Article: The thumb of your dominant hand needs to rest on the point of contact between the bow and the frog, which is the device at the end of the bow hairs where they can be tightened. Your thumb will end up being wedged between the bow hairs and the bow stick, somewhere between the frog itself and the leather pad next to it. The bow should be in a horizontal position. Hold it straight across with your non-dominant hand placed at the middle or the far end as you position your dominant hand correctly. Release the bow from your non-dominant hand once you set your bow hold. Note that the portion of the bow used for playing will face toward your non-dominant side. For right-handed cellists, this will be the left; for left-handed cellists, this will be the right. Relax your hand and turn the wrist slightly to the left, in toward your body. If you are left-handed and holding the bow with a dominant left hand, turn the wrist slightly to the right. The remaining fingers should curve gently over the top of the bow stick. The pinky finger should not be allowed to rest on top of the bow stick, as it might with a bow stick for a viola or violin. Instead, the pinky should also extend downward with the other three fingers. While it is not essential, the middle finger usually lies just opposed to the thumb from the opposite side of the stick. The ring finger is usually on the side of the frog, and the first joint of your pointer finger will usually end up on the leather pad or metal winding ahead of the frog. Even though the exact placement of your fingers can vary, you should not allow your thumb to collapse back as you play. It needs to remain gently bent in a normal direction. Most of your leverage will come from your thumb, pinky, and ring finger as you play. Do not press the bow to the strings of the cello. Lightly lay the bow on the strings as you hold it and as you play. Ultimately, as you play, you need to have a loose, relaxed grip that is just firm enough to control the direction of the bow.
What is a summary of what this article is about?
Place your thumb on the frog. Turn your wrist. Allow your fingers to relax into place. Keep your wrist relaxed.