neilp

If you're signed up to do it, pay or no pay, the contract might well be enforceable... I did some digging about this, and it turns out that the "accommodation" they so generously provided was in tents! In Edinburgh.... It's a disgrace, given the number of tickets they sell, why could they not have put a quid on the cost of the tickets and paid a fee? Oh, and high horse time. I've been a member of the MU since 1983, when I played my first session. The reason the MU doesn't have the teeth to deal with this is partly the attitude of "it's a rip off, but I'd do it" and partly the fact that so few of the "working " musicians in the country actually bother to join...

Yes - exactly. Like this

I don't think music is necessarily getting worse, but for me, recorded music is certainly getting less enjoyable. Autotune, protools, all of that has taken almost all of the humanity from it.

The strap that my 79 Aria SB1000 hangs from at every gig is the strap that Handy Music in Reigate threw in when I bought the bass in 1982.

I use Smoothound, I have 2 transmitters and use it with a variety of basses. Aria SB1000, very high output active, WAL Pro active, Cort B4 active and Gibson Thunderbird passive. Never had a moment of concern. Very low latency, almost completely transparent, utterly reliable. Can't reccommend it enough. Neil

As a double bass player and lover of fretless basses, the biggest lesson you can learn is that your ears are what tells you you're in tune, not your eyes. Practice with your ears wide open and your eyes closed and you'll be amazed how quickly you "get it"

There's a lot of experimenting to be done to find how the particular combination of bass, bow, strings and setup works. The variables you can easily change are bow weight (not the actual weight of the bow, but the weight you put into the string through the bow), bow speed and position on the string (distance from the bridge). In particular you should try bowing slowly with decent weight, around 2" or a bit less from the bridge. Give it a go. If you can't find a big, focused tone, move the bow slower until you can. Try it, it's amazing. It may not suit the stuff you play, especially if you play orchestral music, but if you have any interest in solo playing, it's the way forward.....

In the first clip, Rinat is playing with an "authentic" Baroque bow, which has much less weight in the frog and so balances differently, hence the different hold. Gary Karr was indeed given Koussevitsky's bass by his widow. She claimed to have seen Koussevitsky's ghost standing beside Gary on stage and took that as a sign that he should have the bass. I played it - briefly - and it was properly strange. Nothing really happened until I followed instructions and played with a very slow bow and a LOT of weight, then suddenly this HUGE sound appeared. Must have had a very particular set-up for his style.....

My favourite bass player of them all is Rinat Ibragimov. Some wonderful youtube videos of him playing - mostly the more Romantic repertoire. He had a major stroke a few years ago, which tragically left him unable to perform, but his sound and emotional connection with music are endless inspiration to me The Koussevitsky was one of the pieces in my ARCM recital many many years ago, I had a couple of lessons with him before the recital. Eye-opening.......

Nice playing. A bit lacking in intensity for me, and a bit monochrome. There is more to be had, playing closer to the bridge. I played in a Masterclass with Gary Karr in the 80's when I was a real bassist, and the focus and intensity of his sound was extraordinary. "Vocalise" is now played much more often by cellists, violinists and all sorts, but the story goes it was in fact written for double bass, for Serge Koussevitsky. He's another fascinating character, there are many great stories about him....

I've just acquired an Ashdown ABM500, which has a built in one-knob compressor. I'm still playing with gain levels and compressor settings, but I have to say I'm pleasantly surprised how much variety in compression attack and ratio you can get. So at the moment, it's yes, but the built in Ashdown, the Boss and TC that I had on my board are in the cupboard.....

I think the "floppiness" of the E string is an optical effect, probably something to do with interaction between the frequency of the notes and the frame rate of the video?

If the repairs are as sound as you say, I'd be tempted to put a nice new set of tuners on it, and a new bridge, and leave the rest well alone. I don't know why, but something about that bass is saying "1930s" to me, very loudly. It might well be absolutely lovely

More than happy to help if needed. PM me. I'm busy, but I can usually find some time for bass bimbling

Really?? They have two guitar hangers, clean, modern, well presented rooms with aircon, good quality PA, decent amplification, good drums and cymbals if you need them, a clean, modern kitchen wit free tea and coffee, a comfortable lounge area, friendly, welcoming attitude and fair (cheap) prices, and you think ONLY two hangers is a fail? Bring a stand. More power to them, I say, they are raising the bar in this area, that's for sure.

It's a distress purchase. You can avoid it by bringing a spare. If you're not prepared to do that, for whatever reason, then you have to pay the price they want. Think of it like buying fuel on the motorway. Fill up before you leave.....

The coat stands are a cracking touch, as are the comfortable chairs, great kitchen facilities, free coffee, blah blah. Check it out if you're in the Horley area, it really is a cut above. I have no connection, other than having spent a day there and been very pleasantly surprised by what I got for my money

I take it yo mean the Hive Rooms? I was there last week, they're doing a fantastic job, and you can tell them I said so! I noticed they stock Elixir guitar strings but not bass. I use Elixir on my fretted basses, so that would be good, and someting for the fretless ones, either tapes of some kind or TI flats. That would make the best rehearsal facility in Surrey even better.

I don't get the worry about neck dive. I have four basses. The Wal, Aria and Cort balance perfectly. The Thunderbird (obviously) does not. The solution? a tiny bit of support from the left hand. Don't let go of the neck, and the problem goes away. Maude, all Brighton based bassists have such a thing in their gigbag

It's a basic of musical literacy to be able to read both bass and treble clef (and for orchestral and chamber music, as well as the solo repertoire, tenor as well). I think bass and treble clef are essential, but I must admit to being irritated by the use of tenor clef, which is totally unnecessary. I often have to play parts written in all 3 clefs....

Geoff is right, in my opinion. I sit for orchestral and chamber music where I'm part of an ensemble, if I'm playing as a soloist (whether with an orchestra or pianist, chamber group, whatever) I quite often stand. It's great to be able to do either, but I have to admit I don't have Mr Karr's technique, so as the music gets more technically demanding I tend to sit more, as I don't have to think about controlling the instrument as well as playing the notes!! When I sit, I sit with one foot on the ground, but these days lower than I used to, with my right leg bent.

I thought it was just me.......

It works pretty well, but it also has a screw-in spike for use in relevant conditions. I play sat on a stool, so if I can't use the spike I use a Celloboots rubber endpin holder, which is more than big enough

Take the G on the A string with your 2nd finger, 4th finger for the D at the 12th fret on the D string, then the E is under your 1st finger on the G string. More string crossing, but less stretching. You have to choose. Whats important is to be fluid and rhythmically good, not which string you play.

Force of habit from orchestral playing, I always tune the D first - because in orchestras you tune the A harmonic on the D string to the A from the oboe - then the A string, then G and E last. I don't think there's a right way, really, but you should certainly go through them twice.