How do you play a saw?

Subject: How do you play a saw?
From: Herge
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 10:40 AM

How do you play a saw???? Herge

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: GUEST,Roger the skiffler
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 10:41 AM

VERY carefully!
RtS

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Jock Morris
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 10:45 AM

Seem to remember seeing someone playing one with a fiddle bow. IIRC by bending the saw they could change the note.

Jock

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From:
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 10:45 AM

I saw an actual musical saw this summer at the Lunenburg Folk Harbour Festival. Apparently the saws played musically are different, possibly in the type of metal used. I don't remember if they have teeth like a regular saw or not, but they, like fiddles, etc, can use rosin.

One interesting thing the lady was saying is that the bend point and curve is what determines the note that is played. Which upon thinking about it, makes perfect sense.

Anyway, it certainly was an interesting discussion.

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: A Wandering Minstrel
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 12:06 PM

never done it myself but there's a guy who busks with one outside the Roman Baths at Bath...

as best as I can figure it

Sit down and place the handle of the saw between your knees with the teeth pointing towards you (thick sweater of the Fair Isle class recommended)

Grab the tip of the blade furthest away from you with your left hand and bend it slightly to the right. at the same time press downward so the blade flexes in a curve to the left.

Take the violin bow in your right hand and draw it gently across the smooth edge of the blade (furthest from you). you should get a note

By adjusting the amount of bend and flex you change the tension on the blade and so alter the note

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: dwditty
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 12:13 PM

Our good friend Ken (aka kwsawman on the mudcat) is a truly remarkable player - and second generation at that. I'll make sure he posts to this thread.

dw

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: GUEST,Giac, not at home
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 12:27 PM

Here is a link to a previous discussion on saws:

saw festival

If you put "musical saw" (without the quotes) in the search thingie, you'll find several neat saw threads, including the one welcoming dwd's friend kws to Mudcat. Lots of good info.

Once had a carpenter friend who played saw by banging the saw with his knuckle. Ouch!, but pretty sounds. I've heard them hammered and bowed - quite different effects.

---

--- Link fixed ---
-- PA --

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: GUEST,Giac, not at home
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 12:31 PM

Sorry 'bout that, I got uppity and put in too many links in one day, and hit the wrong slash.

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Malcolm Douglas
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 01:15 PM

My greatuncle Cameron used to play the saw, but I think they made him stop.  Some people recommend a viola or cello bow for the additional weight.

Malcolm

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Rich(bodhránai gan ciall)
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 02:49 PM

First you lay a banjo down on a work bench. Then you place the teeth side down across the neck. Push forward, then pull back, repeat frequently. It sounds wonderful.

;-) LOL

Rich

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: GUEST,The Invisible Blazoona
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 03:13 PM

Wandering Minstrel's description is a good one.

Any carpenters saw with a blade length of more than 16 inches works perfectly.

It s important to bend the blade into an "S" shape with the curve nearest your hand holding the blade in a downward curve, and the curve nearest your torso going upwards.

Draw the bow ( I use an inexpensive fiddle bow) against the blade at the point where the upward curve begins.

Raise the pitch by making the S curve more pronounced. Lower the pitch by relaxing the cuve.

Good luck

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: oggie
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 03:21 PM

A double handled logging saw works well, allows you to trap one handle under your foot and hold the other one.

All the best

Steve

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Clinton Hammond2
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 03:24 PM

Play a saw?

Nope... but I saw a play once! Sorta the same thing??

LOL!!!

{~`

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Susan of DT
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 07:46 PM

Someone at one of our song circles sometimes plays the saw. It seems to be a special saw (I think I saw them at Lark in the Morning) with a second wooded grab piece at the top and no teeth. As mentioned above, it is bent into an S curve and bowed. It is beautiful and haunting.

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Cap't Bob
Date: 21 Sep 00 - 08:16 PM

HERGE ~ You following web site should answer most of your questions:

http://www.ehhs.cmich.edu/~dhavlena/saw.htm

Good Luck Cap't Bob

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: reggie miles
Date: 22 Sep 00 - 12:29 AM

I've been sawing for about 8 years. The descriptions above should get you started alright. There are various ways of making the small end of the blade bend, which is what allows the blade to create musical tones. First I grip the the handle between my knees as tighly as I can, the teeth pointing toward my body. (Don't let 'em fool ya this is exactly why there are so few of us saw players out there, so be careful. Why, I myself have lost a number of limbs doing this in the past, fortunately most of them have grown back.) My blade leans toward my left, I'm right handed, at about a 45 degree angle. Grasping the small end of the blade with the 3 fingers of my left hand (index, middle and ring) under the end and my thumb pressing down about 2 1/2-3 inches from the end on the top, is how I do it. You need not apply a great deal of force with your fingers pulling upward or your thumb pressing downward just maintain the grip. Most of the bending happens with the rest of the blade. Along the upward arching major portion of the blade are the musical tones. To find them you must bow near the high spot of the arch. As was mentioned in a previous post, a shallow arch will allow low notes to resonate easier and you must bow low on the blade near the widest part, about 4-6 inches from the handle. A pitch pipe may help you to determine the actual value of the lowest note which can be reached on your saw. Then practice bending the blade slightly more increasing the arch and finding the sweet spot to bow for the next note in the scale until you determine the musical range of your particular blade. The more you bend it the shorter the area the the blade has to vibrate and therefore the higher the tone and the higher on the blade you must bow. I can almost get two octaves out of my Mussehl and Westphal 30" baritone blade.

It's not necessary to begin with an actual "musical" saw but if you try it and would like to explore it further I would recommend the the Sandvik 30" Stradivarius. It can be purchased from Marykay Dawson at Mussehl and Westphal or from Lark in the Morning for a bit more $. It has teeth as do most of the blades I'm aware of and this does indeed make it kind of dangerous for the beginner.

What makes a musical saw differ from a regular one? Some say part of it is the metal used. I'm not a metalurgist so I can't varify that. The grain of the metal in my blade travels in a very linear fashion with the length wise direction of the saw. There is an even thickness to the blade which is also said to aid in its ability to vibrate.

An actual bow, (fiddle, viola, cello, bass) works best to play with but some folks strike it with a felt tipped mallet. Again there is no need for a great deal of pressure to be applied to the blade with the bow that will only make the bow screach. I use a brand of rosin on my bow called Pops bass rosin. It's sticky. Vibrato can be added via quivering the hand which grips the small end of the blade or lightly bouncing the left or right leg. I use my right leg.

So there you have it, everything you never wanted to know about how to saw. Goodluck, saw ya later, sawncerely, daredevil

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: reggie miles
Date: 22 Sep 00 - 01:00 AM

One other thing, you can play the pointy part of the blade but I find it always sounds a little sharp whilst the other side always plays a little flat. I lost a lot of good bows playing that pointy side. ;~) dd

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Bev and Jerry
Date: 22 Sep 00 - 01:24 AM

We got our saw from Charlie Blacklock in the SF bay area. We have another saw we use for cutting and it plays pretty well, too. Trouble is, it's shorter and pitched too high for us to sing with it.

Besides the length, the main difference between these saws is that the cutting one has its teeth set while the musical one doesn't. This means that alternating teeth are bent slightly in opposite directions so that the kerf (the cut the saw makes in the wood or whatever) is slightly wider than the saw itself so the darn thing doesn't get stuck so much. Not necessary on the musical saw. The teeth on the musical saw are not set but the teeth of many listners are.

Bev and Jerry

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: A Wandering Minstrel
Date: 22 Sep 00 - 09:41 AM

I have since learned from a friend that Crosscut saws (where the teeth go in line) are much better than Ripsaws (where the teeth go at opposed angles) I think this is the same point that Bev and Jerry is (are?)making.

About 2.5 to 3 foot is the optimum length and if you have weak knees then bolt the handle to a plank and sit on the plank astride the saw.....

I'm just off to the shed to try mine out...

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Bert
Date: 22 Sep 00 - 11:34 AM

Now I'm gonna have to go through my toolbox and see what saws I can find.

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: GUEST,John Leeder
Date: 22 Sep 00 - 01:25 PM

Is it true that the standard key for musical saw is B Sharp?

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: mousethief
Date: 22 Sep 00 - 01:33 PM

OUCH!

Alex
O..O
=o=

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: GUEST,Mbo_at_ECU
Date: 22 Sep 00 - 01:34 PM

I saw a play a couple times!!

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Art Thieme
Date: 22 Sep 00 - 09:27 PM

We had a good saw thread here a while ago that many of us posted extensively to. I can't seem to find it but if someone else could accomplish that, it would be appreciated.

Remember, to play Irish music, you use a jig saw.

For polkas, use a Warsaw.

Psychiatrists prefer coping saws.

Cab drivers like hack saws.

Voyeurs like keyhole saws.

and on and on and on and ...

Art Thieme

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Malcolm Douglas
Date: 22 Sep 00 - 09:50 PM

Possibly this one:   Musical Saw Players Festival

Malcolm

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Gypsy
Date: 22 Sep 00 - 10:41 PM

And the longer the bar, the deeper the note. The wee homelite 12 inch bars make a very high C, while the 36 inch husquevarnas.....

Subject: RE: How do you play a saw?
From: Art Thieme
Date: 24 Sep 00 - 02:08 PM

Malcolm,

Thanks you !

Art