lol Yeah that guy, I think there were a few others IIRC
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What defines a modern "contrabass guitar"?
- Thread starter twinjet
- Start date
lol Yeah that guy, I think there were a few others IIRC
If we run out, we’ll make up more stuff nobody cares about to argue over.It would be a sad day if we ran out of bickering fodder.
At first blush, I agree. As I listen to this crafty young man, He's clearly stating his aim was to stop playing in unison with 7-8 string guitars in "metal"/ "death metal" genre's and experiment with playing an octave lower. A bit "out there", for sure, but in a high energy, wall of live sound production, I can see his point - that sub-audible rumble may actually work in that setting. It's done with electronic drums very regularly to trigger bass drops and sonic booms, all manner of earth shaking effects.
Hey wait! Ain't all things bass OUR department?!
Not my cup of tea, but I love the open-minded experimentation approach, and find there could be some hidden validity for the right players to execute their sound and reproduce the vibe they are after.
Screw that octave pedal and trigger pads. Stings, magnets and wires only for me, man!
Let's take back the bass department.
ALL of it!
Well, different instrument families do this differently.
If we start with saxophones, there are sopranino in Eb, soprano in Bb, alto in Eb, tenor in Bb, baritone in Eb, bass in Bb, and contrabass in Eb. (Plus some oddballs.)
Now with clarinets the ordinary clarinet is the soprano in Bb, then there's an alto in Eb, but no tenor clarinet, no baritone clarinet, you go right to bass clarinet in Bb an octave below the soprano.
Flutes have something similar where the soprano flute is the concert flute in C, alto flute in G (analogous to alto and soprano sax), but then bass flute is an octave below the soprano, like in clarinets. And there's a thing called "treble" flute in Eb or G, in between the C flute and the piccolo which is also in C.
Now in violins, we have the violin, which could be called the soprano member - then viola which in many languages is called alto, a fifth below, but then the bass of the family is the cello which is an octave below the alto/viola; so kind of a high pitched bass; and then the double-bass an octave and a half below the cello.
Bass trombone is actually pitched the same as tenor trombone, just with a much larger bore so it's easier to play the lower notes, and generally with a couple valved extensions to extend the lowest notes. But with the slide closed and no valves actuated, the pedal tone is the same.
All the tubas are considered "basses" even though they come in four flavors BBb, CC, EEb, and FF.
So there is no consistency in how different instrument families designate their members, which means that getting your knickers in a twist over it is like teaching a pig to sing: it wastes your time and annoys the pig.
If we start with saxophones, there are sopranino in Eb, soprano in Bb, alto in Eb, tenor in Bb, baritone in Eb, bass in Bb, and contrabass in Eb. (Plus some oddballs.)
Now with clarinets the ordinary clarinet is the soprano in Bb, then there's an alto in Eb, but no tenor clarinet, no baritone clarinet, you go right to bass clarinet in Bb an octave below the soprano.
Flutes have something similar where the soprano flute is the concert flute in C, alto flute in G (analogous to alto and soprano sax), but then bass flute is an octave below the soprano, like in clarinets. And there's a thing called "treble" flute in Eb or G, in between the C flute and the piccolo which is also in C.
Now in violins, we have the violin, which could be called the soprano member - then viola which in many languages is called alto, a fifth below, but then the bass of the family is the cello which is an octave below the alto/viola; so kind of a high pitched bass; and then the double-bass an octave and a half below the cello.
Bass trombone is actually pitched the same as tenor trombone, just with a much larger bore so it's easier to play the lower notes, and generally with a couple valved extensions to extend the lowest notes. But with the slide closed and no valves actuated, the pedal tone is the same.
All the tubas are considered "basses" even though they come in four flavors BBb, CC, EEb, and FF.
So there is no consistency in how different instrument families designate their members, which means that getting your knickers in a twist over it is like teaching a pig to sing: it wastes your time and annoys the pig.
Oliver North did not feel posh when he was questioned about the contras.
Seriously It's what bass was already called in Italian and orchestral terms. I taught that was strange to call it that way and the 36 inch scale was also not started by Fodera. Tune (Japan) had a model or 2 forever - Remember Benny played for Miles and used Tune basses - they already had it in their catalog. No Benny was using a 34 scale.
I say linguistic appropriation
The double bass is just a sixth below the cello, I know we love our bass power, but let's not exaggerate it ^^
Words… mean different things to different people at different times…
Ok, even if we go with AJs definition, it’s simply the low B that defines the contrabass. The key is going below the bass guitar range (he was also adamant that the bass guitar is in the guitar family). Remember, the name came even before No. 1 was made, and the designs/specs varied over the years. So it has nothing to do with scale, number of frets, etc…
From the Jisi interview…
Ok, even if we go with AJs definition, it’s simply the low B that defines the contrabass. The key is going below the bass guitar range (he was also adamant that the bass guitar is in the guitar family). Remember, the name came even before No. 1 was made, and the designs/specs varied over the years. So it has nothing to do with scale, number of frets, etc…
From the Jisi interview…
The Ibanez SRD905 has only 5 strings but it's got 30 frets, so it has the same range as a 6-string with 24 frets. Does this make it a contrabass guitar?
(I'm curious about how people think about the term "contrabass guitar", not trying to troll you all over a lack of consensus on a strict definition.)
I would like one of those.The Ibanez SRD905 has only 5 strings but it's got 30 frets, so it has the same range as a 6-string with 24 frets. Does this make it a contrabass guitar?
(I'm curious about how people think about the term "contrab
Contrabass saxophone in Eb, an octave below a baritone saxophone.
And you thought finding room for an SVT fridge in your car was difficult
Saxophones are transposing instruments, mainly in Bb and Eb. The typical order is soprano in Bb, alto in Eb, tenor in Bb, baritone in Eb, bass in Bb, contrabass in Eb. Each Eb sax is a fourth below the Bb sax above it in pitch, and from one Eb sax to another is an octave, just as from one Bb sax to another is an octave.
The double bass/string bass/upright bass/bass viol/contrabass/ugly girlfriend
violin G D A E
viola C G D A
tenor violin G D A E
cello C G D A
bass E A D G
octobass E A D G (an octave below DB)
The EADG tuning of course was carried over to the bass guitar.
P.S. Apparently there was a bass violin that existed in the 16th and 17th centuries prior to the adoption of the cello. It was tuned like a cello but had a larger body.
There are also acoustic piccolo basses, Ron Carter plays one.
View attachment 7353702
Considering all of the people who have recently departed, still having Ron Carter not only alive, but still gigging, is a wonderful blessing.
I have tickets to see him in December. Might be the last time...
At any age, anytime could be the last time. Remember Scott LaFaro was only one year older than Ron Carter, and he has been gone 64 years.
