How do you make a good beautiful tone from a long, (fast hand moving) bow stroke?

hey..i think for a gud strong sound 1 needs to practice ..Intially try practicing slowly by streching ur bow at each note ur playing,..it will really help ...and b patient ...then u can go on trying faster..it will sound good and "healthy"...it definetly helped me!

There are a few things you do to improve your tone.

1.) Make sure the bow is straight. The best way to check this is to play in front of a mirror and make sure that the bow is parallel to both the bridge and fingerboard during the entire stroke.
2.) The bow hair should be flat on the string. Other types of strokes may require you to tilt to bow, but for a basic strong stroke, the hair should all touch the bow.
3.) Increase the pressure on the bow with your right hand. Let gravity help you and lower your right elbow slightly. When at the frog, let the natural weight of the bow dig into the string. When at the tip, apply more weight by pressing down with your right index finger.
4.) Make sure that your right hand is correctly positioned over the frog. Additionally, your fingers should move a bit. When at the tip your fingers should be more stretched out, and when at the frog they should be more bent. (To demonstrate, put down your instrument, and hold your right arm in the air as if you were going to bow. Sort of throw your hand down - not moving your wrist - as if you were throwing a ball. Notice how at the point you would release the ball your fingers are straighter, and at the opposite end they are more curved. This is an exaggeration of how they should act when you are bowing.)
5.) You can also try moving the bow slightly closer to the bridge. This will generally produce a louder sound.
6.) Lastly, your left hand can help too. If playing sustained notes, use vibrato. If playing a fast run, or passage where vibrato does not fit, make sure to place the fingers accuratly. Some describe this as hammering the fingers - they should hit the fingerboard hard and with precision.


hopefully this will help. if at all possible, though, please consult a teacher.

Okay, for me I had the same problem, which i solved a few ways.

Mainly, you start to lose quality and volume as you move toward the tip of the bow, so as you are moving down to the tip, lean in on the bow with your index finger, in a way causing the pinky to lift

That will balance the sound, because it is naturally louder at the frog, and as you move down, lean in more on the bow with the finger.

You should, at the tip, not feel the need to put any other fingers on the bow other than your thumb and index finger. Thats how much contact you need to have with your index finger.

And remember also to smoothen out the turns of the bow with your fingers like shock absorbers--i am sure you know what i am talking about

I caution you to not start neglecting the pinky finger, if you follow Moshu's advice. When you get more advanced, control of both index and pinky fingers are Vital. Maske sure it's always in contact with the bow, even if just barely.