IshaiEig Posted April 12, 2014 Share Posted April 12, 2014 Hi everyone! I am writing my final research paper for university on the topic of the evolution and ever changing role of the session bass player in commercial music. I aim to research such topics as the relation between skill and amount of work, what has changed in the market since the days of the Wrecking Crew and the Funk Brothers, how technological advances and trends have affected the session world, and what gets you hired in today's pop industry. My current working thesis statement at the initial stage is:[font=Arial][size=4] Although musical skill on the bass has always proved essential to attaining work in the popular music industry, recent research suggests that multitasking abilities, multiple and versatile skills, competence with technological and musical trends and entrepreneurial skills are more likely to lead to a consistent, sustainable career in the music session industry than virtuoso musical abilities and ‘chops’. [/size][/font] As part of my field research i have put together a questionnaire aimed at working session musicians. If anyone has got a minute to reply, it would be a great help! I realise this is a wide and blurry subject to narrow down and that many opinions may spring. As I said, this is the first stage of research and if anyone has any suggestions or input - all thoughts on the subject are welcome! Thanks, Jesse [b]Questionnaire[/b] [list=1] [*]Is session work (live and studio) on bass your sole source of income? [*]Is most of your work at the moment associated with original music? [*]What are the 2 main genres (original music) you get paid to play? [*][font="Helvetica"][size="2"]How long have you been a professional session player?[/size][/font] [*]Do you work for an unsigned artist / record label / management company? [*]Do you play electric or upright bass? [*]Do you play 4, 5 or 6 string basses? [*]Do you play synth bass? [*]Can you read music? [*]Can you provide backing vocals if needed? [*]Are you competent with recording software (Logic/Protools) and do you have a home studio setup? [*]Do you consider yourself an entrepreneur? [*][font="Helvetica"][size="2"]Do you believe that being a good bass player alone is still enough to sustain a career in commercial music? If not, what other skills do you think are essential?[/size][/font] [*]Do you have a website/Facebook page/youtube channel? [*]In short, what do you think has changed for the session bass player since the days of “The Wrecking Crew” and “ The Funk Brothers” ? [*][font="Helvetica"][size="2"]"You're only as good as your last gig" - true or false? [/size][/font] [/list] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve-bbb Posted April 12, 2014 Share Posted April 12, 2014 (edited) not a session player here but a polite suggestion, Survey Monkey might be useful? [url="https://www.surveymonkey.com/"]https://www.surveymonkey.com/[/url] or possibly even use basschat's own poll options Edited April 12, 2014 by steve-bbb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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