Hi,

I was playing around with a double bass yesterday (woo) and was wondering something. When someone plays double bass do they have to get one that is the right size for the span of their 1st to 4th fingers or do the fingers just get better at stretching? I was playing on a full size and could *just* get the tone from 1st to 4th but it was a stretch and I was wondering about it.

Just a random curious question!

Moose

You don't have to do anything, and some bass players are unorthodox, e.g. (IIRC) at least one jazz bassist used to move his hand for every note and clasp thumb and forefinger round the fingerboard. However, if you have a choice, size of hand and finger span are variables to keep in mind. I play on a 7/8 size bass, even though I have a fairly good stretch (2 to 5 make an octave on the piano). The advantage of this is that I can use 'cello fingering when I put my forefinger on the fifth above the open string, which allows some tricky passages (e.g. much of the solo in Carnival of the Animals) to be played in one hand position. Some bass players of the past with particularly large hands (probably the present too, but I don't know them) used 'cello fingering (semitones between each adjacent pair of fingers) over all the fingerboard. I once discussed fingering with the late Ray Koster, then principal bass of the Bournemouth Sinfonietta. His advice was, "Do what works for you."

I suspect that a fully grown adult who had already played the piano would not improve their stretch on transferring to bass.

The usual size of bass for an adult, unless you are very tall with large hands, is a 3/4 size instrument which can range from approx 40 inch to a 44 inch back length. The violin underwent a sort of 'standardisation' through Stradivari et al., but the double bass has never really had a standard size, which is why they do vary so much in their dimensions.

String lengths also vary, the average length on a 3/4 double bass is around 41 inches (from nut to bridge). I have small hands, but as a violinist have a good stretch to my fingers and when I briefly dabbled in double-bass, I didn't have any problems with the 1st to 4th finger stretch. The biggest problem was its portability, they are not the easiest of instruments to travel with or move around, especially where space is limited.

I needed an estate car for family reasons before I took up bass, so that worked out nicely.

I have a Volvo 850 estate anyway so transport wasn't the issue, but moving the sheer physical bulk of instrument is the hard part, especially when you're only 5 feet tall and 7 stone. I had to keep the bass upstairs at home too (no room downstairs) and getting it around a narrow 90 degree bend on the stairs was just about feasible when ascending, but descending was downright dangerous for both me and the bass!

My biggest concern, apart from damaging the bass should it fall down the stairs, was my back. As a violinist I could not afford to end up with a permanent injury that might prevent me from playing.

All said and done, I did enjoy playing it and should circumstances change and I can house the instrument more conveniently, I'd quite happily go back to it.