If you were starting college to study jazz....

[DiabolusInMusic]

The answer is an upright. There is no question if you intend to take jazz seriously. I know some folks like to say "but image doesn't matter." I can assure you with 100% confidence that it does - especially with jazz. You will get scoffed away with even an EUB in many respectable jazz circles.

 

[Rabidhamster]

I would just ask the faculty which is acceptable.

Yes this is what I would do. Were I starting college to study Traditional Electric Bass Guitar Jazz, the school instrument would be but one of my huge arsenal. I would ask what is preferable, and use that at school.
I'd just leave all the other basses and gear on the second floor of my waterfront house or in the trunk of my Audi.

 

[singlemalt]

Something tough, and easy to find parts for. The kid is going to drag it all over hell's half acre for years.

A used Fender jazz with a heavy duty gig bag. Nothing high end or super expensive that he needs to worry about.

I'd say a jazz or something with a bridge pickup for that burpy articulate "I know my jazz stuff and I can solo!" sound. But a P could do it.

Make some practical suggestions and hand over the dough, let the kid decide.

And some sort of headphone practice setup, like a Zoom B3n.

 

[micguy]

My advice is, whatever you buy, size the budget so you have enough cash left over for a year's worth of Ramen .

Seriously, If you find a Squier that plays well, that's good enough. Don't sweat the details on that. A good upright is more important - the things you lose when going from an expensive electric to an affordable one are minor - the differences between acoustic instruments are much more impactful if you don't have a good one.

 

[ClusterFlux]

I wish it "didn't matter". But it does.

What are they going to do, expel him if he shows up with a Fodera?

If it matters, then why doesn't the department tell him what instrument(s) to use?

 

[bobba66]

What is the young master playing now?

 

[two fingers]

The answer is an upright. There is no question if you intend to take jazz seriously. I know some folks like to say "but image doesn't matter." I can assure you with 100% confidence that it does - especially with jazz. You will get scoffed away with even an EUB in many respectable jazz circles.

He has a nice double bass already. Should a mentioned that.

 

[buldog5151bass]

Really depends on who is running the program. Some don't care, some will throw things at you if it isn't a Fender. I would talk to other students there and or look at photos of the current band.

 

[Bijoux]

[QUOTE I wish it "didn't matter". But it does.[/QUOTE]

Actually it doesn't matter. I am an adjunct at 2 colleges and every studio in the jazz department encourages students to look beyond the instrument and focus on the music.
Thinking about equipment can be very distracting, and we just want students to learn and experience music.
I see students playing a $200 Squire all the way up to a 7k Fodera. They all sound good on their performances!!!

 

[tradernick]

I wish it "didn't matter". But it does.

I don't know anything about your school, but it sounds a bit like the one I went to in terms of the trad nature of the program and the staff and the general ethos.

And given that, the difference between one electric bass and another is minuscule compared to the difference between electric and upright. Again, your school might be more enlightened but at my school, if someone was playing both, the question would be 'Why are you bothering with electric'.

Of course this is totally misguided and a crappy way to prepare a bassist for a career, but there you have it.

Have you considered fretless electric? If so, Jazz Bass.

 

[twinjet]

..... what would you show up with as your workhorse bass? Fender Jazz? (Not me, by the way.)

Oddly enough, Jazz Studies departments tend to be ridiculously traditional (for people who study music that knocked down walls a broke all kinds of barriers). In my view, you can't (literally can't) show up with the "wrong" bass.

So, if you were going to help a kid going into a traditional jazz school (he'll be doubling on electric and double bass) find an "acceptable" bass guitar, what would you look for?

And, please, save your lectures. I know the school. It is what it is. It's a great school. But it's stuck in the past.

Budget is maybe $700-$800? Used is fine in great shape.

Something basic without many frills. I suppose a G&L L-1000 would be just perfect. Personally, I'd take my L-2000 because I know the instrument quite well, but all those knobs and switches can be a distraction to a guy who's never used one before.

 

[cnltb]

It doesn't matter what bass you show up with.

 

[Wasnex]

..... what would you show up with as your workhorse bass? Fender Jazz? (Not me, by the way.)

Oddly enough, Jazz Studies departments tend to be ridiculously traditional (for people who study music that knocked down walls a broke all kinds of barriers). In my view, you can't (literally can't) show up with the "wrong" bass.

So, if you were going to help a kid going into a traditional jazz school (he'll be doubling on electric and double bass) find an "acceptable" bass guitar, what would you look for?

And, please, save your lectures. I know the school. It is what it is. It's a great school. But it's stuck in the past.

Budget is maybe $700-$800? Used is fine in great shape.

Is the kid interested in an extended range instrument. My #1 since about 1995 has been a 6-string. For commercial music (rock, pop, country, funk, etc) I rarely use the C, but much of the work I do involves jazz trio, where I am expected to solo on pretty much every tune. The C string really comes in handy for any type of work where I am expected to improvise.

Yes there are purest who will look down on the instrument. My personal philosophy is learning jazz should rise above such pettiness and focus on theory. An extended range instrument provides more technical challenges, but also gives you more options and frees you of some of the intrinsic limitations of the instrument.

Sometimes it is better to do what is right than go along with tradition. I know what I would do, but each person has to decide for themself. If you want traditional, get a P or J and call it a day.

 

[socialleper]

That's a real one-two.
Student debt and being a jazz musician. Yikes!

Seriously though, there seems to be a lot of ways to go with this, and I don't think there is a wrong answer. Split single bass are oddly common in jazz today. However, it is hard to go wrong with a dual single coil set up. Both designs are available for very little dough.

Skyline is the import line of Lakland basses and doesn't apply to any one design. They have single split, and dual single builds for under $800 if you try hard to find a used one. I have a 44-02, which is a unique design. Very scooped. Can do a jazz type tone, or MM type tone. I never got a satisfactory P style tone out of one.

As far as brands, Sire is very popular and you can find some used ones now. I have a bass made by a UK based company called Vintage. The fit and finish was a little off, but the electronics and hardware are solid. A MIM Fender will get you by. If you decide to go the P route, old RB Ibanez basses are well built, as are Peavey Fury\Forum basses. ESP\LTD makes some PJ basses that are OK. Same with Schecter. I don't think I've ever seen either in a store.

If you are worried about "traditionalism" you might want to avoid more modern designs like Ibanez SRs, Warwick, Spector, etc. Unless you can really own it. If you are walking in with some serious chops, people will ignore the instrument.

 

[40Hz]

I wish it "didn't matter". But it does.

True that.

When it comes to a university degree you soon discover that there's a lot of things you need to do that are absolutely necessary despite not being "officially required." And you decline or ignore that at your own peril.

I'd suggest a JB of some flavor. It's sufficiently versatile and pretty much universally deemed a professional's instrument. When I attended our godchild's graduation at Berklee in Boston a few years back the JB was very much in evidence everywhere you looked.

 

[fishdreams]

I am around a lot of full time jazz pros (most of them educated at prestigious jazz schools), am actually married to an assistant professor at such a school, and none of them would ever consider that question in any other way than "the one that feels right for you, the musician". I have also never heard of a school that makes requirements on what make or type your instrument is; only what materials you are supposed to be playing

So I am very curious what OP thinks the reasons are that it matters, and to whom it matters (the OP? the student's parents? the prospective student? Does this school state so in its application or online materials?)

With that said: if this is a student who is new to electric, has virtually no idea of his/her own, and needs a solid choice to get started, I'd go with a decent 2nd hand Fender P or J bass. It is a combination I see a lot here in NYC among professional, working doublers whose bane of existence is the double bass, and who for example picked up a busted Fender in the 70ties and then modded here and there through the next decades, playing and recording with it to this day.

 

[Space Pickle]

+1 to "doesn't matter"

source: have a jazz degree

 

[lowplaces]

Ted Greene played jazz on a Telecaster. And very well I might add.

 

[Carl Hillman]

..... what would you show up with as your workhorse bass? Fender Jazz? (Not me, by the way.)

Oddly enough, Jazz Studies departments tend to be ridiculously traditional (for people who study music that knocked down walls a broke all kinds of barriers). In my view, you can't (literally can't) show up with the "wrong" bass.

So, if you were going to help a kid going into a traditional jazz school (he'll be doubling on electric and double bass) find an "acceptable" bass guitar, what would you look for?

And, please, save your lectures. I know the school. It is what it is. It's a great school. But it's stuck in the past.

Budget is maybe $700-$800? Used is fine in great shape.

As long as it's not a spiky, neon green, 80s hair band bass with a pentagram or flaming skull on it, he should be good.
Not that he couldn't play Lazy Bird on a bass that looked like that...if he wanted.

I would suggest getting him on a five string though.

He'll presumably finish college as a proficient doubler who can read well. That would make him ripe for employment in pit bands, and most shows in the last 20 years have been written with extended lower ranges (for both basses).

 

[two fingers]

It doesn't matter what bass you show up with.

Yes. Yes it does.