Beyond the Beautiful: Essential Techniques for Playing Crystal Bowls
How To Best Play A Crystal Singing Bowl:
- Step #1 Activate the bowl
Crystal bowls play best after they are activated. Just give the bowl a light tap on the rim to get the vibration started.
- Step #2 Move the striker around the rim with your whole arm
After the bowl is activated, move the striker around the rim to get the bowl to drone. This is called singing the bowl.
Do not use your wrist when playing the bowl. See pictures below. Place the striker almost vertical to the outer wall of the bowl, and move the striker around the rim with your arm, and not by rotating your wrist. If you play the bowl by rotating your wrist, you’ll have unstable speed and rim contact; if you play the bowl going around the rim with your arm, you’ll get steady pressure and a steady tone.
Poor Form - Too Much Striker Angle - Too Much Wrist Rotation
Good Form - Striker Vertical To Crystal Bowl Wall - No Wrist Rotation
- Step #3 The slower the better
The rule for playing crystal singing bowls, is the slower, the better. You want apply just enough pressure against the rim of the bowl, that you can go around the rim slowly. If you play the bowl fast, the tone will be unstable. If you play the bowl slow, the tone will be clearer and more stable. Your goal when playing the bowl, is to find the right speed and pressure, to find the most stable tone you can.
In order to play the bowl slow, you need to have the striker almost vertical to the wall of the crystal bowl, and then you must apply the right amount of pressure to the rim of the bowl. Again, do not play the bowl by rotating your wrist, but move the striker around the rim with your whole arm.
- Step #4 Find your bowls distortion point and how to play it soft
Explore different playing speeds and pressures to find the limits of your bowl. You need to find your bowls distortion point. This is the point where your bowl has too much vibration, and the tone starts to distort. It is good to become familiar with this, so you know when you are overplaying your bowl.
Every bowl plays a little bit different. Once you understand how to get a good tone from a bowl, try to play it as softly as possible. Crystal singing bowls can be very subtle instruments. It is good to know how to keep the bowl playing at a soft low volume.
- Step #5 Keep your bowl singing with little effort
Last, keep the tone of the bowl going with as little effort as possible. Sing your bowl, then remove the striker from the rim, and let the bowl sustain for a few seconds. Then go right back into singing the bowl. See how you don't need to be consistently droning a singing bowl to keep its tone going. You can use the sustain of the singing bowl, and only sing the bowl more when the tone starts to quiet. So how little you can sing your bowl, while maintain a good clear tone and sustain. This will give you time and space to play other bowls or other instruments.
A Symphony of Bowls: Playing Multiple Crystal Bowls Together
- Tapping Melodies vs Droning Angelic Symphonies: Crystal singing bowls don’t need to be sung, they can just be tapped. Tapping is an excellent way to achieve beautiful melodic rhythms for clients to entrain to. Consider tapping crystal bowls in a rhythmic beat. For example, tap a lower bowl twice, and then tap a higher harmonic bowl once. Go back and forth in this pattern, tapping the lower bowl once, then the higher bowl twice. You’ll create a mesmerizing melodic rhythm that will be both tranquil and soothing. Consider a crystal bowl set like a drum set, that you can use to tap out beautiful patterns of angelic rhythm. Tapping crystal bowls is a transformative experience. When you are singing crystal singing bowls, you create a consistent tone that is very easy for a client to become uplifted with. Start to experiment with droning one bowl with one hand, and using your other hand to tap bowls rhythmically. What sort of beautiful patterns can you create that your clients with entrain to?
- Intuition Is Key: Don't be afraid to experiment with different combinations of notes and playing styles. Your bowls will work for you, and they will sound beautiful together. There is not perfect combination to play your bowls in that will necessarily lead to healing. Trust your intuition and create soundscapes that resonate with you; they will resonate with others too. Allow the playing to just occur, from one bowl to the next, and don't get caught up in what is or is not necessarily effective. Your intuition will guide your playing along, into a beautiful sounscape for participants.
- Play The Harmonies: Perfect Thirds, Fifths and Octave Harmonies: The simplest place to start with playing crystal singing bowls is with the harmonies. These will create clear uplifted environments for you and your clients to rest in, the relax in, and to find joy in. It is much simpler to focus in a clear harmonious soundscape. Find the third, fifth and octave harmonics in your set. If you have a C scale set, this would mean focusing on the C – E – G and higher C notes. These will create beautiful simple harmonies to begin with.
- Add In A Binaural: A binaural occurs when two notes are in very close hz value with each other (so close that they almost sound like the same note). An oscillation occurs (that sounds like “wah-wah-wah-wah”) when the two notes are played at the same time. These oscillations prompt our minds to intentionally create delta, theta or alpha brain wave states. These can be beneficial for a transformative and concentrated sound experience. Adding one binaural into your harmonic set can add a lot of value, where you can go back and forth between playing uplifted harmonies, and create focused presence with the binaurals.
- Intention Matters: Approach playing with a clear intention, whether it's deep relaxation, chakra balancing, or simply creating a space for inner peace. Your intention will be amplified with your playing. Create a clear intention of wholeness that can feed out in your space, and your clients will entrain to to it. To learn more about using intention with sound, we suggest signing up for one of our programs where Zacciah and Dorothy focus on the use of intention in therapeutic sound healing.
Embrace the Symphony:
Playing multiple crystal singing bowls takes practice and exploration. By exploring the suggestions above and incorporating them into your sound healing practice, you unlock a world of sonic possibilities. Embrace the journey, create your own harmonious symphony, and experience the transformative power of crystal singing bowls.