----- Original Message ----- From: Carl Teplitski <koko99@mb.sympatico.ca> To: <pianotech@ptg.org> Sent: Thursday, January 10, 2002 3:23 AM Subject: violin service > Hi again, Yes, you can put too much rosin, but it's not that big a > deal -- it'll just wear off. I kind of rub it on in a back and forth motion from one end to the other, then take a couple full-length swipes to even it out. Then lightly tap the middle of the stick on your other hand to shake loose any excess. Occasionally wipe off the strings and the bowstick of caked rosin. Usually just a soft clean cloth will do (flannel, old T-shirt, cloth diaper). I used to use alcohol but have read NOT to do this 'cause it will mar the finish of the bow, but I think you can use a tiny bit on the strings if they're really caked-up with rosin. Don't use any alcohol on the body of the violin, however -- only violin polish. The brand name isn't so important, but DO use only violin, NOT cello , or bass rosin. Bass rosin, especially, is gooier. Scratchy tone is probably from: uneven bow speed (little "micro starts and stops" during stroke), bow speed too slow, bow not parallel to the bridge, full surface of bow hair not contacting strings, bow wandering up and down the string (lengthwise) while bowing, uneven pressure on bow, finger not pressing string down hard enough (poor termination), bowing too close to bridge, and lastly, but unlikely, too much rosin or maybe strings need replacing (not sure how to determine this except "bad tone" even when someone "good" play it. Tone comes with practice and is a combination of even pressure and even speed of the bow, staying parallel to the bridge. They do make hefty "practice mutes" of rubber, wood, and even steel, that fit onto the top of the bridge and mute the sound quite a bit, but I find it's also harder to hear if you're in tune or not when using these (at least for me). If the string windings tend to separate at the nut or bridge (or even if they don't), loosen the string and rub a pencil in the groove (just like graphite or Dag on a piano bridge) -- string slides across bridge easier when tuning. There's also an optimum height of the strings above the end of the fingerboard (determined by bridge height -- this would be the equilvalent of downbearing, I guess, except the height above fingerboard determines how easy it is to play and also affects intonation). For cellos, it's about 1/4"; but for violins, I'm sure it's a lot less. Also the curvature of the top of the bridge should match the curvature of the fingerboard -- best left to a violin shop unless you have a real thorough book that describes the procedure of shaping the bridge. The bridge feet should also mate to the violin top -- after removing strings (always risky 'cause soundpost could fall out of place), one puts fine sandpaper (with the grit facing up) on top of the violin, and, holding the bridge perfectly vertical (no rocking front and back), slide it forward and back on the sandpaper to make the bottom of the feet conform to the violin top. This is usually done when installing a new bridge and otherwise unecessary unless you notice gaps. ALL string players (well, brass and woodwind, too) sound bad when first starting out -- that's why they recommend starting kids as early as possible. It's just practice, practice, practice. Discount String Center (division of The Woodwind and The Brasswind) [discountstrings.com] sells inexpensive string instruments ("school" quality), but is a good catalog to have for accessories, and ordering strings from them is cheaper than buying at music stores -- ask a local teacher for brand name recommendations. >> Thanks for the replies, Tom -- appreciate it. --Dave Nereson
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