zbd1960

Oddly, the viola da gamba (viol) which I also play, uses underhand bow. But in the viol world, it's not referred to as 'German' as it was the standard. There are different 'holds' the English one is the one advocated by Christopher Simpson, there is the French Forqueray hold, which mostly differs by rotating the wrist to apply more pressure on the bow hair. With the viol, your middle finger rests on the hair and so rotating the wrist anti-clock adds pressure to the bow hair.

Hi, welcome

As someone who plays bass, and in particular also plays baritone sax (which weighs 8kg) getting straps etc right is important if you don't want neck/back issues in the future. You cannot eliminate the weight of the bass as we have yet to work out how to alter that aspect of physics. With the bari, I cannot take that weight on a strap (I can't with a tenor sax either which is half the weight) as the pressure on the nape of the neck is too much. I also cannot use the usual alternative which is a 'strap' that sits on the shoulders, as it's still too heavy. That means using a harness - there are different types of these, some of which means no weight on neck/shoulders at all (weight is transferred to a hip belt). There are some very expensive options - there is a sax 'stand' that holds the sax in place and you wheel it into position to play (seated). They cost £00s For bass I use 4" wide straps which have substantial padding, which distribute the weight over a larger area. There are harness type straps but I've never used one so I can't say how good/bad they are.

I know.... I keep thinking about upgrading my cello bow. At the moment it's a Durfler bow with pernambuco stick, which was £450 back in 2011. I tried some bows up to £2,000 a few years ago but none 'spoke' to me.... I have a feeling I wasn't looking in the right price range...

The current issues in the US are a more extreme version of what we've had, which to avoid further comment I'll just call the "EU issue". The underlying issues are complex, multi-faceted, and have been decades in the making. A big part of the issue is the disconnect between metropolitan elites and everyone else. In the UK this manifests itself in particular as the Westminster Bubble where the movers and shakers think that London is the centre of the universe and are oblivious to the the fact that the rest of the UK is not the same as London. Someone suggests major infrastructure projects for the London area and no-one bats an eyelid over the costs and planning is sorted out. Suggest infrastructure improvements/needs elsewhere and all of a sudden it's "too costly", "not needed", "can't approve that" etc. A66 upgrade locally being a particular bone of contention. Politicians in the centre get obsessed with the minutiae of their little world and fail to understand the real needs of the people outside. For a while, perhaps decades, voter inertia and party loyalties prevail and obscure to the centre what is going on. At some point the disconnect leads to a rupture. Some demagogue comes along and tells people they're not listened to and they have a brand of snake oil that will fix everything... Of course they are liars and charlatans. Unfortunately, for a while it will work unless serious effort is put into countering it.

You'll need a proper string specialist/dealer. They are thin on the ground and due to high street costs, some are now home based. There's Tim Toft in Stone in Staffs for example who does have a large shop and on-site team of luthiers.

As a cellist, I'm safe... it's the trombone players you have to watch

Ditto - I just couldn't face the drive from North Lakes and trains not a viable option either. Only real option would have been an overnight stay

US poultry is not raised in the same standard of conditions as the UK and EU (and elsewhere). Battery/cage farming is standard and the chlorination is done to nuke bugs. It's also why eggs have to be chilled in US as the washing process removes the protective outer layers of the shell.

Hi, welcome.

All three music things I currently do (two choirs and an orchestra) did not meet last week due to half term.... I have NEVER understood this nonsense. Almost no-one in any of the groups has school age children. OK one group rehearses in a school, so I get that one, but the others? What's the obsession with working around school term dates, it's not the C19th? Mutter, mutter, drifts off into corner...

Are you sure it wasn't a treble viol (viola da gamba) as they have frets?

Yep. It's just another version of management's tendency to take "the computers says..." uninformed approach. I worked in data warehousing for quite a while. Idiots in suits would write and run their own queries and just assume that the 'answer' was right, without understanding the data. Understanding is crucial. I had to explain to one genius that his query's output was a heap of steaming ordure. I had to point out that according to his query the number of active customers exceeded the population of the UK.

As a now retired IT guy I get frustrated with the use of the term "AI". The media, inevitably, misuses the term, and PR/marketing departments hype it death. In most cases, AI is a series of algorithms backed up by a large database and a rule set. It is not 'intelligent' it's just quick at searching. We've got the same issue with AI that we've had with previous technology shifts. In the 50s everything was 'atomic' or 'rocket', in the 60s we start to see "Twenty-first century", in the 80s everything had to be labelled 'digital', in the late 90s it was "e-...." and then with Apple it became "i-....". Now it's "AI". The stuff it's good at is pattern recognition and it's going to be a big help with processing scans for cancers etc. The big area of concern at the moment is no-one has worked out how or what needs regulating about it. As with any technology there is potential for harm as well as good. The issue at the moment is 'deep fakes'.

Prior to VAT the UK had Purchase Tax and post war there was a variant/band called Luxury Tax. The latter killed the hat trade for example as it was high - 33% I think. It was abolished in 1973.