To bow, or not to bow

Alexandra Lopez Arca

Name: Alexandra López Arca Main Subject: Classical Violin Research supervisor: Liesbeth Ackermans Title of Research: To bow, or not to bow. Modern bow vs. baroque bow: comparisons and inspirations Research Questions: To what extent do the shape and construction of the bow affect the violinist’s sound and to what extent do her/his use of the bow and musical choices influence the sound? What can a modern violinist learn from experimenting with a baroque bow? What are aspects of the evolution of the violin bow, its use and the evolution of right hand technique from the 18th century until now that are essential to be aware of when playing with both modern and baroque bow? Summary of Results: The bow is the soul of the violin. Playing with different bows alters our sound. Their shape and construction affect the articulation that we naturally get with them. This fact tells us a lot about the music for which they were built, and we can learn from it in a natural way. But when a violinist is only familiarised with a modern bow, the learning process with an old bow can hardly take place. It is better to know what the characteristics of each bow are and experimenting with them in order to get used to them. After having this experience, different attacks, articulations and nuances will emerge and facilitate the music for which every bow was thought. It is interesting to see how the sources from those times show us the musical value of the different possibilities of the old bow. Nevertheless, if the musical idea the violinist has in mind does not match the old bow’s natural behavior and the indications made for its use, using it would not bring any advantage. After an overview of the evolution of the bow and its relation with the right hand technique, I will explore the possibility of combining a modern instrument with an old bow as well as the benefits of using it for playing, especially when used following the indications the sources of that period reveal. Biography: Born in Santiago de Compostela, she finished her bachelor’s degree at the Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya before moving to The Hague, where she studies with Vera Beths. Since her years in Barcelona, she has developed a special interest for early music performance practice, stimulated by her lessons with Alba Roca and Lorenzo Coppola, and with Walter Reiter in the Royal Conservatoire.

VI. Results, conclusions and future plans

Overview of the research process: analysis of what has been done

The conclusions and recommendations of this research will combine the results of the different activities done during the research process. As it was presented previously, these activities included: (i) the study of the physical characteristics of the bow and their effect on the articulation, (ii) experimenting with these characteristics, analysing my way of playing with both bows and comparing the result, (iii) observing the effect of the baroque bow in someone else, (iv) comparing the natural behaviour of the bow with indications for playing from the baroque period.

We will start with the two first points: the personal study and experimentation. I acquired a deeper knowledge of the intrinsic characteristics of the baroque bow given by its construction. By learning this, I became more aware of the natural behaviour of the old bow compared to the modern bow. I tried to show clearly the differences in the examples in chapter II. When analysing my way of playing with both bows, I could realise exactly why I feel more comfortable playing baroque music with an old bow. The reason is that the bow facilitates my work by articulating in a particular way by itself. As the natural behaviour of the old bow is closer to my musical ideas than that of the modern bow, my effort can be reduced. Therefore, I have an easier feeling when playing. I analysed carefully some passages where I could play with that ease. This sensation existed because of the natural characteristics of the old bow pointing in the same direction as my musical ideas. My comfort while playing is important, but is the result connected to my feeling? In other words, it feels better, but does it sound more interesting when I play with a baroque bow? Before recording myself, only after being more aware of the way the bow was helping me, my perception was that I was getting a better result in general with the baroque bow. When I listened to the recordings there were moments in which I could barely hear the difference, but others where it sounded lighter and better organised, closer to what I wanted.

About the experiment with my colleague, my expectations were slightly different from what finally occured. As it was mentioned, I feel more comfortable playing baroque music with a baroque bow. My sensation when I play is that the old bow is so connected with the music it was made for, that everything gets more organic and easier. It is so natural for me that I imagined it was a feeling that every modern violinist would experience. To my surprise, when I first listened to my colleague, I realised she was using her modern bow in a way that she was getting a lot of light articulations, similar to those inherent to the baroque bow. That is to say, she was adapting her use of the bow according to her musical ideas, that were quite close to mine. During the first round of recordings with the baroque bow with no indications, the second surprise came: the violinist was not feeling comfortable and the musical result was not so different from that of the modern bow. Nevertheless, whenever she kept playing for some minutes she already could feel the ease that the lightness of the baroque bow gives in front of certain difficult passages. After giving her some indications and exercises to get used to the new bow and some time for experimentation, some things changed. The musical result was different and also the behaviour of the right hand, that was adapting to the characteristics of the old bow. However, the greater impact of this experience was the better understanding of the music: the bow helped clarifying the musical ideas.

Regarding the fourth point, I wanted to check if the articulations the baroque bow naturally produces, were contained within the sources of that period. As mentioned before, the most significant of them, the attack, was widely described, as well as its expressive effect. Of course the natural behaviour of the bow does not dictate how the bow should be used all the time. For this reason I looked in the sources for other aspects of the use of the bow that may be relevant when approaching baroque repertoire, apart from the already mentioned natural articulations of the bow.

Conclusions

Some conclusions can be drawn from these results, answering in that way the research questions. After analysing my own experience and my colleague’s, the following conclusion, that might sound obvious, can be drawn: it is still the musical intention of the violinist that has the greatest impact on the resulting articulation. The player wants a sound and will work with whatever bow she/he has in her/his hand to get it. The violinist will adapt the use she/he makes of the bow to the characteristics of it and to the result she/he is looking for. In other words, the use of the bow adapts to the musical idea and to the bow, in the same way we have seen that Tartini had adapted his way of using the bow to his particular very light bows. When playing baroque music, if the idea of the player is close to what the old bow naturally gets, it may be a great ally. As we have seen, it facilitates the job to the violinist. If the player is not used to the baroque bow, some practice is necessary, in order to get advantage of all the possibilities of the bow, although there are elements that can be immediately appreciated: the lightness of the baroque bow will replace a good part of the heaviness that the modern bow may produce.

However, the conclusion of this research has a less obvious side. When the violinist does not have a clear musical idea or her/his idea is closer to a more romantic approach of this repertoire, discovering the characteristics of the old bow can serve as source of inspiration and can influence the violinist's musical choices, as it reveals important information about the music of the period. The outcome of this research has shown how modern violinists can benefit from discovering the baroque bow. Of course not everything we need to know about baroque music for violin is contained in the natural behaviour of the bow, but experimenting with its characteristics can teach the violinist valuable knowledge in a natural way. That is the reason why I think the baroque bow can be a very useful tool when teaching baroque repertoire to a modern violin student. The student can experiment in her/his own hand what the baroque musical language is in an easy way. Besides, if combined with the accurate information about the music and the way of playing the violin at that time, the image she/he gets will be even more clear. It will definitely make the violinist capable of using a wider variety of expressive means when approaching baroque repertoire.

To sum up, the main points of the conclusions are:

The baroque bow may determine some of the articulations, but without knowing how to use it properly, the differences in relation to the modern bow, will not constitute a clear improvement of the result.

The resulting articulations will be determined mainly by the musical choices of the violinist. The player will adjust the use of the bow to the articulations she/he is aiming for and to the bow she/he is using.

The baroque bow can help the violinist in the following aspects:

- - To achieve some articulations more effectively:

- - - - If the ideas of the musician are close to the musical criteria we cand find in the sources of the time, the baroque bow is a great ally,and can make the result sound more organic. On the contrary, the modern bow can hinder her/his intentions. If the violinist does not have experience with the baroque bow, she/he should acquire some to take advantge of the help this bow may offer.

- - - - If the musical intentions of the player are not clearly connected with the natural behaviour of the bow, she/he will be able to experience its lightness and ease for some difficult passages anyway.

- - To inspire her/him musically: by exploring the natural behaviour of the bow together with some indications found in the sources, the violinist can understand in a different way the baroque repertoire. In other words, experimenting with a baroque bow may mould the violinist's ideas and her/his future musical choices. In this way, there is a connection from this point to the second main point mentioned above and a general conclusion can be drawn: experimenting with a baroque bow can affect the modern violinist's musical choices, which will determine the use of the bow she/he makes depending on the bow she/he is using, and in the end, these musical choices will determine the result regarding articulation.

Future plans

This research has opened a door to future experimentation and investigation. On the one hand, it was already mentioned in chapter I that further research about the relationship between violinists and bow makers during the 18th would reveal valuable information about the reasons of the evolution of the bow. This would help to have a better understanding of the musical ideas violinist had at that time.

On the other hand, it has encouraged me to develop a method to approach baroque repertoire for modern violin students. This method will not be based only on the use of the bow, but will include other aspects that are important to get a clear idea of what baroque musical language is. In this way, I expect making students capable of using another kind of expression to perform baroque music. Their tools to make the different styles more different from each other will be enriched. In other words, they will gain a greater command on the expressive means that the violin and the bow offer.

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