down-bow

American  

[doun-boh] / ˈdaʊnˌboʊ /

noun

Music.

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

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

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 Martens, Frederick Herman

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 Martens, Frederick Herman

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 Martens, Frederick Herman

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 Gehrkens, Karl Wilson