I heard a rumor that sounds like total BS about Apoclyptica
12 years ago
I heard somewhere that they rub their bows with gunpowder instead of rosin... That can't be true though...
Watcher | Registered: April 20, 2012 03:10:06 PM
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Gunpowder would ruin bows
The sound depends on everything - the hair, the rosin, the strings, the cello itself.
There are a few classical cellists how use a black haired bow because they have a "weak" cello, though black hair is much more common for double-bass. Apo uses black hair with bass rosin, so that the bow sticks extremly strongly to the strings and gives a very harsh sound. With a soft cello rosin, you can have a much softer, classical sound. So much about black hair.
As far as black bows are concerned : carbon fiber bows have a terrible reputation among classical cellists. They are extremely rigid, and lack the elasticity, the "jumping" of a good bow. I've used one once, and hated it. But they are of course much cheaper than pernambuc bows, especially now when cutting down pernambus trees is strictly forbidden. There are also intermediate solutions : I've seen composite bows, made of a sandwich of carbon fiber and different woods. It may be worth trying.
But in any case, let your boy's cello teacher advise him a help him chose his instrument/bow/strings/whatever. There is no point in imitating blindly Apocalyptica, each cello and each cellist are different. Besides, your son will grow up and change instruments regularly. I'd say more : there's no point in trying to be "metal" when you're a beginner cellist. The guys started playing rock as teenagers, started their metal career as young adults, and at the very begining they used a very classical setup. I started rock and metal after six or seven years of cello, and starting equipping for rock and metal after 13 years.
Don't do like a guy on youtube who wants to be "so metal", ruined his cello for this, ans has an awful self-learned technique.