down-bow

American  

[doun-boh] / ˈdaʊnˌboʊ /

noun

Music.

1. (in bowing on a stringed instrument) a stroke bringing the tip of the bow toward the strings, indicated in scores by the symbol (opposed to up-bow).

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down-bow British  

/ ˈdaʊnˌbəʊ /

noun

1. a downward stroke of the bow from its nut to its tip across a stringed instrument Compare up-bow

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Etymology

Origin of down-bow

First recorded in 1890–95; down ¹ + bow ²

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

down-bow

Every bow movement, from delicate nudges at the tip to slashing down-bow accents, produced a flawless tone, fine-drawn and luminous, made mellow but not ripe by judicious use of vibrato.

From Time Magazine Archive

In music for stringed instruments of the violin family, the sign indicates down-bow and the sign up-bow.

From Music Notation and Terminology by Karl Wilson Gehrkens

The change from up-bow to down-bow and vice versa should be made without a break, exclusively through skillful manipulation of the wrist.

From Violin Mastery Talks with Master Violinists and Teachers by Frederick Herman Martens

And the violinist should never think: 'I must play this up-bow or down-bow.'

From Violin Mastery Talks with Master Violinists and Teachers by Frederick Herman Martens

The fiddlers best qualified to speak with authority will often disagree absolutely regarding the use of a string, position, up-bow or down-bow.

From Violin Mastery Talks with Master Violinists and Teachers by Frederick Herman Martens