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[worldfiddler]

Right! Here we go ... talk about all things fiddle here. And anything else too, except religion and politics! Any foul or racist materiel is strictly forbidden, and spam or unwarranted advertising will also be swiftly dealt with.

Please feel free to include your comment about the content of the site too. As the comments and subjects grow, I may split them into different boards.

Jim

[confederateman44]

Hey guys, is there really a difference in bows? I know that obviously the instrument is the main component in making the sound, but is there a huge difference between a $30 bow and a $3,000 bow? Or is it just the mongolian horse hair as opposed to other horse hair? Thanks.

[worldfiddler]

Hey guys, is there really a difference in bows? I know that obviously the instrument is the main component in making the sound, but is there a huge difference between a $30 bow and a $3,000 bow? Or is it just the mongolian horse hair as opposed to other horse hair? Thanks]

Actually, the main component is the player! But yes, the instrument is next. There sure is a lot of difference in bows. It's both the quality of the hair and the weight, response, balance and flexibility - also, how long it will last, ie keep straight and springy - thru the years. The law of diminishing returns comes in here too ... there is a point past which you can spend, where you will not get a much better bow. In other words, the will be a huge difference in the quality of a $30 bow and a $3000 bow, for sure. But not such a great difference between a $3000 bow and a $5000 bow.

There are good carbon fibre bows around too, and excellent value for money.

Jim

[rwester]

Hi,
I've been wondering what the best fingering is for a 3 octave scale in
the key of G... giving the fingering for each finger and which strings
to do the correct shifts....I have seen the charts which give the
first finger and its shift but that leaves me wondering if I'm doing
the other fingers correctly.

[worldfiddler]

There are quite a few ways to finger a 3-octave scale. The older schools taught shifting through a tone (eg 1-2-3-1-2-3 or 1-2-1-2-3-4) each time. Modern teaching sometimes advocates shifting through the semitone gaps in the scale, which means less distance covered in each shift, but more shifts in total. Hope that makes sense ...

Jim

[chuck jones]

It would be very interesting to have a breakdown of bows vs ability and manufactures.  To say there are good carbon fiber bows without any more claification it does not give anyone a starting point to look at.  Granted for sure a beginner (say up to 3-4 years) doesnt need a $1000.00 bow.  Some guidelines would be nice to see.  What is a good starting point in a beginners bow?  Mine was $100.00 brazil.  Where should you go from there?  Or at what point should a bow be in order to keep advancing?  I know when I bought my Cadenza It tracked much better, had better tone and was easier to handle....just some thoughts...chuck

[ScottB]

I agree.  It does have to do with the player, BUT, the bow is an integral part of it as I recently found out.  I bought my violin and it came with a bow...well that's what they were passing it off as anyway.  It was garbage.  I purchased an Academy carbon fiber for $95.  It was good...for a while.  As I started to develop my ear, I noticed that it wasn't up to par anymore for me.  So last week i began mu pursuit for a new one.  I tried the Mark Wood "Turbow" ($116), also carbon fiber and the Coda Diamond NX ($355).  Both were great bows.  Both had excellent balance.  I sooooo wanted the Turbow to be the one, but Coda beat it out by only a fraction and it was over tonal quality.  SO this morning I purchased the Coda.  It hurt, but I am glad I did it.

I also noticed that the shoulder rest seems to be a big factor in my playing ability.  I started with an Everrest...it was ok, but I upgraded this week to the Bon Musica.  Little pricey, but the difference in my playing ability was night and day!  So, for me personally, I think I now have the right combination to further my fiddle education.

BTW, hi all, I am new.  Just joined.  Glad to be here.

[jackbow]

Hi everyone, what is your opinion of which strings are best for fiddling?  Good old time fiddle music.

[sweetsoundofgrace]

hi.

about the choise of strings; i personally always buy 'Dominant' strings (made in Austria). They're probably available where you live, last long and just sound ok. you often hear about how experimenting is encouraged, but for that i don't change strings often enough. Cheap strings will get out of tune quickly, be thinner and therefore snap quickly. Metal strings will sound a little like metal.

i think Dominant's will be the easiest and best choice; this is what it says on the pack:
'The Dominant string is a highly flexible, multi-strand synthetic core string for tonal warmth and feel of gut and is impervious to changes in humidity, allowing for stable intonation and long life. The sound is soft, clear and rich in overtones. Dominant strings, widely recognized as 'the reference standard', are legendary for distinctive tone and playability'.

hope it helps.
also: when applying the new strings, make sure the pegs turn in the right direction and pull the strings quite a bit to get any stretching out of them (or they will drop like crazy in the first few days)