Bows & strings for psalteries??
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springrobin
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- Tell us something.: I play flute, whistle and harp and have been a member on this board for many years. I have tended to be a lurker recently and just posted a response for the first time in quite awhile.
- Location: Chattanooga, TN
Bows & strings for psalteries??
So- Many years ago I gave my brother a nice bowed psaltery when he completed his PhD. He hasn't played it in awhile so my sister-in-law sent it to me. Don't know how I feel about that but at least it didn't go in a garage sale. Now I need to replace a few strings and the bow. Should I go with a regular violin bow or a non-adjustable psaltery bow and what gauge strings are now recommended? As it's been 20 years I should probably replace all of them...
Well, a couple of high-end custom builders (Phantasy Psalteries and Omega Strings) are using graduated sets and even wound strings. You might want to sniff around their websites for ideas and advice. Otherwise, I'd just replace the strings with whatever's on it now. Get/borrow a micrometer and measure the diameter of the wire you have. If it's simple piano wire, that's available and cheap as dirt. If you have ball-end plain strings of the same gauge, check juststrings.com for a good deal on bulk purchase.
For bows, many new players are opting for 1/2, 1/8, or 1/16 size violin bows. The smaller the bow, the faster you'll go. At least that's the claim. I haven't heard of anyone using a 1/32 bow. That's probably too short (and not easy to find). Traditional bows are available all over, including Lark and Elderly. I like a violin bow simply because you get a little more technology for the money. The trad bows are a pain to me. One trad bow I tried had the hair anchored at both ends with wedges, and you used your finger to apply tension. Pretty useless to me. The other trad bow I had used a sawed-off violin peg to tighten the hair. Not very good either, but traditional. There's been so much effort and research put into violin bows over the centuries that there's not good reason not to use it, IMO. At least you get a real frog on a violin bow.
Hope that helps.
For bows, many new players are opting for 1/2, 1/8, or 1/16 size violin bows. The smaller the bow, the faster you'll go. At least that's the claim. I haven't heard of anyone using a 1/32 bow. That's probably too short (and not easy to find). Traditional bows are available all over, including Lark and Elderly. I like a violin bow simply because you get a little more technology for the money. The trad bows are a pain to me. One trad bow I tried had the hair anchored at both ends with wedges, and you used your finger to apply tension. Pretty useless to me. The other trad bow I had used a sawed-off violin peg to tighten the hair. Not very good either, but traditional. There's been so much effort and research put into violin bows over the centuries that there's not good reason not to use it, IMO. At least you get a real frog on a violin bow.
Hope that helps.