These lessons are different that other lessons that you may have come across. I am presenting them as my step-by-step journal and commentary from a student’s perspective as I learn how to play the double bass. In each lesson I will cover what I have just learned, any struggles I have had and how I have grown. I welcome your comments and questions on each one.
Am I too old to start learning the bass?
Absolutely not. I have to believe this since I’m no spring chicken myself! You’re never too old. If you are 60 instead of 16 it might take you a bit longer to master material, but again that depends on you and if you have prior musical training. My instructor told me that he thinks adult students learn better because they are more disciplined and focused.
How often do I need to practice?
It’s better to practice a little daily than a long session only once a week. Shoot for 15 minutes a day at first. You can increase it as you progress.
My fingers hurt, should I stop practicing?
It’s natural as calluses develop. If you have severe pain stop.
What strings should I use?
I chose Thomastik-Infeld Belcantos. Good for both arco and pizz. I may try some others in the future. Bass strings are not cheap.
Here are the string specs from the manufacturer, Thomastik Infeld:
Core: specially twisted steel rope core; settles in quickly, they intonate extremely well; exceptional tuning stability
Tone: dark and warm with excellent resonance; wide range of tone colors; easy to blend; pizzicato is open and free
Sound: outstanding projection with moderate effort; sustains better than most other arco (bowing) string brands
Playability: quick response to the bow; soft under your fingers; fantastic hybrid capability
Belcantos are for 3/4 size (and possibly some 7/8 or 4/4 depending on scale length) basses, with a scale length up to 110cm (43.3 inches). They have a steel rope core and are chromium wound.
Choosing rosin seems to be as individualized as choosing strings. There are many different brands and formulations of bass rosin. I started out using Pops rosin, which is a very popular rosin. It is very soft and it will literally melt if you leave it in a warm area, such as in your car in the sun. Pops gives a lot of grip, but it also leaves a lot of rosin dust on the strings and on the bass. I have also used Nyman-Harts, from Sweden. This rosin is harder than pops and leaves very little rosin dust on the strings and virtually none on the instrument. Currently I am trying Holstein’s rosin. I have both the “all weather” and the soft rosin. The all weather rosin worked well with my Holtz student bow, but I recently purchased a Pernambuco bass bow that has black horse hair and this bow seems to want a lot of rosin, so I have been trying the Kolstein soft rosin with it and so far it is working well.
How do I know when to move onto the next stage?
That’s a hard question to answer. It’s a combination of how comfortable and confident you feel personally with the material along with your instructor’s opinion, if you are studying with someone.
This was the first time I have played in an orchestra for a musical (aka a pit orchestra), and it was probably the most challenging playing I have done so far. We played in the dark (with stand lights). There were many key, tempo and meter changes. There were many “cuts” from the original score, which made reading the music a bit messy. There were over 60 pages of music to learn. The music and the cast must be in sync every moment, so watching the director constantly was a must. So, all in all, it was a great learning experience for me and a lot of fun getting to watch the show and get to know some of the cast and orchestra and crew. And it was a great story and show. Especially the impromptu marriage proposal by one of the crew to Queen Guinevere during one of the curtain calls! (nope, she didn’t run away with Lancelot after all…..)
Here’s the orchestra. You can guess where I am in the photo below.
With a lot of other distractions going on, not to mention the little time suckers of Twitter and Facebook, I haven’t blogged in a while. I have mostly been preoccupied with Camelot. In early March I was invited to play in an orchestra playing for the musical Camelot, written by Lerner and Lowe. We began rehearsals in March, which accelerated towards the end of April and we had the show opening this weekend. It has been a LOT of work, but a lot of fun as well. It was the first musical theater orchestra that I have played in and it was an awesome learning experience. The bass part is 64 pages long and the music has many frequent key signature and meter changes and many “cuts” from the original score to fit this particular production’s script and timing. This was a volunteer production, but it looked and sound very pro to me. So, if you live in the area, or are visiting the Seattle area next weekend (May 1-3), come attend one of the performances of Camelot.
On top of Camelot, I also play double bass in a community orchestra, the Evergreen Community Orchestra, and we have been preparing for our spring concerts working on music from Mozart, Schubert, Ravel, Debussy, and more! Those concerts are scheduled for Friday, June 5th at 7:00 pm and Tuesday, June 9th at 7:00 pm. The name used to be “Music Hall Community Orchestra” but was recently changed and the web URLs are still waiting updates to the new name.
After this, and I don’t want to let the kittens out of the bag too soon, I do have a new recording project that I have begun, and like all recording projects they seem to take on a life of their own. I may begin with a certain concept in my mind of what the finished project will be like, but once I start actually working on putting it together new ideas bubble to my mind and I end up in a different place than where I planned. It’s a bit of a fun adventure. So, stay tuned for more.
In my new journey of discovering and learning the upright bass, or string bass, or double bass, or bass fiddle, or whatever you want to call it, I came across a gentleman by the name of John Clayton. John is a grammy nominated bassist, composer and conductor who as a teenager studied bass with the legendary Ray Brown. On John’s website I discovered a booklet that he has made available called the “self management book”, which I think is awesome as I know that I need an ongoing dose of self-managment to keep me on track. If you are interested you can download a copy of the booklet from John’s “Learn” page on his site.
The last page in the book, titled “Thoughts” contains a collection of many of those motivational quotes that I think we have all heard during our lives. Because they are so good and deserve to be seen often I am republishing them below.
Thoughts
If one advances confidently in the direction of their dreams and endeavors to lead a life which they have imagined, they will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. –THOREAU
The key to happiness is having dreams. The key to success is making dreams come true.
DO IT NOW. You become successful the moment you start moving toward a worthwhile goal.
RISK. You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.
Success is a journey, NOT a destination.
Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your mind off your goals.
ATTITUDE. If it is to be, it is up to me.
EXCELLENCE. The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is the little extra.
EXCELLENCE can be obtained if you…
Risk more than others think is safe.
Dream more than others think is practical.
Expect more than others think is possible.
SUCCESS. The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will. –VINCE LOMBARDI
PERSISTENCE. Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. –CALVIN COOLIDGE
