Welcome to the home of the award-winning Art of the Bow and Art of the Left Hand DVDs, each project over 5 years in the making, bringing cutting edge technology to unearth the subtle artistry of one of the 20th Century's master musicians.

François Rabbath is renown in the bass world for his innovative technique and pedagogy that have revolutionized the way the bass is played and taught. First introduced in the early 1980s, these innovations have since become common place in even the most main stream heterogenous method books published by the likes of Kjos, Suzuki, and FJH.

While it is Rabbath's virtuosic left hand technique that created the greatest stir when he first appeared on the international stage in the 1960s, those in attendance also experienced the richness of his sound and ability to perform gymnastics with the bow thought only to be possible by virtuosic violinists.

In the Art of the Left Hand François demonstrates the full range of his innovative left hand techniques including the revolutionary pivot and crab concepts. Numerous variations of each lesson are shown from a dozen user selectable angles with biomechanics animations of his playing, many at impossible angles to view in person. Live unaccompanied performances include many of his most challenging works, including War and Peace.

The Art of the Bow takes you from the most basic detaché through the seven famiiles of strokes with detailed instructions enhanced with user selectable camera angles, biomechanics animations and enriched by live performances and lengthy interview segments.

Both projects feature over 3 hours of content featuring lecture/demonstrations, live performances, user-selectable camera angles, biomechanics animations, and discussions by François on a wide range of topics from teaching with love to settling performance anxiety.

I invite you to explore the site and learn more about Rabbath’s fascinating and revolutionary technique. Please keep in mind however, Rabbath intends these techniques to expand your technical vocabulary, not replace anything you already do.
“The more ways you have to play a note, the more you are rich." - Rabbath

With much bass love,
Dr. Hans Sturm

Now available - François Rabbath’s complete set of Bach Cello Suites!


RabbathCD