Drawing a Straight Bow

So, yes, straight bows are not always necessary or even desirable.  Nonetheless, it is important to develop the discipline of keeping your bow straight and in a single lane.  You can think of lanes in much the same way as staying in your lane while driving.  

I often joke with my younger students that they are part of the 'instant download generation'.  Unfortunately, there is no download button you can click to instantly program your brain to keep you bow straight and in its lane.  You just have to put in the time.  There is just no other way.

I recommend sitting close to a mirror so you can watch carefully.  If you sit too far away from the mirror, it is difficult to tell if your bow is tracking in a straight line.  Once you have a good perspective, begin pulling open strings while maintaining a bow perpendicular to the strings.

If you don't have a mirror handy, it may help to think of keeping your bow parallel with the bottom of the fingerboard.  Cello teachers often instruct students to keep their bows parallel with the bridge but the curve of the bridge makes it hard to judge.  The bottom of the fingerboard is a clearer guide.  When looking down, just be sure to not pull your head a neck forward!  Instead, pivot your head on top of the spine and look down with your eyes.  Your neck will thank you!

To complicate matters some, the angle of the bow in the hand and arm will be different for each string.  

When playing at the frog on the C string, the tip of the bow will point away from you more than on the A string. To practice this, I recommend a horizontal windshield wiper motion only done with the fingers (see video). Repeat: only with the fingers.  Do no use your wrist!  If you use your wrist you will create a kink in your wrist (a 'V') known as 'ulnar deviation'.  This happens when you wrist bends in the direction of your pinkie finger.  We want to minimize this angle in the wrist as much as possible. 

I have come to the conclusion that whoever formulated traditional cello technique must have had long arms and big hands.  Not only in cello technique but in string pedagogy in general, it is often insisted on to keep the bow straight all the way to the tip.  This is especially tension producing for short arms on the A string and it is simply unnecessary.  By keeping the bow straight all the way to the upper half on the A string with a short armed the cellist will,

All three angles are BAD.  There is a much easier and more ergonomic solution - just pull your arm back at the moment you begin to reach uncomfortably.  The bow won't be straight at that moment but I find it doesn't effect the sound as long as you stay in your lane.  Give it a try.  

Now, if your arm is long enough, by all means, feel free to disregard what I just wrote.  However, if your arm is short, any gains that might be had by keeping your bow straight at the tip are completely lost due the the tension created.  It just ain't worth it, folks.

Please see the video for a demonstration of this technique.

Another technique that helps keep the bow straight on the A string is to tilt the cello.  If you tilt your cello a bit to the right, it will be easier to reach the A string at the tip.  

And one more little tip for the upper half of the bow.  I picked this up from a Russian violinist friend of mine - flatten the hair at the tip of the bow.  I admit I love this technique because it seems to help not only with sound but with preventing the wrist from over extending.  

This exercise/game is helpful for practicing a 'straight' bow near the bridge and fingerboard.  

Have you noticed that when you spread peanut butter you have to go slowly and the thick peanut butter resists the motion of the knife?  That is analogous to bowing near the bridge.  The string resists your movement.  It feels thick, like molasses.  It's kind of like moving your arm through water.  

Some of you need to make your peace with that part of the string.  You don't like the resistance the string puts out.  But it's like drawing up water from deep in a well.  It is here you can draw a sound rich in overtones.  But you must draw slowly with weight.

Near the fingerboard the string doesn't resist.  It speaks immediately.  Just like spreading grape jelly on bread it spreads easy.  Some of you need to branch out from this comfort zone.

To practice keeping the bow straight (except with short arms at the tip!) at the fingerboard and near the bridge, I like to practice the Peanut butter and Jelly game.

Again, it's much easier to demonstrate than write out so I will refer you to the video at this point.

For another perspective, please see Bow Trajectory by Ian Swedlund.

Happy practicing!