How to Prepare a Violin Bow

Last Updated: October 30, 2022

Playing music is delightful, most people who play music actually develop more intelligence. A violin is a very common instrument, which is in the string family. An orchestra is composed of many string players and half of those players or so play the violin. Playing with a bow or "arco" is very important. It is equally important to understand that you just do not play with a bow, you have to prepare it so you can play with it.

Steps

1
Take your bow gently out of the case. A bow is just as fragile as it looks. Take care in handling your violin.
2
Use the screw to tighten or loosen the bow hair. Be careful not to make it too tight or loose, see "Tips" for a method of checking if the tightness is good.^{[1]
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3
Spin the screw to the right to make the bow hair tighter.^{[2]
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Research source} If your hands are sweaty, wet, or it is just hard to spin the screw, try putting your shirt, or a piece of cloth over it. The process should be much easier.
4
Rosin the bow with the orange, green, or yellow piece of dried pine tree sap. This is called the "rosin." Make sure that the surface is rough and grainy so that the grains get into the bow hairs. If it is not, then file it with a nail file or sandpaper. Also, if you're using cheap rosin, make sure to scratch it with the bottom of the bow.
5
Use the rosin and rub it onto the bow hair, up and down repeatedly, about 5 or 6 times. You are welcome to do more. Some do more than 20. See the effects of different amounts of rosin in the "Tips" section.^{[3]
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6
Congratulations! You have prepared your bow and now it is time to play that wonderful music!

Community Q&A

Question

How do I hold and use the bow?

Community Answer

Put your thumb in between the stick and the frog so that the cuticle is touching the frog, and have your pinkie rest on top of the stick.
Question

How can I tell whether the bow strings are too loose or too tight?

Community Answer

You should be able to fit your pinkie in between the strings and the stick.
Question

Can I touch the bow strings?

Community Answer

It's a lot better if you don't, because human hands are oily and the oil may damage the bow strings. The strings are very delicate.

Warnings

Do not poke or file the rosin too hard or too much, because doing so will break the rosin.

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Do not touch the bow hair, the oil on your skin coats the rosin, resulting in a small, gravelly sound.

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Never put the small tip of the bow on the ground. The tip is especially fragile, and can cause damage, if it is not used correctly.

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If the whole set of hair breaks, do not try to put it back together, get the company to fix it, or buy a new bow.

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If several of the bow hairs break off, make sure to rehair the bow. An uneven distribution of bow hair can cause uneven pulling on one side of the bow. If not fixed, this can cause the wood of the stick to warp.

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The rosin is sticky, so don't touch it.

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Do not swing the bow around or do anything that could cause damage to the bow and/or surrounding objects and people.

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If a hair breaks on the bow, snip it off as close as you can with a nail cutter or small scissors.^{[5]
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