending on a few variables.
Can you use a violin bow on a viola or a cello?
Imagine using a spoon to shovel concrete. You wouldn’t get much done, and odds are that the spoon might bend under the pressure. A similar principle applies to bows. As violin strings are thinner, and therefore require less pressure than those of their thicker-stringed counterparts, violin bows are narrower than cello or viola bows. What’s more, cello bows are shorter than either violin or viola bows.
How should you hold a violin bow?
The fundamental violin techniques are something you will learn in your lessons, but you might be surprised to hear that there are two different bow holds depending on which musical tradition you're learning in. The most frequently taught bow hold is the Franco-Belgian bow hold, which involves a bent thumb, a pinkie finger that sits on top of the stick and is also slightly curved, with three middle fingers curved around the stick. It is crucial that the hand doesn't form a 'gripping' motion, and instead is loose and flexible. The other significant bow hold was used by Jascha Heifetz and Nathan Milstein and is known as the Russian bow hold. This sees the hand leaning towards the first finger, with a pinkie finger remaining almost straight.
This is a good starting video to check that you're doing the basic bow hold right and learn how to get the perfect bow hold.
What are they made of?
The part of the bow that touches the strings tends to be made of a hank of horsehair - often taken from horses in cold climates such as Siberia, Mongolia and Canada, which produce the thickest, strongest hair.
The stick of a bow, however, can consist of a range of materials. Historically, it was always made of wood - often pernambuco wood or Brazilwood. Through the help of advancing technology, however, modern materials for the stick have included fibreglass and carbon fibre, helping to make bows more affordable.
Fact: While upper-string players will use almost exclusively white-hair bows, lower strings, such as cellos and basses, will sometimes use black hair or ‘salt-and-pepper’ mixes, thanks to the coarseness of black hair, which allegedly gives it extra oomph for grabbing the thickest strings.
How much does a good violin bow cost?
What kinds of violin bows can you get at different prices? It won’t come as a surprise that bows in the upper price bracket - anywhere upwards of £5000 - tend to produce the warmest, smoothest and richest sound. Plus violinistic pyrotechnics such spiccato, sautillé and flying spiccato are cleaner and easier to achieve with more expensive bows.
That said, a good sound does not need to cost the earth. A decent student bow will probably set you back only a couple of hundred pounds, with various pernambuco and Brazilwood bows available at this price. Beginners may also
want to consider carbon fibre options, which offer a lot of bang for your buck, especially given that they won’t react to heat or humidity like their wooden cousins, and rarely need to be repaired.
Who were the famous bow makers in history?
It’s safe to say that the French have fared pretty well in this area, with the 18th century bow-maker François Xavier Tourte probably at the forefront; one of his bows sold for a record-breaking US $288,960 in 2015. Other notable kinsmen include Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume (born 1798) and Eugène Sartory (born 1871).
Meanwhile, outside France, some of the best-known bow makers included the “Russian Tourte” Nicolaus Kittel (born 1805/6), the “German Tourte” Ludwig Bausch (born 1805) and the “English Tourte” James Tubbs (born 1835).
Best violin bow makers today
Among the best-known of today's bow-makers are Charles Espey (US), Walter Barbiero (Italy), Emilio & Luca Slaviero (Italy), Pierre-Yves Fuchs (Switzerland) and Benoît Marie Rolland (France-US).
Which famous pieces of music showcase the bow's capabilities?
For a start, pretty much anything by Fritz Kreisler. One of the most admired musicians of his day, the German-Austrian violinist wrote a number of pieces - often pastiches in the style of other composers - designed to showcase the violinist’s virtuosity. Among those that put the bow through its paces is Tambourin Chinois, which demands some pretty crisp spiccato action. And if you can’t deliver it, there’s nowhere to hide.
Another nightmare (from a technical point of view) is Sibelius’s Violin Concerto, whose third movement in particular is extremely complex rhythmically, taking the violinist on an odyssey of bowing techniques.
Then, of course, there are the good old Paganini Caprices. Among the trickiest is No. 5 with its ricochet action; No 13 with numerous string crossings; and No 16 and 22, whose advanced bowing techniques include spiccato, ricochet and sautillé.
What should I look for in a violin bow?
First and foremost: the quality of the sound it produces. It sounds obvious, but the differences can be subtle and it’s worth spending a bit of time testing the bow out on different pieces of music and paying attention to those microscopic nuances.
Consider, also, the weight and balance of the bow. There are those who believe that heavier means better, allowing for a fuller sound. But the most important thing is that the bow should feel natural in the hand and well balanced from the tip to the frog (bottom).
There are some, also, who favour octagonal bows to round bows on the basis that octagonal shafts are stiffer.
Ultimately, though, what you’re looking for is a bow that allows you - as far as possible - to forget that you’re even using a bow; that feels like an extension of your hand. And that is largely about personal taste.
Where can I buy a good bow?
If you live in London, you can’t do much better than J P Guivier & Co, a Central London-based company founded in 1863 by Joseph Prosper Guivier - one of Britain’s foremost violin dealers and restorers.
Then there’s Florian Leonhard Fine Violins, a Hampstead-based an instrument dealer specialising in the sale of rare Italian violins.
Another high-end option is J & A Beare, an international violin dealership that has been trading since the 1890s, specialising in the sale of fine stringed instruments.
More budget-friendly options, meanwhile, include Stringers of London and Bridgewood & Neizert, which offers a wide range of different stringed instruments catering to all string players, from students to professionals.
Beyond London, some options include Oxford Violins, Stringers of Edinburgh, Glasgow’s Violin Shop, Moseley Violins (Birmingham), Forsyth Music Shop (Manchester), Cardiff Violins and Devon Strings Workshop.
What are the best bows available online?
1. For a decent, budget-friendly option, you might want something along the lines of this entry level carbon fibre bow from Jon Paul Bows, with a fully mounted ebony frog, with Parisian eye, nickel silver lapping and leather thumb grip.
2. This Marco Raposo Nickel mounted violin bow option, meanwhile, is better suited to the advancing player, made by American-trained bowmakers in Brazil from Brazilian pernambuco.
3. This Sousa Silver Artisan violin bow is suitable for intermediate-advanced level players.
4. For the advanced player, ready to splash out on their equipment, this French bow by Célestin Émil Clasquin, made around 1920, comes with a certificate of authenticity from Raffin, Bigot, Le Canu.
