How to Adjust the Bow and Bowing

This article shows how to adjust the tightness of the horsehair on the bow. The tightness of the horsehair affects how the bow will glide and bounce against the violin strings, so try to adjust the tension enough to receive a proper reaction against the violin strings. Bowing with good technique is important for producing a proper sound from the violin and must be practiced a lot in order to master it.

How to Adjust the Bow

01Turn the screw located on the bottom of violin bow to adjust the tension of the horsehair on the bow. Turn it clockwise to tighten the hair, and turn it counter-clockwise to loosen the hair on the bow.

02First, turn the screw clockwise until you can fit your pinky finger in between the hair and the stick as shown in the picture.

Point!

Although we said that the bow should be tightened enough to barely fit your pinky finger between the hair and the stick, this reference guide is only meant for beginner players. In fact, every player adjusts the bow differently depending on the degree of tightness that they prefer. Through good practice, someday you too will be able to gauge how much tightness is necessary when playing with the bow!

[Bad Examples of Bow Tightness]

Is there too much space between the bow hair and the stick? If your bow looks like the photo below, the horse hair is too tight.

How to Bow on the Strings

01Each bowing has a name. First, there's the full bow which uses the entire bow from frog to tip, the upper half that is played from the tip to the middle of the bow, and the lower half that is played from the middle to the frog.

02The area where the bow should be played on the violin strings is right in the middle between the bridge and the end of the fingerboard. As you can see in the picture, the bow should be played straight so that it is always perpendicular to the string.

These photos taken from the side view demonstrate what the bow should look like from each part of the bow. Snap your right wrist to keep the bow perpendicular to the string.

Point!

Try to relax and release all the tension in your right hand while holding the bow.

If you can confirm the above, it is OK. Bowing takes practice and you get used to it, so it's important to keep practicing. Once you master the bowing, you will be able to play the bow without any interruptions when turning the bow!