• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Double Bass Playing on a stool

#61
I play about 50/50 standing and sitting, and I have come to think that each has its own advantages. Sitting gives me much better classical technique, but is also the best when I'm playing with electronics and pedels etc as I can use both feet! But standing does give me more pizz oomph, and I feel a better rhythmic grounding overall. So it depends on the kind of music I'm playing.

I use an adjustable drum stool, with both feet on the floor, sitting much like a cellist, as I am very tall.
 
#62
bear said:
When you develop severe arthritis in your lower body, you will learn how to play on a stool.
I can't seem to find that 14052 K&M stool anywhere but in european outlets. Is there a US equivalent?
Click to expand...

I use a similar bicycle-style seat made here in the USA..Invalid Link Removed. It's made by Roc N Soc, which started as a drum seat maker, but now make them for double bass players. I find it very comfortable, and light enough to carry around.
 
#64
if you have trouble getting around the bass on the stool, your stool is probably too short.

im a relatively small guy (5'9) and i use a 32 inch stool.

i use a stool because after playing standing up for many years, many people tend to develop back problems.
the stool solves that.

the best technique is to hold the bass in almost a cello like fashion. face the bass away from you more, so you dont hit your right leg with the bow.
 
#70
Dennis Frati said:
How do you know him, Don?

Regards,
Dennis
Click to expand...
In '58-58, I spent every Friday and Saturday sitting in with vibist Sonny Casso at the Grand Lounge, a club on the corner of Washington and ???. Sonny was a great player and jazz mentor to me. He thought it was funny that a kid from Brown was so into the local jazz scene. That was 50 years ago, so memory is cloudy. I don't remember if it was Bobby's gig, or if I just remember hearing his name so much from local players. I got to play with some great players who would come by, like Dave McKenna (who as we all know, doesn't really need a bassist.:)).
 
#71
Just got a new stool !
The brown truck came an hour ago .
Got it from the company that builds stool for the royal orchestra and the royal music colleges. Great quality , about 170$.

Link Removed

Very portable and light , i love it so far !
 
#74
I just bought a bar-stool for like 20 bucks. Works like a wonder, but I really need to install some kind of soft pad on the seat:D:D
Anyway, now I find it way easier to enter into the upper areas. Thumb position is easier, but that might also be because of my bad standing balance.
 
#76
Conor MacCarthy 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.
Click to expand...

I find this method to only work if you're very tall, at least 6'0"
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back