Holy @#$%! I got a gig backing up a singer, it is my first steady gig on the upright. All slab up until now. The first rehearsal was last night, and every single tune in the book changed keys! I should have scene it coming I guess, my masterclass teacher always warned me about singers, and knowing the tunes in different keys. I got through, but My Funny Valentine in Gflat was, well, flat . Great Practice though!
If you know your harmony and read a tune numerically you can change keys -- for the changes, anyhow -- pretty easily. Transposing the little golf clubs is another matter...
yes, being able to transpose on the fly is a great skill to have.
as ray said, playing from chord symbols isn't too hard. but when you have to sight-read-and-transpose a notated line.... things can get ugly, depending on the material.
this is where a more intervallic approach to sight-reading comes in handy.
For me the harder part was doing it on upright, until recently I was solely a slab player. In the past, on the slab, I would have just moved the "pictures" around, but on the upright I had to use my ears more and my eyes less, part of the reason why I love learning this instrument. I am learning there is a lot less auto pilot on the standup compared to the electric.
Like Electric Bass. I had never heard it until I started reading the pages of the talkbass forum and I kinda liked it. Maybe it is not as popular as I had assumed I apologize for my abuse of bass lingo.
. Great Practice though!
I apologize for my abuse of bass lingo.
