Are basses women?

[MacDaddyBass]

There's a bassist here in the symphony that named her bass Fred, so you might be on to something with the opposite gender thing. I personally have always wanted to name mine but couldn't find anything suitable... but it's definitely a she.

[joel kelsey]

Originally Posted by ClassicalBass

If I received a bass with a name and gender, I would respectfully continue to call it by that name though.

I have never named a bass either. But I agree, I woould also carry on the tradition.

[kellellelly]

im a girl. i named my BG Hamilton but when it comes to my DB i'm not sure.
its pretty fem. and i think more guys play than girls.
maybe i think of it as the instrument version of me? haha
that's a tough question.

[D McCartney]

Since it is lacking any indication of gender around the tailpiece, I call mine either the Bass, or Nadacello.

[JazzCat_88]

Mine is Audrey. My girlfriend named her for me!

[Caoimhín]

Bit of an odd one - named mine Nigella at the start just to annoy my girlfriend. Nigella Lawson is a pretty curvaceous TV chef over in England and for whatever reason she really gets to my girlfriend. But the name stuck for longer than I planned so it was definitely female.

Then I renamed her Mad Sweeney (or 'Suibhne Gealt so Tor' for the full Irish name) after the character in the Flann O'Brien book. I was reading it when I first started playing and was going through a few days of musical frustration while at the time that character was really starting to annoy me so I started equating the two and it stuck. But they both resolved to a happy conclusion and both ended up a worthwhile endeavour.

But anyway the thing is that Mad Sweeney in the book was actually a man.

I'm so confused...

[bopeuph]

I've had this pic on my computer for a long while. I don't even remember where it came from, but I thought it was pretty relevant to the discussion and funny.

[kurtsnyder]

I won't wrap my arms around anything that has a g string on it unless it's a bass or a hot chick!

[ClassicalBass]

Bopeuph: that picture is from a shirt which Gary Karr's company sells. I don't know if that's what made it popular, or if it existed beforehand, but you can find them on lemur. I love that picture, by the way.

[Michael Eisenman]

My busetto-style bass is named Muffin for obvious reasons.

[Sean Ormiston]

Feminists must hate this phenomenon but it's around. I mean, men also refer to cars, ships, and gadgets as feminine.

For me, it sticks because I know I have to become more sensitive and gentlemanly to get it to do what I want .

Ah yes.

[ZachDad]

Mine is Pearl Bailey. Lots a Luvin!

[Dordmháistir]

Ha ha, great thread.

My girlfriend refers to my basses as my other women all the time. She's gets particularly jealous when I'm playing my tall black Dean Stick! ...also there is a sexual technique known as double-bassing, which is definitely only performed on a woman. I'll let your imagination figure out what it is.

[Zayn8]

I named mine... Tiny Tim, for obvious reasons. A female name never really occured to me! Wish it had now, as an orchestral player I have to sit down with my bass and have to spend hours with with legs wrapped my, um, instrument.

[TroyK]

Oddly, it's a masculine word in Spanish "El Bajo" or "El Contrebajo" and I think French (Francois or Timo could say bien sur) "le Contrebass". But with those curvy hips, it never occured to me that mine wasn't a big bottomed czech woman...and I mean that with only the best of intentions.

[Don Higdon]

Originally Posted by joel kelsey

Hi,

I have noticed on this forum that when a lot of upright players talk about there instruments, they refer to there basses as a "she". Why is that?

I have a hard time imagining calling my bass Abe, Harry, etc. No one has ever referred to it as other than feminine.

[moopants]

Gamba cornered and busetto basses look more manly, while violin corners look more feminine. Bass itself is pretty manly, though.