Double Bass Flexible Music Stand?

[Paps]

Hi,
In Orchestra I use a low stool with the bass leaning.
I like to have the stand directly in my line of sight to the conductor.
As the stand is quite a distance from me, against the lower bouts,
my reading glasses are of limited help.
Can anyone recommend a bent or reach adjustable music stand?
I have seen the telescopic angled jazz stands, but these are quite expensive.
Maybe someone has a DIY fix?
Thanks.

 

[Francois Blais]

Use a mic stand with this:
K&M 115/2 Clamp-on Sheet Music Holder

 

[Wasnex]

Hi,
In Orchestra I use a low stool with the bass leaning.
I like to have the stand directly in my line of sight to the conductor.
As the stand is quite a distance from me, against the lower bouts,
my reading glasses are of limited help.
Can anyone recommend a bent or reach adjustable music stand?
I have seen the telescopic angled jazz stands, but these are quite expensive.
Maybe someone has a DIY fix?
Thanks.

Probably a better solution would be to get a set of intermediate distance glasses.

Having a good stand light may help as well.

This is listed a Rat Music Stand Rat-69Q13 (expensive)

You could also assemble something like this, but it would not be cheap. I thing the amount of offset before it gets tippy would be fairly small...depend on how heavy the tripod is and how wide the stance of the legs is.

I don't think this approach would work as there is not enough counterweighting. It would tip to easily.

 

[lurk]

Finding the right glasses is the real issue, and I'm struggling. Being able to get both a distant conductor and the nearer but not book-reading-distance music in focus instantly is a real virtuoso progressive lens thing. My gig last night involved decoding opera piano/voice parts while following a distant conductor following a rubato-crazed tenor with special lighting effects meant to simulate sunlight filtering through gently waving trees (I guess,,). Oy!

 

[bassmanbrent]

I don't know if the Rat music stand shown above will fit your needs, but I have one and I think it's totally worth the money. Great portability and durability. Highly recommended

 

[themickster]

Finding the right glasses is the real issue, and I'm struggling. Being able to get both a distant conductor and the nearer but not book-reading-distance music in focus instantly is a real virtuoso progressive lens thing. My gig last night involved decoding opera piano/voice parts while following a distant conductor following a rubato-crazed tenor with special lighting effects meant to simulate sunlight filtering through gently waving trees (I guess,,). Oy!

Varifocals will do it for you. I find them well worthwhile. They go from reading at the bottom of the lens to distance at the top.

 

[carl h.]

2 thoughts. Get one of those mic stand music holders and put it on a mic boom with a ballast/counterweight, or try these. I've been using them for a few years now. Cheap enough and they also show up on ebay for even less so you can stash them everywhere.

 

[BellaB]

I don't know if the Rat music stand shown above will fit your needs, but I have one and I think it's totally worth the money. Great portability and durability. Highly recommended

I second the Rat stand! My choir conductor uses it exclusively for that sight reason. They are pricey but they pack down nicely for transport and should last a long time.

 

[SAlcott]

I have two pairs of glasses-bifocals or reading and distance, and a second non-bifocal pair focussed at music stand distance and beyond. The music is clear, and the conductor is almost as clear as with the bifocals.

 

[MuseChaser]

Do you have good stand lighting? It's amazing how much that can help. The Aria lights, while expensive, are phenomenally good.

 

[bassmanbrent]

I second the Rat stand! My choir conductor uses it exclusively for that sight reason. They are pricey but they pack down nicely for transport and should last a long time.

They seem to be quite the conversation starter too, due to their unusual look. I don't have any affiliation with the company, but I've definitely sold a bunch of stands for them just by demoing mine when someone asks about it.

 

[longfinger]

Hi,

my reading glasses are of limited help.

Thanks.

Task specific reading glasses with a focus length of about 1 meter (or arms length) might be a great option. That distance is getting more popular as more folks need them for computer screen reading than in decades past.

 

[Paps]

All great ideas and suggestions, thanks for that!
I've gone and ordered a sheet music holder off Thomann, about €25.
I have a few old music stands, I might sacrifice one of these, and clamp on the holder.
I have to admit I never considered the balance, so a microphone stand may be needed.
I am using narrow readers, that I can easily look over the top.
This used to work well, but as the lenses have gotten stronger, it's more difficult to see the conductor in the periphery while reading. I never realised how much I use my peripheral vision until I cant!

 

[oldNewbie]

Chiming in for a tablet/iPad on its side and a page-turning pedal with ForScore. Gigantic staff, and ForScore knows enough to leave the last line on the bottom, on the top of the next frame. Plus all the forScore niceties like layers and markup. I was headed for a new pair of music only glasses, when my teacher suggested this, I’m really glad he did.