In choosing a bow Dodd and Tourte are names to conjure with, but happily there are no lost "secrets" in the art of bow making, and fortunately a new bow after a few weeks use is better than an old one, therefore the craze for old bows except with collectors and rich amateurs, will never be so pronounced as is the case with old instruments. If the student can pay say a couple of sovereigns, he must consider himself tricked if he does not secure a bow good enough for any sort of work, and one which will with care last for years.
I have lately come across some French bows without any name, retailed, I believe, at about thirty shillings, which are very fine indeed, nice and light with plenty of spring. Some recommend a second-hand bow, saying that in buying one that has been used the faults, if any, will have made their appearance, but as it is hardly possible to tell whether a bow has been much used unless the stick is very badly worn, this is hardly sound. Buy from a conscientious dealer, pay a fair price and trust to it, that is all that can be done.
HOW TO HOLD THE INSTRUMENT--THE ATTITUDE OF THE PLAYER--THE USE OF A SLIDING PIN RECOMMENDED--CORRECT WAY OF HOLDING THE BOW--SOME INCORRECT SKETCHES OF SAME.
Most pupils are surprised I have no doubt, at the evident discrepancy seen in the plates usually published with 'cello schools, when compared with the manner in which our first class artists hold their instruments. I will endeavour in some measure to explain this away.
The correct way to hold the 'cello if the instrument is not fitted with a sliding pin is as follows. The player to sit on the front part of the chair with the feet advanced, the left a little more forward than the right. The 'cello to be held with the legs, the lower part of the front edge (table) of the instrument being held in position by the right calf--the edge of the back being supported by the left calf--the legs of the player not to cover the ribs of the instrument so that the vibration is not impeded. The upper part of the back to the right of where the neck of the instrument is fitted should rest against the chest of the performer, this will throw the scroll of the instrument a little to the left of the face. The instrument to be held high enough for the bowing to clear the knees of the player. The thumb to be placed in a horizontal position at the back of the neck of the instrument, and should be between the first and second fingers. The left elbow not to be raised. This then is the _correct_ manner of holding the 'cello. If the reader will look at the plate which is published with either the Kummer or the Seb. Lee instruction book, he will find that the figure there agrees with the foregoing rules in every particular.