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Staggering on

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Posts posted by Staggering on

    Special gift needed for DB player

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    Does he/she have a good DB stand?The Bass Bar stand is highly recommended and is discussed in a recent thread in the EUB and double bass forum on this site, it seems to be ideal for those who play both DB and EB and need to switch easily.There are other stands too.

    What about a bow,you can spend little or a lot on these.

    A case/gig bag/wheels(bass buggy)?

    I'm done.Good luck.

    Hottest and coldest gigs

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    Like many of you I've played so many hot gigs none really stands out but I remember the coldest one.

    I was playing(depping) tenor banjo(!) in a Dixieland/trad band called Professor Futz and His Band Of Nutz who played gigs wearing clown costumes.It was a strange band and the costumes were part of the "schtick" but the players were legit musicians, many of them played in the Toronto Symphony.This gig was an outdoor strolling gig at the Toronto zoo in February in the mid 1970's and the temp was -21or -22(I can't remember but it was COLD).We were all wildly out of tune and the valves, slides and keys of the wind instruments would freeze so the trombone player might be stuck in first position and that sort of thing.We would play a few songs and then go inside to warm up and return to the cold for another few songs.It was crazy but we got paid.I played the intro to the first song on banjo in the key we had agreed on(C) and when the band came in I thought they were fumbling around a bit.At the end of the song the trumpet player asked why I had played it in C#.The cold had shrunk the strings so they were a half tone higher, it made the rest of the gig pretty interesting and one I won't forget.

    Double Bass Bash - nr. Bicester, Oxon - Saturday 14 April 2018

    in Events

    Posted

    Well I had great time at the double bass bash today!

    Thanks to Brother Malvis for organizing the event and to all of you who brought basses and let us all try them out.After seeing and playing Roger's Kolstein travel bass and Audrey's Emminence I have a serious case of GAS.

    Nice day,nice basses,nice people...perfect day.

    Special thanks to Bassace for the ride to the bash.

    Bob

    Musicianship vs Personality & Stage Appeal

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    7 hours ago, Lozz196 said:

    I`m not sure about this as a whole, but I do know that having worked with great musicians/great song-writers who had those as their only redeeming features, I wouldn`t choose to work with similar again.

    I`m not sure if I have any stage presence, aside from - not my words I should add - looking scary and staring the audience out. Which in fact means that with my middle-aged eyesight I`m just looking at the audience to see if they`re enjoying it.

    Wearing appropriate clothing for genre, and not looking at the floor, even if you don`t leap about like a deranged gibbon conveys a better stage presence than looking like a bunch of guys who don`t even know each other, and won`t make eye contact with the audience. If the people on stage look together, look like a band, and connect with the audience even if they don`t say a thing, well already their stage presence has taken a step up.

    Many(most?) punters" hear what they see "to a certain extent.The last sentence in the quote above is what it's all about.

    Feels so good...

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    I have found the same thing happens when I play different music.I am in two bands that play essentially the same type of jazz/swing music but one is a quartet where we just use a lead sheet for melody and chords and the other band is a seven piece swing band where we play professional arrangements from charts and that demands real concentration and accuracy.Each band requires a different type of playing, in the quartet I can be more creative and in the septet I have to be right on the money or the arrangement doesn't work.One result is that my reading skills have gone up a lot and using some ideas from the arrangements I have started to be more inventive in the quartet.

    I also feel better playing bass after a session where I play guitar or banjo, like you, bass is the right instrument.

    And we are all so lucky that we have music in our lives!

    • Like 2

    Strings fitted to the Yamaha SLB 200

    in EUB and Double Bass

    Posted

    2 hours ago, GambaCorners said:

    Here's the reply. Hats off to Yamaha customer services; it took a while but they finally chased down an answer:

     

    We have been informed that the strings (D'Addario Helicore Pizzicatos) are the MEDIUM guage ones fitted as standard on the SLB200 bass.


    Best Wishes

    Carl Smith
    Customer Services Manager
    Yamaha Music London
    152-160 Wardour Street
    London
    W1F 8YA

    Tel: 020 7432 4407 (Direct Line)
    Tel: 020 7432 4400 (Store)

    Your persistence paid off...and you were right, medium it is.

    Much as I love my SLB200 I have found it very frustrating when I have contacted Yamaha and asked any technical questions (ex."should I use a preamp?")so you have done well.

    Bob in Canada

     

    Strings fitted to the Yamaha SLB 200

    in EUB and Double Bass

    Posted · Edited by Staggering on

    24 minutes ago, GambaCorners said:

    Thanks for your help; much appreciated. Apparently there's a little extra twist of a contrasting colour at the end of the peg box end of the string which tells you the gauge. Mine's clipped off. I'll post up the reply from Japan when it comes. After all this effort I imagine the answer will just be: medium, but who knows?

    Yup,probably medium but it will be nice to hear what they say.

    I just checked the string ID chart at Gollihur Music(https://www.gollihurmusic.com/faq/57-STRINGS_STRING_IDENTIFICATION_CHART.html) and it seems that string is only shown as light or heavy.The plot thickens....

    ...a few minutes later...

    I went to the Gollihur site again and found that they sell that string in light, heavy AND medium!There is also a video from the manufacturer and they mention the three weights too.This is getting interesting.

    Double Bass Bash - nr. Bicester, Oxon - Saturday 14 April 2018

    in Events

    Posted

    On 2018-01-16 at 18:28, aud said:

    I’m interested in coming along - I play an Eminence so would bring that - never sure if it counts as an EUB as it does have a bit of an acoustic body . (I usually describe it as a DB that has been on a diet.

     

    That would be great,I would love to hear an Eminence in a live setting, it's hard to tell what they really sound like on videos.I want to hear how it compares to my Yamaha SLB200, which I will be leaving at home in Canada unfortunately.

    Bob

    Strings fitted to the Yamaha SLB 200

    in EUB and Double Bass

    Posted

    My SLB 200 has the stock strings the same as yours.Not sure of the gauge but here are the colours of the silks on mine if that's any help.

    Tailpiece-red and gold

    Pegbox-E green,A black,D gold,G red

    There are sites where you can use the colours to identify your strings and there are other sites that deal with the Yamaha SLB200(Talkbass...oops,sorry about that BC).

    I'm in Canada and there is a phone contact on the Yamaha website but nobody seemed to know much about the instrument.I have the owners manual but it does not give any details about the strings other than how to change them and tune.In the specifications it says "contra bass strings" with no names or gauges.

    Good luck!

     

    Thinking of getting an EUB...a few questions.

    in EUB and Double Bass

    Posted

    I started with a Stagg and it was a good intro to upright for me and the neck is similar to many DBs (being careful here...).A few months later I came across a Yamaha SLB 200 at a price that I couldn't resist and I have been using it for about 3 years for gigs.It has a better sound and can be set up pretty much like a DB and although some would disagree, it is a really good instrument, at least for me.Because it is not usually very easy to try out several EUBs at one time since most stores carry a limited stock, it might a good idea to take your time and try as many as you can,it seems what is great for one person doesn't work for others. 

    I'm sure you'll get lots of ideas on BC and there might be other threads on here to check out.The Double Bass Bash in April near Bicester(see Events) could be a good source of advice and there may be some EUBs there to try out. 

    Good luck and happy hunting!

    • Thanks 1

    New swing band first gig

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    First outing for our seven piece swing band Sunday afternoon.Most of the two swing sets were charts by the arranger and composer Dave Wolpe and I would recommend them-good arrangements and a good challenge with lots of key changes and interesting timings.All but two of us have music degrees and everyone reads well with me as the weakest link but I managed to get through with only a few minor problems.I was using my Yamaha SLB 200 EUB and went straight into our Bose PA along with the piano.I had a busy time as I am also the frontman and did the between song chatter.

    The third set was a Dixieland/Trad set and I switched to tenor banjo and one of the horn players switched to tuba.

    All in all a good afternoon with a sold out hall(OK,it was small but packed with close to 100 people)and we got a standing O at the end of the gig and are being booked back in June.

    Trying to keep live music alive here in Canada...

    Bob

     

    • Like 1
    • Thanks 1

    Hamilton KB550 dub stand

    in EUB and Double Bass

    Posted

    What kind of EUB do you have?

    I use a Stagg EUB stand for my Yamaha SLB 200.The stand came with a Stagg EUB that I had for a year or two and I kept the stand after I sold the bass.There are a lot of bits to adjust so you might be able to make it work for you,my Yamaha fits well on it and the stand is quite sturdy. 

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