Col legno
Col legno (
Italian for
with the wood) is a method of playing bowed
string instruments (particularly the
violin,
viola,
cello, and
double bass) whereby the strings are struck with the wood of the
bow rather having the hair pulled across them. There is also a technique called
col legno tratto in which the player drags the wood of the bow instead of striking the string.
Col legno is also the name of a
record label specialising in contemporary
classical music; see Col legno (record label).