…first, I rosin the bow- Pop’s seems to work fairly well for me- they say that North Carolina’s too warm to use it in the summertime because it will just melt on the bow, but I’ve never had a problem with that, if only because I haven’t had to perform outdoors on a hundred degree July day in the baking sun; no doubt I would feel a lot differently then, but thankfully I don’t have to worry about it indoors in January, even under the heat of the stage lights when I feel like I’m melting myself wearing a suit (and a Santa hat which was soaked by the end of our holiday concert) and working the double bass over (or, more accurately, it working me over) until we’re both spent, like prizefighters in the 15th round- I’m never sure who wins the bout, though to date neither of us has won by a knockout (though I’ve been on the ropes several times, especially performing Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto after only playing the thing for a few weeks; that time I really thought I was finished, but I managed to get through it with only an injured hand and a broken ankle, and the bass came through pretty much unscathed except for a few scratches); I’ll settle for a split decision as long as I can go the distance…
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Radical Totality 