How to Play Upright Bass Instructional Book

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Learn how to play the Upright Bass with this easy to follow instructional book and audio CD. Andy Howald will teach the absolute basics of this instrument which is also known as a Bass Violin, Double Bass, Standup Bass, Contrabass, String Bass, or Acoustic Bass. Learn the beginning concepts and techniques that every bassist needs to know.

Upright Bass Primer Contents: Parts of the Bass Playing Condition Holding the Bass Right Hand Position Tuning Left Hand Technique Finger Placement Fingering Positions Marking Positions Tablature Playing Notes Chords Muting Playing Songs Practice Tips

Featured Songs: Tom Dooley 3 Chord Song Going Down That Road Soldier's Joy Nine Pound Hammer Sitting On Top of the World He's Got the Whole World Dark Hollow Going Down that Road Version 2 Bass Walks Pretty Polly Reuben's Train John Hardy Cryin Holy Little Maggie Pallet on Your Floor Wabash Cannonball Way Downtown

The string bass is the most commonly-used bass instrument in bluegrass music and is almost always plucked, though some modern bluegrass bassists have also used a bow. The bluegrass bassist is part of the rhythm section, and is responsible for keeping a steady beat, whether fast, slow, in 4/4 time, 2/4 or 3/4 time. The Englehardt or Kay brands of plywood laminate basses have long been popular choices for bluegrass bassists. Most bluegrass bassists use the 3/4 size bass, but the full and 5/8 size basses are also used.

Early pre-bluegrass music was often accompanied by the cello, which was bowed as often as plucked. Some contemporary bluegrass bands favor the electric bass in an effort to avoid transporting a very large yet delicate instrument on road trips and tours, but it has a different musical quality than the plucked upright bass. The upright bass' slower attack and its percussive, woody tone gives a more "earthy" or "natural" sound than an electric bass, particularly when gut strings are used.

Common rhythms in bluegrass bass playing involve (with some exceptions) plucking on beats 1 and 3 in 4/4 time; beats 1 and 2 in 2/4 time, and on the downbeat in 3/4 time (waltz time). Bluegrass bass lines are usually simple, typically staying on the root and fifth of each chord throughout most of a song. There are two main exceptions to this "rule". Bluegrass bassists often do a diatonic "walkup" or "walkdown" in which they play every beat of a bar for one or two bars, typically when there is a chord change. In addition, if a bass player is given a solo, they may play a walking bass line with a note on every beat or play a pentatonic scale-influenced bassline."