Rosin question

[thedj437]

I like playing jazz, but the only double bass I've played is the old beat up school bass in my orchestra class, and it's extremely hard to walk on, the strings are really hard to get a sound out of, and it's almost like trying to play pipes, is it the rosin? or just the bad quality of being the beat up school bass?

[Fletcher Lanning]

Rosin is only for bowing and shouldn't have any effect on pizzicato playing. If you're having trouble walking on the instrument, it's probably a combination of a badly set up instrument and the fact that it is a difficult instrument to learn.

[Paul Barsic]

I agree with Flanning: it is a very difficult instrument to learn. Are you coming from a bass guitar background? The bass guitar and double bass are very different instruments. If you try to apply bass guitar technique to the double bass, you will not be happy with the results.

Do you have a teacher? There are a lot of things that you may be able to guess or slowly figure out over time, but there is no substitute for a good teacher.

[Phil Rowan]

Not only is the double bass a tough cookie to crumble, the bass you're trying to play, on top of being poorly set up, might also have really old strings on it.

[Fletcher Lanning]

Originally Posted by Phil Rowan

Not only is the double bass a tough cookie to crumble, the bass you're trying to play, on top of being poorly set up, might also have really old strings on it.

I totally forgot to mention strings. My first bass is an old Kay. It started with INSANELY high action and REALLY old strings that were stiff and rough and hard to play. After I replaced them with spiros, the instrument was still hard to play, but was a far cry easier than it started.