The BACH.Bow is a curved bow designed to make true polyphony playable on bowed string instruments. Its elevated camber and lever-controlled hair tension allow musicians to perform seamlessly on one, two, three, or all four strings—with full resonance and sustained chords. This innovative design unlocks a level of polyphonic clarity previously unreachable with traditional concave bows.
During its development, the BACH.Bow received significant artistic feedback from Mstislav Rostropovich, who tested early prototypes. Composers such as John Cage and Dieter Schnebel wrote music specifically for the BACH.Bow, exploring its new sonic possibilities. Even today, the solo violin and cello works of Johann Sebastian Bach gain remarkable transparency and structural balance when performed with a true polyphonic bow.
Founded in 1996 by Michael Bach, the BACH.Bogen Studio in Stuttgart and Wissembourg continues to develop and handcraft curved bows for violin, viola, cello, and bass. Each BACH.Bow is made to support musicians who wish to expand their expressive range and explore the full spectrum of polyphonic bowing.
