Double Bass

...I decided to buy a double bass. In his younger days my partner had played the electric bass in various bands and had always said one day he would like to have a double bass. Well now he has.

♫ ♫ What is a double bass? ♫ ♫

Well I suppose the short answer is that it looks like a giant violin, although it’s actually descended from an instrument called the viol. It dates as far back as the 16th century ...
...suggests it is because the double bass is approximately twice (or double) the size of a cello and plays an octave lower.

The first thing you notice about the double bass is its size. Ours (which is a ¾ size) measures 72inches high and that is without the endpin extended! It has a tonal range of just over two octaves. Like all the string instruments you can rub the hairs of a bow across the strings to make the sound. Different notes ... more

My family are all rather musical and we have acquired quite a collection of instruments over the years. For a significant anniversary I decided to buy a double bass. In his younger days my partner had played the electric bass in various bands and had always said one day he would like to have a double bass. Well now he has.

♫ ♫ What is a double bass? ♫ ♫

Well I suppose the short answer is that it looks like a giant violin, although it’s actually descended from an instrument called the viol. It dates as far back as the 16th century and is the largest and lowest sounding instrument in the string family of instruments. The other instruments in this family are the viola, the violin and the cello.

No one seems quite certain where the name comes from but one theory suggests it is because the double bass is approximately twice (or double) the size of a cello and plays an octave lower.

The first thing you notice about the double bass is its size. Ours (which is a ¾ size) measures 72inches high and that is without the endpin extended! It has a tonal range of just over two octaves. Like all the string instruments you can rub the hairs of a bow across the strings to make the sound. Different notes are made by stopping the strings against the fingerboard with (usually) your left hand. The player of a double bass also has the option to pluck the strings (called pizzicato).

♫ ♫ Parts of a double bass, going from top to bottom ♫ ♫

The curve at the top is called a scroll and is purely decorative.

Directly under this is found the peg box which differs in construction to the violin, viola and cello. While the violin cello and viola all have friction pegs which wind one end of the strings to make them longer or shorter for major tuning, the double bass has machine heads and cog wheels, usually made of brass. These are more heavy duty which is required for the high string tension, but they are also are more accurate which means a double bass does not need the ‘fine tuners’ found on the other string instruments (at the other end looking like a small screw for, as the name suggests, fine tuning).

The neck of the double bass is usually made from maple with a fingerboard usually constructed of ebony. It is unfretted which means it does not have the small raised lines commonly seen on some other instruments such as the guitar.

The main body can be either fully carved, fully laminate or a combination of the two, and is traditionally made from maple. Some bass’s are now made of a composite material and these are popular with music schools or for touring as they are more resistant to changes in humidity or heat. The back of the instrument can vary from being a round back similar to that of the violin, or a flat and angled back similar to the viol family (with variations in between). All these variants in effect means one double bass can look and sound very different to another. This also partially explains the huge range of prices.

The hollow body amplifies the tone of the plucked or bowed strings. This body is called the soundbox. Inside the soundbox is found a sound post which is a thin stick of wood underneath and slightly to the right of the bridge, connecting the front to the back of the bass. Also in the soundbox is a bass bar which is a strip of wood glued underneath to the left side of the bridge. The sound post and bass bar are both involved in the conduction of the sound.

The bridge is a rather ornate looking piece of wood between the body of the bass and the strings and its job is to hold the strings off the body of the instrument. It is actually held in position by the pressure of the strings.

Cut into the soundbox on either side of the strings are sound-holes which can be shaped either like a backwards 'C' or a curly ‘f’. Their job is to let out the sound.

Below the bridge is a paddle shaped piece of wood that anchors the bottom end of the strings. This is called the tailpiece. These are traditionally made either of ebony or maple. The heavier ebony tends to dampen the sound which makes to tone more mellow and the lighter maple makes the tone lighter. On cheaper double basses these can also made of plastic.

The tailpiece is connected by wire to the endpin which is a metal spike on the bottom of the bass. This is retractable so it doesn’t become a lethal weapon when being transported!

♫ ♫ How big? ♫ ♫

Double basses like the other stringed instruments come in a range of sizes. The trouble with learning double bass particularly for the young is the shear size of the instrument and finger stretch required. For many years now the half and three-quarter size bass have been readily available and in the 1990’s it became possible to buy a quarter, an eighth and even a sixteenth size bass. My youngest daughter started playing a violin on a 1/8th size instrument! I must admit it did look rather like a toy. The ¾ size double bass is the most popular size today as it is slightly easier to store, transport etc. The ¾ size I bought just fitted into my Espace car, I’m not sure it would squeeze in a regular size saloon car.

♫ ♫ The strings ♫ ♫

Historically double bass strings were made from gut but these has now been largely replaced by steel strings which are less prone to break and are less sensitive to changes in temperature and humidity. Some players, particularly those who pluck rather than bow, (for example the blues or rockabilly styles), prefer the thud that gut strings produce and some classical baroque players prefer the warmer tones of gut. I guess it is largely personal choice and style.

♫ ♫ Tuning ♫ ♫

The strings are normally tuned (low to high) E, A, D and G. This is a tuning of fourths, i.e. four tones apart, rather than fifths which the other sting instruments use (fifths tuning is G D A and E). This is because a tuning of fifths would created a very long finger stretch – probably too much for many players to play comfortably. The lowest string, the E, is the same pitch as the lowest E on a modern piano and is nearly three octaves below middle C. Having said this some Jazz musicians do tune to fifths as it makes playing a major tenth easier, sorry if this is boring to non musicians. Some basses have a fifth string and this can be either tuned to a deep B or C, or to a high C. To tune a double bass you turn the pegs (they are still called pegs although they are metal machine heads) to either tighten the string and so raise the pitch or loosen the string to lower the pitch.

♫ ♫ To play ♫ ♫

Traditionally double bassists stand to play. The height of the bass can be adjusted by extending or retracting the endpin. Ideally the right hand should be able to comfortably reach the bridge. Assuming you are right handed the weight of your body should be more on your right foot with the left foot positioned slightly forwards and out. The instrument should incline very slightly backwards towards you and your left knee can slightly support the back of the bass.

Whether you choose to bow or pluck the notes are made by, if you are right handed, using the left hand fingers to stop the strings, i.e. push down on the strings, onto the fret board. The left thumb pad should be placed behind the neck and the fingers curve round and over the fingerboard in position to stop the strings. Learning to correctly position the fingers to achieve the correct pitch is part of the skill of playing.

♫ ♫ Bow or pluck ♫ ♫

The double bass bow is both shorter and heavier than the cello bow so it has more bite to it. This is the way it digs into the string, grips it and then releases the string to create the note. The bow is held with the hand over the frog – yes I know it is a strange name. The frog is the end of the bow where the hairs are secured and kept away from the wood of the bow. There are many different shapes and styles of bow which I will not go into here as I am trying to concentrate on the actual double bass. All I will say is they all require rosin to allow the hair to grip the string. This comes in a block which has to be rubbed up and down the bow hairs a few times before playing. After playing the hairs should be slackened by a few turns of the end screw and then re-tightened before playing again

Plucking of the strings, called pizzicato (have I already said that?), is often preferred by those playing in the jazz, blues, boogie styles. A slap style of play involves a rigorous plucking of the strings which then slap against the fingerboard producing a very percussive type sound.

♫ ♫ My purchase ♫ ♫

After much research on the internet and telephone enquiries to several music shops I decided to buy a Stentor Conservatoire Double Bass. It has a fully carved back and front, is hand made from solid wood, with an ebony fingerboard and brass machine heads. It came with a padded cover and bow. It is available in 4/4, 3/4, 1/2, and 1/4 sizes. There will not be much change from £1500. I ordered it through my local music shop where I am a regular customer. They are shipped to order (yes, literally in a container on a boat) and arrive with the neck not joined to the body and the bridge not fitted as these are the most fragile parts and could be damaged during shipping. Fortunately there is a local guitar repair man who also does work for the music shop so he put it together for me and put the strings on. A set of Dominant strings (which is one of the better makes) will cost about £120. By contrast I have just bought some Dominant strings for my daughter’s ¾ size violin and they cost about £25. A reasonable quality double bass can be bought from about £500 and there is no upper figure.

This is not perhaps the first instrument I would recommend for a child to learn, apart from anything else it is not easy to get it on the school bus and it takes a very large corner of the room to store. If they want something different from a violin I would suggest the cello. There are places that hire out instruments so I would certainly recommend hiring one before investing in one if you have any doubts about your commitment to learning.

I’m sorry there is no facility for you to hear how this instrument sounds so you will just have to take my word for it that it is loud and has a deep mellow resonance that you can actually feel. Our household tends to enjoy jazz and blues so the bow is not often used. With one of my daughters playing the saxophone as well it is a good job we have no near neighbours.

In the pictures below I have tried to show the main parts of the double bass and have also included in the pictures a violin to give some idea of scale and to highlight some of the differences of construction.

Thanks for reading 

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