When I first learned this exercise as a student, it revolutionized how I approached the motion of keeping a straight bow. I hope it's as helpful for you as it has been for me.
Full transcript:
In today's video, I'm going to show you how to do The Bow Ghost.
It's an exercise to teach you how to keep a straight bow, which is one of the most important things in making a good sound.
The name comes from a game called Mario Kart, where there's this mode where you can race a ghost of yourself on a track.
But here, your bow is the track.
It's a good idea to practice this in front of a mirror to make sure that your bow isn't too high, or too low, but just right,
Your left hand holds the bow, here, at the tip, and you trace the bow with your right hand.
As you're doing this, you want to make sure all four fingers are touching the bow at all times.
Are you ready? Let's try it!
(Bow Ghost practice with Super Mario Bros. cello/turntable mix)
And that's the bow ghost! If you practice this a lot, you'll improve your skills with the bow and sound better.
Thanks for watching, and keep on practicing.
Neil Fong Gilfillan is a cello teacher in Frisco, Texas. With Rachel Samson on viola and violin, they operate Chili Dog Strings, the only string studio in Frisco named after a dog