I’m a total newbie on the fiddle, so this is probably a really stupid question. And yes, I’m aware of the fact that it’s never stopped me from asking a question before, which is why I’m asking
I’ve been playing now for a month…lessons and everything. So I do practice every day. But no matter what I do, my bow seems to slide all over the strings, and make this horrible, squeaky noise. I’m sure it’s my technique, or perhaps the lack thereof, but what can I do to FIX that? It’s driving me nutty!! Any suggestions would be wonderful…I’d really like to finally get to the point where it’s not entirely painful to hear myself play
Well, other than saying that it takes a little more than a month’s practice for most of us (me too! ), I’d say make sure your hair tension is correct and that your grip is not getting sloppy. Your teacher will drill both of those into you in time! Getting proper bowing technique is the first hardest thing on the violin. The second is intonation. Believe it or not, they kind of click in your mind after a couple of months of hard work, so don’t give up!!
A lot of new students get a helpful start from a bowzo. It’s a little plastic widget that marks out the proper spot to draw the bow and helps you keep the bow in a straight line as it crosses the strings. Here’s the link, but I’d suggest that you talk to your teacher about it first. It can interfere with some teaching methods and be more of a hinderance than a help.
I had/have the same problem, and found a sort of visual equivalent of the Bowzo to be a big help.
With the fiddle in position, sight down the figerboard with your right eye, and find the point on, say, the A string where the string appears to intersect the end of the top of the fingerboard. Place your bow on that visual point (which is, physically, actually slightly toward the bridge). As you bow, make sure you keep the point of bow contact on that point. And as you cross strings, angle and place the bow at the equivalent point on that string.
Gradually, your right hand should adjust to the visual feedback, and overcome the stiff wrist that causes the bow to move in an arc and skate sideways on the strings. After a while, muscle memory should take over and you can stop going cross-eyed looking at the fingerboard.
Disclaimer: If your fiddle teacher declares this trick to be the dumbest idea ever from a crummy self-taught fiddle player like me … then never mind!
Practice scales (acending and decending), playing each note slowly, using a lot of bow arm weight (or ‘pressure’ as some would have it) and nice long bows. Aim for a loud sound without ‘crunching’ on the strings. As you practice digging into the string a little more and making a good sound, you will start to get used to where the bow should be for optimum sound. Then, try this doing the opposite; using very little bow arm weight. Practice getting a clear, soft sound (not one that is ‘slide-ie’ or weak). The scales are something you won’t have to thing about playing; the notes should be automatic soon, and you can concentrate most of your attention on your bow control, not left hand movement. Even try this with just open strings or a single note if you want to simplify it more.
Its best to learn bow control on something simple like scales instead of a piece in the begining; the old ‘divide and conquer’ method. Trying to learn bow control and new notes at the same time can be tricky, and its easy to develop bad habbits by simply not being able to devote enough attention to one area or the other. This is what I have my new students work on.
Take it slow, don’t get frusterated! Its very tempting to just keep plowing ahead, but if you don’t stop to address what needs help, you run the risk of long term consequences which will set you back even longer trying to correct. Take it from someone who’s been there (I’ve spent this year in college unlearning a lot of bad habbits, and its a drag!!) Your teacher will likely have other tricks to help you as well.
Also, how new is your violin and bow? If the strings are new and the bow is new and not previously played in and rosined, you will find it may take some time (and gratuitous amounts of sap) to get enough of a rosin build up so propper grip can be established.
Thank you all for your replies. They have been very helpful! I do know that after a month I shouldn’t be expecting perfection (and believe me, I’m far from that, LOL!)…I just keep thinking that since I understand the concept, I should be able to do it correctly
I did talk more to my teacher…she laughed at me because she knows that it’s driving me crazy, but at the same time, this is advanced bowing, so I need to just realize that it’s going to take time. Patience is not my better virtue, however. It’s frustrating enough to have to do each note separately (each note is one bow stroke) to gain more control…I’d rather slur all the notes so I can go faster. But onward I plod anyway. Luckily I haven’t hit frustration mode yet…but i really think it’s because I’ve finally found the instrument that I love. If I could play 10+ hours a day, I would.
To address a couple of the things said above…my fiddle is new. I have the pictures of each piece as it was made, even! And the bow is new as well, so I do know that more rosin is always best at the beginning. Believe me, I’ve used more than gratuitous amounts! But it has been a couple of weeks since I’ve used it. Maybe a good dousing would be in order.
The Bowzo thing is genius! I love it! I’m going to print out a picture of it for my instructor…right now I’m using a Suzuki method type thing that resembles two American football type goal posts on either side of my violin. It’s taking some getting used to, that’s for sure, but I think it will help me establish the muscle memory that I need. And the mirror is also a very good suggestion, and one that I intend to use frequently.
Thank you all again! Playing is fast becoming an addiction of sorts, so playing even somewhat well would be a kindness to my family
I’m going to be contrary about bowing devices like the bowzo. I think it is fine for young children who don’t have good motor control yet. For adults, I think that it teaches you sloppy technique. Folks have a tendency to let the bow ride up against the device. If you get used to such a crutch, when you quit cold-turkey, you will still have to retrain yourself to do without it. I think it best to just learn the correct way from the start. There is no magic cure for proper technique. There is only practice.
Basics on the fiddle take months to get down, not weeks. The solution to your problem is (proper) practice and patience. This is a much more demanding instrument than flute or whistle, and takes much longer to get to the same level.
BTW, if you can’t handle frustration, the fiddle is not the instrument for you. The first couple of years are solid frustration, punctuated by a few moments of breakthrough. If you make it past two years, you’ll be a lifer.
Absolutely. I don’t ever see the frustration disappearing entirely. It just gets a smaller role. Not to mention that we learn to tune out the frustration, or at least take the edge off it.
This is similar to how I would answer this question, although I had not tried varying the pressure/arm weight. I call it the “slow bow” exercise, where you draw the bow as slowly as you can while still maintaining a good sounding note. This helps to train the muscles and get used to the movements. Doing a scale is great, but make sure to play on all four strings. Obviously, one uses the muscles differently when playing on the G string versus the E. I would also recommend the mirror trick, but it sounds like you already know that one.
Ask your teacher about the rosin level of your bow. It does take a bit for a new bow to get the proper base. This goes for rehairs as well.
), I’d say make sure your hair tension is correct and that your grip is not getting sloppy. Your teacher will drill both of those into you in time! Getting proper bowing technique is the first hardest thing on the violin. The second is intonation. Believe it or not, they kind of click in your mind after a couple of months of hard work, so don’t give up!! 