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03-05-2009, 07:37 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Denver, Co. | |
Quote:
Originally Posted by thesneakyjesus  | Thanks man. That's the most musical I've heard him play since he went with the amp.
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Oh, no.....have we gone OT yet again?
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03-05-2009, 08:30 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Melbourne, FL (Orlando area) | | Quote:
Originally Posted by thesneakyjesus | Wow. Thanks for that. Now I have LOTS of shedding to do, particularly once again trying to quote Portrait of Tracy on upright. I gave that one up a few years ago.
Nick |
03-06-2009, 06:46 AM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Melbourne, FL (Orlando area) | | Quote:
Originally Posted by thesneakyjesus Also,
have you considered learning a bunch of solo cello pieces? Although not jazz, very beautiful and would work well with a dinner audience.
I think edgar meyer playing bach would be a hit at the local burger joint.  | Not very good with a bow...yet. But I'm working on it. The Bach suites would be kind of difficult for me at this point in the game.
Nick |
03-06-2009, 05:27 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Houston | | http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZW5ZwL0pKU
heres a good one....The good thing about this one is that he's always sustaining a low note. I think if you just stick to playing the melody and solos, it will sound to them that your just noodling around, so if you can keep the low notes/roots going while you play that can help....might take a lot more coordination and focus but if you can pull it off that would be so cool. |
03-09-2009, 11:03 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: May 2006 Location: Houston, Tx | | Quote:
Originally Posted by MDEbass http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZW5ZwL0pKU
heres a good one....The good thing about this one is that he's always sustaining a low note. I think if you just stick to playing the melody and solos, it will sound to them that your just noodling around, so if you can keep the low notes/roots going while you play that can help....might take a lot more coordination and focus but if you can pull it off that would be so cool. | Good clip. I think it is only going to sound like you are noodling around if you are noodling around. Playing strong lines with focus won't be a problem. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHu6rzmUvFI
Or: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqWLS...eature=related
Last edited by damonsmith : 03-09-2009 at 11:07 PM.
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03-10-2009, 12:40 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Kennesaw, GA | | Quote:
Originally Posted by damonsmith | This might be considered sacrilege on this site...but I swear he messes up the time 2-3 times during the head at the beginning of this video.
But back on topic, to an uneducated listener, even playing great lines unaccompanied will probably sound like noodling unless you're just playing blues. On top of that, if it's at a restaurant or some other non-concert setting, then people will not even be paying close attention, so it will definitely sound like noodling then. I think when you're on a solo gig you just have to decide how much noodling is an acceptable amount  |
03-10-2009, 09:17 PM
|  | Registered User | | Join Date: May 2006 Location: Knoxville, TN | | | I may have a solo gig coming up soon...I was just going to play some legit stuff, but as a result of this thread, I feel like challenging myself and playing some jazz unaccompanied.
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03-15-2009, 10:56 AM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: May 2006 Location: Houston, Tx | | Quote:
Originally Posted by TomSauter This might be considered sacrilege on this site...but I swear he messes up the time 2-3 times during the head at the beginning of this video.
But back on topic, to an uneducated listener, even playing great lines unaccompanied will probably sound like noodling unless you're just playing blues. On top of that, if it's at a restaurant or some other non-concert setting, then people will not even be paying close attention, so it will definitely sound like noodling then. I think when you're on a solo gig you just have to decide how much noodling is an acceptable amount | Good thing the head is not the primary content! Anyone who thinks great lines are noodling is not a significant audience member, and has dull ears, therefore will not care.
Bach's unaccompanied lines never sound like noodling to me, so it can be done. The bottom line is if you cannot make music by yourself, you may be a bass player, but you are not a complete musician. That may or may not be important to you.
Last edited by damonsmith : 03-15-2009 at 10:58 AM.
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03-16-2009, 11:14 AM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Kennesaw, GA | | Quote:
Originally Posted by damonsmith Good thing the head is not the primary content! Anyone who thinks great lines are noodling is not a significant audience member, and has dull ears, therefore will not care.
Bach's unaccompanied lines never sound like noodling to me, so it can be done. The bottom line is if you cannot make music by yourself, you may be a bass player, but you are not a complete musician. That may or may not be important to you. | I basically agree with you about ignorant audience members, but the difference between great lines and noodling is rather subjective. Every once in a while I end up on a jazz gig with some terrible hippie-rock guitar player, and it's obvious to the other musicians in the band that he's just noodling around cluelessly, while we're all playing real jazz language. But a lot of people in the audience like the crappy guitar, and on top of that, they think the rest of us are noodling! Sometimes I've even gotten extra gigs from people who were digging the worst guy in the band.
Dave Holland sounds great to me in that video, but I think we can probably agree that Bach's unaccompanied music is more accessible to the average joe.
I do think it's important to be able to make music by myself, but I spend 90% of my time accompanying other people, and if the band is swinging I would much rather be just a bass player than a soloist. In terms of working, being a good soloist and making music unaccompanied are significant, but not nearly as important. |
12-21-2009, 09:54 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: May 2006 Location: Houston, Tx | | | A friend of mine asked me to play his birthday party, he said I could play whatever I wanted and was ready to hear my free improvised music.
I decided to play some real book tunes, I went mostly with tunes I had not played or had not played much and straight forward ballads - I played some faster tunes I already knew.
For most I improvised on the chord structure rubato, then played the melody arco then alternated between walking and soloing.
I took my time, for the most part stuck to forms (if I had a good line going I followed it, but got back on track quickly) and tried to be musical.
I tried to do a gig version of thoroughly checking out the tunes.
It worked out well, when that approach lost steam, I played a faster tune I knew.
People were responsive and listened and it was a lot of fun. Anyway, I think there are plenty of ways a solo bass gig can be compelling! |
12-22-2009, 04:53 PM
|  | Best Upright Guitarrón (UG) player in my house. | | Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Idyllwild, California | | | Three hours isn't always three hours
I mean, three hours in a restaurant where folks are talking and treating you as background music is entirely different from three hours alone on a threater stage. For one thing, folks don't usually spend three hours having dinner, do they? There'll probably be two dinner seatings in that time, especially since restaurateurs generally like you to take a nice break in the middle to encourage the early diners to move on.
If you said you sing, I missed it. But maybe a bit of that could be worked in. Last summer one of our local basists suddenly broke out in simple song during "Bye, Bye, Blackbird." His older bass teacher, who happened to be in the audience, couldn't believe it. It was damn good, and now he gets requests for "Blackbird" every gig.
Also, on another thread, someone related how a small group that was being drowned out by jabbering businessmen did not try to raise their own volume to compete with the noise, but instead put on a visually lively show at low volume until people stopped talking so they could hear what the group was doing--and the audience stayed quiet and listened after that. Intriguing idea, I thought.
I don't play DB, just an amateur substitute, but I very much enjoy the sound of a DB. I'd sure make a reservation at your restaurant--near the music--and I'd listen.
Last edited by Jack Clark : 12-22-2009 at 05:21 PM.
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12-22-2009, 05:05 PM
| | Best Upright Guitarrón (UG) player in my house. | | Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Idyllwild, California | | Quote:
Originally Posted by TomSauter I did a solo gig once and it was really tough. I was trying to play the bass notes and the melody at the same time for most of the gig, with not too much soloing. Every time i started playing single notes it felt really empty to me, and i'm sure it sounded like noodling to the people at the gig | If the low accompanyment fits with the high melody notes, . . . some rubato, . . . it wouldn't sound like noodling to me. Unless you're a great sight reader, it'd be a lot of work to prepare for such a gig, I would think. I'd sure listen.
Last edited by Jack Clark : 01-12-2010 at 06:37 PM.
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