Curved bow

As an arch bows for string instruments is called, the bow stick is in playing position bent upwards, ie bow and bow hair almost form a circle segment. The arch also has a lever on the handle by which the bow hairs can be tightened and loosened during the game. In order for a controlled play on one, two, three and four strings is possible. As the four strings of a stringed instrument are arranged on a curved bridge, the bow hair must be loosened so that they reach every three or four strings. Today, conventional bows are bent in the other direction, ie you can usually maximum of two strings, the cello three strings, depending on the pressure, play simultaneously.

History

In the 20th century musicologist Arnold Schering opened the discussion to the allegedly historical arch 1904. Schering referred to the preface to Georg Muffat's Florilegium Secundum, which violinist of the Baroque period laid the thumb of the right hand on the bow hair, so as to change the voltage. It was wrong Schering conclusion, we have been able to withstand multiple stops by reduced by releasing the thumb pressure, the arc voltage, so that the hair could place on all four strings, a fundamental mistake, the Albert Schweitzer in his book on Johann Sebastian Bach ( 1905) popularized. In 1950, he wrote in a text to the stream Lambarene year with the title: The Bach's works for solo violin violin bow required. Schweitzer stood with violinists who on their own initiative, different arch models had let build in regular contact. Rolph Schröder from Kassel designed his first round arch models in the 1930s. Schweitzer reported immediately in the ' Swiss music newspaper " from a concert in Strasbourg Schröder 1933. 1951 took Schröder in the presence of Albert Schweitzer on the works of Bach ( released on Columbia Records). David Dodge Boyden and other music researchers presented a compelling argument against the authenticity of the Bach - arc in the second half of the 20th century. Accordingly, absent historical evidence of the strong curvature of the arch in the 18th century, as did the arch is a lack of dynamic development opportunity. Iconographic role models for the arch there is indeed from the Middle Ages, however, these sheets have a tight tension.

Another violinist Emil Telmányi is to say, the ( the Vega -arm) played another round arch model of the Danish luthier Vestergaard, what 's recordings from 1953 testify. Klaus Geiger used a self-made arch in order to use in the street music, " the violin as a harmony instrument ".

The violinist Rudolf Gähler which the circular arc game has taken over from his teacher Rolph Schröder, played the sonatas and partitas by Johann Sebastian Bach with the round arch 1998 at ARTE NOVA. Gähler published in 1997 the book The arch for the violin - a phantom, in which he summarized all previously known texts on the arch. Here it is clear that criticism of the arch game, sparked mainly to the incorrect assertion that there had been this kind of arches to Bach's time. The selected Schweitzer term " Bach bow " was thus not applicable and unhelpful. Rudolf Gähler sets the arch aware as a modern update a means of voice-leading analysis of Bach's solo sonatas and partitas one.

In the 1990s, the cellist Michael Bach, who initially had no knowledge of the previous efforts of the above Geiger to deal with the multi -part playing the cello began. The contemporary composition in mind. He founded the studio " BACH.Bogen " in Stuttgart and Wissembourg, where the name " BACH " refers to its own behalf and not on Johann Sebastian Bach. In the aftermath arches were designed for all stringed instruments, with Rudolf Gähler and Mstislav Rostropovich were involved in the years 1997-2001. On the occasion of the Concours Rostropovich the cello BACH.Bogen for 2001 was presented in Paris. Michael Bach's polyphonic and obertönige playing techniques on the cello and its specific notations are the basis for the works for cello with bow, which he suggested John Cage, Dieter Schnebel and Hans Zender. A shallow model of BACH.Bogen allows, moreover, the suites by JS To interpret Bach, with a compromise between the melodic and chordal game is aimed at. The BACH.Bogen received in 2012 the 1st prize of the exhibition project " BACH PASSES " in Arnstadt, Germany.