Bilbo

Watched part of it. They all come over as pretty cool. They cleary loved Freddie and miss him terribly, especially Roger Taylor. Very moving.

Enormously. Thank you, Pete. Its good to know that I am finding something difficult because it [i]is[/i] rather than because I am thick as a house brick

I am talking about the pocket scores that have the transcription of the whole orchestration for study purposes, not the copies of the score prepared for an orchestra that is going to play. I think I am starting to get it (I have copies of Holst's Planet Suite, Scheherezade and The Firebird Suite and I am trying to glena what I can out of them. I get the strings and some of the woodwinds but some of it confuses my a bit where transposing instruments are concerned.

I have several orchestral scores that I have acquired over the years and am a little confused and was hoping someone may be able to help. Many instruments are not written in treble or bass clef (alto and tenor clef) etc and some things, clarinets, horns etc, can be transposed into various keys like Eb or F and so on. So, my query is, what is the protocol for reading commercially produced scores? Are all the instruments in the written clef or transposed. I am struggling to form the question here. Can anyone help?

Thanks, guys. I am quietly proud of it. We all want to do the next Teen Town but this kind of thing kind of seems more 'real' somehow.

Very possibly

A lovely ballad performance by Andi Hopgood with yours truly on bass. There is something about the ambience created by the double bass in a ballad situation that just can't be matched. This is, for me, the first time I have really got a ballad to sound completely satisfactory. I have come close on electric but this is the real deal. Most of you will know the tune but not in this format. Enjoy!

As a guide (not an absolute), think in terms of the series of letters ABCDEFG. If you have an A, you need a B be that a Bb or B natural and so on through the alphabet. So in the key of F, you get FGABbCDE not FGAA#CDE. In the key of D you get DEF#GABC# not DEGbGABDbD- is this making sense? In a nutshell, you don't want the same note name being used as a natural and a flat or sharp because, if you do, you have accidentals all over the written chart and it looks like a train wreck

AM listening to an interesting cd called Scenes From A Dream by Chris Minh Doky. Double bass with strings - kind of jazz/third stream - its passes perilously close to Radio 3 on occasion but I like it. His bass is beautifully recorded. He is not the most advanced or sophisticated DB player in the world but he plays some lovely lines here. Worth looking out for but I recommend you listen before you buy as it is a little 'left field'.

Your abilities. I would interpret 'showing your chops' to mean evidencing your skills as a player. However, this can be done in many ways and ripping out double-thumbed 16th notes is not the only way. Some people show their chops with one perfect note. Because massive amounts of technique used indiscriminately is indicative of an immaturity that shows that further work on musicality is needed. And I hate chops. Pork or lamb.

There remains a gunslinger mentality out there and YouTube is a great place for delusional people to shoot themselves in the foot. People who have an inflated opinion of their own abilities used to remain in splendid isolation, stood in front of a mirror, until they proved their worth and got a gig. Now they are given access to the whole world and can make themselves look completely stupid in front of millions. THAT's why they don't show their faces

You have to go back to the purpose of what you do and a straight forward cost/benefit analysis. I know a drummer who runs a weekly jazz club where he has 'celebrity' guests (if 'jazz celebrity' is not too much of an oxymoron ); people like Alan Skidmore, Alan Barnes, Tina May etc. The rhythm section is local guys and the gig charges on the door. THe thing is that the r. section don't get paid - only the guest. The rational is that the players all have a great night out playing the music they love with some top players that add to their CVs. If the door take is good, then they can make a modest protfit but, if its not, they lose money. It rarely costs them more than £40 or £50 but they figure thats what one good quality meal for two or one night on the lash would cost so where's the harm. I have been exploring the possibility of replicating this 'model' in my area and have some players who have agreed to come on board. The thing is, most of us have gear that was bought and paid for long ago and requires minimal maintenance so there is no real loss there. We all love to play (have to, in fact) and will do so whether we are paid or not. If you break it down in strictly business terms, the cost of having a band play at your function should be a minimum of no. of musicians x (%age of gear cost + 47p per mile on car + hourly rate equivalent to minimum wage). If its less than that, its about deciding what is important; the music or the money. I guess the question for some is whether or not hay can carry losing money on gigs. I did a show last year that involved 2 rehearsals and three gigs. The drive was £15 in petrol every day so it cost me £75 to do the gig. I was told we would only get paid of the show made a profit but I did it for the experience and networking. Of course, despite it being pretty good, the show made a loss (nor surprising; it had a cast of thousands) and we went without payment. I got another call from them a couple of months later offering me the same deal. Not a chance. I can't afford to lose that much to indulge the musical theatre fantasies of a generation of Suffolk wannabes. Pay my expenses and I'm there (I like doing shows every now and then) but not like this. Function bands, though. Its £100 or I don't even load the car!! I'd rather stay in and practice PS originals bands should get paid at least expenses also. If a venue hears your maerial and thinks you will appeal to its core audience, it should at least meet you at that level. You should share the risk as equal partners, not carry the venue.

GENE HARRIS!!! GENE HARRIS!!! Monster!

[quote name='Rick's Fine '52' post='1245694' date='May 26 2011, 02:54 PM']I'm from the UK, and have been playing for 25 years, although if you heard me, you'd probably think I'd been playing for 25 minutes!!![/quote] Too much time spent shopping and not enough time practising Welcome to basschat, Rick

There is a guy down that way called Tony Hougham but he is classical (top banana for arco by all accounts but expensive). You could try Steve Laws at Oakdene Music Services (Sible Hedingham near Sudbury?). I have Steve's no. if you want to PM me (he is also a luthier).

Try the local library and look for the full 6 Bach Cello Suites - or you can buy them for around £14.

I'd go to a luthier. A job like that would be about £20 and you know you haven't done any harm to your instrument or the end-pin.

15 months is 60 weeks. £4,100 divided by 60 = £68.33 p.w. - one pub gig a week and you're sorted. Join a tribute band and it'll be bought and paid for by July

[quote name='RhysP' post='1244198' date='May 25 2011, 01:14 PM']I'd love to hear some of the incredibly original & groundbreaking music that is being made by all these people on here who have cast off the shackles of conventional music theory & embraced raw naked atonal creativity....... [/quote] Having spent 15 minutes last night trying to make a B root fit a C7 chord and not sound like a train wreck, I would too I'm with Doddy. Its wrong.

I am playing tonight at The Apex in Bury St Edmunds supporting The Brodsky Quartet, a world famous string quartet. They are doing an evening of Ravel and S. American inspired music as part of the Bury Festival. As we, Brazilliance, play Brazilian music, we have been asked to support them; only thing is we are playing in the foyer after the Quartet finish (9.30) not before they start. I think the idea is to keep the audience in the bar until closing time spending their money. Should be cool.

I have this but am managing to play without aggravating it.

No idea. I have a problem with this piece (have heard it before). Its a cheesy tune that is easy to play Wootenised into.... a cheesy tune that's harder to play. But its still a cheesy tune. Do something more useful

I and others have said many times, reading and understanding theory are not hard and can be enormously empowering. Noone is being elitist about it. Anyone near me wants a hand with either aspect of their craft, get in touch and I'll get you going in the right direction.