Earbrass

OK, I'd never heard this song before, but I just went and found the video on YouTube, thinking it would be a good "ear test". You are correct - it's a different chord. I'm sat at work with no musical instruments handy, so I'm going purely by ear, but I [i]think[/i] it might be E7 (assuming that verse is mainly D/G). I could well be wrong, though. Someone better qualified / equipped / informed will be along shortly, I'm sure. EDIT Also - the incubator verse seems to be in a different key from the first verses and the following one. I think it's one whole tone lower than the other verses (so if other verses are principally E/A, the incubator verse wd be D/G).

[quote name='Dubs' post='1367670' date='Sep 9 2011, 02:14 PM']Cheers for the input. The more I listen to it the less I have issues with it. The first time I listened to it I thought the snare and kick were way too high in the mix and I couldn't really hear any definition of some of my bass parts (because I know what I should be able to hear!), but having listened through it another 4 or 5 times I think it's much less of an issue than I thought.[/quote] I've only played it once, but I thought the snare was way too high, and the bass too low compared to the drums. Mind you, that's on (fairly decent) headphones. EDIT: ...but that would mean disagreeing with 51m0n, so I'm probably wrong.

That's really nice. I can imagine it being the basis for a [i]Sigur Ros[/i] type piece. Be interesting to see where this ends up.

One from my Mum, to get me off games. Not quite so useful now I'm in my fifties, I'll grant you, but you never know...

Thanks for those kind words. It was a bit hard trying to explain to people what I was trying to do - "early music / folk / rock fusion" sounds a bit of a mouthful, but it made perfect sense inside my head.

[quote name='Bassman Sam' post='1358156' date='Aug 31 2011, 09:57 PM']I've just found this via another thread ,Stunning, I love it. Can I hear more and where? [/quote] Wow, thanks. That's all there is at the moment, I'm afraid. I'd like to do some more in the same vein - as I said that one took me a couple of years on and off, so probably shouldn't hold your breath

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='1357684' date='Aug 31 2011, 04:17 PM'] [/quote] and furthermore... and, in a reckless piece of [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=152657"]self-promotion[/url] which can only backfire given all the above comparison-points...

[quote]Being a better bassist by not playing bass[/quote] This is so true. I haven't picked a bass up for a couple of months or so, and my abilities have soared to the point where I now have a god-like facility with the instrument, as proved by the amazing lines I play [i]in my imagination[/i]. Sadly, the closer I get to physically holding a bass the faster these skills recede, so that by the time I next actually play I will almost certainly have reverted to "average to poor" status, or worse.

Ever had one of those musical projects that hangs around for ages, keeps getting put on the back-burner as other more pressing jobs take over, only to get dusted off again months later? This is one of those. It started probably a couple of years ago, stalled for ages while I wondered what to do with the middle section and recorded an album with the pagan rock band. Earlier this year I finally got round to hiring a fiddle player to do the lead parts, then the mixing got put off while I got up to speed with the tunes for the morris team I'm now playing box for. Well, this is what I've got now. It's a version of "Mein Freund", from Tielman Susato's Danserye of 1551, combined with a version of the traditional English tune the Sportsmans hornpipe [url="http://soundcloud.com/earbrass/sets/the-earbrass-ensemble-1"]http://soundcloud.com/earbrass/sets/the-earbrass-ensemble-1[/url] I think it's finished, but I find the mix sounds very different on different systems, and I've heard the whole thing so many times now I've lost all sense of perspective. Feedback welcome, and, if you have been, thanks for listening.

[Khalid] What is point bass? What is point music? What is point fun? What is point girls? [/Khalid] (for Radio 4 fans)

Stop trying to change the subject and give us the link.

[quote name='Bilbo' post='1324405' date='Aug 2 2011, 03:50 PM']I just decided I don't know how to spell practice/practise/practicing/practising. Maybe I should try harder.[/quote] It's really easy - just remember that all those word pairs (practice/practise, license/licence etc) go like advice/advise, which you won't confuse because they sound different - ie the verb uses an 's' and the noun uses a 'c'. You practise when you would advise, and your practice is like your advice. Licensing is like advising. A licence is like advice.

I know what you mean - there's no point in endlessly repeating stuff you can play comfortably - but on the other hand, I'm not sure that being in a permanent state of frustration with one's instrument is all that helpful either, and could even lead to some people giving up altogether. I think there needs to be a balance - frustration when trying to push boundaries, but also release and a sense of achievement when these boundaries are successfully overcome. And once a new technique or piece is mastered, there's nothing wrong with enjoying a new sense of ease in repeatedly playing something which was once so hard to do. These are the "highs" that incentivize us to then move on to the next boundary.

@3.15 ff

[quote name='Doddy' post='1319380' date='Jul 28 2011, 02:48 PM']it's about being unencumbered by your technique to allow you to play what you want.[/quote] Hmm, but aren't most people encumbered more by their [b]lack[/b] of technique than by a surplus? The more technique you have, the more options are at your fingertips - although it's still up to your musical sense to select the right option.

[quote name='Skol303' post='1319243' date='Jul 28 2011, 12:55 PM']^ Try 'Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance' instead. Seriously... it's a good book all about the concept of 'quality'. It's written in the context of writing literature, but applies equally to music. And it actually has very little to do with motorcycles, in case anyone's wondering...[/quote] Got to disagree - a truly awful book. Tries to be clever and fails dismally. Avoid.

[attachment=85767:Bilbo1.JPG]

[quote name='Dave Vader' post='1318323' date='Jul 27 2011, 02:51 PM']As long as your Morris side keep away from me you can have anything you like EB (I've been worried I might find I enjoy it, so I'm keeping my distance, as it could only end in divorce)[/quote] We're a mixed team - you could both join!

I've recently gone from being the bassist in a Pagan heavy rock band to playing melodeon for a morris side. Do I win a prize?

[quote name='Beedster' post='1318049' date='Jul 27 2011, 10:54 AM']Personally I think a no-amplification rule is no bad thing. Living in a tourist city in which a load of often talentless chancers plug in to unnecessarily loud amps and play badly to baking tracks of Peruvian Pan-Pipes, Chicago Blues and even classical opera, I long for the day when Canterbury City Council say enough is enough. Apart from anything else, the bleed from busker to busker means that all too often there is a mush or undefined noise, resulting in a decibel arms race. OK, the approach described by the OP is arguably lazy/one-size-fits-all law enforcement, but hey, there's no money for local authorities to do more at present, and would you rather have law enforcement tied up with buskers or muggers? I've busked DB without amplification and had no trouble being heard, as was the case with the singer and the acoustic guitarist at the same time.[/quote] +1.

Maybe this isn't as stupid as people are making out. Of course, the bass is not worth the BIN price, but perhaps the seller has put that absurdly high because he really wants people to use the "Make Offer" button. Maybe he thinks he'll get a higher price for the bass via the "sealed bid" method of Ebay's "Make an Offer" facility than by naming a price or running a straight auction. But I agree, it's a fugly beast.

[quote name='Gust0o' post='1293467' date='Jul 5 2011, 02:54 PM']As an aside to this thread, an interesting correlation between bassists and lovers... [i]oh yeah, baby, you're the best[/i].[/quote] ...or [i]thanks for that; I've got a few more people to try out, but I'll definitely ring and let you know...[/i]

Used to play fretless in my first incarnation as a bass player a few decades ago. Haven't tried it since picking the bass up again around 2005. I suspect that any attempt to play fretless now would swiftly result in requests that I switch to stringless as well.

Excellent

[quote name='Count Bassy' post='1279912' date='Jun 23 2011, 05:44 PM']By that token though there's very few songs first person songs that anyone can legitimately sing. (E.g. shake your money maker - I haven't got a girl who lives up in the hill - does that mean I can't play it). Also, AFAIK, Johnny Cash didn't actually shoot a man in Reno, so what was he doing writing that song in the first place?[/quote] Yes, that was the point I was trying to make, in a roundabout kind of way. I agree with Skank's point to some extent - but as you say, where do you stop? Singing is often also acting - I suppose the question is whether the singer can adequately act the role required by the song. You get a similar issue arising in traditional English folk music as well. Most folk singers nowadays have never even seen a gander-bag, let alone a cordwangle. (showing my age again, I fear)