The Double Bass or Stand Up Bass is the largest and the lowest pitched of all bowed string instruments that is used as a part of the modern symphony orchestra. The stand up bass is a standard member of the symphony orchestra's string section as well as smaller string ensembles as well in Western classical style music. Additionally, the stand up bass is utilized in numerous other genres, including 1950s style blues, jazz and rock and roll, bluegrass, tango and rockabilly or psychobilly. The stand up bass instrument is constructed from several different types of wood. For example, maple is often used for the back, spruce is often used for the top and ebony is often used for the fingerboard portion of the stand up bass.

Stand up bass instruments may be a descendant of the viola da gamba, or from the violin, but their origins are not completely clear and their history is largely based on speculation. The stand up bass is traditionally viewed to be a member of the violin family however, simply because of the nature in which the instrument is played. The stand up bass or double bass has numerous features that are similar to what you will find in other instruments from the violin family; however it also possesses unique characteristics that more closely remember those that come from instruments derived from the viol family of instruments.

The stand up bass, like many other types of stringed instruments, can be played either with a bow or simply by plucking the strings with fingers or a pick. The act of playing the stand up bass with a bow is known as arco. When you play the instrument by plucking the strings either with your fingers or with a pick, the playing style is known as pizzicato. Both bowing and plucking styles of play are used in orchestral repertoire music and tango music. In jazz music, the bass is usually plucked more than bowed, unless it comes to some jazz solos which are primarily performed using the bow. In many other genres, the bass is primarily plucked, similar to a bass guitar.

Any person who plays a stand up bass or traditional bass instrument is called a bassist, a double bassist, a contrabassist, a contrabass player, a double bass player or simply a bass player. The standard English name for this instrument is the double bass, which is a reference to the older naming notation where notes that existed below C3 were notating using two of the same letter of the note twice. For example, an E2 note would be either EE or Double EE in this circumstance. The double bass name is not related to the physical size of the instrument at all. The name may be derived from its potential family heritage and relation to the viol, because the double bass or stand up bass is tuned much lower than the standard bass viola da gamba. The name may also refer to the sounding pitch of the stand up bass, which is an entire octave lower than the bass clef.

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Originally posted 2008-11-27 05:35:23. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Acoustic Musical Instruments, Bass, Instrument History

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bass instrument, bass instruments, blues jazz, bowed string instruments, classical style music, different types of wood, double bass, jazz music, jazz solos, many other types, orchestral repertoire, pizzicato, several different types, string ensembles, string section, stringed instruments, tango music, viol family, viola da gamba, violin family