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Double Bass Bluegrass bass arco?

#21
OP, you could also check out Paul Kowert of the Punch Brothers. He plays quite a bit of arco interspersed through a lot of their songs...of course they are more of a crossover progressive acoustic group than a true bluegrass group but they have bluegrass elements in their music.
 
#22
Hey there. Of course you can bow the tune. The camp session that was posted was not intended for public release, of course there were mistakes, we were just jamming and learning a tune. That's what happens these days, you're messing around and the next thing you know you're on youtube. We were consciously pushing the envelope and not looking to make a musical statement. The sound on the video isn't very representative of what it actually sounded like in the center of the three of us. I'm currently working on an album of fiddle tunes in different settings, solo, duet and trio. You'd be surprised how nice the bass sounds into fat microphones and proper mixing. It's bass playing, just not what we think of as bass playing.
 
#28
Edgar is such a master, nobody can do what Edgar does. In this vien Renaud Garcia Fons is right up there. Torff is also incredible isn't he. All this said I have to say that for my own music I am going for something completely different, even to the point of being 'archaic' and 'country' at best and 'bad' and 'scratch' and 'lousy' at worst. What I am trying to do is actually 'fiddle' the bass, more like an oldtime fiddler, including double stops, scratches and all. I want the bass to sound 'oldtime' not like a virtuoso playing a fiddle tune on the bass. To cast my self, or my sound against these classically trained behemouths would be pointless to me. I want to make a totally different sound. When one listens to a classic oldtime fiddler from Surry Co. it would be easy to dismiss them as 'bad' or 'scratchy' or 'a total mess' (my quotes) but to someone who really gets that music it sounds beautiful, flaws and all. I did my time in the mountains, it's true to my life, so that's going to be my story and I'm sticking to it. I know you're not a fan of mine PC and that's totally cool with me. You have great insights here and I respect your opinions. But the last thing I want to sound like (believe it or not) is something I'm not. If my 'art' ends up sounding low class to some, thats probably a good thing. But i'm really going for a sound and even more, a feeling, that comes from the mountains of NC and VA, not Oberlin. Cheers though and please feel free to keep egging me on to better my music.
 
#32
This is not to say PC is wrong. PCs opinions are very valuable to me because like most people, he's just taking it in at face-value. How do I convince people who are not easily impressed by an untrained player that this is music, personal and valid. PC didn't say he hated it, he just said it was "pretty good". I have some more work to do to get him to smile and say "yeah man, I get that!". I don't know if I'm just getting more mature or what but I like this criticism. And I also appreciate the support for what I'm trying to achieve here, which incidentally what we are all trying to do, show others what we consider beautiful.
 
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#36
JohnAllanBass said:
I

Here's some fiddle tunes I play at sessions on bass, ask if you have any questions about them, cheers, John.

Click to expand...


John, this is great! I love that this thread is finding so many examples of something that conventional wisdom says doesn't/shouldn't exist.

I've been playing backup to fiddle tunes for years, but never imagined it would be OK for me to actually play the melody. It always seemed out of bounds or limited to the famous soloists like Edgar Meyer. This has inspired me to pick up the bow and start working on learning the melodies.

In addition to Jeremy Darrow, Jason Sypher, John Allan, who else is playing old-time fiddle tunes on the bass? I've heard a few from Andrew Downing in Canada before. He plays in fifths.
 
#37
Yeah it's interesting that at a time when the bass instrument in trad/rural American music has evolved in terms of technical facility, equipment/setup and musical/stylistic pollination that someone of Edgar's ability should show up and set the technical bar so high. It's a bass style that had previously been flirted with at best in North America. Where he's coming from with it isn't an intellectual place, I think he really grew up with the music all around. Yes the academia is a big component, but it's really more informed by his feel for his culture. Like Lafaro and Pastorius in jazz, it's something that at once is ancient, and new. It is undeniably beautiful and Edgar carved and paved the road for new possibilities on the instrument. I think what Jason is talking about with his own vision and virtuosity of his music is the natural way to go. I said that the video was pretty good, only because I know from listening to others he has way more ability than the short clip demonstrates. For some reason, up 'til 30 years ago the "bluegrass" bass was delegated to a supportive and pretty crude role in the music really. There wasn't a lot of call for the players to develop musical skills beyond thumping indistinct notes in time. That's why a few guys with some basic bass schooling, nothing particularly phenomenal for the '60's era could $$clean$$ up making bass tracks in Nashville. That sure has changed!
 
#38
I agree, Edgar loves this music and his feel, sound and concept betray his truth and passion. He's a one in a million artist. He cast such an enormous shadow that our job as mortals is to answer our own calling and express ourselves with the same commitment. Incidentally, u spoke with Eric Thorin, he says he doesn't really fiddle much but occasionally bows a little. I have to say I think his pizz sound is one of the best in acoustic music these days. Thanks for the vote of confidence...
 
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