Pivoting-- What is it and is it bad for a beginner ?

[bobsax]

Hi Patrick

I'm a beginning DB,novice ABG and pro piano and sax player/teacher.

On another thread I was reading a heated discussion on traditional technique verses unconventional ways of doing things.
Much of it was beyond me but somebody quoted you mentioning something about pivoting. I was wondering what that was and if it was the "Bad" thing I was doing with the C major scale.
I started with C on the A string with the second finger (not sure if this is II or III pos) then D open, E 1,F2,G 0,A1,B4 then pivot to C with 4.

I have been religious about trying to keep my thumb directly across from the middle finger and this pivot puts my thumb across my pointing finger.

Is this a bad habit? I'm starting to work on switching positions and playing up the neck but should I switch pos just for one note (C) ?

btw I couldn't find any threads with pivot in the title so that's why I started a new thread.

[bobsax]

Found a good explanation
Andrew Anderson Teaches the Double Bass - Part 10 - YouTube

Around 2:00 he talks about pivoting.
I guess it's cool to do

[PNeher]

Originally Posted by bobsax

Hi Patrick

I'm a beginning DB,novice ABG and pro piano and sax player/teacher.

On another thread I was reading a heated discussion on traditional technique verses unconventional ways of doing things.
Much of it was beyond me but somebody quoted you mentioning something about pivoting. I was wondering what that was and if it was the "Bad" thing I was doing with the C major scale.
I started with C on the A string with the second finger (not sure if this is II or III pos) then D open, E 1,F2,G 0,A1,B4 then pivot to C with 4.

I have been religious about trying to keep my thumb directly across from the middle finger and this pivot puts my thumb across my pointing finger.

Is this a bad habit? I'm starting to work on switching positions and playing up the neck but should I switch pos just for one note (C) ?

btw I couldn't find any threads with pivot in the title so that's why I started a new thread.

Hi,
Glad you asked! There are previous threads in my forum about pivoting, some rather detailed, so I won't go into a lot of detail at this juncture. Suffice it to say, yes pivoting is good for all, beginners and old experienced guys like me. First, a pivot is where you allow the weight of your hand to contact the string on either side of the thumb. Much like the vibrato motion, pivoting in any position can give you a truly extended range without EXTENDING the fingers or widening the muscles and tendons across the top of the hand. This is very important!: A pivot is not an extension, it is NOT a stretching. It is allowing the hand to pivot on the thumb, throwing your weight on both sides. (I will do a video on this someday, check out my YouTube channel: PNeher).
Many beginning electric bass players and double bass players start out pivoting. I have my students do it from day one. Be aware that a SHIFT is not a pivot. A shift is when the thumb moves, even an inch, along the back of the bass' neck. Shifts and pivots, and even extensions are used by professionals, making up a wide variety of techniques that the contemporary bassist needs to know in today's incredibly competitive bass world.
Hope this helps.
Patrick

[bejoyous]

Originally Posted by bobsax

Hi Patrick


I started with C on the A string with the second finger (not sure if this is II or III pos) then D open, E 1,F2,G 0,A1,B4 then pivot to C with 4.

A 4-4 pivot or shift up (ex B to C) drags the little finger and usually results in the second note being out of tune as the flesh on the finger rotates a bit. Same goes for a 1-1 shift down.

A pivot is generally used around the 2 finger. Try the above scale like this (P stands for pivot, U - up, D - down):
C 2 (PU), D 4 (PD), E 1, F 2 (PU), G 4 (PD) A 1 (PU), B 2, C 4.

This pattern can be used for any one octave major scale that can't involve open strings. It builds a nice flexibility to the hand as well. It is particularly useful for keys with lots of #s or bs such as B major, Db major, Ab major, etc.