Double Bass Your thoughts #2 - shifting while slurring

[David Potts]

I think of three sizes of shift,

Small (within the hand span, where the hand moves 1/2 or whole tone),

Walking (eg from First to Third Position during D Major scale, where the first finger passes the fourth)

Jumping (eg 2 octaves into Thumb Position, where the thumb and fingers lose contact with the neck).

Students of the smaller strings (Vln, Vla and Cello) are trained to articulate slurred passages very clearly as they walk/run/sprint up and down strings in slurred passages. Our string length is much greater and strings are heavier, with greater clearance from the fingerboard.

Do you have any ideas, tips and tricks to share about how to teach and develop clear articulation of slurred passages when using walking shifts, eg when playing any scale or arpeggio over two or three octaves?

Best wishes,

DP

 

[damonsmith]

I always think it is ok for the bow to stop for a split second as long as it does not change direction! This is especially helpful to keep in mind for slurs that skip over strings.

 

[eerbrev]

Eugene Levinson had an article in the Strad two months ago, i think, on just this. I photocopied it for posterity. did you get a chance to see it, David?

eerbrev

 

[David Potts]

Thanks eerbrev, I missed this. I bought Levinson's book on Agility in which he seems to promote a lot of slurred bowing. In what i have seen so far there are no tips on techniques to achieve the clarity that is demanded of the higher, smaller strings.

If my fax machine wasn't dead I would have asked you for a copy. Instead I shall look on library shelves.

Cheers........
DP

 

[eerbrev]

It's in the April 2012 edition, just so you know, David. I was also dissatisfied with the Agility book, and I'm glad I only borrowed my friend's to look at. I don't know if the article covers exactly what you want but it has a lot of useful concepts on how to shift, the different kinds of shifts you can use, and when to use them. I don't know if I necessarily agree or disagree with any of it, but it's always interesting to see how other people approach shifting and fingering.

I am a student finishing my bachelor's degree (one semester left, then going for a masters) and not a professional teacher by any means or description, but I do think a lot about how to approach technical aspects because they've always been my weaker side, with my musical side often leading the way.

With that out of the way (and hopefully I won't tread on any teachers' toes here) I have a few thoughts. A good way to encourage articulation in shifting is to remove the right hand altogether, and only use the left hand to articulate the notes. maybe a one octave G scale on the G string ensuring that every note can be heard without using the right hand to pluck the string. This encourages what's referred to in electric playing (and increasingly in upright playing) as the "hammer on", or weighted articulation of a note with the left hand and the "pull off", or plucked articulation of the string as a finger is removed. These concepts apply best to movement inside of a position (1 - hammer on - 4 and 4 - pull off - 1), but they can also be used through the shift as a mental excercise, so, "4, imaginary pull off while shifting up to 1" and "1 imaginary hammer on while shifting down to 4".

Does this make sense? hopefully I'm not out of my depth here.

eerbrev

 

[ThumpPlunkJunk]

I had a masterclass with a Philly sub who told us to do just that, Eerbrev.

Thinking about having your fingers already on the next note also helps. It's just like diction--only we use our fingers and thumb for diction on the bass.

Not mushing your left hand also helps--keeping it in a curved shape and being deliberate about your fingering should make it sound a little cleaner. If you rush it, it will sound rushed.

 

[David Potts]

Thanks errbrev. I found a copy of the April Strad. and it did not satisfy my quest. The "hammer on" is Ok but the "pull off" is still alien.

I have just found 15 Double Bass lessons by Michael Klinghoffer on You tube that allude to this technique. He has written a book called How to drive a Double Bass, based on Gary Karr's teaching. I am going to buy it.

My LH approach has always been to shape the fingers like a pianist's and then raise and lower them by flapping from the big knuckles, not bending and straightening them. I try to have good alignment from elbow to fingertips, hoping to minimise pronation on the E string. Klinghoffer appears to advocate the opposite but I must say he makes an awfully good sound. Maybe he has the explanation for "pulling off."

Cheers,
DP

 

[Josh_Schwalbach]

This might be getting off-topic a little, but I'm not sure I totally agree with the concept of "Jumping" shifts. I personally think it is best to maintain contact with the neck/fingerboard whenever possible. This gives the player greater awareness of where they are at all times. Intonation and large shifts tend to be much more accurate this way and (even more importantly IMO), the tone will remain more consistent because the shape of the hand is less likely to contort during the shift.

I think it is also important for the player to be aware of what part of the finger is contacting the string, and to make sure that this stays consistent. Color and tone can be varied by changing the contact point on the finger (more fingertip, more pad, etc.) and by changing the amount of weight that is put into the string. But, as with bow variances in weight and contact point, it is usually best when these changes are made deliberately and not because the player is not aware of them. Consistency will lead to clarity.

 

[David Potts]

Josh, can you maintain close contact with strings and neck when you, say, jump from B flat 1/2 position A string to B flat 1st finger thumb position? I call this a Bungey Jump or Death Defying Leap, or even a Leap of Faith. Especially if you don't use your forearm hitting the ribs to set your hand in thumb position.

My main concern is about how to produce clear articulation of fast slurred passage up and down the strings, e.g. scales and arpeggios over two or more octaves. What works against us are (1) the distances we have to cover and, (2) the slowness of notes to reach full tone.

My articulation is clearer going up strings than down, when there is often a small
blemish just as I land. Yes, I can train my hand to move and stop faster and perhaps there is a way of reaching continuous motion with the hand while the fingers almost tap the notes down (like a pianist?). Obviously the higher strings travel smaller distances on strings that respond faster however they are also assisted by technique of hammer down and pull off that is never mentioned in bass techniques discussed here.

Looking at Michael Klinghoffer's 10 Lessons on Youtube, he says to bend fingers to raise and lower them, not flap the from the big knuckles, the way I was taught. Bending the fingers would assist clarity by almost plucking the notes as they lift. This technique seems to enable fast slurred runs to be crystal-clear on the violin.

DP

 

[Josh_Schwalbach]

David,

I love the term "Leap of Faith," it definitely applies to large shifts. I'll try to clarify myself a little bit. Of course the nature of a shift will depend on the musical context, but I think it is usually best (in order to help strengthen your faith ) to keep some contact with the instrument at all times. This doesn't mean that the fingers need to be firmly pressing the string down or that the hand needs to be squeezing the neck, but if the fingers and hand completely leave the neck/strings, most spatial references are lost. When shifting on one string (say from the B-flat in half position to the B-flat in thumb position) I would say that the first finger should remain in contact with the string the entire time for these reasons:

1. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line (the string) and it is the most efficient motion

2. By maintaining contact with the string in the left hand, the player maintains control with the bow, as there is constant feedback throughout the shift with regard to the necessary bow speed

See this video of Jeff Bradetich for a demonstration of what I am talking about:



All of this is for legato shifting, but I believe it applies to other shifts as well. If the two notes are to be played separately, it's helpful to practice them slurred in order to become aware of the spatial relation between the two positions.

Sorry for the long digression. As for clear articulation during fast slurred passages (something I struggle with as well), I would say that the problem sometimes lies in the bow. The bow is what produces the sound and if there is not clarity in the bow, then it does not really matter what the left hand is doing. I think Gary Karr says something to the effect of "the bow speed should always be the speed of the lowest note"

If you are playing a descending passage and starting with a fast bow speed (which one usually thinks to do on higher notes) then the bow speed is sure to be too fast as you descend and you will lose clarity and likely end the descent with a feeling of lost control. Try practicing with a slow bow with sufficient contact with the string and often times the left hand will fix itself. Unnecessary flopping back and forth of the hand can cause unevenness as well. I think the best thing to do in any situation is to try a bunch of different things and see/hear what works best for you.

Hope this helps

 

[David Potts]

Thanks, Josh, for taking the time to express your thoughts well. I am enjoying revisiting much of my repertoire now that I have a lovely"new" smaller bass than the ones I used as a tutti player in a large professional section - I am now semi-retired. The pernambuco bows I have are very good but I am having a lot of fun with a Finale bow that helps point up the small flaws in timing, coordination and articulation.

Have you ever played the Corelli or Galliard Sonatas? There are examples of the Leap of Faith that rapidly changes strings and positions while using separate bows!!

DP

 

[Josh_Schwalbach]

There is definitely no shortage of acrobatics required for those Baroque transcriptions, especially the Italian ones (the Italians seem to love disjointed leaps!). Seeing music like that makes me want to experiment with fifths tuning...

P.S. The Finale bows are fantastic! Your really get a lot of bang for your buck with those, I would definitely recommend them to anyone who hasn't tried them.