Bogen

As Printed on a Score

Printed over string parts: alone or as “mit dem Bogen” after pizzicato, where arco would serve, and inside bowing directions (viel Bogen, ganze Bögen, Bogenwechsel). In German writing about notation the same word also means a slur (Bindebogen) or tie (Haltebogen); a direction over a string part refers to the bow.

Also spelled: Bögen

How Composers Use It

Bogen directions let you control how the sound is made: how much bow, which part of it, how often to change. After pizzicato, arco is the universal word; the German forms read naturally in an all-German score. In compounds the word usually tells the player about quantity and speed of bow, which shapes tone more than any dynamic does.

Example

Mahler, Symphony No. 5, second movement, strings, m. 421: “ganze Bögen” — whole bows — seven bars before “Wuchtig.”

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