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I'm wondering if I'm using too much rosin. Lately I've been feeling like my bow is sliding across the strings. So I thought maybe I wasn't using enough rosin and I used more. Now I do 4 swipes across the rosin cake before playing. In about 5 minutes my strings seem to be covered with rosin. I'm not sure if this is good or bad. I've tried wiping it off in the middle of practice but it comes back.
I don't know if the slipping and sliding is due to improper rosin use or if maybe I'm just not using the right amount of pressure on the bow. Any advice here is greatly appreciated.
Thanks
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I think its safe to say that if you do have too much rosin on your bow, bowing will knock it off onto your strings and violin. I think sliding along the strings is a combination of not enough pressure applied correctly but it can also be because you are using your shoulder too much. If you could post a video of your playing with the sliding in progress it would be much easier to see what you are doing.
"Please play some wrong notes, so that we know that you are human" - said to Jascha Heifetz.
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My guess is that you don't have too much. If you only go back and forth 5 times before playing, then you can't be over rosining.
It sounds like maybe you have a cheaper rosin though.
The only problem with too much rosin IMAO is that you have to wipe the top of your violin before hanging it or putting it away every time.
You may have too little rosin if the hair does not grip the strings.
Try rosining for 5 minutes and when you are done, whip the bow fast to get a lot of the excess off (I didn't say this) and expect to wipe your violin after your practice session. You'll see if there was a difference or not.
Also, do you live close to the beach or play outdoors on humid days? The bow hair can get so moist that it doesn't grab either. I've had that happen on beach weddings.
I like dark rosin personally because it grabs a bit better.
Lastly, it could be your violin or even technique. Make sure you are making straight strokes from the frog to the tip. Bows slide a lot when pulling crooked.
Experiment with more right hand bow pressure as well as long as you don't get a scratchy sound.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
Here is an article I found regarding rosin and how much is enough.
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dang it, I learned something new again.
"Please play some wrong notes, so that we know that you are human" - said to Jascha Heifetz.
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Fiddlestix said
Here is an article I found regarding rosin and how much is enough.
Thank you, Fiddlestix.
Very nice article. Lots of information there.
Great job and thanks for posting it.
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I did too PF! Thanks Pierre and Fiddlestix!
Hi Michael and welcome to our forum. We have a multitude of members to help you. Good luck on your musical journey. I'm impressed with all that you play. I'm learning violin and whistle and having a blast even though I'm terrible and have no musical background at all. I'm sure you will be helping me before long.
The most beautiful things in life cannot be touched or seen. They must be felt with the heart. ~Helen Keller~
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When I started learning to play earlier in the year, I used a cheaper brand of dark rosin. I made about 5 up and down stripes, and after about 5 or 10 minutes, my strings would be covered and everywhere below would be pretty well covered too.
Then I bought some off the shop (D'Addario Kaplan Artcraft), also dark, and I could tell a world of difference. I do the same amount of stripes, but there is considerably less dust on the violin. So the quality of rosin improves dust control greatly.
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The article from Russell Hopper the violin maker was real interesting especially about how much rosin to use. I'd like to hear from Fiddlerman on that one. It sounds as though a minimum amount of rosin is all that's needed.
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Well, it seems to me that the article thought maybe you didnt need to clean your strings each day either, since the rosin on the strings and rosin on the hair are what are grabbing each other. I use alot of rosin on my bow, its of the darker variety. I wait now until the string starts slipping and the tone sounds off before reapplying it. It all comes down to whatever works for you I guess, since rosin is so cheap for how long it lasts. I still cant accumulate a decent looking fiddlers dust pile on my fiddle. I must not be playing aggressive enough?
"Please play some wrong notes, so that we know that you are human" - said to Jascha Heifetz.
I may use too much rosin but I don't believe yiu can use too much. The excess just comes off and doesn't effect playing while too little effect playing tremendously. I picked up http://fiddlershop.com/accesso.....-dark.html Artcraft rosin and found it to be very good. I used Hill dark rosin but can't find it so FM suggested this rosin which I find to be almost the same as the Hill.
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@ Kevin, do a google search. Amazon, Ebay and a bunch of other places have the Hill dark. Or keep using the Artcraft your pick.
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@ Fiddlerman...I did not hear you say that...
this is the second time or more...I have heard you "not tell me" something.
You are too cool for school. 
Toni
So the summary is this: (?)
"over rosining is not a problem with bow slippage, it is only that you must clean your violin before putting away" " Too much rosin is not going to hurt anything. (just wasteful and extra steps in maintenance?"
safe to surmise?
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
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Thanks everyone for the replies. I'm using Gustave Bernardel rosin (http://www.thomann.de/fr/berna.....olofon.htm).
The article posted on Russell Hopper's blog was very interesting. I learned that I should use a different cloth for wiping the strings.
I don't think I was using too much. I paid attention to my bowing and I really think the problem comes from not bowing straight. My bow often travels around from bridge to fingerboard and I think this is what is causing the sliding. I've been paying more attention to straight bowing and it's been slipping less.
Once I get my bowing straight I'll try to use less rosin and see how that works.
Thanks for the advice!
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I know this is late, but I personally do two bow strokes. It produces a good tone rather than a squeaky tone (which i get when I over- rosin the bow) .
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Just another thought - is the bow hair in good condition? If it is worn smooth, it will be harder for the rosin to stay on the strings.
Mr Jim
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well I've now experienced too much Rosin.
ick, my strings are all powdery and sticky.
don't assume a better rosin is in any way similar to the beginner outfit rosin 
remember I was asking about is it MEANT to be sticky, because mine is in no way sticky?
I'm seeing the difference now. like not sticky to the touch, but the powder can make things feel sticky.
I definitely overdid it, out of habit, and haven't needed to do it since, whearas before it was part of every playing session, at least once if not more.
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After all this time I have not quite figured out the rosin situation... for a while I would play a week or so with nothing added... then it seems like I got back to adding it... sometimes it helps that sandy gritty sound.... sometimes it does not.
When I got in the habit of not using much rosin...I got out of the habit of wiping down the strings as much... so of course when I have recently added a lot of rosin back.. there became a build up on my strings that I wasn't aware of..this made things sound worse.
Well.. that is my rosin situation.. ( I know.. Over share much????)
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
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I would like to revise my thoughts a bit due to a recent development.
Thanks to the extreme generosity of one of our members I recieved several cakes of rosin in the mail. One was dark dark. And tacky to the touch. So Ive been using it and wow! I dont know if its the placebo affect or what but I would compare the handling of the bow to the cornering of a fine sports car now. Grab is what it has. I thought the other stuff I had grabbed good, night and day difference now. I also think this has helped my overal tone since the string doesnt slip like it used to. Its funny that I had to find something superior to realize what the others werent doing for me. It also makes it easier to bow straight as I am more sensitive to how it feels when bowing into the string. If you have access to a vi shop I suggest searching out the rosin that gives you that playability, wether dark or light. Grab seems to make a huge difference and there is a huge difference out there. Happily bowing In my opinion.
"Please play some wrong notes, so that we know that you are human" - said to Jascha Heifetz.
Just a very light coat of WD-40 on the string's will keep the rosin from building up.
Rosin on the string's is an inevatible thing, it's going to happen, but rosin free string's give off a much clearer tone than string's with rosin that is caked on.
I usually just wipe the string's with my finger periodically, it leave's a kind of tack on the string that doesn't sound "scratchy".
I frequently clean the string's with alcohol to remove all residue and I never allow a "fiddler's" pile of rosin on the surface of the violin, it look's like hell and doesn't prove anything except to let other's know how lazy I am not to clean it off.
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