What's Your Favorite Dark Rosin?
The winter months are approaching, the days are colder, and I need new rosin for my violin. I've never bothered to get new rosin for winter before, partly because I was uneducated about rosin and partly because I didn't care. I live in a place where the summers are very hot and humid, the winters are very cold and very dry, and spring and fall don't really exist. I'm looking for a dark rosin for winter, but it seems there are hundreds of brands! I'm also curious if I would prefer dark rosin overall, in all seasons. Price is no matter to me, and neither is whether or not it's hypoallergenic. By the way, I use whatever cheap steel (?) strings that my violin came with. Nothing fancy yet.
So far in my rosin search I've found the following brands that seem to be well-liked: Magic, Hill Dark, Salchow Medium-Dark, Pirastro Schwarz, Holstein, Melos Dark, Larsen, Liebenzeller Meteor Iron I, Andrea. I'd just like to know what your favorite winter/dark/soft rosin is and maybe what you think of some of the brands I put above :)
Replies (11)
Melos Dark is great for LOTS of grab, as its meant for plain gut. :)
I used Jade, historically.
Now I've got a sudden embarrassingly large number of rosins. I'm using Vienna's Best day to day with the occasional swipe of Andrea Solo, but I've got a cake of Melos Dark that seems good, too. And now that I've just bought a bunch of rosins, I finally got off the waitlist for Baker's, and ordered a cake of the original.
For all seasons, the past couple of years my favorite rosin has been Hidersine Deluxe, which happens to be dark. It produces a good sound, grips well but not too much and w.o. dryness to the sound or adhesion. On top of that, it's very inexpensive - about $7! Good and cheap - you can't beat that combo!! SHAR carries it. More money does not necessarily make for a better rosin by any means.
PS I can quit rosin discussions any time I want. Really. I've done so many times. ;-/
How about Guinness, eh?
I'm not a great one for buying rosins. A new cake about once a decade is the norm for me when the old one wears out. My current rosin is Pirastro Schwarz, which does an effective job on plain gut.
Hidersine Deluxe! I've been using mine for years, and absolutely love it (not to mention it's cheap).
Andrea is the best rosin you can get but it is pricey. This rosin was initially not sold to the general public but only given to violin competition winners. Pirastro Schwarz rosin is a cheaper alternative.
I'm using Pirastro Oliv/Evah, which seems to be working well for me. But based on their website, it seems like the Schwarz might be better for steel strings.
"Andrea is the best rosin you can get but it is pricey."
There IS no "best". As with strings and the violin, itself, and the bow, it's a matter of personal taste and playing style.
Thanks to all! I think I'll get either Hidersine or Pirastro Schwarz. I'll get a nice rosin, maybe Andrea, when I get a nicer bow. Hopefully soon!
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November 12, 2016 at 07:12 PM · The best dark rosin I've ever tried, and have been using is Andrea Solo, the worst dark rosin I've ever used was Hill Dark,
Also, Andrea Piacere, although "seem" dark, it should be characterized as a light rosin. It's excellent on a humid day, but as terrible as hill dark rosin on dry day.