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Double Bass Arco Jazz Technique

C

crd

Feb 1, 2022
1,087
1,458
#1
I love arco jazz solo's so I've been spending a significant amount of time recently thinking about how to use the bow as a jazz bassists. I also recently switched from German to French bow so have been revisting a number of my favorite arco solos to gain some fluidity with the new grip. I'm not sure any of this will be useful to anyone else but I figured I'd put my transcriptions here.

Usually I make phone videos of myself with and without the recording while I'm practicing.
Here is "The Theme" from PC's Bass on Top. I ran out of time today but will put a version up without the record and just a click later this week. It's been a long time since I made myself memorize a solo - I forgot how hard it is. Also, it's fast. I drag in a couple places & I was feeling the burn by the end.





Next on the docket, I have some more of my favorite PC' solos and some Red Mitchell stuff as well as some solo arrangements of a couple tunes I've written.

Please feel free to share any recordings you have of yourself or other's with the bow, or technique exercises.
 
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#3
LaFaro01 said:
Do you know about John Goldsby's "Jazz Bowing Techniques"?
Jamey Aebersold Jazz: Product Display
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I've heard it mentioned many times but haven't sprung for it. I do enjoy his Discover Doublebass courses a lot. I enjoy the process of writing out transcriptions so I don't usually buy transcription books but am curious about the exercises in that book. I listen till I can sing it then play what I can sing. I love that the process mirror's how I compose, except someone else has done the hard work of creating the lines. I tend to treat them like etudes for coordination and technique more than something to mine for vocab. Occasionally, I will take a phrase through all the keys but that's not really what this is about for me.

I get a lot of milage out of basic bowings over scales. Lately I've been really enjoying the Barry Harris workshop dvd's and taking his basic scale pattern exercises and doing them in groupings of two three etc with the bow. I've been lucky to study with great classical teachers who had high profile careers and are great teachers ...but nothing has helped my general facility on the instrument as much as transcribing.
 
#4
crd said:
I love arco jazz solo's so I've been spending a significant amount of time recently thinking about how to use the bow as a jazz bassists. I also recently switched from German to French bow so have been revisting a number of my favorite arco solos to gain some fluidity with the new grip. I'm not sure any of this will be useful to anyone else but I figured I'd put my transcriptions here.

Usually I make phone videos of myself with and without the recording while I'm practicing.
Here is "The Theme" from PC's Bass on Top. I ran out of time today but will put a version up without the record and just a click later this week. It's been a long time since I made myself memorize a solo - I forgot how hard it is. Also, it's fast. I drag in a couple places & I was feeling the burn by the end.





Next on the docket, I have some more of my favorite PC' solos and some Red Mitchell stuff as well as some solo arrangements of a couple tunes I've written.

Please feel free to share any recordings you have of yourself or other's with the bow, or technique exercises.
Click to expand...

Do you have a PDF of the transcription?
 
#6
I've been working on a solo version of one of my favorite Sun Ra tunes from SuperSonic Jazz.



Here is a chart. I did my best. The track has so much charm including some mystery around some of the changes.

Here is a quick solo version I recorded this afternoon. I've been trying to deliberately work to inject some texture into my sound. I've always been so jealous of horn/trumpet players who can add all sorts of texture to their lines.



I've got a Charles McPherson solo I've been working up that I should be able to play in twenty years...
 
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#7
"The Theme" got better. Kinda sorta. It is far more challenging to do this sort of thing with a click rather than the recording. I'm embarrassed to say it's been a long time since I memorized three minutes of music that wasn't my own. It's fun to tackle these solos as some sort of jazz etudes.



I've been doing some coordination exercises with the bow that seem to be helping. Working on the bow in jazz is super fun. It's like remembering a time when I couldn't pizz in time.

I will do another video of Hank Mobley's solo from dig dis with a pdf of the transcription and then me playing it with a click sometime in the next month or so. Red Mitchell's solo on Stardust from Ben Webster Live at the Renaissance is on my list also.
 
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#11
crd said:
"The Theme" got better. Kinda sorta. It is far more challenging to do this sort of thing with a click rather than the recording. I'm embarrassed to say it's been a long time since I memorized three minutes of music that wasn't my own. It's fun to tackle these solos as some sort of jazz etudes.



I've been doing some coordination exercises with the bow that seem to be helping. Working on the bow in jazz is super fun. It's like remembering a time when I couldn't pizz in time.

I will do another video of Hank Mobley's solo from dig dis with a pdf of the transcription and then me playing it with a click sometime in the next month or so. Red Mitchell's solo on Stardust from Ben Webster Live at the Renaissance is on my list also.
Click to expand...

Love your work ethic. Keep it going,
 
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#14
Paps said:
Your sitting position relative to the bass is just like my new position. Keep up the good work!
Click to expand...

Thanks! I have worked on my posture a lot post pandemic. I am actually using a Robpin at the moment and have worked really hard to have a playing position standing that is similar to what someone using a stool achieves. I would use a stool but can't get the kind of pizz tone I like using a stool. Also, feeling time is VERY different when you are sitting.

My first solo show after the pandemic inspiring a lot of rethinking my technique. Things that had worked for me the first half of my life were pretty clearly not going to work for the 2nd half of my playing career. I played my heart out for the solo show and then couldn't get out of bed the next week due to lower back pain. I've been Rabbath-curious for a long time so I decided to make the plunge. I changed instruments, switched from German to French bow, and starting using the Robpin. It's been great to rethink things from the ground up again. I am in no financial position to say no to gigs or spend time in bed with a bad back and am happy to say I can finally play as much as I need to pain free.
 
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#15
Treyzer said:
Love your work ethic. Keep it going,
Click to expand...

Thanks. The only good thing about the pandemic was it reminded me how much joy there is to be had in practicing. Gig time I play for others and myself. At home, I can play whatever I want!! I've been trying to keep whatever it is that made me want to play as a teenager alive. It's funny how the same music that lit me up 20 years ago is still so exciting to me.
 
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#16
Jason Sypher said:
You are well on your way. Of course Slam Stewart is going to be a treasure trove of solos. His bowings and phrasing are astounding. There’s plenty on YouTube to choose from. Rhythmic bowing is the most difficult challenge, getting it to drive.


Click to expand...


Oh hell yes. I've been meaning to tackle some of Slam's stuff. I was always impressed with Harrison Bankhead's killer bow hand but was surprised at his memorial here in Chicago when there was a clip of him at the Velvet here doing a killer spot on Slam interpretation. It's definitely time for me to tackle some of those solos.

The more I teach and teach myself the more I feel like coordination is everything and the key to "swing". I kind of pride myself on my time feel as a bass player so it's been enlightening and humbling to try and work the bow into my idea of jazz. I love the video's Michael Moore has been posting on YouTube lately of him doing standards solo. Melodic playing straight from the heart, so good.
 
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