Cello Intermediate 19: The Bow Second Game

In this video, we are going to be talking a little bit more about bow distribution using an exercise I call the "bow second game."

When we play a piece of music, we have to constantly change and adapt our bow speeds as necessary. To practice this, turn a metronome on to 60 beats per minute. This means every click is exactly one second. The goal of the game is to play a full bow that lasts for a specific number of seconds, forcing you to evenly distribute your speed.

Fast bows (1 to 3 seconds)

If you want to play a full bow that lasts exactly 1 second, it requires quite a fast bow speed using your whole arm. Because the bow is moving so quickly, you need to adjust your contact point to be slightly further away from the bridge (closer to the fingerboard).

As we move to 2 and 3 seconds, the game is about mentally dividing the bow. For a 2-second bow, divide the bow in half (one second per half). For a 3-second bow, divide it into three sections. These speeds are generally a lighter, comfortable bow stroke.

Slowing down (4 to 7 seconds)

As we slow the bow down more and more for 4, 5, and 6-second bows, the mechanics have to change.

You must use a little more weight, and your contact point must move closer to the bridge to support that weight. For a 4-second bow, you are trying to hit exactly a quarter of the bow per beat. The more you practice dividing these sections evenly, the better you become at evenly distributing the bow speed throughout. (7 seconds is a particularly tricky one, because dividing the stick into seven even sections is hard!)

The ultimate challenge (12+ seconds)

Let's try something really slow, like a 12-second bow. For this, you need to be much closer to the bridge and move at a crawl.

Ideally, you want to work yourself up and see how long you can hold your bow for. Try to get to 30 seconds, or even the ultimate challenge: the one-minute bow. Every time you practice this sort of extreme control, you are deeply focusing on the weight in the bow arm, the contact point, and how much speed is necessary for everywhere between the fingerboard and the bridge.

When you go back to playing a piece, you will easily be able to transition from a 3-second bow speed right into a 10-second bow speed with total, even control.