Of the five years I've been playing, I never really learned how to play on a stool. I realize it probably should be fairly easy and not much different from playing standing up, but whenever I try it I can't really seem to get comfortable playing. A lot of times I'll find I can't really dig into the strings and play with the same emotion I do standing up, yet all the orchestra players I see play sitting on a stool. Am I missing something?
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Double Bass Playing on a stool
- Thread starter Masters2010
- Start date
I find that learning how to sit involves lots of muscle memory. Find a way that is most comfortable and play in such a position as often as possible. You will "fit" with the bass and the bass will "fit" to you. It just takes time to adjust to playing in a different way.
I had (have) the same problem you do. I lean alot and move alot on my bass which makes a stool kinda usless. But, what helps me is after hours of standing in orchestra rehearsal and concerts my legs get locked into certain positions because of how I "roll" and start to acke. Well ackeing legs are the best way to get used to a stool. LOL you'll get confortable real fast. Works for me though I doubt it is a good method to follow for long.
I feel the stool limits you... You have to work your way around the bass more then moving the bass so it works around you (if you get what I mean)... If I go up the fingerboard, I like to step forward and move the bass forward...
I like to keep a stool near by so I can take a seat during a break...
I like to keep a stool near by so I can take a seat during a break...
In most orchastral music the basses don't usualy go up the fingerboard. If so you can just stand up. The only time I use a stool is when I get tired standing up in rehearsal.
SLaPiNFuNK said:
I think of sitting on the stool in a completely different way, for almost the same reasons!
I think that not moving the bass around so much is a good thing. If you use the same stool in practice as in concerts, you sit at the same height all the time. The bass doesnt move (although its not completely unmovable while you play) so, you increase the accuracy of muscle memory, as well as not wasting energy unnecessarily.
Sitting lower than most, with both feet on the ground, I found I was much less tired than when i was standing. Having the bass at a less vertical angle also allows me to 'hang' off the fingerboard more with the left hand, which helps me keep everything 'dropped' and relaxed.
When I go to thumb position, the bass stays still, there's no movement forward or backwards, which keeps things simple for both left hand and bowing. Also, it's much easier to see the bass from this position.
Theese days i always play on a stool , even when doing rocky jazzconcerts and stuff 
For me , i feel its gives you the best technique and the best view of the neck . In the beggining i always measured how high the stool and the endpin was so i always would get the same position , very helpful so you dont have to change your technique every time you take up the stool ..
For me , i feel its gives you the best technique and the best view of the neck . In the beggining i always measured how high the stool and the endpin was so i always would get the same position , very helpful so you dont have to change your technique every time you take up the stool ..
Conor MacCarthy said:
Yeah , same for me , i sit very low , almost like a normal kitchen chair , this is really great if you practice long time or long concerts . but i guess this is only possible if you have a 3/4 bass .. ?
It takes time to get used to sitting with a stool but it's well worth it. I feel I could play comfortably for a lot longer sitting. yes you do have to work around the bass a little bit more but it doesn't bother me for it keeps my back from hurting. My reccomendation is to get a lower stool and sit with both feet on the ground similar to how a cellist sits but not quite exactly. I like this position because I can always keep my back straight which keeps the pain away and also the higher notes for solo work are right infront of me so I don't have to bend over to reach them. Another recommendation is to get a stool with a cushion because sometimes the butt can get a little sore.
It took me about three months to adjust to sitting on a stool - mainly because of my back. I use a low one , about 241/2" - I try and keep both feet on the floor, back straight (not arching or curved) head & neck loose etc - what all the yoga/alexander people talk about... It helps.
For the road I use a a "Franklin" folding bar stool from IKEA -- $24.99!!
Louis
For the road I use a a "Franklin" folding bar stool from IKEA -- $24.99!!
Louis
LouisF said:
i sit on a low stool too, same height as yours. however i put my left foot up on the footrest thing of the stool. the only reason is when i leave my left foot on the floor, the bass seems too far away from me, and when i raise my foot, it rasies my thigh/knee on which the bass rests so it brings the bass in closer to me.
when you rest both feet on the floor, you don't feel like the bass is too far away?
OK - so I cheat from time to time (especially in tricky passages) and get the foot on the rung and the bass tucked in a little tighter... I'm also told by the same yoga/alexander types that if I dropped twenty pounds a) back would feel better and b) bass would sit closer WITH both feet on the ground...
It never ends!
Louis
It never ends!
Louis
LouisF said:
thats interesting. i'm 5'6", 140 lbs, so i'm not overweight or anything that would restrict the bass from coming closer. i also just started playing on a stool about two months ago after playing without one for about 10 years, so maybe, as with all things double bass, it just takes some time. whaaatever.
bassist14 said:
bassist14, do you mean that you play jazz bass? I asked the question because I'm interested in the idea, but with the bass facing more squarely away from me (as I understand "two-feeters" do), it seems to make the pizz on the G a little more awkward. Do you find it so?
LouisF said:
Only the ones that play French bow.
jguevin said:
i play a one or two jazz gigs a month (thankfully $$$) and sit the same way. Again, i find it better for all the reasons i mentioned above. I don't gind it more akward on the g string. Remember, the bass is not in completely a 'cello' position - the left knee is touching the back of the bass near the C bout, and the right knee is not in contact with the bass, rather the inner thigh is. My knee comes to out to about the level of the top. So the bass isn't squarely facing away, but at a considerable angle. Not enough to have the bow hitting against the right knee when you play on the E string, but enough to have the G string easily accessable.
Tip: if your bass is a flat-back, you might want to put a cloth on your left knee, as it can get uncomfortable after a few hours.
jguevin said:
hi jguevin,
what i wanted to say is: for me the position i sit depends not on the style of music i play. i play 90% classical an 10% jazz, most in the "two feet on the floor"-position. the way i do it is perfectly described in the post of Conor MacCarthy. (thanks, Conor)
sometimes i play up to 8-9 hours a day in this position and for me, at this time, its the only postion i tried in my over 20 years of bassplaying that not hurts my back after long times of playing.
imho very important is a bycycle-saddle type of stool.
(this is the one i use: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] )
i hope i could explain what i mean, please excuse my bad english.
hope it helps
bassist14
