Viola HELP?

I just bought a brand new viola, 15" and the seller told me to rosin for 20-25 minutes because its a brand new bow. I did and when I tried to play, the bow was rubbing the strings and not making the proper sound. I tried tuning the instrument but it still doesnt work. I tightened the bow but it still doesn;t work. Does anyone know why my instrument is not playing the sound properly?

Viola HELP?
I've never heard of applying rosin for 20-25 minutes. Your arm must be sore!





I would "snap" the hairs with a tight bow to get rid of the excess and try again.





They might be "less than optimal" quality strings, also.





I'm sorry to sound insulting, but we just don't know. Are you an experienced viola player or is this your first try? Do you have prior experience with any other stringed instrument?





You can't just rub the bow across the strings and expect a beautiful tone if you don't know the right way to do it. With a viola, you've got to dig in pretty good to get things started.





Click on the pencil icon under your question and "Add details" to answer my questions and you might get more useful answers from someone else who comes along.
Reply:I am glad things worked out so easily for you! You gave me a laugh, too. Report It

Reply:What kind of sound is it making?





If it's brand new rosin, and the top is shiny, then the rosin probably isn't coming off on the bow. You can use sandpaper on the rosin until it turns powdery looking and white before you put it on the bow. Make sure you have decent rosin, and not some cheapo stuff.





If there's too much rosin on the bow it will make a really scratchy sound on the strings as the rosin builds up. You'll have to clean the strings using a cotton cloth and special violin cleaner.