Violin bows by Gunthrie, Quade or Samuels.

March 1, 2005 at 09:30 AM · Intersted in Benoit rolland's bows too... Any inputs here please?

March 1, 2005 at 03:58 PM · Hi Allen -

You're in the Northwest - Port Townsend, WA has become a mecca for bowmakers! You should make a field trip and visit them. I have a bow by Paul Siegfried, Ole Kanestrom is fabulous, and Robert Morrow just cleaned up at the last competition. Charles Espey works by commission only, and there's a couple more young guys doing nice work. They're all within a few hours of Richmond, and they love to have violinists visit/try their bows. Email me if you need contact information. Have fun!

Karin

March 1, 2005 at 07:10 PM · Thanks Karin! I have heard about Ole too and he seems to be very much in demand these days! I am now also interested in trying bows by Benoit Rolland and would like to know if anyone had the pleasure of doing so and can have some inputs towards his works and buying a violin bow from him.., : )

March 2, 2005 at 05:01 AM ·

March 3, 2005 at 04:23 AM · Hey there!

I am actually currently trying out a Samuels bow. It's in the $3600 price range. It's a lot heavier than a lot of other bows that I have been trying, but I like it because it provides a clear tone for my violin. The balance of the bow is also excellent. It makes staccato and string crossings 40 times easier just because or it's weight and balance. I really hope i can eventually afford to make the payments on this bow because it is a little out of my price range. I'm really attatched to it.... i've even named it already!

Good luck!

Beth

March 3, 2005 at 05:55 AM ·

March 3, 2005 at 11:23 PM · Hi,

Allen in my opinion, Rolland's bows are not worth the prices. At that range you have a huge selection of stuff including good French and German bows. I wouldn't go past around 3500$ for a modern bow. Probably won't get that on resale, so it's all about feel. If you want to go more than that, I would look for a pedigree bow. Just my own two cents.

Cheers!

March 11, 2005 at 02:26 PM · My wife and I own two bows made by David Samuels. One is a 59 gram bow we bought in San Francisco, and the other is a 61 gram bow I had made by David himself. In terms of "heavy" feel, if anything I would say that generally his bows lean slightly in the opposite direction, with great balance but a light feel to them...definitely not heavy or clubbish. Both of our bows are gorgeous, with amazing craftsmanship and attention to detail, both in terms of aesthetics and playability. The other bowmakers mentioned here are all excellent, but I have seen bows by many many modern makers and in my opinion, David Samuels is definitely in the top 5 among living bowmakers, and possibly the best. Taking that into consideration, the current market price for his bows is quite reasonable.

One more thing...as far as I know, David Samuels does not make reproduction bows, nor does he embellish his bows with garish ornamentation. He lets the quality of the materials and his craftsmanship speak for itself.

That said, the relationship between the bow and the violinist & violin is of course a very individual sort of thing...and two bows made by the same maker can have very different characteristics. If you commission a bow, be very specific about the kind of sound and feel you desire. And before you purchase a bow from a dealer, make sure they allow about a week or so trial period.