therealting

Following this with some interest - I have my own DB but we have a couple of basses in the school where I teach, and the 3/4 could probably do with some work like this...

I have the triangular top one and like it a lot. Stays put and stays open, and invaluable for orchestral rehearsals.

It takes time to build a bass, and Vinny (like everyone else) has a finite amount of time. Everybody wants his product, and he can only produce a certain number a month. If you were in his shoes, and charging $2k would mean you have a 25 year waiting list, wouldn't you charge more? Of course you wouldn't... the same way you wouldn't take another job that has the same workload and pays better.

[quote name='funkygreega' post='546938' date='Jul 21 2009, 07:50 PM']Hie there all, I am looking for a DB tutor in the South East area of London. I have NEVER played the instrument before and I consider myself to be an electric bass player though I want to play the DB as well. Anyone know of any great tutors in and around the aforementioned area? Thanks in advance[/quote] Call Trinity College of Music and ask for recommendations. I have taken lessons from Ingela Weeks but she is mostly a classical teacher.

Fly with an inexpensive, easily replaced instrument that you wouldn't panic about losing / getting damaged.

I should add that I am definitely an advocate of teaching yourself to play an instrument - I taught myself to play guitar, bass, flute, clarinet (and then saxophone), ukulele (similar to guitar I know, but the altered tuning messes with your head), harp etc. I love working new instruments out... but the physical challenge of double bass was beyond me, and despite only planning to take a few starter lessons, I have now had weekly lessons for nine months and am still only playing at about grade 5 standard with a bow. Oh, and if you are planning to play a two hour set a couple of weeks after first starting on DB... I wish you good luck. When I first started, I lasted about ten minutes!

Congrats on picking up double bass! I started in October having played guitar and electric bass for the best part of 20 years, and playing and teaching professionally for the last 5. I will say that it is STILL worth having a few lessons from a good teacher, particularly with left hand technique. It really is a completely different animal to electric bass and guitar, and although you may well have your technique down, you could very well have it very wrong and you could end up injuring yourself very badly and jeopardising your guitar playing too. If I hadn't started taking lessons, and simply decided to knuckle down and work through the pain the way I did with guitar and electric bass when I was starting out, I would probably have had to give up playing stringed instruments due to injury... it really is no joke. At least take a few lessons, and if your teacher says your fine, then go ahead. But our hands are our livelihood, and this is one instrument that you don't want to take ANY risks on.