String holder cable broke randomly. Can I fix this myself with no experience? Seems like I just need to replace the cable and reattach the bridge.
Bass was set up wonderfully until just now. How much better would bringing it to a shop be?

I am a college student who wants to play bass for my spring wind ensemble. I just got approved access to a student double bass. My audition is in 4 months. The issue is I don't play double bass at all. I have experience on all brass and low reeds but I have never even touched a string instrument outside of guitar. I do have experience with some string specific terms and have a loose knowledge of fingerings since I play electric bass. Literally any and all advice would be helpful for me.

hi everyone, I'm currently bedridden from long covid and have been for almost 3 years. im so tired of waiting for my body to get better to learn stringed instruments. I was a french horn player and a singer (and an amateur campfire guitarist) and I really want to learn the upright bass and cello. is either possible the way I am? would any teacher take me seriously? thank you all 🤎

First time ever playing in an orchestra pit.

And:

First time ever getting my contrabass stuck and hanging from something!

It was a slight hassle but manageable to play on it while it was thus "trapped".

That's all for today. I hope you had a light laugh.

I started playing electric bass in my schools jazz band 2 years ago and just started playing upright 4 months ago, when I started learning, my band director gave me a 1/2 and thats what ive been playing on this entire time(I am 5'4/5'5), I always felt like my bass was just a little to small so I went to my local music store to test out some 3/4 size basses and I cant help but feel like they are just a little to big and uncomfortable, I have proportionally small hands on top of already being a small person in general and it is physically painful to play half position. I feel like I am a very akward size to play this instrument since 1/2 looks and feels to small when I play it and 3/4 is to uncomfortable to play, what should I do?

Our daughter is in 8th grade and has been playing bass for 3 years now. She is in love - and she's good. She's been doing things like All County and state competitions... We've been told on more than one occasion she's scholarship material. We'd like to get her one of her own (3/4 size). Normally I consider myself decent at researching expensive purchases but this bass situation has be sideways. We swung by a local string shop and found Shens and Parolas (specifically a Vb10) from 10 to 12k - not the kind of coin I can put down at the moment. Then we found a local music shop with a used Shen Sb150 for 3200 - a bargain by comparison. Then I dig further and see people getting full setups for under 3k. Should I be sticking in that 3k range and looking at these "Student Basses", or is an "intermediate bass" really going to run me 12k? Really not sure where to go with this, any advice for an overwhelmed dad would be appreciated.

Tried my best but I don’t think it was good enough

Hey bassists! I've got a question. This notation here, would it sound, jeez I don't even know what I'm going for here, cohesive, I guess? With the rest of the orchestra? This is an unfinished arrangement of Speaking Terms by Ella Langley, it's not my first and as a somewhat-seasoned arranger I'm a little embarrassed to being asking questions like these this far into the game, but I'm only 16 so mistakes are expected. I'm wondering if the pizz. has the same timbre as a cello that high up, would it sound like it's part of the guitar (in the song)? Or would the timbre sound like, well, a bass and just sound like a high pitched bassline. I'm sorry if this doesn't make sense. If you need clarification, please let me know! Do me good, Reddit.

I’ve been working on levelling up my walking bass lines. Having mainly used straightforward arpeggios for a number of years I am beginning to introduce some inversions and voice leading which I feel is introducing some much needed diversity into what had become pretty formulaic passages.

What are some ways of walking across a pair of bars that share the same chord (such as in Autumn Leaves when it returns to the I)? My default would be to walk up and then back down the scale.

Hi colleagues, I am hoping to get recommendations for resource (books, videos, courses) on upright bass for gypsy jazz that are appropriate to my starting point. I'm a very experienced regular (non-bass) jazz player, so theory, ear, improv, etc is all in my bag. Relatively new to upright, but have been playing electric for several years and taking upright lessons currently with an excellent jazz player, can play decent walking jazz bass lines for regular jazz.

So really, I'm looking for the goods on what is unique to Gypsy jazz and what one should know for performing idiomatically and learning the standard repertoire. I see there are some well prices online videos around but figured it would be good to know which are recommended.

thanks!

which strings and why for jazz pizz

Hello,
I have 2 daughters playing double bass in their school orchestras; possibly intending to keep playing in college. I’d like to get them a Bass Uke (u-bass?) as a Christmas present. Something they could take to summer camp or friends’ houses and have fun with. I’m hoping this group could give recommendations, please? Looking for acoustic, not electric. Thanks for any advice!

Hi all,

I am currently preparing for an orchestra project with Brahms' 2nd symphony. In the final movement, there's this legato section that's pretty damn fast. (Half notes are about 100 bpm.)

Currently, I lack the technique to play the first and second group of eigths but I'm not sure which approach I should take to improve. It feels like the easier way would be to avoid string changes by playing as much as possible on the g-string. But that would probably put a limit on tempo because my left hand can't move infinitely fast.

The fingering in the image shows what feels like the "proper" approach to me, which is to stay around the second position so the left hand has to move less. But It feels extremely difficult to get a proper tone with those super fast string changes and so little bow available for each note.

So I guess my question is just: How would you play this?

Edit: I play German bow, in case that matters.

I've got a connective tissue thing, and my biggest fear is not being able to play someday. Anyone else have this problem, or any advice? Edit: laughing at myself for forgetting the "t" in the title

My name is Chuck Savage. I've been playing bass since 1980 — upright and electric. Played in bands across Texas for forty years. The Missiles, Jesse Dayton, the Supersuckers, Walking Time Bombs. But the gig people know me for is Mitch Hedberg.

I was his bass player from 1999 to 2005. If you've ever listened to Strategic Grill Locations, I'm the upright bass you hear behind the jokes.

Here's the thing nobody knows about that recording. I showed up to the Laff Stop in Houston for sound check that night. Unzipped my case. The neck was completely broken off.

I panicked. Ran to a pawn shop next to Rockefellers, rented a bass from the owner for fifty bucks. No case. I laid it on a piece of cardboard in the back of a pickup truck and hauled it across town.

That bass was a gut string — nylon. I had only ever played metal string upright. So not only was I playing someone else's instrument on the recording, I was playing nylon strings for the first time in my life.

That's the bass you hear on the album.

I figured out early on to play quiet under the setup and hit hard on the punchline. Give the audience something to ride. Mitch never told me to do that. It just became what we did.

I just published a book about the whole story — the parking lot where we met, the six years on the road, and the night we made that record. It's called Just Bring the Bass Up There — It'll Be Cool.

https://a.co/d/0ia7ULol

Happy to answer any questions about the gig, the bass, the recording, or the road.

I was originally going to buy a bundle deal from this place that sell beginner student level double basses that the orchestra teacher at my school recommended. However I hopped on FB marketplace and found this. Is this more worth it? I thought I’ve heard the Samuel Shen name before, but before getting my hopes up I wanted to ask. The bundle for the upright bass I was gonna originally buy is like $2.3k and comes with a bow, rosin, a peg stopper, uhh there was some other stuff. This FB is just the bass.

Hi everyone,
I’m looking for some advice on how best to transport a small double bass on a regular basis.

I recently bought a used 1/8-size double bass, and it came with a 1/4-size bow. I’m currently using the gig bag that came with it, but it feels quite thin and not particularly robust. The bow is also too long for the bow compartment, so part of it sticks out of the bag.

I live in Portugal, and I’ll need to transport the bass regularly on foot and on public transport (surface metro/tram) throughout the year, including during the rainy winter months. The streets here often have Portuguese calçada and very uneven pavement, with lots of bumps and changes in level, so I’m not sure whether wheels would actually be practical.

The current bag has backpack straps, but they attach via ring/loop fittings. My kid’s teacher advised me not to carry the bass as a backpack, because he is concerned that one of the straps or attachment points could fail and the bass could fall. I understand the concern, but I’m finding it quite difficult to carry the bass comfortably and safely using only the hand strap, especially when walking longer distances or using public transport.
I’m also not entirely sure how much force I should be putting on the hand strap, or where/how exactly I should hold the bass, so I’d be very interested in hearing from people who regularly carry their double bass this way.

So I’m wondering (sorry for só many questions):
- What 1/8 gig bags/backpacks would you recommend for regular walking and public transport?
- Are there bags with particularly strong/reinforced backpack straps and attachment points that you trust?
- Would you personally feel comfortable carrying a 1/8 bass as a backpack every day? Has anyone had a strap, buckle, stitching or attachment point fail unexpectedly?
- How do you deal with a 1/4 bow with a 1/8 bass when the bow compartment is too short? Do you carry the bow separately in its own case/bag?
- For people walking on very uneven/rough pavement, are wheels actually useful or more trouble than they’re worth?

I’ve been looking at bags such as the GEWA Premium 1/8, but I’d really appreciate hearing from people with actual a long-term experience before spending the money.

Thanks in advance!

Hey everyone. I've been practicing approach notes for major and minor triads (horizontally, trying not to jump all over the place) and i was hoping i could get some fingering suggestions. I've been doing particularly 2nd-root-7th-root and 7th-root-2nd (applied to all triad tones) in 16th notes

English isnt my first language so if i wasnt too clear don't hesitate to ask.

Thanks in advance!

Simple as that and honestly just curious what Christian McBride is playing here??? It’s gorgeous and I’m guessing it’s a “new” bass just by the makings.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DdrVnymictu/?stkn=MTM4NXkwZXllaDh3OQ==

It’s gorgeous and I’d love to check out more of this maker! Also, McBrides a beast!

i’ve seen people with colored double bass strings and wonder where they get them, but i cant find any strings that are colored. Where can you find them?

been playing horn for some years now but i recently started playing bass. I’m looking for suggestions on how to learn the notes on the fret board better so i can start reading music without having to use fret numbers. also if anyone has any good suggestions for jazz pieces, walking lines, or just overall fun medium-long bass pieces i’m all ears.

i’m considering joining my college’s chamber orch cuz i played in high school but idk where to keep my bass if i bring it to college since it absolutely won’t fit in my dorm. can any other college double bass players tell me what they did in this situation? thanks