Ask Augustin 21 - About the pinky and using all of the bowhair

In this episode I talk about two bow technique subjects.
Everyone's body is different, and you have to customize your technique to fit the length of your arm and fingers.
One example where I do this myself: I got some questions and comments about my pinky finger not staying on the bow when I get to the tip, and this is intentional, and has to do with the fact that my arm is not very long. The pinky plays a pivotal role at the frog to provide balance and stability, but is not absolutely needed at the tip, so during the downbow I let it eventually leave the bow once it can't reach anymore, and hang in the air. If I tried to leave the pinky on the bow the whole way, my bow would be "crooked" at the tip.
For somebody with a longer pinky finger or a longer arm, the whole right arm should look quite different. Your bow technique should be custom-tailored to you!

The second topic is playing with full hair (having the bowstick directly above the bowhair, rather than at an angle so only one side of the hair touches the string). This often comes up at masterclasses. Of course much of the time we want to play with the bow on the side to get a smoother, sweet sound. However, being comfortable playing with full hair in loud passages is important. If you play with full hair, even your loudest sound can still be rich and clean-sounding, and you will break fewer bowhairs, because the bowstick is not scraping against the hair and the strings. Three-note chords in particular will sound substantially louder and cleaner if you play them with full hair.
Look at your bow: if you are only missing bowhairs on one side of the frog, it may be time to think about playing more with full hair!

Видео Ask Augustin 21 - About the pinky and using all of the bowhair канала Augustin Hadelich