I can play drones, but I'm never satisfied with them. I always feel I need to put more bow pressure to get both strings ringing. If I don't I tend to hit one string too weak and it kind of half rings or goes in and out of ringing.

At one contest I went to several young gals could play the lightest sweetest drones and I'd love to do that one day. My teacher can too.

I think there are a few things that contribute to my issues:

My ear gets overwhelmed with all the sound coming out. Especially when you’re maintaining a drone through a measure or two while keeping the melody notes going.

I'm still not the fastest player and the slower you go the longer you have to hold the drone and melody note, which, in some ways is harder. When you can play faster you just use a gentle pulse and if you hit it, you hit it and if you miss it's not a big deal. Of course I should be able you hold longer drones as well but that can be harder in some ways.

I'm being too critical, old time drones are not something that needs to be that precise (that's what my teacher says anyway, and she says my drones are not that bad). But I listen to her drones and those gals at the fiddle contest and I just drool. I want that clean light drone.

I know my intonation can always improve and if your off, sometimes the drone can sound all wrong (and contributes to my ears being confused/overwhelmed). 

I do keep the bow rotated away which helps. And I have played with different tensions on the bow.

It's just keeping the bow at the exact angle I struggle the most with, at least I think that is the problem.

Some fiddles, strings and rosins drone easier than others (for me). My current setup I'd say is 7.5 out 10 as far as that goes. My teachers fiddle is 9 out 10. But of course she has no issue at all with my setup.

I like to play "Mole in the Ground" out of ADae tuning with nothing but drones.  The entire tune is played on 2 strings that way, with the low drone.  I think it has helped me get the feel for having the bow stay on 2 strings, with string changes.  I don't play it as fast as I do on the banjo, but I find I can also sing it as a slow, sad song while doing this.

I am trying to teach my partner Appalachian Waltz which is heavily laden with double stops, many of them drones. After working on bow pressure and bowing in relation to the bridge, as an excersize I have her play Amazing Grace. I am sure the more experienced membership will have some great ideas, but that is what I am doing in this instance. Another good tune for drones to practice is Josephins waltz.

I have the same problem, incorporating drones or double stops and hitting them at the right time...and both strings. My teacher said to do the first note before the drone/double stop and then the drone/ds, and then the note after. Keep working that three note phrase and keep adding notes before and after until you have it. I am still struggling with it..but working with it each practice. I guess one day we will "get it"!

Pretty simple maybe not too easy to get right. Just simple fiddle tune look for adrone on the lower or upper string. Learn your doublestops like i asked kenny baker a longtime ago when do you play doublestops he said " when you get the nerve up"

It' for Double stops, maybe it will be some help.  It's called Preparatory Exercises in Double Stopping OP.9 for the violin, by Sevcik.  The instructor makes it look do-able.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjAF7BcY37A&feature=plcp  hope it helps.  He has the sheet music too.

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Originally posted by Larry Rutledge

It' for Double stops, maybe it will be some help.  It's called Preparatory Exercises in Double Stopping OP.9 for the violin, by Sevcik.  The instructor makes it look do-able.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjAF7BcY37A&feature=plcp  hope it helps.  He has the sheet music too.

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 That's an excellent exercise. Thanks I'll try it.

There may be certain tips that help, but I think the main thing is to just keep working at it, and eventually it will come together.

Practise bowing double open strings to get your arm to memorize the angle. Concentrate on keeping light pressure. Then add a finger to one string without trying to play a tune.

Something that might help, and is also in many cases a pleasing style technique, is to grab to lower note first and then quickly rock the bow down to add the higher note. For example, playing in key of G, with a down bow grab the open D string, then continuing the same down stroke, pick up a B note (1st finger on A string). I have just recently started adding this to many of my tunes and it is becoming very easy.

If you keep in mind that there are 7 bow angles you will use to get notes from your strings.  Four, one for each single string.  Then there are three more, one for each pair of strings.  Just as you may and probably should have, practiced playing each string with up and down, back and forth bow strokes, practice getting each pair of string doing the same thing.  Then alternate bowing single strings and pairs of strings.  Do this until you are comfortable with all of the angles.  Then try playing any melodies you know and droning the string next to the string you are noting.  By trial and error you will develop a feel for what drones work best when playing each string.  You may even find things that surprise you.  Have fun, it is a journey not a destination.

I like how RobBob explained that. Bow speed has a lot to do with drone sound. A little faster bow speed and a little faster tempo tend to be easier, though of course there are waltzes and aires that benefit from drones, too. Getting the bow to sit a little stronger on the string with the melody notes is a good idea. Heavy drone, or completely-equal melody and drone can be unpleasant pretty quickly. You don't play twice as heavy to play two strings, you play with about the same weight down.

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Originally posted by Sue B.

You don't play twice as heavy to play two strings, you play with about the same weight down.

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Actually, this is on of those places where fiddling is counter-intuitive.  Less is more when bowing two or three strings.  Playing with the angles will make this apparent.

I received a few tips from my teacher that helped a lot.

1) When doing drones, play closer to the fingerboard. The closer you get to the bridge the more precise your angle needs to be. I usually bow in the center. Basically it's more forgiving near the fingerboard. Even though single notes might not be as crisp/clean near the fingerboard, when you're droning you hardly notice it.

2) I was not sure if I was due for new strings or not. I have been trying to avoid the habit of changing them too often and I wanted to avoid blaming the instrument too quickly. I've been on my current evah's for 6 months or so. My teacher noticed how I was having a hard time getting a melody note on the A string to play stronger than the drone on E. So then I had her try my fiddle. Obviously she sounded much better than me, but I could hear what I was hearing that I didn't like, she said it was difficult on my fiddle. She thinks my D and A strings are pooped out and the G and E strings are still strong. So the E comes out way to strong relative to the A. So I put new strings on and the fiddle sounds much better on drones (and all around too). I'll have her confirm the balance at my next lesson.

Between 1 and 2 my drones are 100% better. I still have a few 1000% to go but it was a significant stepp in the right direction. When I occasionally get just the right pressure and angle it sounds good now. Where before it was much more of a rare event.

Edited by - mswlogo on 07/08/2012 06:28:34

At the risk of confusing you further, there are more than 7 angles. The 7 angles RobBob referred to get you equal sound from both strings when you play on two strings.

Sue mentioned that it's likely you'll want the melody to be a bit louder than the drone. She's right and that requires a small change in bow angle so that the bow is angled more towards (on) the melody string and away from the drone string. The exact angle depends on how loud you want the drone string. Or you can think of adding a bit more pressure to the melody string and a bit less to the drone string and your bow arm will likely do the right thing.

You're probably a ways away from thinking about that but keep it in mind. I struggled for a long time trying to figure out why my drones didn't sound "right", then someone really good pointed the above out to me and a light bulb went off in my head. Wish I'd read a comment like Sue's back then.

And for extra credit, you can change the angle as you bow a long note with a drone so the sound is constantly changing.

A good way to practice that is is to play a unison chord -- like a double E, 4th finger on the A string and the open E.

Don't make it harder than it already is.  Keep it simple and listen and you will find what you seek.  I hold to seven angles.

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Originally posted by mswlogo

I received a few tips from my teacher that helped a lot.

1) When doing drones, play closer to the fingerboard. The closer you get to the bridge the more precise your angle needs to be. I usually bow in the center. Basically it's more forgiving near the fingerboard. Even though single notes might not be as crisp/clean near the fingerboard, when you're droning you hardly notice it.

2) I was not sure if I was due for new strings or not. I have been trying to avoid the habit of changing them too often and I wanted to avoid blaming the instrument too quickly. I've been on my current evah's for 6 months or so. My teacher noticed how I was having a hard time getting a melody note on the A string to play stronger than the drone on E. So then I had her try my fiddle. Obviously she sounded much better than me, but I could hear what I was hearing that I didn't like, she said it was difficult on my fiddle. She thinks my D and A strings are pooped out and the G and E strings are still strong. So the E comes out way to strong relative to the A. So I put new strings on and the fiddle sounds much better on drones (and all around too). I'll have her confirm the balance at my next lesson.

Between 1 and 2 my drones are 100% better. I still have a few 1000% to go but it was a significant stepp in the right direction. When I occasionally get just the right pressure and angle it sounds good now. Where before it was much more of a rare event.

 

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The "Evah" "A" string always poops out first.  Then unravels at the c# location.  Then I change them all...six months tops.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYBiB9ycBO8&feature=related Here 

Here are some good warm up exercises from Casey.  

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Originally posted by RobBob

Don't make it harder than it already is.  Keep it simple and listen and you will find what you seek.  I hold to seven angles.

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Agreed.  Keep it simple for now.  But put that comment of mine and Sue's someplace safe.  There's a good chance you'll want it later.  I know I did.

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Originally posted by RobBob

Don't make it harder than it already is.  Keep it simple and listen and you will find what you seek.  I hold to seven angles.

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I'm not sure I agree with that. I think there is a lot more angles than that. For it to sound right you need the correct balance and the balance is rarely "equal".

That would be like saying for single notes there is only one pressure/angle.

If I can keep the melody note above the drone I find I can stay better in time. If there is too much drone I just turn to mush and lose my place.

Since the melody note is often fingered and drone open it takes some work to get that "equal" vs if they are both open the angle for "equal" is different and then you might be fingered and droning the reverse and that is yet another angle.

If anything I would love to just graze the drone. I think that's when it often sounds the best.

I think once you're more experienced, muscle memory will kick in and you might simplfy it to 7 angles.

Edited by - mswlogo on 07/11/2012 12:57:55