chrisba

I came across the subject of Temperament a couple of years ago and found it interesting, so here is a short summary. If you play a note, then play another note with double the frequency, it will be an octave higher than the first ( and sounds "right") . That is fundamental to all music. If you play another note with three times the frequency, that will be a fifth higher again. ( eg. Low G, High G, High D are one, two and three times the frequency ). This too sounds "right" The rest of western musical scale can be constructed using fifths, as if you start with C, then go up in fifths, you get G D A E B Gb Db Ab Eb Bb F and back to C , which is all 12 notes of the chromatic scale ( not in order, obviously ). This is called the Circle of Fifths and is fundamental to western music BUT... This model is broken, because the C you get to at the end of the circle is not quite the same as the one at the beginning ( do the maths, you end up with a frequency that's about 1.5% out, enough to sound out of tune ). To fix this, we have to shift the frequencies that define the notes down very slightly so they all fit exactly into one octave, and there are various ways that shifting can be done, and "well tempered" was one of the ways this was done. There are several other ways, and the standard way now is 12 Tone equal temperament. This means that, in any given key, all the notes apart from the root, are very slightly out of tune. I'm told that one of the reasons that instruments that are infinitely variable ( like violins and the human voice ) sound "pure" is that the players/singers automatically adjust the note so that it sounds right for the given moment. ( Obviously, this doesn't apply to fretless basses or trombones ) I'm not a musical theory expert, so if any of the above is incorrect, please correct as necessary. Lots more in [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical_temperament"]Wikipedia[/url], of course.

[quote]Also, why is it that all the brass sections have to muck about in Bb tuning while the piano is easiest in C?[/quote] Originally, there was a C trumpet ( you can still buy them ), but somebody made a longer one, and thought it sounded nicer. So that this longer one could use the same fingering as the shorter one, all their music was transposed to Bb. Most brass instruments have ( roughly ) the same fingering, but differ in actual pitch, so play in different keys. My sister has a C clarinet ( and an Eb one ) and it's amazing how much different it sounds from the Bb standard one.

Had a dream last night that I played a gig in a village hall, and there was a bass on the stage when I arrived, so I used that instead. It was a Fender Jazz, sunburst but the neck had been repainted light green. Even stranger, embedded in the upper horn, there was a small keyboard, about the size of a Stylophone. Lovely low action and I liked it more that I thought I would. I've no idea what that means. Any Dream-analysts out there ?

There is a free program called TuxGuitar that plays Guitar Pro and Power Tab. I've got it on my Mac, but I think it's available for Windoze too.

[quote]So what you're saying is that your target demographic is X-factor fans?[/quote] Actually, in this case it was X-factor fan's parents. That's not quite so bad.

Did a private party on Saturday night for a music/drama school, but the audience was reduced because lots of people got tickets to go and see one of their pupils in X-factor. Not sure who, but it isn't the pathetic twins. ( they did tell me, but I don't watch it, so means nothing to me ). The rest of the audience weren't really our target demographic.

[quote]+Seven and Twelvety! ...Ive seen them Theyre a Mustard! 3 piece....If you get the opportunity go!... When i went there was 2 Ampeg 8x10s on stage with Svt Valve heads for the double bass(was told ones a spare!..just in case!)....Guitar/Vocals Brian Setzer was amazing![/quote] Not seen Stray Cats, but did see The Brian Setzer Orchestra at a corporate jolly in Hawaii. Brian is a great performer and front man, and although his backing band were as different as it could get from the Cats, ( full-on big band, about 25 strong, instead of drums and double bass ), the music was remarkably similar.

[quote]Nice little program. One bug found so far - if the two notes chosen are the same then the Go and Repeat buttons remain greyed out after you click on the note.[/quote] Thanks. I assume that was with a random start note. This feature doesn't seem to work properly. I'll investigate... Edit: Yes, there is a bit of code to stop identical notes being produced, but the randomising of the start note came after it. Doh. Fixed in next release ( prob next week )

This is a little program I wrote to try and teach myself to recognise intervals and play the corresponding note. Written in Visual Basic so it might need some VB runtime libraries to work, but I can't tell for sure. It's not really a txt file, but download it, rename it to a .exe ( which I'm not allowed to upload ), virus-scan it ( not that you have to, but it's good practice ) and then just doubleclick Any feedback welcome... [attachment=35261:intervals.txt]

No FX or pedals for me either. Even the EQ and compressor on the amp are bypassed. I play in an otherwise acoustic band, so they can't change their sound much either.

[quote]I only picked up a bass for the first time a couple of years ago - a Fender Squier - and I've been doing a few gigs with a covers band (Kings of Leon, Oasis, Arctic Monkeys, Kaiser Chiefs stuff etc).[/quote] That could be me. Do covers of all of those bands. Started on a Squier Affinity P, moved onto a MIJ Fender P. Very happy with my choice, although the incremental difference in sound and feel is quite small. Change of amp from little Fender Rumble to Ashdown EB180 made much more difference, sound-wise.

At first, I thought this thread was a request for tabs/music for a song called Anyone for Tennis, by Elbow , but then I read it. I don't think Elbow have ever done a song called Anyone for Tennis, but I think they should, and I'll email Guy Garvey to suggest it. Anyway, back to the topic. I had mild TE in both my elbows, at different times, and they both got better on their own, in about 4-6 months. I tried to avoid anything that hurt them, carrying heavy things like amps seemed to be the worst. Never had any problems playing or cycling, or in my pretty sedentary job.

Not bass kit, but[url="http://www.covebike.com/bikes/index.html"] Cove bikes[/url] are the masters of the Double-Entendre

[quote]intonation - Changing one or both of the above will change the strings tuning further down the string (slightly sharp or slightly flat) screwdriver to the back of the bridge, tune your string, then play the 12th fret and see if it is the same, if its slightly sharp, Loosen the screw. If its slightly flat, tighten it. Tune up, repeat.[/quote] Er, isn't this the wrong way round ? If the 12th fret note is sharp, it needs to be flattened, therefore the distance between the 12th fret and the bridge needs to be lengthened. On my Fender P, this is achieved by tightening the screw. Rather than playing the open string and comparing it to the 12th fret, try playing the 12th fret harmonic and comparing that with the 12th fret fretted. Easier to tell the difference IMHO. Better still, use a good tuner. Chris

[quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='607013' date='Sep 23 2009, 07:39 PM']You get this problem a lot with 60-cycle hum in badly earthed older properties.[/quote] 50 cycle, surely ( in the UK ). Should be slightly lower than an G# ( 51.91hz )

[quote]Guitar works in Reading I can highly recommend - really good letting me try out a CIJ Tele and Strat - ended up buying the Tele a couple of months later. Great attitude from the salesfolks, good deal. Recommended.[/quote] +1 [quote]The big new place in Reading near the B&Q is also good, friendly helpful staff, though a tiny bit pricier than GW.[/quote] Where's that then ? The only big place I can think of is Dawsons, and that is nowhere near B&Q, which is right next to the Madjeski Stadium.

+1 on the Squier P . One got me from never having picked up a guitar in my life, to gigging in decent sized pubs. To be honest, if I hadn't had a few quid burning a hole in my pocket, I'd still be using it now. Doesn't get envious glances or start deep conversations about relative merits of different types of pickups, but sounds like a bass should, plays like one should and looks like one should. A professional, who plays with one of the best known tribute bands in the world, played it and said it was the "amazingly good for a budget guitar". Also, as it's a popular beginners choice, there are quite a lot on the market. See eBay.

[quote name='warwickhunt' post='591332' date='Sep 6 2009, 12:25 PM']Beat you to it... my 'current' Zon. [/quote] I've got one of those ! ( The IKEA latticework box, that is, not the bass ) I put my dirty clothes in it and, as if by magic, they appear back clean a few days later. No idea how they work, but they are bloody good.

I sang in the Albert Hall a couple of times when I was a teenager in a choir. It's very big, took my breath away when we walked onto the platform. One of the times was in the Proms - an amazing experience for a 13 y.o.

£1000 is a big budget for a beginner. What if you decide you don't like it ? For £250 ( or less, if you go second hand ), you can get a Squier P with a Fender Rumple practice amp in a starter kit which will get you going and let you play with your mates and do small pub gigs. Not a hifi, jazzy sound but perfect for rock. That is what I did. I have since upgraded to a Fender P ( japanese ) and an Ashdown EB180 amp, and I still haven't spent anywhere near £1000 ( if you exclude the beer, that is ). Still use the Fender amp for practice ( 'cos it's small ) and I've sold the Squier to a nephew.

Buy a cheapy ( You can pick up a Sqiuer P for £75 ) and a headphone amplifier

Might seem like a silly question... What are you going to wear ? Is that decision more important than which bass ? If so... Scruffy jeans and old t-shirt - The relic P White tie and tails - the white Jazz

I used to watch a few friends in play in a local pub, and they kept encouraging me to join in, but as the only instrument I played was the flute, and I didn't even have one of those, I had to either learn guitar, bass or drums. Bass seemed like the easiest choice ( I still think that's right, at least to the standard I play ) , so I bought a Squier starter pack and taught myself to play. As well as these free-for-all pub sessions, the guys also have a more formal band, and I've been playing with them for 18 months now, after their previous bassist departed. No inspiration, and I hadn't even heard of most of those mentioned in this thread. Funny how music sounds different now.

I'm a satisfied customer and I love my Japanese P. The Guitar Emporium is a one man outfit, so bear that in mind if you have any trouble contacting him.

I saw Chas 'n Dave in the pouring rain during Cowes Week about 4 years ago. Nobody was watching them 'cos it would have meant standing in the rain, and the nearby beer tent was packed to the rafters. Felt sorry for them.