Wulf's Web-Den

I came across an interesting website yesterday called write rhymes. You type text into a box and then, after selecting a word, it will suggest various rhymes.

It didn't seem to function on the Linux machine I tried it on at work but operates fine back home on my Mac. That quirk makes me a little hesitant to recommend it but it is a free tool, so why not? If you are trying to craft poems and lyrics, it will help you hone your rhyme-fu!

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I was recently talking with my brother, Magnus, about the Simandl positions I mentioned earlier this month when I was blogging about my efforts to learn double bass. I had picked out a pattern for remembering the position names (the sequence of natural notes on the A string) but remained puzzled by the logic behind this.

Apparently the same positions are also used on other members of the strings family. Picking the A string doesn't seem to make much sense on the double bass (or violin), where it is one of the inner strings. However, cello and viola are typically tuned CGDA. Setting the positions off the highest string does make more sense.

This probably explains why Simandl does not explain his reasons; he was simply passing on an established standard rather than stepping back to first principles. The answer is not completely satisfactory but will do for now.

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Normally I post my latest fiftytwo self portrait on Saturday morning but that will have to wait until tomorrow. The picture is already taken and published on Flickr but instead I wanted to write about another musical landmark - my first gig playing (almost) only the electric upright bass.

It was a jazz gig with The Pico Brown Five over at Woodcote Golf Club, where we have played several times this year. I took both the upright and my Sei 6 string, expecting to swap after a few tunes or if something fast was called. As it was, I found the upright flowed well and my fingers held up, so I stayed on it most of the evening.

The only tune I changed bass for was my own composition, Faraway Street (you can listen to an earlier recording on the band website), because it has a rather funky bridge section that I didn't think I would nail. It felt strange having that tiny, light stringed instrument in my hands. I have to confess that it was also the tune I mucked up most, starting in entirely the wrong key because I forgot that my six string is in a non-standard tuning.

Ho-hum. Most of the rest sounded pretty good (although it won't be until later today that I get to listen to my recording). I am definitely progressing on the upright though. I hope that I will sound better in a few months but it is definitely getting there and much quicker than I had dared to hope.

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Since getting my electric upright bass, I have been practising with it and have taken it out a few times - to an Elusive Teeth rehearsal and to a church service. However, I have had my other bass on hand as a backup.

This morning, I want to travel a bit lighter and so have decided to just take the upright to church with me. This should be fun...!

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Last week I mentioned that I was using Simandl's New Method for the Double Bass. I cannot find the date when it was first published but, since Simandl died in 1912, it must be a century or more old!

One of the key features of this method is the use of various playing positions. The neck is broken into overlapping chunks, each spanning three notes. A typical passage of music will require movement through several positions, with the structure assisting the left hand in coping with the tension of the strings. What is lacking in the book is any explanation of why the particular positions have been chosen. Positions 1-7 span the neck to a tone above the octave but they are not evenly spaced. The exercises move up a semitone each time; sometimes you jump up another number and sometimes you are left in an "intermediate" position.

Last night I skimmed through the book and drew a diagram to try and unpick the logic. The most obvious pattern was that each numbered position starts with a natural note on the A string. First position begins on a level with the B on that string, second position begins on a level with C and third position begins on a level with D. That still does not answer why the positions were picked but at least gives a framework to help remember the convention.

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The new EUB is very different instrument to my Sei bass (which has six super-light gauge strings which barely need more than a look to fret them). Any instrument needs to be treated with respect but this is particularly true of such a large and demanding beast.

I am paying careful attention to the things I learnt in the lessons I had when I previously rented a double bass, such as keeping my left elbow up and my wrist fairly straight (avoiding the problems that come from high pressure through a bent wrist). I am also working through the Simandl book I bought last time around, starting from the beginning again and paying attention not just to intonation but also the 1 - 2 - 4 fingering (supporting each finger with all the ones behind it) and not rushing or practising for too long at once.

Even on electric bass, I gave up on strict adherence to "one finger per fret" a long time ago. It is great and occasionally vital for some passages but I generally keep my hand in a more relaxed position. I am keen on playing in a way that is relaxed and safe; moving to the much greater string tension and scale length of a DB makes that all the more vital as a foundation.

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On Friday evening I picked up a second-hand Stagg Electric Upright Bass from a fellow bassist from the earlier this month (and which funded most of this new acquisition.

I am not a complete beginner in the world of double bass, having rented one for a few months at the end of 2004. We had an extra service at church yesterday evening so I decided to take it along, on the grounds that I couldn't ask for a more forgiving setting to make my DB performing debut.

All in all, it went very well, although I did revert to my normal bass for a couple of songs. I think it will definitely work as an option for church in future; my next challenge is to be ready to take it out on a jazz gig!

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