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Is it the Bass, or the Player...

AudioDwebe

AudioDwebe

Guest
Dec 21, 2011
888
805
Pacific Northwest
#1
Gotta love these noobie questions.

How much of the sound a player gets is from the player himself/herself, and how much is the instrument?

For example: Gary Willis playing anything other than his signature bass, would he still sound like himself through the use of electronics on other basses, or will he sound like someone totally different?

I'm a sax player and even if I were to get the same reed/mouthpiece/ligature/horn combo as Grover Washington, I'll never, ever have the same sound. I might be able to play his licks but would never be mistaken for him. Had he picked up and played a Selmer or Yamaha or whatever, he would still sound like himself.

So I'm guessing it would probably be the same in the wonderful world of the Bass, no?

I guess ultimately, I'm trying to break myself of this habit that I have (as does much of society, in general, I think), where if I really like someone's sound/tone (is there a difference?), I naturally gravitate toward someday getting the same bass to get the same sound.

Intellectually, I understand that Air Jordans will not allow me to ball like Mr. Jordan, but emotionally, it's a totally different ballgame.

So...what say you? The Player or The Bass or a combination? And, if a combination, what percentage would you apply to each?

Thanks for entertaining these childish questions.

Cheers.

Mamoru
 
#2
90% the player 10% the gear.
Music comes from and is an expression of the human form and consciousness/awareness.
Whatever you use to make the music take form is simply the instrument of delivery.
You can never, and should probably never try to, sound like or be someone else.
You can only be you.
It takes a while but once a musician learns to "find their own voice" things get much more interesting.
 
#3
I'd agree with 90/10 when it comes to how does the performance sound or how does the song sound when viewed as a whole.

However, I'd have to disagree when it comes to tone. I think it's more like 60/40 when you're talking pure tone. Geddy Lee comes to mind because as he's changed gear choices across the decades, his tone has changed dramatically several times over. If you didn't know Geddy's playing and listened to the Free Will solo section and then switched over to Caravan's solo section you might guess it's the same player, but you'd never mistake it for the same sound.
 
#5
There are so many factors that go into tone. The bass, the strings, mutes, the amp/cab combination, etc. The most distinctive player imaginable will sound sound somewhat different playing different bass/rig combinations. The style of playing or logic of note will probably allow to recognize the player, even if the sound is pretty different.
 
#6
AudioDwebe said:
...I'm a sax player and even if I were to get the same reed/mouthpiece/ligature/horn combo as Grover Washington, I'll never, ever have the same sound. I might be able to play his licks but would never be mistaken for him. Had he picked up and played a Selmer or Yamaha or whatever, he would still sound like himself.

So I'm guessing it would probably be the same in the wonderful world of the Bass, no?...
Click to expand...

IMHO, tone and articulation are very much tied to player, but embouchure/breath/tongue is different from touch in many ways.

Not the least of these is that after a string has been set in motion, there is less expressive/musical control over it than when a wind instrument is sustaining a pitch—thus the player generally has even greater impact on a wind or bowed instrument—then there are singers! :D

Should this be in basses?
 
#7
No matter what bass I play - and there have been many - people always know it's me playing. While gear helps, your style, phrasing, licks, etc. will always identify you.

Now back to looking for my last bass...passive 4 string jazz style if you're curious.
 
#8
60% player 40% gear , try to listen to Tetsuo Sakurai on youtube...his tone is almost even on all recordings but still worlds apart, and he plays with different gear inmost of them
 
#11
A good bassist can make a good sound out of any bass. Higher priced instruments are more of a luxury, or comfort, or aesthetic reasons. There's no reason that a good player couldn't play well on a cheap instrument, or even expensive instruments that they don't prefer.

Tone is a whole different discussion. Some like flexibility, some want a signature sound. In that regard, it comes down to the player.
 
#14
It would seem (at least so far) that the range of performer to instrument ranges from 60/40 to upwards of 80/20, with the performer taking the larger chunk of the pie. So would this mean that a given performer will be able to replicate "the" sound of his playing irregardless of the instrument by using a certain string, eq, amp, etcetera, or get pretty close to the "signature" sound with any bass that he or she picks up?

Thanks again.
 
#20
JimiLL said:
Its both really.

If you gave victor wooten a squire to play you could tell it was him playing, but wouldnt sound like "him". Ya follow?
Click to expand...

Actually, yes, it would. The Fodera tone is just icing on the cake. It's about the player. A guy said to me once "Wow, your bass sounds great." So I put it down and asked "Thanks! How does it sound now?" Ya dig?
 

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