dclaassen

I was in Germany with a group of students from my school and another for an Honor Jazz Festival. I was tasked with coaching the rhythm section in the big band and also playing both fretted and fretless bass for the Vocal Jazz Ensemble. We worked with a clinician from New York, who assigned me a couple of challenging parts. It was a great week with some really talented teenagers and a super final concert. I hope to post some sound files soon.

I think there often a double standard. I just finished a jazz real book session ( not my favorite thing to do) and felt real pressure to nail every chord change and keep it stylistically accurate, and follow Byzantine explanations all while keeping great time. Soloist, however, have tons of freedom to play anything that pops into their heads. Just a expectation we live with.

First gig in a long time and with the new band in Fordham. Small venue, but good crowd and a perfect place for a first gig. Things went well with a few expected lapses of memory. Really happy to be part of this group…great guys and good musicians.

I guess that is wise....I've just never had a problem. I have had more issues with vehicle failures/power failures (at the venue), bad leads, drunken guitarists I'm guess that, if I had to, I could probably change a string in about 3 minutes. The only thing I don't trust is the 9v in my main bass, and the 9v in my backup.....hmmm, maybe I need 3????

Sorry…must be an Americanism. When studying music at uni, you were either a jazz player or a legit (classical) player

And how many times has a bass failed during a gig? I just don’t see it as mandatory.

I think it all depends on the type of gig, amount of time you have spent with the group, and what resources are available. I have recently joined a covers band. We have a rehearsal tonight, and a gig on Saturday. My goal is to 1. get the chord progressions and style right..then 2. do the appropriate riffs in the right places...then 3. start to incorporate unique things the band does with certain songs, and also to be able to anticipate and react to mood changes in each song. I think this is a process, and takes a while to really get comfortable with in a new group. For jazz or legit music, I can sightread and always have a lead sheet or the printed part in front of me. If it is really difficult, or just written weird (a lot of contemporary big band stuff), then I learn that in chunks so I am not really reading every note, just the phrases. FWIW, I really don't like improv jam sessions with Real books...I find them boring and just full of ego and fluff. Just not my bag..I do it to be polite.

Agree with all of the above, except I would certainly get a lined fretless as a starter. You can experiment with pressure and attack/release to get the sound you want. You can also play with the strength and position of your plucking hand to get more or less attack. I would certainly go with an active bass. I use my passive fretless exclusively to sound like a fretless, or even to mimic as much as possible an upright bass.

I only had one bass for years...never had a failure, issue, broken string. Now, I have 2, and I think that will be it. If one goes into the shop, I can probably borrow one. If my fretted bass goes down during a gig, I'll use the fretless until the interval or the end of the gig, then fix whatever the issue is and go on.... same in reverse for jazz gigs...

MIne is a lined fingerboard...which helps a lot! The best way for me to get a feel for the different scale is (sorry) scales and arpeggios until I feel that my intonation is there....

It's not that bad...I was playing an unlined fretless at 17 (waaayyyyyy back), and this one is lined, and a joy to play. It's actually strange going back to my fretted bass for a bit....

I am working up some fairly difficult (for me) jazz stuff, and am using my wonderful new Spector fretless. I went back to my fretted bass and had a moment where I could not sort out where I was. Turns out the Spector has a 35" scale...did I mention it is fretless? I love the feel and the bass sounds amazing, but I wonder if those guys did that just to snicker at us poor bass players. How do cope with switching around with basses of different scales?

Or masking tape...works great for this!

It all depends on the feel. I love ebony boards, so if it can mimic that, then I am in.

Rock band…around 1982

That is a very kind offer. This base has a 35 inch scale, so I’d have to make sure it actually would fit. I have another decent case that came with a Yamaha and looks quite a bit like the old fender cases. It fits the bass really well, so I may just use that. I will certainly let you know if I decide to take you up on your kind offer.

This does not surprise me at all…

Great tonewood….all that salt air and seagull poo.

I’ve been telling our folks that for years…they only just look at the airfare. I won’t use them for personal travel…just can’t support that level of sliminess.

I am taking some students to a jazz festival in Germany, and need to take my newly acquired Spectracore fretless along. I just found out that we are flying, which means checking the bass. I have a quality Gator gig bag and a nice SKB hard case. I prefer the gig bag, but which would you use? Probably our favourite Irish airline as well.

You are a good man!

Just added this fantastic Spector fretless from Graham. I think I’m set now.

I don’t believe that weight alone matters much. My RD Artist was almost 12 pounds, and felt quite heavy. It did have loads of sustain, but that was also affected by through body stringing. My MPV is about 10.4 pounds, doesn’t feel heavy at all, and sounds great. I had a Electra that was heavy, and sounded like crap…lots of other factors at play.

Maybe one day I will be gigging enough to justify buying a pentabuzz……

I usually have one bass that is used for everything. It needs to become an extension of my body, and totally reliable. That is this bass. I am still making the conversion to 5 strings, but it’s getting closer. BTW, I have replaced the knobs since this photo. Totally agree about the tone of maple basses.