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Double Bass Are there audio recordings of the Simandl Exercises?

BeSharp

BeSharp

May 17, 2011
159
3
Annapolis, MD
#1
Hello. I'm working through Simandl with a teacher. I find it impossible to check my intonation with a tuner while I'm reading the exercises (and trying hard to NOT look at my fingers).

I transcribed a few of the exercises and created audio mp3's so I could play along with them. These have been very helpful for me to work on intonation and technique because I can use my ears to tell me if I'm sharp or flat and correct my error.

Without a pitch to play along with I've found that I'm fine with the relative pitch but I'm often moving slightly out of position and it's only readily apparent when I play the open strings as part of the exercise.

So I'm wondering is there a private or commercial source for the exercise audio accompaniment tracks? I know I can buy the Etudes, but I'm talking about the basic stuff -- e.g. "Exercises in the Half and I Position - exercise 1."

I can continue to make them on my computer but it's time consuming.

Thanks for any help or advice you can give.
 
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#2
I use a set of drones for my practice and fix problems by ear. I have 2 tuners and a metronome, which all will produce sound, so I usually set up at least a tonic and a dominant drone, which gives me 2 great milestones that I can use to tune just about any note without much effort.

In many ways, that's better than using a tuner, which is limited to equal temperament.
 
#4
Thanks. I have a few drone programs on my iPhone - iTanpura and JustDrones. Those seem to be fine for some exercises and scales, etc. But what about this one for example:

Half and I Position Exercise 1 -- basically this is a chromatic exercise on 4 strings

B - Bb - A - Ab - G
Gb - F - E - Eb - D
Db - C - Cb - Bb - A
Ab - G - Gb - F - E

So what single drone note would be effective in this case?

I find when I play along with changing chords, or play along with the actual line, I'm able to dial in my pitch and commit positions to muscle memory more quickly.

And, although I understand drones and how helpful they can be, I am still wondering if there's a commercial source to buy accompaniment to the Simandl exercises?

Thanks
 
#5
BeSharp said:
Half and I Position Exercise 1 -- basically this is a chromatic exercise on 4 strings

B - Bb - A - Ab - G
Gb - F - E - Eb - D
Db - C - Cb - Bb - A
Ab - G - Gb - F - E

So what single drone note would be effective in this case?
Click to expand...
I'd use a perfect fifth above the bottom note and try to hear the intervals (minor third, major third, fourth, tritone, fifth).

If you want an accompaniment, you'll have to make it yourself with Finale or Sibelius.
 
#7
BeSharp said:
Hello. I'm working through Simandl with a teacher. I find it impossible to check my intonation with a tuner while I'm reading the exercises (and trying hard to NOT look at my fingers).

I transcribed a few of the exercises and created audio mp3's so I could play along with them. These have been very helpful for me to work on intonation and technique because I can use my ears to tell me if I'm sharp or flat and correct my error.

Without a pitch to play along with I've found that I'm fine with the relative pitch but I'm often moving slightly out of position and it's only readily apparent when I play the open strings as part of the exercise.

So I'm wondering is there a private or commercial source for the exercise audio accompaniment tracks? I know I can buy the Etudes, but I'm talking about the basic stuff -- e.g. "Exercises in the Half and I Position - exercise 1."

I can continue to make them on my computer but it's time consuming.

Thanks for any help or advice you can give.
Click to expand...
When I went through them, I typed them into Finale and then played along with it. I found it worked well for me because I could change the tempo and instrument at will. A bit time consuming but not too bad. I'd do it at night when I was too tired to practice effectively.
 
#8
BeSharp said:
Thanks. I have a few drone programs on my iPhone - iTanpura and JustDrones. Those seem to be fine for some exercises and scales, etc. But what about this one for example:

Half and I Position Exercise 1 -- basically this is a chromatic exercise on 4 strings

B - Bb - A - Ab - G
Gb - F - E - Eb - D
Db - C - Cb - Bb - A
Ab - G - Gb - F - E

So what single drone note would be effective in this case?
Thanks
Click to expand...

I don't have my Simandl book in front of me, but a chromatic exercise like this one is about having the correct hand shape, proper spacing between fingers, and precise shifting. I wouldn't really practice playing it faster than my tuner will track, and I wouldn't worry about even tempo - I'd just play the next note, tune it, and move on. If I was unhappy with a particular interval, I'd go back up and try it again. Once I was happy with the exercise at a slow tempo, then I'd set a drone as has been suggested and play it more quickly, or just rely on my ears to hear bad half steps.

I have an exercise that I play every time I practice where I do this kind of thing - chromatic motion, played with a tuner, up and down the neck of the bass.
 
#11
damonsmith said:
Just drill them over and over and over. The music will correct you over time. Simandl did not have a tuner or drones. I strongly suggest using drones/tuners and traditional études separately.
Click to expand...

I also suggest singing the line then playing along with what you sing. Playing the bass is much easier if you can hear in your head what you read, but more importantly you can sing (more or less in tune) what you hear in your head. At that point, it's just a matter of matching your bass playing to your voice (and eventually silent voice but still active ear).

The Simandl method book assumes that ability to hear what you read. That's all the Simandl method really set out to do--it's only showing you an efficient and organized way to know where to put your fingers for any piece of music written up to the date of its publication, and to drill that knowledge with exercises. That's part of the reason Simandl is losing fans. Most bass players want to just think about where and how to place their fingers to get the desired result and not really hear what it's supposed to sound like and how hearing it can actually help with placing fingers.

Or go ahead and make a Finale accompaniment. Ultimately, it's got to be in your head and not some external pitch guide.
 
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#13
Thanks for all the feedback. I've actually been doing a combination of a few methods and it seems to be working for me so far and I'm slowly developing the muscle memory to "find" the positions (through position I) relatively consistently.

I start a new position by working slowly through the exercises with a metronome set to 60bpm. I sing and say the note names as I play through the exercises until I feel comfortable. At 60bpm it's slow enough that I can "test" my position against some known reference pitch. Either a drone, tuner or preferably an open string.

Eventually I work my way up to playing the piece faster and faster. At that point I play along with my finale pieces so I can learn to adjust my intonation as needed "on the fly."

So far so good. I wish I had more time to practice. I'm really enjoying the work. Simandl is a little boring musically speaking, but I definitely understand the value from the technique perspective.
 
#14
One problem is that precise tuning is not the first step. Getting in tune "any old way" is a fast road to bad technique.
Make sure your left hand is right and play through the exercise and listen to what you are doing and it will come.
Tuning comes when your left hand has the facility to make hairline adjustments.
Playing things like Simandl over and over again gets you there. Not drones and tuners.
 
#15
damonsmith said:
One problem is that precise tuning is not the first step. Getting in tune "any old way" is a fast road to bad technique.
Make sure your left hand is right and play through the exercise and listen to what you are doing and it will come.
Tuning comes when your left hand has the facility to make hairline adjustments.
Playing things like Simandl over and over again gets you there. Not drones and tuners.
Click to expand...

So right is left? :hiding:
 

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