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Double Bass How did you afford your bass? (DB forum thread)

#61
KUNGfuSHERIFF said:
Mine does. It asks you to select between "Bass Guitar Forums" and "Double Bass Forums" right after you log in.

Having been in the position of owning two of Roger's basses at the same time, the pre-gig indecision is a good problem to have. Here's hoping!
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True about the iPhone app. I usually leave it on 'current,' though, in which case it doesn't really work as well.

I love it; I lurk on the DB side of TB because I've always kinda wanted one, yet my first actual post is a boneheaded error. Yeesh...
 
#62
Ive been wondering where the people in symphonies get their basses, how they afford them ect. Some of them get well into the $100,000+ range such as some of the ancient italian basses. How does one possibly afford this?
It's almost like buying another house.
 
#63
irbassist said:
Ive been wondering where the people in symphonies get their basses, how they afford them ect. Some of them get well into the $100,000+ range such as some of the ancient italian basses. How does one possibly afford this?
It's almost like buying another house.
Click to expand...

Aren't some (maybe the most expensive ones?) of those instruments long-term loaners to either the orchestra or the player, owned by some wealthy orchestra patron or another?
 
#64
How about this for a story from the great British DB player Alec Dankworth :

“I was enjoying the natural sonority of the instrument. So when I returned to the UK in 1980, one of the first things I did was to pick up a copy of Exchange And Mart and look through the back pages to see if I could find an acoustic bass that was being sold privately”. Dankworth was fortunate to pick up a Mittenwald 1870 German-made factory bass for the princely sum of £400. “It’s a small 3/4 short scale bass”, he says. “It has a very distinctive sound all of its own. It’s not a deep bass with a lot of bottom end and it may not be as deep and resonant as other basses. But it has got an attack and centre that I like for jazz playing.”

Twenty-five years later and Dankworth still gigs with the Mittenwald, as he has never been able to find another instrument that produces the same unique sonic qualities. “When I’m in New York I go to [string instrument repairer] David Gage’s shop. I’ve played on basses that cost £25,000, thinking ‘now I’ll find one that I like’. But the sound doesn’t necessarily relate to the price of the instrument – and then there’s always the antique value”.


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#65
Although I posted earlier in this thread reading about Alec Dankworth got me thinking. In 1977 my dad paid $375 for a new P bass because I got straight A's and he wanted to encourage me. That was quite a bit of money back then. A friend bought a new Pollman about the same time for $700 which is now worth over $10k.

I was a bass major in college, studying with the principal of the local symphony on the school's old Kay and didn't buy my first double bass until 2005. The Kay was horrible and probably held me back.
Man, I wish I had picked up a good bass back then. It would have been a lot cheaper and probably a nice investment.

Buy the best bass you can afford.
 
#72
Divorce, works wonders for your finances. My first double bass is being shipped this week (hopefully) and I have a Fodera on order as well.

Sorry OP but it's true..lol Family is more important than the type of instrument you own.
 
#73
Bijoux said:
Gary tells about his Instrument - YouTube
$1200 in the mid 60's. how much would that be today?...
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That's great, Bijoux, thanks. Gary used to bring that bass up to Aspen when I lived there, during The Aspen Music Festival when he was studying with the great Stuart Sankey of Julliard. The whole bass section used to come and hang at my gig and one night the management found out that Gary was only 18 and kicked him out despite our protests of: "But he's a genius." I, in return, would go out to the tent and hang with the bass section after the gig, drinking $1.49 a gallon of wine to our hearts content.
Similar to Dono's post, a bassist there offered his Prescott for $1,000 in about 1962.
I bought my first bass with $ from my paper route. I bought my current bass with $ from me selling my body...:hyper:
 
#76
There is currently a century old, flatback bass in my Mancave. it is at the 8 grand mark before we get into accessories. My parents are gonna help me finance it and im gonna sell everything i dont need, instruments included.

Its amazing. I love it, and right now we are in the try before you buy phase.

My parents are the best in the world.

Im still going to end up paying a huge chunk of it, but its nice to have this help.

TLDR: My folks rock, sell anything you dont want and get your dream bass.
 

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