Hey there…..If you are in the Seattle area on Halloween be sure to come out to the Everett Mall for lots of fun and music by Evergreen Community Orchestra. I’ll be playing bass.
The kids will be there doing in-mall trick or treating and from 5:30 to 6:30 an ensemble from the Evergreen Community Orchestra will be performing some fun and/or spooky music under the rotunda in the mall’s center court. Following that the orchestra will perform a complete concert in Northwest Music Hall, located in the northeast (how ironic) corner of the mall. Best yet, it’s all free. Donations graciously accepted of course.
This is lesson DB-18 Introducing the Roland Micro Cube Bass Amp, and is a continuation of my journal of things I have learned as an adult double bass student. See the video for a few pointers about using the Roland amp.
Watch The Video Lesson
My main bass amp is a Gallien-Krueger 700RB-II in a 12 inch Neo combo cabinet, along with another Neo 12 extension cab, which is an awesome amp that has served me well. But, even with the Neo speakers, it is still heavy! Recently I began searching for something smaller and lighter that could still put out a great tone and I ended up settling for the Roland Micro Cube amp. The Micro Cube Bass Amp is battery powered…..it runs on 6 AAA batteries, as well as begin capable of plugging into wall power. I am so impressed with this amp. I have been using it during our orchestra rehearsals when there have been parts calling for electric bass and it has been more than up to the task of competing with a 40 piece orchestra and filling up a 300 seat theater space.
This amp includes, not only the standard treble, mid and bass EQ controls that you would expect, but in addition to that there are gain, master volume and FX controls for compression, chorus, flanger, wah, delay and reverb. Also included is a drum machine with a variety of different rhythm patterns and a tap tempo control. The complete specs for the amp from Roland are listed below.
Amplifier Section Rated Power Output: 2.5 W + 2.5 W
Nominal Input Level (1 kHz): INPUT: -10 dBu
STEREO AUX IN: -10 dBu
MONO AUX IN: -10 dBu
Speakers: 10 cm (4 inches) x 4
Controls POWER Switch, TUNER Switch, COMP Switch
COSM AMPLIFIER:
TYPE Switch (OCTAVE BASS / SUPER FLAT / FLIP TOP / B MAN / BASS360 / SESSION / CONCERT 810 / MIC), GAIN Knob, VOLUME Knob
START/STOP Switch, TAP TEMPO Switch, PATTERN Knob (METRONOME / ROCK1 /
ROCK2 / BLUES / COUNTRY / R&B / BALLAD / JAZZ / FUNK / LATIN /DANCE), VARIATION
Switch, VOLUME Knob
Indicators
POWER
TUNER: TUNING METER
RHYTHM GUIDE: RHYTHM GUIDE, VARIATION
Others Connectors:
Input Jack (1/4″ phone type), Foot Switch Jack (1/4″ TRS phone type), STEREO AUX IN
Jack (Stereo miniature phone type), MONO AUX IN Jack (1/4″ phone type), REC
OUT/PHONES Jack (Stereo 1/4″ phone type), AC Adaptor Jack, Grounding Terminal
Power Supply: DC 9 V: AC Adaptor or Dry battery(*) LR6 (AA) type (alkaline) x 6 *sold separately
Current Draw: 186 mA
Accessories: Strap, Power Cord, AC Adaptor, Owner’s Manual
I published my video to go along with my arrangement and recording of Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas” played in the awesome style of the vocal group The Drifters.
This is a ukulele and string bass duet on White Christmas while thinking of all of our men and women in uniform serving America so far away from home. See the Music Store to buy this song.
I’ve always loved the version done by The Drifters after I heard a clip of it on Home Alone when Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) realized his family woke up late and rushed off to the airport on their Christmas vacation without him. So, with just a little internet research I discovered this had been a big hit for The Drifters for many years.
As I have been studying double bass for the last few years I was intrigued to see if I could create an arrangement of White Christmas that prominently features the bass in the style of Bill Pinkney, the bass singer in The Drifters. After getting into it for a while I needed to find something for the 1st tenor part that Clyde McPhatter sang and I settled upon the fun, humble ukulele (or ‘ukulele as the Hawaiians say….).
Hey there Mexican food lovers. I thought I’d let you know that my song “Nacho Mama” has just now been released as a single on CD Baby. For today only, the lunch special is Nacho Mama for only $0.99!
The inspiration for this song came from the cooking magazine, “Bon Appetite”, which had an article titled “One Dish Wonder” and at first I thought that might make a good song title, but then that led me to think, “What ONE menu item do I think about a lot?”. It was then that I realized that that one dish has to be Nachos! I’ve always enjoyed songs about food and eating, so, born from that is this song about a guy falling in love with a brown-eyed beauty at a Mexican restaurant: Nacho Mama.
When I was a teenager and my friends and I had a routine of frequenting a Mexican restaurant back in Fort Wayne, Indiana where I grew up, called “Blackies” and I remember there was a waitress there who was very beautiful and I had a teenage crush on her because I thought she liked me. By the way, Blackies was on Fairfield Avenue in Fort Wayne, Indiana. According to “Insider Pages” one of the original Blackies restaurants on Calhoun Street is still open, but it is now called La Margarita. If anyone remembers Blackies, I’d sure love to hear from you!
My new version of Irving Berlin’s White Christmas is now available on CD Baby, plus various outlets of digital distribution such as iTunes, Amazon, etc. and is streaming on Spotify. And, it’s best for me if you buy it directly at my music store. White Christmas is yet another tune that I got inspired to record last December when the music bug hit me hard. I’ve always loved the version done by The Drifters after I heard a clip of it on Home Alone when Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) realized his family woke up late and rushed off to the airport on their Christmas vacation without him. So, with just a little internet research I discovered this had been a big hit for The Drifters for many years.
As I have been studying double bass for the last few years I was intrigued to see if I could create an arrangement of White Christmas that prominently features the bass in the style of Bill Pinkney, the bass singer in The Drifters. After getting into it for a while I needed to find something for the 1st tenor part that Clyde McPhatter sang and I settled upon the fun, humble ukulele (or ‘ukulele as the Hawaiians say….).
You may wonder why I am recording Christmas music in the summer. So do I! Actually, it’s like people who do crafts to sell at the holiday craft bazaars….you have to start working early in the year to have it ready in time. Besides, by winter you will all have forgotten about this so when I reintroduce it, it will seem like new! I will be posting my video version with a salute to our men and women in uniform in the United States Armed Forces soon. Stay tuned!
Here’s a link to one of the cool Drifters versions of the tune with the incredible Bill Pinkney singing the wonderful bass part. Bill served in World War II and earned a Presidential Citation with five service stars (for battles including Normandy and Bastogneunder General Patton)!
I will be releasing my next recording this week….my instrumental cover of The Drifters version of White Christmas. Here’s the cover art! Check back tomorrow for more.
