DO NOT touch the rosin or the bow hair while following these instructions. Doing so will cause oils from your hands to stick to the bow hair which will deteriorate the bow hair quicker. Before applying rosin, tighten the bow hairs by gently turning the tension screw
Rosining the bow is necessary to create enough friction between the bow and viola string so that the string vibrates creating the beautiful sounds violas are known for. For a great explaination of why rosin is needed, read this great overview.
If I had a nickel for every time this question was asked.... The main differences between a viola and violin are the size and strings. The largest a violin can be is 14" (body length) whereas a viola can be as large as 19". Second, while a
Viola player, violist, not a violinist.
The viola is a cousin to the violin and cello with features of both. The viola has the same strings as a cello (C,G,D,A), only an octave higher and is slightly larger than a violin. In orchestra, violas sit between the second violins and the cellos. For