Got a question for the jazz peeps-does this comment have merit?

[Fassa Albrecht]

I've been considering whether it would be worth some time doing some local jazz jam sessions.

Now I asked on another forum about this and a guy said the following-

"You've got no hope, you'd need to be playing since you were small to have any hope of playing jazz gigs, and you need to be able to play double bass too."

Is this guy talking out of his backside or does he have a serious point?

 

[bhass]

Is this guy talking out of his backside

Yes.

 

[Stereo Joe]

I'd say he's right in the sense that you will probably encounter resistance from some people if you play jazz on an electric bass. Others may not care, but there are usually always at least a few folks who will disregard electric bass as an 'authentic' jazz instrument.

In terms of the actual skill needed for jazz, it certainly would help if you've been playing jazz since you were very young, but if you devote enough time and effort to it now, you'll be able to play whatever you want - including jazz.

Have fun!!

 

[Fassa Albrecht]

Yes.

Shame he doesn't know this...

I'd say he's right in the sense that you will probably encounter resistance from some people if you play jazz on an electric bass. Others may not care, but there are usually always at least a few folks who will disregard electric bass as an 'authentic' jazz instrument.

Most 'modern' jazz bands here will play electric bass 90% of the time.
Shouldn't matter really, it's still going to give you the same effect.

In terms of the actual skill needed for jazz, it certainly would help if you've been playing jazz since you were very young, but if you devote enough time and effort to it now, you'll be able to play whatever you want - including jazz.
Have fun!!

So there is hope for me....yay!

 

[j.stemmler]

+1 to Stereo Joe

upright bass will certainly gain you some respect among other jazz musicians. that and i think you'll find that upright makes you play and think differently. upright and jazz just go together so well, why wouldn't you want to play upright.

as far as getting your knowledge of jazz up to snuff.........listen to jazz. ALOT OF IT!!! listen to all the classics. sing it, transcribe it, never get it out of your head. it takes alot of time and commitment to be a jazz musician. it's a life long journey.

that being said, most of the seasoned pro's that I have encountered, as intimidating as they can be, are some of the coolest, most down to earth people i have ever met. they all started the same way everyone else did; trial and error. jazz jams are there for people to go out and play. although it is expected that you have a good knowledge of jazz and a decent repetiore, I dont think anybody will give you a hard time about playing electric though. so i say go for it.

 

[groooooove]

Yes.

+10000000000000000000000

i get a lot of jazz trio/quartet gigs. i never gig my upright. this guy is what the "hip" jazz musicians would refer to as a jazz nazi. one who claims to be a musician but hes too busy telling everyone else what theyre doing wrong to ever actually play anything worthwhile.

there are no "requirements" to playing jazz. its all about being experimental. nobody told jaco it was okay to tear the frets out of his bass.. did he "have" to bring an upright to gigs?

 

[20db pad]

Wes Montomery, a Jazz guitar legend by any definition, started playing at the age of 19. That's pretty late compared to most of those who claim him as a primary influence today.

 

[Fassa Albrecht]

+1 to Stereo Joe

upright bass will certainly gain you some respect among other jazz musicians. that and i think you'll find that upright makes you play and think differently. upright and jazz just go together so well, why wouldn't you want to play upright.

The one thing that puts me off playing upright is the sheer size of the thing, and the fact it has no frets/fret markings. They make me

as far as getting your knowledge of jazz up to snuff.........listen to jazz. ALOT OF IT!!! listen to all the classics. sing it, transcribe it, never get it out of your head. it takes alot of time and commitment to be a jazz musician. it's a life long journey.

Time is something I've got, and I think that jazz is perhaps the most universal music style too. Hence my willingness to commit to it.

that being said, most of the seasoned pro's that I have encountered, as intimidating as they can be, are some of the coolest, most down to earth people i have ever met. they all started the same way everyone else did; trial and error. jazz jams are there for people to go out and play. although it is expected that you have a good knowledge of jazz and a decent repetiore, I dont think anybody will give you a hard time about playing electric though. so i say go for it.

This is why I want to try these jamming sessions before I try anything too serious. I can balls-up then and not years down the line if and when I gig.
I do have SOME jazz songs in my head, not many, but I'm sure I can learn some more. I've learnt 400 songs so far, 100 to memory, so a few more can't help.
Plus, some of my friends play various forms of jazz (mostly jazz brass instruments such as trumpet though) and they're cool.

 

[ryco]

Go play and have a good time.
If they give you any crap - go find another jazz jam.
Or find a good jazzy guitar or keyboard player to play with. Practice playing out of the fake book or have them show you some charts.

Well worth the effort to explore this style of music!! Great fun!!

 

[Fassa Albrecht]

Go play and have a good time.
If they give you any crap - go find another jazz jam.
Or find a good jazzy guitar or keyboard player to play with. Practice playing out of the fake book or have them show you some charts.

Well worth the effort to explore this style of music!! Great fun!!

I'm now looking forward to this...

Also, fake book??

 

[ryco]

This

Has many popular songs. Contains just the melody and the chords.
A lot of jazz jammers use these. Worth buying. Get the treble version!

Also there are a lot of different "fake" books for different syles - but the one pictured is by far the most popular one used.

 

[lifechanger]

I'd
invest in the new bb and realband software...like jamming with real jazz bassists, etc.
pgmusic.com

 

[fdeck]

I learned jazz on electric bass. The person on that forum is spouting drivel. On the other hand don't be afraid of upright either.

I gather from some of your other posts that you can read. That's a huge step in the right direction. If you can read and find your way around the instrument in any key, then you are ready to start. If not, well, learning jazz is a pretty good way of developing those skills anyway.

In my experience, having lived in a few different places, the relative preference for electric or upright bass in jazz depends a lot on local culture. I'll bet that a few top players in every locale set the standards for what bands expect. This expectation becomes a self fulfilling prophecy, because the opportunity to gain experience and reputation goes to the players who play the preferred instrument. In my locale, it's almost all upright, but that's not the case in other towns where I have lived.

 

[IdealWay]

John Patitucci, Stanley Clarke, and Bob Cranshaw all play amazing jazz on electric bass, so don't let the *(edit) "cavalier upright players who look down on the electric bass" (edit)* jazz snobs fool you... it has been and will continue to be done (electric bass in jazz, to be clear).

 

[Jim Campbell]

I've been considering whether it would be worth some time doing some local jazz jam sessions.

Now I asked on another forum about this and a guy said the following-

"You've got no hope, you'd need to be playing since you were small to have any hope of playing jazz gigs, and you need to be able to play double bass too."

Is this guy talking out of his backside or does he have a serious point?

jazz is not something you just do on a lark......most of the players you hear of have looked on it as a calling and spent a lot of time in the woodshed.....not to mention that they were gifted to begin with....there used to be a saturday afternoon session here years ago and the bass chair was occupied by a guy with something resembling a guitar with strings that looked too thick for guitar,too thin for a bass.....

but it worked because he knew music well enough to play any tune called,solo,when it came around and stopped playing only for the occasional drum solo......playing over changes is not all that easy and before you sit in i'd do some research

 

[fdeck]

jazz is not something you just do on a lark......most of the players you hear of have looked on it as a calling and spent a lot of time in the woodshed.....not to mention that they were gifted to begin with....there used to be a saturday afternoon session here years ago and the bass chair was occupied by a guy with something resembling a guitar with strings that looked too thick for guitar,too thin for a bass.....

but it worked because he knew music well enough to play any tune called,solo,when it came around and stopped playing only for the occasional drum solo......playing over changes is not all that easy and before you sit in i'd do some research

This is a good point. One doesn't have to be a prodigy to learn jazz for enjoyment. However, reaching the level of proficiency required to join a jam session will take some time and effort.

 

[Tehrin Cole]

You're going to come across this sentiment alot because,many people in the jazz world would rather hear,and see the upright.

The good news is,everyone in the jazz world doesn't hold that sentiment. If you know the music,have a good,unobtrusive tone ,and can swing, then you're good to go!

I've been in this business for 40 years and counting,and I can tell you that 80% of my gigs are straight-ahead jazz dates,...and I play electric bass,exclusively! So,don't be discouraged!

Going to sit in at the jazz clubs is a great idea,and can be very beneficial for you,in the long run. You first have to learn some tunes in order to get yourself started.

Secondly,if you haven't already done so,it would be in your best interest and much to your advantage to attend some form of academia(music school,jazz workshop,private instructor)so you can learn the language.

Thirdly,don't worry about the fact that,you don't own an upright! Start learning on your electric bass so that you can learn the music,first! Then,if you want to get yourself an upright,then by all means,...go for it!

Let me share this with you,in closing,and this is something that I posted,previously.
When I was a younger musician,I was playing a gig with the Gillie Coggins Trio at a place called the "Village Door" here in New York,and in between sets I was having a conversation with some cats about music!

Long story short, one of these people said to me:"You can't truly play jazz,unless you play upright!"

My reply to him was:"I don't care if you play upright,electric,or a rubber-band wrapped around a shoebox.If you can't truly play jazz,it's because you don't know the music!"
This goes for any other genre,as well!

I've said all of that to say,music begins with the MUSICIAN,....period! The instrument is the vehicle by which,this gift gets conveyed.

So,don't listen to the nay-sayers,....if this is something you TRULY want to do,then go for it! By ALL means!

Peace!

 

[Rudreax]

No offense intended, but this seems like a pretty random idea. Believe me, I feel for you and I think it's great that you want to play jazz, but it really isn't something you want to just suddenly get into and start going to jams, whether you're playing upright or electric. I'd suggest that you find some people to play with practice with them for a couple months, making sure you get to know and understand a good amount of the literature of the genre, before playing at any jams. You don't want to be the guy that just jumps into something without knowing anything about it at those kind of jams, since it will just make you look like a total novice in front of the more experienced players that attend those jams. You'll only lose respect, and no one's going to want to play with someone they think doesn't know anything about the music they're playing (plus it won't really help the idea of bass guitar in jazz...).

 

[chuck3]

The distinction is not between upright and electric, either can be fine for jazz. It's whether you have a background in either of these -

1. the jazz songbook or what they call the "American songbook" sometimes - there are a lot of tunes from the '30s to the '60s that you'll be expected to play the changes on depending on what the other players want to play on. In other words, even if you'd be great in a modal minor jam, that won't help you on "All the Things You Are" or "Stella by Starlight," which may sound like corny old tunes but they are great jazz standards with changes that may be challenging for you.

2. a variation on 1., but do you know how to work through a set of changes? Can you walk while thinking two chords ahead so that your line gets where you want it to go? Is going 1-6-2-5 flatting the fifths on the turnarounds something you're used to?

Which instrument is the least of it IMO. Either type will work. (Although for jazz I prefer upright now, before I was in a position to own one I played plenty of jazz on a Fender and nobody complained.)

 

[zeppelinfreak]

Im the person that posted that on UG, and thats not what I said all. Maybe you should not change quotes to make yourself look like a victim

What I actually said was this,

"To get big in jazz you pretty much have to start young. Like, when your still a teen. Its the only way to get connected enough to really do anything with it. Plus itll take all the better years of your life to become proficient enough in jazz to "hang" with the big guys.

With this in mind, myself my drummer and my guitarist do trio work together at restaurants and other small venues. Its just a matter of putting together a resume (preferably with a sampler CD of sorts) and just dropping it off everywhere you can.



But Im gonna be honest. The fact that you havent been studying jazz more or less all your life, and more importantly, the fact that you probably dont play upright bass means youll likely never get a big band gig. Also, your gonna have to drop that solo bassist attitude. Youll never make it in jazz like that"







So as you see, I actually said that itll be near impossible to become FAMOUS if you hadnt started early, especially as a soloist. I also said that you wont be able to get BIG BAND gigs unless you play upright. I also told you how to start getting small, realistic gigs to get on your feet. So instead of playing the victim, take my advice, because its deadon.