How to Care for Your String Instrument

Never let your instrument get too hot or too cold
- Extreme temperature can cause damage such as cracks in the varnish or body of the instrument
- Avoid leaving your instrument in the car
Do not touch the bow hair
Keep the instrument and bow in a case when you are not playing it
Keep it away from any pets or young children
The pegs may tend to slip or stick depending on the weather
- If they are slipping, gently push the peg into the peg box while you're tuning to help them stick better
- If they are sticking, gently wiggle the peg until it comes loose and then proceed with tuning
Never try to fix the instrument on your own
- Always go to your teacher or come to Luther Strings

Wash and dry your hands
- Never touch the instrument and bow with wet, damp, or dirty hands
Tighten the bow hairs
- the bow stick should arc towards the hair, not away from the hair
- For beginners: place a pencil between the stick and the hair in the middle of the bow. If the pencil doesn't move and is seesawing between the bow, it's tight enough
Rosin the bow (10 times for every 2 hours of playing)
Check your surroundings
Make sure you won't bump into anything while playing
- Violin/viola players, check for ceiling fans
Tune your instrument
- If using tuning pegs, go slow and make sure you always start by tuning lower
- Push the peg into the pegbox while you tune
- Check that the bridge is standing straight up

Loosen the bow hair just enough so that the hair is barely touching the stick
- If the hairs are scraggily or the screw is starting to come out of the stick, it's too loose
Clean rosin and hand oil off of the strings with a microfiber cloth
Place instrument and bow in case or bag
- If you have a cello bag, place the instrument in first, then place the bow in the compartment