French Bases

[Casseline]

Hey Has anyone played a french bass before....I find I don't hear alot about them and I wanted to know anyone's opinions ....likes, dislikes etc.....

[JJDMusic]

I own one. Xavier Jacquet c. 1880, it is amazing. Not a whole lot of low end like an old English bass but plenty to get the job done. It is a dream to play and the shoulders are very manageable. The balance is nice and it really sings in the middle and upper registers. The tone is a little on the nasally side but, this is common with french basses. For some reason they have not jumped up in price like the Italian, English, and German basses have in the past years.

[JBHittle]

I've played several of the instruments made by French bass builder and luthier Christian LaBorie.....I loved their sound and feel. He had one in particulary about 10 years ago that had especially wide ribs and husky shoulders-- unlike the typical French style bass. But it was a powerful sounding instrument. I believe that Rufus Reid may have purchased that one. LaBorie is a colleague of Rabbath, and designs and builds basses on the same pattern as Rabbath's instrument. I wish I could afford one!

[LouisF]

The String Emporium has a pretty good page on the history of French instruments.

http://www.stringemporium.com/french-upright-bass.htm

They have a couple for sale and make what they call a "Wan-Bernadel" bass, which is a modern Chinese version based on a French model.

LF

[Don Higdon]

Originally Posted by LouisF

The String Emporium has a pretty good page on the history of French instruments.

http://www.stringemporium.com/french-upright-bass.htmLF

I own the bass pictured under "French Bass Makers". It's superb as either a jazz bass or an arco bass. I used it in my latest RSO concert.
Big sound, ballsy low end, strong at the high end, even projection and tone throughout. Easy to play, and my hand falls to the octave without even thinking about it.
http://www.stringemporium.com/jaquet-gand-side-pop.htm
http://www.stringemporium.com/jaquet-gand-front-pop.htm

[LouisF]

Gorgeous bass, Don! Congrats.

Louis

[Dave Whitla]

I have a 200+ year old bass by Francois Lejeunne, which I absolutely love. A friend has a 1 year old (or so) bass by Christian Laborie, which I also like very much. I would say French basses are very much worth looking at, as well as listening to