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Double Bass Humidity can suck...

pdbass

pdbass

Jan 2, 2007
448
1,253
52
Pittsburgh
www.paulthompson.us
#1
I thought I'd relate a story about today's gig...and maybe I need to vent a little :bawl:

I had a gig earlier today with 2 musicians I love to play with and respect a great deal. I knew that the level of music was going to be high, and the venue is a reputable establishment in the city's cultural district: well-staffed, but intimate, modern, and a mostly attentive crowd.

So we start and it's cool, but I'm missing a couple of notes. No biggie. I occasionally overplay the string. No biggie. It's weird room, I tell myself. After the first set, I'm sweating a little and giving myself reasons why I'm not playing better. Second set, a lot of people are now in the place and I'm wiping down bass in between tunes when it hits me: they still haven't turned on the AC. It's 75 outside and the AC is not on and the place is just about full of people. I can't imagine what the relative humidity was in the room, but it was not a fun experience. To go from missing a couple of runs to full-on sticky fingerboard. Add to that my action felt higher. I also have a feeling that playing Sprios didn't help--there's a bucket of water on my fingerboard and I'm turning up the amp and getting that SOUND that makes most people quit playing Spiros. Anyway, if you've ever been in quicksand, you know how I felt. As I prayed for a speedy demise, the pianist called the last tune: One Finger Snap, at about 300 bpm. :rollno:

Insult to injury, my friends.

So he solos about 7 minutes and it gets to the bass solo <whack> and I'm pointing at the drummer who's not playing and he points at me and I mouth the word "PLEASE". He plays a great solo and then I feel the AC kick on.

Thank God it's over.
 
#4
It happened also to me some years ago, during a gala for humanitarian aid. It was during a terrible Greek summer with an outside temperature more than 42 Celcius!!! The air conditioning broke down and ...you can imagine the rest. It lasted for the longer 90 minutes in my whole life. When we remember this concert we call it the "Blood, sweat and tears concert".
Mike
 
#5
MIKMAN said:
It happened also to me some years ago, during a gala for humanitarian aid. It was during a terrible Greek summer with an outside temperature more than 42 Celcius!!! The air conditioning broke down and ...you can imagine the rest. It lasted for the longer 90 minutes in my whole life. When we remember this concert we call it the "Blood, sweat and tears concert".
Mike
Click to expand...

...but did you get an air-conditioning contract out of it? :D
 
#7
Adrian Juras said:
Humidity can make it difficult to play when you get a lot of moisture on the fingerboard, but its just something you have to deal with sometimes. Just wipe down the board every so often and relax while playing.
Click to expand...

Sounds like an interesting gig, to say the least!

The club I'm playing this weekend is an outdoor gig near a lake and the stage has no shelter. Forecast calls for 94 & sticky - and we're playing 6-10pm! I fully expect the "eye candy" to be worth the heat, but I'm not going to subject a boutique bass to that kind of weather. This is a job for my trusty old Jazz......:)

Hopefully my fingers don't run out of steam.

Cheers,
 
#8
Nomad5 said:
Sounds like an interesting gig, to say the least!

The club I'm playing this weekend is an outdoor gig near a lake and the stage has no shelter. Forecast calls for 94 & sticky - and we're playing 6-10pm! I fully expect the "eye candy" to be worth the heat, but I'm not going to subject a boutique bass to that kind of weather. This is a job for my trusty old Jazz......:)

Hopefully my fingers don't run out of steam.

Cheers,
Click to expand...

I assume by trusty old Jazz you mean Fender. This is the DB forum though....
 
#9
I had a similar experience a couple of weeks ago. We were playing on a covered porch, and it was raining. Fortunately it was cool, but the strings on my bass felt like 180 grit sandpaper. I don't know if it was residual rosin or what, but it was bad.

I finished the gig with a huge blister on my right first finger. I haven't gotten a blister playing a few years. It was not a pleasant gig.
 
#10
Similar gig for me last night. I anticipated it and lowered my bridge a bit before I left the house. Still, by the time I was playing the second set I was astounded by how tight my bass felt and how horribly tired I was playing. When it came time to solo I totally went for it, probably playing one of the fastest runs anyone in that band has ever heard me play but I paid for it in strength for the rest of the gig. It was also the overall sound of the band that sucked. I could tell no one in the band was hearing me as their time was all over the place. What are you gonna do? Stay cool. Drink a lot of fluids (not alcohol) and keep your wits about you. It's just a gig and you gotta be the one in control. Not fun when it happens though, and it happens to everyone now and again.
 
#11
I've used talcum powder to help me get through these situations. Works for a little while but has to reapplied occasionally. I try to put it just on my fingertips to keep from making a mess but it's a good idea to do it over a wastebasket - be careful of dark clothing!
 
#12
With the onslaught of summer, I've ditched the Anima, Garbo, Gut, Mittel mixes that my plywood has worn in the past. On are an old set of Weichs. That, and a poly finish should prepare me for rain, sweat or whatever gets thrown my way. :rolleyes:
With two outdoor hits this weekend it will be interesting to see if it works.
 
#14
Jason Sypher said:
Similar gig for me last night. I anticipated it and lowered my bridge a bit before I left the house. Still, by the time I was playing the second set I was astounded by how tight my bass felt and how horribly tired I was playing. When it came time to solo I totally went for it, probably playing one of the fastest runs anyone in that band has ever heard me play but I paid for it in strength for the rest of the gig. It was also the overall sound of the band that sucked. I could tell no one in the band was hearing me as their time was all over the place. What are you gonna do? Stay cool. Drink a lot of fluids (not alcohol) and keep your wits about you. It's just a gig and you gotta be the one in control. Not fun when it happens though, and it happens to everyone now and again.
Click to expand...

Its pretty ridiculously hot right now(for May). I assume its about the same where you are. I think I'm going to drop my strings a bit before heading out to the gig tonight...
 
#15
[QUOTE...but did you get an air-conditioning contract out of it? QUOTE]
Unfortunately they knew me very well in my engineering capacity and they asked my help to fix the problem. I was so tired and dissapointed from the whole mess that i steered them towards one of my former students. Later i had second thoughts but ... it was too late.
Mike
 
#16
Another thought at this time a year is check your bridge for movement, particularly the top of the bridge leaning towards the fingerboard. This can happen anytime but it seems prevalent when the heat and humidity raise and the bass swells with the added moisture. I found the feet of my bridge ever so slightly raised on the tailpiece side and corrected the bridge and made it perpendicular to the top. This lengthens the string length but greatly reduced the tension. Maybe others find this to be evident as well.
 
#19
Don Higdon said:
I despise playing outdoors. regardles of temperature. For survival, I just play time and utterly simple solos. My observation of outdoor gigs is that almost nobody listens, so why wreck yourself?
300 bpm? Like hell. In a situation like that I play in two all the way with no apologies.
Click to expand...
I got stuck playing outdoors a couple of years ago and had my good bass due to an earlier morning gig that required it.
It was about 95 degrees, high noon and not a cloud in the sky. Between the hot strings, asphalt fingerboard and ever-changing string height and intonation, it was hell.
Gotta either figure out an umbrella mount for the plywood or require a shade tree on every gig. :D
 
#20
Don Higdon said:
I despise playing outdoors. regardles of temperature. For survival, I just play time and utterly simple solos. My observation of outdoor gigs is that almost nobody listens, so why wreck yourself?
300 bpm? Like hell. In a situation like that I play in two all the way with no apologies.
Click to expand...
Me too. Nobody give a rats ass either way.
 

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