Description
The Leatherwood Rosin folks have come up with an Amber Range of bass rosins for the contrabass that are formulated for a range of playing from solo and chamber music in a hot climate to heavy orchestral playing in cold, dry weather. Among the formulations there are some formulated explicitly for playing on gut strings.
We include two formulations in each package; one 40% cake and one 50% cake. Your amber recipe will generally last 1-2 years with intensive use.
The Leatherwood rosins are discussed in terms of five criteria that are important for players:
- Grip - The strength of "stickiness" at the beginning of the note
- Traction - The power of the "stickiness" for sustained bowing
- Lyrical Quality - How well the rosin performs for singing quality, particularly in higher registers.
- Powder Content - How much powder resin is included
- Pliability - How soft and malleable the rosin is in your hand
The formulations range from Hard/Crisp - 20% to Soft/Sticky - 60%. The best range for gut strings is in the 40% to 50% range, and to give players the best experience, we include two formulations in each package; one 40% cake and one 50% cake. Using the above criteria, these two formulations are different in the following ways:
- Grip - The 50% formula has slightly better grip than the 40%, which is somewhat harder.
- Traction - The 40% formula has slightly better traction than the 50%.
- Lyrical Quality - The 40% formula has a slightly better lyrical quality than the 50%.
- Powder Content - The 40% and 50% have about the same powder content.
- Pliability - The 50% formula has more pliability than the 40% formula.
You can achieve the perfect bowing properties by mixing the two formulas on your bow.
Specially formulated for gut strings, the gentle but clean attack and smoother traction allows the string to resonate freely with maximum clarity. Amber rosin makes a bright, clear sound with a feeling that the bow is quicker on the string and makes it easier to play fast with more clarity. The smoother traction allows the string to be played with more intensity without distortion and also reduces the "squeak" often encountered using modern rosins on gut.