The two best starter books

[JimmyM]

OK, before anyone starts screaming at me to get a teacher, at this point it's impossible for me to take lessons. Between home renovations I'm doing and my work schedule, right now I'm lucky to get an hour a day to practice. But I don't want to stagnate working on my own with no materials.

So i would like to know what the two best starter bass books or videos are that explain how to get yourself started playing arco. I shall read everyone's opinions and make my decision from that.

Thanks!

[Silversorcerer]

If you can find an hour a day, you can spend one or two of those hours every couple of weeks with a teacher. It will be worth more than all the books you can get.

Not to leave you high and dry, here's my picks:
George Vance, Progressive Repertoire for the Double Bass Vol.1. This comes with a CD with recordings of some of the exercises so you can hear what you are supposed to sound like. You will need a bow and rosin and a music stand to properly "go by the book". A metronome is also useful so you can practice in strict time. Most exercises have a specific tempo. Also the Yorke Studies for Double Bass Vol.1 is good to develop specific positions and sight reading.

Both books assume that you understand a little music notation and theory. If you don't,- get Paul O. Harder's Basic Materials in Music Theory also.

Also stick Double Bass Pedagogy into Google. I don't remember where, but one American university web site has downloadable movie files illustrating the various bow strokes.

Now, GET A TEACHER!

[JimmyM]

Why you, I oughta...

Being lucky to get an hour a day doesn't mean I have time to drive an hour each way and work with a teacher for an hour each week. I will as soon as I get this crap done but it has to wait.

Tried Double bass Pedagogy and got a couple school sites but wasn't able to DL anything. Going to check out the books you mentioned, though. BTW, yes I do know theory so I imagine I could get through those books. Thanks, SS!

[Silversorcerer]

Sorry to hear your schedule is like that but you know I could get kicked of this forum if I didn't give you the proper ration for not getting a teach.

Here's the one I was thinking of that has the great movies:
http://www.uvm.edu/~mhopkins/string/?Page=movies.html
You need apple quicktime or the plug-in for your browser.
Here's another good site that was on another thread:
http://members.aol.com/dspondike/bas...ingeringcharts

You should spend a while watching that. Very carefully study the posture, the finger positions, etc. And do get a teacher just as soon as you get that other stuff out of the way. Lemur has those books if you don't have a local source.

[JimmyM]

Need to get my sound working on my new computer, but I've got those pages saved. That looks like a bunch of great stuff there. Thanks for the links!

[freemole]

The George Vance book(s) Silversorcerer mentioned have been a great help to me in developing bow technique, etc... also check out Jeff Branditich's Double Bass Technique video. It's full of good information and exercises and you get to SEE a great player execute the material.