neilp

Lots of very fine players use German bow, it just doesn't work for me. Relaxation is the key however you hold the bow. Variations are huge, but as long as you can keep the bow perpendicular to the strings and the hair flat on the string with control and no tension in your hand, wrist, elbow or shoulder, it'll be fine!!! Not much to achieve then.....

I'd say your thumb is too straight, and the tip of the thumb is all you need in contact with the bow stick, and thumb shouldn't be in contact with the ferrule, but there's room for variation, and if it works it works. You should aim to have your hand as close as possible to it's relaxed resting shape and use the absolute minimum of force to hold the bow

660, not 600! 660 is at the top of 3/4, I'd say, and 700 is on the long side for 4/4. Anything over 700 is pretty long, and starts to become difficult to manage. Best advice I can give is learn to use less bow and go for a shorter bow

You need what fits you and the instrument. Many many years ago when I started playing I used the longest bows I could find, and still often struggled with legato passages because I hadn't learned to move the bow slowly. As I got more accomplished I found shorter bows felt better balanced (obviously!) and were easier to use. You need to try several lengths/weights and see what suits you. I'd suggest if you are a reasonably normal-sized human you should look at stick lengths anywhere between 660 and 700mm, but it does depend what you feel comfortable with

It's easy to be cynical about these things, but the bow needs to be viewed as an instrument in it's own right, and a fine bow makes a HUGE difference. Having said that, Ms Du Pre's name may well have trebled the value of that particular stick! It's a Tubbs, and fully blinged, so the chances are it'll never play the Elgar concerto again. "Owned" and "used" are two very different things, too.....

So sorry I missed this - from a selfish point of view it was worth missing it, but I would have liked to come. Happy to pay my £10 too if someone wants to tell me who to pay? Hope there will be a next one! Neil

1981 a second-hand Aria SB1000 in Handy Music in Reigate. Couldn't afford it then, I was 16. 5 years later I bought an identical bass, and it's still with me. Good call.........

Use a bow case if you have any kind of money invested in your bow - I do, and my bows are either in my hand or in their case. Rosin is tricky, I don't normally add rosin during performance, unless there's an interval, in which case the bow will be unwound and re-rosined when it's tensioned again. No more than a couple of swipes. I have two decent bows s that I have something useable to play with when the posh bow is being rehaired

if anyone in the South East is interested in a leg-up into the Classical world I've just started a DB self-help group based in Horsham. The intention is to meet once a month and do some ensemble playing, work on tuning, blend and balance and have some fun, make the walls shake a bit. There's currently ten players signed up, all levels, more are welcome, no real limit to numbers. PM me if you're interested

If anyone in the South East is interested in a leg-up into the Classical world I've just started a DB self-help group based in Horsham. The intention is to meet once a month and do some ensemble playing, work on tuning, blend and balance and have some fun, make the walls shake a bit. There's currently ten players signed up, all levels, more are welcome, no real limit to numbers. PM me if you're interested

Just for info, I'm happy to do French bowing properly at the next Bash, assuming there is one, and if anyone in the South East is interested in a leg-up into the Classical world I've just started a DB self-help group based in Horsham. The intention is to meet once a month and do some ensemble playing, work on tuning, blend and balance and have some fun, make the walls shake a bit. There's currently ten players signed up, all levels, more are welcome, no real limit to numbers. PM me if you're interested Have fun on Sunday, sorry I won't be there

Well, it wasn't the Berlin Phil, but I've finally been offered a dep with a chamber ensemble I've been working on for years (literally!) so I'm afraid I won't be coming. Sorry! Shame as I was looking forward to meeting everyone. Next time for sure......

I don't care whether it was a synth or not. It's a fretless line. Played this on a dep the other week. It sits nicely under the fingers, not hard at all, you just have to make the groove nice and greasy and away it goes. Cracking simple little line

I have 4 basses. Two of those will never leave. Along with my DB (Meghan) my Aria SB1000 and my Wal Custom fretless are part of my musical DNA and I will never part with them. They've been with me since 1985 and 1994 respectively and are just me. Nobody has to approve, that's just the way it is. If you don't like the sounds, get a different bass player

Pops is my favourite, but it's such a cheap - relatively - item that you could feasibly try several different rosins in a fairly short time. I don't honestly see the need, the differences aren't huge and time spent thinking about rosin would be better spent thinking about technique, The gains in tonal quality would be greater

David Heyes is a superstar, you should grab any chance you get to pick his brain, whatever your standard. I'd be going myself if it wasn't for the DB Bash, but you can bet your life I'll be going to the next one. Opportunity to learn from one of the best players in the world.

I have a B4FL that deps for the Wal when I'm nervous. I love it, can't beat it for the money. If it had a decent preamp it'd be even better! What do people recommend?

I think that must be one of the most lethal loads I've ever seen in a car!

I'm sure there'll be other chances to try mega-pound bows! Shame you've got your priorities right!!! Stingray Pete has hit the nail on the head- more the merrier

Aria SB1000 fretted and Wal Custom fretless, Smoothhound wireless into GK Backline 600, mostly flat EQ, FX loop to Boss BC2 and - for the moment - Boss ME20B for experimentation. Cabs are a GK MBX410 and an Ashdown 1x15. All cables are OBBM's finest. The sound is big and deep-chested with enough top end for the Wal to cut through when necessary. No plans to change anything apart from FX, except I might be tempted by a newer 1x15 with a horn

No worries. Pete is a genius, judging from the quality of the mechanical C extension he made for me. Absolutely superb.

Isn't Pete Barnaby up that way somewhere?

Zeppelin, Whitesnake(!)

Lots of very good quality instruments come from China these days. Jay Haide labelled basses and cellos are pretty much as good as you can get for less than about £6k, and the Shen instruments are up there too. Don't know of anything of that quality from Japan though

MU subs includes £2k of equipment cover, as well as PL. All the stuff that isn't covered by that - the Wal, my DB and my bow - is insured with Allianz. Pretty good value, and includes leaving gear in an unattended car. Don't try to save money on insurance. If you ever REALLY need it, you'll be glad you paid the little bit extra