Bowed String Synthesis Extensions

For maximally natural interaction between the bow and string, bow-hair dynamics should be included in a proper bow bodel [176]. In addition, the width of the bow should be variable, depending on bow ``angle''. A finite difference model for the finite width bow was reported in [351,352]. The bow-string friction characteristic should employ a thermodynamic model of bow friction in which the bow rosin has a time-varying viscosity due to temperature variations within a period of sound [549]. It is well known by bowed-string players that rosin is sensitive to temperature. Thermal models of dynamic friction in bowed strings are described in [426], and they have been used in virtual bowed strings for computer music [419,423,21].

Given a good model of a bowed-string instrument, it is most natural to interface it to a physical bow-type controller, with sensors for force, velocity, position, angle, and so on [420,294].

A real-time software implementation of a bowed-string model, similar to that shown in Fig.9.52, is available in the Synthesis Tool Kit (STK) distribution as Bowed.cpp. It provides a convenient starting point for more refined bowed-string models [276].

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About the Author: Julius Orion Smith III
Julius Smith's background is in electrical engineering (BS Rice 1975, PhD Stanford 1983). He is presently Professor of Music and Associate Professor (by courtesy) of Electrical Engineering at Stanford's Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA), teaching courses and pursuing research related to signal processing applied to music and audio systems. See http://ccrma.stanford.edu/~jos/ for details.