Double Bass What Do You Call It?

[BassNoob1]

Double Bass? Acoustic bass? Upright bass? Bass violin? Bass fiddle? What do you call it?

I call it an upright bass, that's just what my teacher says, so that's what I've picked up on.

 

[oi_pride]

Double Bass? Acoustic bass? Upright bass? Bass violin? Bass fiddle? What do you call it?

I call it an upright bass, that's just what my teacher says, so that's what I've picked up on.

all the above, or just a bass. i've also heard stand-up bass.

 

[waleross]

String Bass not to be confused with the electric bass guitar...

 

[El Thumpo]

It's a double bass. Calling it an "upright bass" makes sense only in the context of the bass guitar, which wasn't invented until several centuries later.

That said, I don't flinch when others say "upright," and will use the term myself to get my point across. But from an historical standpoint: double bass.

 

[bassmnky13]

Upright bass, bass, stand-up bass.

 

[iiipopes]

Bull fiddle (remember, I live near Branson, MO).

 

[bassteban]

The Big One.

 

[kevin_lindsay]

I call mine the 'double bass'........ Either that, or 'the money pit'!!! Hahaha

 

[T-Bird]

Hi.

Kontrabasso, translates as a contra-bass.

The "official" name for it in Finnish AFAIK.

Regards
Sam

 

[Tejano Bass]

BassNoob1, et al - See the header at the top of this and every other page of this forum . . .

"Basses [DB] Discussion on the instrument: double bass, string bass, contrabass, bass viol, acoustic bass, upright bass, standup bass, bass fiddle, bass violin, doghouse bass, bull fiddle... "

 

[r.t.swing]

George

 

[drurb]

George

Now there's an idea for an interesting thread.... Thanks.

 

[r.t.swing]

That thread is all yours.

 

[drurb]

That thread is all yours.

It's been done. Maybe it's time to resurrect it. Care to add George to the list?

 

[GreggBummer]

I have read differing explanations as to why it is called a "double" bass. Anyone care to tell me where the name came from.

Mr. Fallon, my high school band teacher back in 1988 told me it was called a "double" bass because you needed two kids to carry it. I thought it was hilarious at the time.

 

[timobee4]

Tracy.

 

[iiipopes]

I have read differing explanations as to why it is called a "double" bass. Anyone care to tell me where the name came from.

Mr. Fallon, my high school band teacher back in 1988 told me it was called a "double" bass because you needed two kids to carry it. I thought it was hilarious at the time.

That is funny. But seriously, I always thought it was because it played roughly an octave below the cello, but scoring convention was to write the notes an octave up from actual pitch to avoid all the ledger lines below the staff, hence, either "doubling" a cello, or "double" the octave down.

 

[Rebop]

An old bandleader of mine called it the wooden lady.

 

[Tampabass]

I tend to use the word "upright" (I'm a doubler). On a lot of jazz recordings you see the term "acoustic bass." But the introduction of the acoustic bass guitar messed that up, thank you very much .

string bass, double bass, contrabass, doghouse bass, bull fiddle, bass fiddle, bass violin, double bass ...

overfed violin, glorified firewood

 

[jmmcc]

Real Bass