In Take a Bow, we’re going to learn the symbols for the down-bow and the up-bow and get used to the motions that are involved in each.

When playing the violin, we’re either moving the bow to the right, or to the left, across the strings.

When we move the bow rightwards, it’s called a down-bow. Apart from sometimes on the G string, it looks like the bow is moving downwards towards the ground

When we move the bow leftwards, it’s called an up-bow. Again, apart from on the G string, it looks like the bow is moving upwards towards the ceiling (or the sky if you’replaying outdoors!)

*** If you are playing the violin the other way round – with the violin in the right hand, and the bow in the left – then the down-bow will move to the left, and the up-bow to the right!!! ***

n – this is the symbol for a down-bow

v – this is the symbol for an up-bow

In Take a Bow, each note is a whole note (semibreve). There are four beats in each bar, and a whole note lasts for four beats, so each note needs to be held for the entire bar. After each note, there is a whole rest (semibreve rest), which means there is an entire bar (four beats) of silence.

As whole notes are really long in duration, we need to use the full length of the bow for each one. So, if it is a down-bow, we need to start at the bottom of the bow (the heel) and move all the way to the top (the tip). And, if it’s an up-bow, we start at the very tip of the bow, and move all the way to the heel.

Make sure that you land your bow on the string really carefully each time. Think of the way a plane lands on the runway. Too quick, too sudden, too vertical, and we’ll get a bumpy landing indeed! Each note should begin really beautifully … like you would if you were singing the note.

The bow is heavier at the heel, so, for the down-bows, we need to land the bow very (veeeeery!) gently onto the string; otherwise, we’ll get nasty scrunchy sounds! Crrrrrrrrrrr!

At the tip, the bow is very light and further away from our right hand, so it’s a bit harder to control. Make sure you’ve got the bow securely balanced within the fingers and thumb of the right hand (without gripping!), and land slowly and softly onto the string.

Also, make sure that you can reach the tip of the bow easily, without stretching the right arm. The right hand and arm should always be able to move freely and fluidly, without there being any unnecessary tension. If it does feel like too much of a stretch, then simply swing the violin closer in towards you, so it isn’t angled too far out to the left.

During the rests, there’s plenty of time to move the bow through the air towards the heel to get ready for a down-bow, or towards the tip for an up-bow. Use the time wisely … don’t leave it to the last second!