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Double Bass Mini EUB (34 inch Scale EUB) in Concert Band?
- Thread starter Oscar Stern
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"Can," most certainly. But "should," or "will"? That's up to the band director.
I think all Band Directors should understand that this instrument combines the best of both Bass Guitar & Double Bass all in 1 instrument so that way you don't have to switch back & forth between the Bass Guitar & Double Bass when moving to the next song.
Rather than bring a Bass Guitar & Double Bass to concert band, I'd simply use the UB805 Mini EUB because it combines the best of both instruments all in 1.
I think this little EUB would certainly impress alot of Concert Band directors because it is certainly adorable.
Interestingly enough the UB805 Mini EUB can sound like a Fretless Bass Guitar but it's played in a vertical orientation which I think would be great for Bassists who have a shoulder injury & can't play a Regular Bass.
IDK if Ibanez use to make a Special Bow designed specifically for their Upswing Mini EUBs but actually a Regular full Size Double Bass Bow would work super well, (if using Round Wound Strings, use synthetic bow hair & synthetic rosin)
Actually I'm passionate about if the 34 inch Scale "Mini" EUB would be a good match for Concert Band as an alternative to Bass Guitar & Double Bass?
That‘s very polite.
I refuse to discuss with him any longer.
He persistently tries to push his opinion through. The first candidate I will ignore on Talkbass now.
Mini-EUB will not get to my vocabulary, I still use Upright Bass Guitar (maybe with the adjective „bowable“ if it is) as it describes it better.
A Bowable Upright Bass Guitar (it could also be called Mini EUB as it's a smaller sized EUB)
Any time I've played in a concert band with double basses, almost all of their playing is arco. The only exception is the typical pedagogical "selections from this year's hot Broadway show" chart.
I did not know anything about that bass. Never heard of it. If the sheet music says, “string bass” at the top then I’d play a string bass. If it says electric bass then I’d play an electric bass. If it’s a recording session of the polar express piece you shared, I’d prefer a traditional upright bass over any EUB for that piece. If it’s a live show, I’d most likely choose either electric or upright depending on the overall requirements of all songs balanced against each other.
I’ve never heard an EUB that sounded like a real upright bass. They sound like fret less electrics to me. So I’ve never seen the point. But I’m glad you enjoy yours!
I have one and I’d be afraid the piezo would be too harsh when bowed, but I haven’t tried. It is certainly do-able but I am not sure it would be as well received as you imagine in a concert band setting because it doesn’t excel at anything in particular. I do love mine but I treat it as its own thing, not quite an EUB and definitely not just a fretless bass guitar tone. It takes a good bit of EQ and foam muting to sound passable as an EUB. I really like it for country covers and accompanying acoustic guitars or anything else that I would find boring on the electric.
If I were in college learning I would avoid instruments like this. You’ll have a longer career on a full sized upright so it is better to not learn bad habits IMHO. I come from the self taught bass guitar side and I am an old hack so it doesn’t much matter to me.
If I were in college learning I would avoid instruments like this. You’ll have a longer career on a full sized upright so it is better to not learn bad habits IMHO. I come from the self taught bass guitar side and I am an old hack so it doesn’t much matter to me.
Hi, I’ve played the piece above multiple times in an orchestral pops section.
While I don’t have experience with this particular instrument, I’ve had a few EUBs.
In my experience, they are a tad too “sharp” sounding to produce a bowed sound in an orchestral setting.
It’s a bit akin to using an electric guitar where you are supposed to be playing acoustic.
In terms of if it’s the right call for you, I’ve enjoyed playing these instruments. I find them to be very fun. If you think that you can make it work effectively in this setting and your director agrees, you can go for it.
I would likely use a regular upright myself.
While I don’t have experience with this particular instrument, I’ve had a few EUBs.
In my experience, they are a tad too “sharp” sounding to produce a bowed sound in an orchestral setting.
It’s a bit akin to using an electric guitar where you are supposed to be playing acoustic.
In terms of if it’s the right call for you, I’ve enjoyed playing these instruments. I find them to be very fun. If you think that you can make it work effectively in this setting and your director agrees, you can go for it.
I would likely use a regular upright myself.
Yes, for musicals this is a great option when doubling on electric and upright.
When you have to play electric and upright, you can put this on a stand and play both.
Yes, you can bow any string, even the rockabilly reds in my profile photo.
All of my gut core strings are round wound.
When you have to play electric and upright, you can put this on a stand and play both.
Yes, you can bow any string, even the rockabilly reds in my profile photo.
All of my gut core strings are round wound.
I think many will disagree with this.
For concert band I typically used both bass guitar and upright. For big band I used bass guitar, upright, and electric upright. All three instruments had a distinctly different sound and feel.
I would have liked to use the electric upright for some vocal ballads in concert band as well. I actually did on one or two tours, and it screwed up my intonation on upright when I was functioning as part of the bass section. In other words, when my volume was lowered to blend into the section Switching between upright and fretted bass guitar did not degrade my intonation.
In big band I aways functioned as the bass in a rhythm section. So my instrument was always loud enough for me to hear and correct intonation on the fly. We played a pretty wide variety of music. The bass guitar was for more rock or funk oriented charts. The upright was for tradition big band arrangements. The electric upright was for more modern jazz(y) material.
I do remember playing solely the electric upright on a big band show where space was very limited. I made it work, but it felt like a compromise to me. We had a reception after the show and every audience member I talked to said the bass sounded both appropriate and good. They also thought it looked cool...but were not certain what to call it.
But double basses are acoustically imperfect because they're shrunk down from the optimal size that would be ideal for the low notes
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