"I have just been trying out your Arcus Concerto viola bow - quite different from my heavy pernambuco French bow!
It is very responsive, and makes it possible to achieve much more subtlety in my playing - I could certainly get used to it! I found that
I could achieve a more pronounced range of dynamics in the quieter music as well. I would gladly recommend this bow to our customers."
Becky Springall N.V.S.M - Violist and maker - Devon Strings
I bought my beautiful German-pattern Arcus bass bow in 2003 & have never looked back. I play so many different styles of music that I need my bow to be truly versatile. My Arcus bow is perfect: delicate & light response, but with a huge fat power transmission ready to kick in whenever I need to get the powerful bass sound that I love. What's more, the rehairs last about ten times longer than I've ever experienced before. Jonny Gee - freelance bassist- London - www.jazzberries.co.uk / MAS Profile
"Can I say at the outset you are due huge congratulations for having the courage to produce an innovation which I believe will truly revolutionise string playing. I said to Allyxa, and stand by, the statement that the days of wooden bows are numbered. No one would consider using a wooden tennis racket now.
I applaud your decision not to do what other makers of carbon bows are doing, and simply to copy a wooden violin bow using carbon fibre. Instead you have redesigned the bow to optimise the benefits of the material. The only thing your bows have in common with the other makers is that carbon fibre is used. I feel your bows are as different from other carbon fibre bows as they are from wooden bows."
"If I read these comments in the testimonials section of a website I would be tempted to think "they must be getting paid to say that". The fact that I am not says it all!
I am an experienced amateur player. I have played the viola and violin (that order!) for 34 years, and more recently have been learning the cello, for about 3."
Comments made to Arcus - Iain Purchase - Glasgow
I am a composer who happens to play the viola. Bennigsen and possibly others have made carbon fibre bows
in the recent past, which aim to replicate all the characteristics of the conventional wooden bow with the added
advantage of being less susceptible to temperature changes. At 73 grams, it also reflects the 'ideal'
of what we were taught as students in the past.
The Arcus philosophy is very different. I chose the Arcus Concerto for its lightness at 59 grams
and its comfort in use. The Concerto feels like the weight of a conventional bow, odd as this may seem.
Extra hair and lightness are based on sound principles where the string responds well rather than being
choked by too much pressure in the search for a bigger sound. Tone quality and reduced surface noise are
immediately apparent. Staccato bowings work well, particularly up-bow staccato. The dynamic range from loud
to soft is very impressive.
It should be noted that Arcus bows are sensitive to the amount of rosin, which should be used sparingly.
There is one peculiarity I have observed. That is the need to slacken the hair tension as playing warms up.
The music room where I practice is an extension and very difficult to heat from cold and struggles to exceed 60 degrees.
On the other hand, now the room is warmer with early morning sun coming in, the variation is hardly noticeable, maybe a half turn to get it right.
In any case, the strength of the stick is such that less tension is required anyway.
For me, using my Arcus Concerto bow gives me great pleasure; this is a quality product of fine appearance as well.
Gareth Clemson - Composer, Viola Player and Author
"My scepticism towards carbon fibre bows was part being conservative and also an earlier experience with a bow which
was mildly speaking uninteresting. Within minutes of playing with an Arcus bow my opinion was changed. Instead of using
a new material to recreate a clone of an old concept they came up with something quite different. The design of this bow
allows to reduce weight, which gives more freedom in the faster, lighter strokes, and its hollow stick resonates extremely
well, producing a strong singing tone. The strength of the material allows for a greater length of the stick, like that of
a violin bow, and gives it a great lateral stability, for me a vital factor in projection of the sound. The makers of Arcus
ask you to try the bow for a week without playing a heavier bow, to get used to the unusual weight. For me the deciding
factor is the balance not weight, and that is not any different from a good wooden bow. I have no problem switching back
and forth but at the end I still play with the Arcus."
Leonid Gorokhov, Cello - Guildhall School of Music
I mostly play scottish traditional music. The nimble quality
of arcus bows are excellent for this style.I previously owned a
Sinfonia which I was happy with but there is a significant improvement in sound
with the new bow. It pulls out a bigger warmer sound which I am very pleased with.
Dr Donald Gorman
I have been using an Arcus cello bow for several years and was an instant
'convert'! On the rare occasions when I need to use my reserve wooden bow I
miss the Arcus for it's ease of playing. You might imagine that the pay-off
for such a lightweight bow would be a lack of power, but not so, the Arcus
bow has a fantastic strength from heel to point and a balance and poise that
needs to be experienced to be believed. I am now doing alot of electric
cello work and have found the Arcus bow to be ideally suited to this way of
playing also and have therefore purchased a second identical model
(Sinfonia). I am such a fan of these bows that my friends all believe that I
secretly work for the company!
Clare Pusey - one half of duo DIZZICELLI
I am a great wrecker of music stands so this one looks as if even I can put it together
safely and it won't wobble, lean sideways, go rusty or get bent. It also has a super slot for all
my bits which include generally - glasses case, rosin, duster, pencil, rubber and tissues (mostly these are
lost in my handbag which I keep out of sight and then can't find in the middle of a concert when I want to blow my nose).
Di
"Let me take the opportunity to thank you once again for all your help with the bow. You really take customer service well beyond even the most exacting expectations, and I'd have no hesitation in recommending you to anyone"
"Well I will definitely want to be keeping this bow. It's so forgiving I can't believe it. And I seem to be able to play louder and with a much darker, richer tone than before.
It is so much less work than my old bow, and is very nicely balanced, I can bow relatively comfortably at the frog and much more controlled. I can just let the bow do all the work in the piano sections, I don't need to put pressure on at all. So if it all sounds awful it has to be me not my equipment now!
I had my lesson today and my teacher was so impressed. He was asking for details and he spent about half my lesson just playing on my violin with my bow!! He reckons that string crossing is so much easier and that arpeggios are therefore a cinch, and so much more control at all parts of the bow."
Jane Smith-Bodden
"Just recorded another 2 albums with the bow & still very happy with it!"
"The new bow I've of course been trying out - most recently with the Arpeggione . The longish last mvt in partic. was easier with it, my hand tired less and a it encouraged a lighter, speedier bow-stroke."
Graham Waterhouse
"I recently purchased an Arcus Concerto viola bow ... and I thought I would let you know how impressed I have been with it. It really does perform as well as you claim on your website....The performance of the bow is most remarkable, the combination of strength and elasticity, together with a very low mass allows for a very easy style of playing previously only possible with old French master bows. The sound that this bow creates is of great richness, with upper partials having a freedom that is rarely possible with a wooden bow. The different position of the centre of gravity caused some initial problems, particularly with accented and articulated playing at the point, but a slight change in bow hold and technique has solved this problem."
"After the initial adjustment period the bow provides an extremely pure tone, especially in the higher registers where the sound will not crack as easily when playing near the bridge. Regarding the lower registers, the sound becomes deeper as well as louder and my teachers have both commented individually about this improvement in my sound."
"I tried all of them and found the sinfonia the best deal, it was just so light and responsive. It changed my violin's sound noticeably. It holds the string well but does take a while to get used to and to find the best point for sautill, spiccato is much easier!"
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