Amateur Bard

Well I seem to be on track for monthly blog updates, which is… a better track record than I normally have.

I’ve been paying attention to my basic bowing technique, and I can see some progress. I’ve also been working on my bow hold, as it has a tendency to creep high (off the stick, rather than choking up) when I’m worn out and not paying full attention. A lot of “play one bar, check position.”

But it’s been a bit of a struggle with regard to straightness and not drifting because, sadly, my ‘good’ bow is rather warped to the right. I have a couple of less expensive bows I’ve tinkered with, so I know that the warp is a definite factor. Unfortunately, playing with a $30 bow instead of a $200 bow is unpleasant. I’ve gone against every good instinct and splurged on a carbon fiber bow as a back up. The new bow should arrive tomorrow (fingers crossed). I know, I know, it’s foolish to buy a bow sight unseen but I’ve always been a flexible fool. I’m actually brainstorming if I can bully someone into going on a music shop road trip with me to look for a possible replacement for my good bow. (I’m not sure if the warp can be removed; I’ve always heard that messing with the wood part of the bow runs the risk of structural damage, so…)

I’m pretty happy with the work I’ve done on my left hand finger height. I’m also much less likely to have sky high fingers on pieces I used to play, so clearly all my good habits haven’t completely escaped 😉

It’s quite a stretch but not too much of a stretch… I’ve been noodling around with the old Bach Sonatas and Partitas. Some of the simpler doubles are almost okay sounding, haha! I’ve even boldly revised some of the fingerings my teacher wrote in for me. I’ve decided the my classical stretch goal will be to get the Gavotte & Rondo from Partita 3, one of my favorites, back under my fingers in the future.