# Slur

Source: https://arcosounds.com/glossary/slur

**A slur is a curved line over two or more different pitches indicating they should be played smoothly connected, on strings, in a single bow stroke.**

A slur is often confused with a tie, which is visually similar but joins two notes of the same pitch into one longer sound. The rule is unambiguous: a curve between different pitches is a slur, a curve between identical pitches is a tie.

For a string player a slur is an instruction about the bow, not only about phrasing. Six notes under one slur means six notes in one bow, which requires planning the bow distribution so the stroke does not run out. Slurs are also frequently rewritten in orchestral parts to make a passage practical, and following the section's bowing rather than the printed one is standard practice.

Canonical source: https://arcosounds.com/glossary/slur