comments on the street

[eucalyptus]

'that's a big guitar.'
'you look like a man who knows how to keep it in the pocket.'
'is that a cello?'
'what is that, an oboe?' (yes, i was actually asked this once)
'where's your gig?'
'classical, jazz or both?'
a few occasions where people simply mimed the bowing of a bass.
'bass, right?'
'hey mr. bass man. you ready to hold it down?'
'bust that thing out!'
'whoa. guess i should stay outta YOUR way.'
'you a musician?'
'a wheel. that's smart.'
'that's not a walking bass. that's a rolling bass.'
'hey, you wanna follow me to my house? i play guitar.'

[jallenbass]

You actually get some good comments. That would be a nice change.

[eucalyptus]

Originally Posted by jallenbass

You actually get some good comments. That would be a nice change.

yeah, fortunately i've never received any negative comments. just some really dumb ones. but mostly people are only curious, or they've gotta put in their 2 cents or whatever..

[Mike Goodbar]

No so many comments, but I get a lot of people going way out of their way to hold doors and such for me, always with this kind of weird combination look of duty and sympathy.

[tornadobass]

I used to have somebody come up to me who had just bet a friend I was playing a "big cello."

[eucalyptus]

Originally Posted by Mike Goodbar

..always with this kind of weird combination look of duty and sympathy.

ha, that's hilarious!

[_em__]

my favourite moment, there was auditions for the new series of gladiators at the university i study at and one of the very muscly men came up to me and sad "looks like you should be auditioning!!"
i'm 5'3/tiny. it's a mircle i can even carry my bass :P

[Bruce Lindfield]

My bass is never "on the street" - it goes from my house to the back of my car - which is driven as close to the gig venue as possible and moved as little as possible!

[eucalyptus]

Originally Posted by Bruce Lindfield

- it goes from my house to the back of my car -

ah.. if i only had a driver's license! i'm relegated to using public transpo and pounding the pavement..

[salcott]

Originally Posted by Bruce Lindfield

My bass is never "on the street" - it goes from my house to the back of my car - which is driven as close to the gig venue as possible and moved as little as possible!

I think I speak for all of us NYC subway schleppers when I say,"lucky you".

[Bruce Lindfield]

Originally Posted by salcott

I think I speak for all of us NYC subway schleppers when I say,"lucky you".

I was amazed to hear about this in a conversation here with John Goldsby as I cannot imagine taking my bass on the tube in London and searched on Google and got some amazing pics :

[oliebrice]

I take my bass on the tube (and bus and train) in london all the time, and have met other bassists doing the same...

[Bruce Lindfield]

Originally Posted by oliebrice

I take my bass on the tube (and bus and train) in london all the time, and have met other bassists doing the same...

I commute in daily to London and the crush on the tube at Victoria would destroy my bass!!

I'm not sure I'd fancy going up and down all the stairs there as well - I've never seen anybody doing it in about 20 years of coming into London - but I'd have to admire them!

[salcott]

I've been a subway schlepper for 30 years. Obviously, I avoid rush hour. I know the system intimately regarding where escalators/elevators are, what car to be in to be near the exit, etc. I still have to climb stairs, though; it's three flights up to the elevated station on one of the two lines near my home.

[eucalyptus]

i take my bass on the subway all the time, but seldom during rush hour. have only had to carry it downstairs, never upstairs thankfully. only thing that bugs me about having the bass on the train is when some joker sitting halfway down the car decides to strike up a conversation with me about music and we have to basically yell to each other, and everyone else can hear us and it's just plain embarrassing. otherwise, the subway's great.

[Bruce Lindfield]

I am split - there is half of me that envies you guys who are doing music all the time and devoting so much to music...? And there is another half of me that is glad that I can make a comfortable living and turn down gigs that I really wouldn't want to do or would be very difficult from a "transporting the gear" point of view..

When I talk to Jazz pros - I alwasy find them happy and positive about the choice they have made - but they talk about things that I might resent or feel uncomfortable with... Like not being able to get a mortgage and how you end up taking gigs at opposite ends of the country in the same weekend etc etc.

[eucalyptus]

Originally Posted by Bruce Lindfield

- there is half of me that envies you guys who are doing music all the time and devoting so much to music...?

yikes. in my case i devote only a tiny fraction of my time to music. don't practice even remotely near as much as i should, and i've no gigs to speak of. i just lug my bass to my lesson once per week and to the occasional jam at a friend's place. it's the walking what gets me - i'm pushing that thing probably two miles total every time and i end up sweating like a pig. decent exercise though.

now i feel like i need to practice more.

[Bruce Lindfield]

I was thinking about Olie travelling on the Tube in London with his DB - I have actually met Olie and know he is devoting a lot of time to music/playing etc. Whereas I resent how much time I have to spend commuting to work..

[KrisH]

Originally Posted by salcott

I think I speak for all of us NYC subway schleppers when I say,"lucky you".

My office is a block from the symphony hall. One day I was out for lunch and saw the whole bass section (I guess -- 5 or 6 or them) rolling their instruments along the sidewalk a couple blocks away. It was a sight to see -- bassists on parade! I wish I'd thought at the time to pull out my camera phone . . .

[robobass]

Originally Posted by salcott

I've been a subway schlepper for 30 years. Obviously, I avoid rush hour. I know the system intimately regarding where escalators/elevators are, what car to be in to be near the exit, etc. I still have to climb stairs, though; it's three flights up to the elevated station on one of the two lines near my home.

How about that 72nd St. 1/9 at 6pm? Madness, but still better that trying to drive and park in that area at that hour. Man, that's something I don't miss.