At the other end of the fretboard from the body sits the headstock, which generally holds the tuners that lets player adjust the tuning of the strings. At the very end the fretboard, where the strings pass from the fretboard to the tuners, there is a nut, a piece made of metal or plastic, with grooves to hold the strings off the fretboard.
Inside most fretboards is a long metal rod, called a trussrod, that is used to adjust the tension on the neck. The neck is slightly concave, which allows the strings to clear all frets without "buzzing." The amount of bow, along with adjustments made on the bridge, will determine the height of the strings along the fretboard.
The scale of an electric bass - the length of the strings from the nut to the bridge - is generally 34 inches (84 centimeters), although shorter and longer basses are produced. In earlier decades, short-scale basses were more common, since many designers adapted guitar parts for early models. Because in some styles of music, such as heavy metal, the strings are tuned down, longer scaled basses are sometimes favored for such styles, as string tension is higher.
Standard bass guitars have four metal strings, but models with five, six or eight strings are also made. The strings themselves are made in different ways and with different materials to change their tonal qualities.
In the 1960s and 1970s some musicians took the frets off their bass guitars. This changes the sound of the bass, particularly as the player slides their fingers along the strings. A bass guitar without frets is called a fretless bass guitar. For example Pino Palladino played a fretless bass during the 1980s. He was a session musician, playing for high profile musicians like Eric Clapton and David Gilmour. While fretless basses are often used in jazz and jazz fusion, bassists from other genres use fretless basses, such as metal bassist Steve DiGiorgio and Colin Edwin of modern/progressive rock band [Porcupine Tree].
The standard design for the electric bass guitar has four strings, generally tuned E, A, D and G (low to high). It is not uncommon for players to tune strings to a lower pitch, particularly in styles, such as heavy metal, that favor deeper sounds. Five string basses add a lower string, usually tuned to B, while six-string-basses add a higher string tuned to C. In standard tunings, each string is tuned a perfect fourth interval above the next lower string (e.g. E to A).
Sounds are produced from the strings in a number of ways. The most common form of playing is called fingerstyle, in which the player plucks the fingers upwards with the ends of the fingers. It is common to use the index and middle fingers as the plucking fingers, but players may use more fingers or even employ their thumb to pluck downwards. Other finger-based techniques include slap-and-pop, in which the player strikes the lower-pitched strings firmly with their thumb, and pulls higher-pitched strings upwards and lets them snap against the fretboard, and tapping, in which the player hammers downward with their fingertips on the fretboard.
Picks made of metal or plastic may also be used, and yield a sharper sound than plucking with fingers. Picking is sometimes combined with muting techniques to create distinctive sounds.
The bridge of the bass guitar may be fitted with a tremolo, which enables the player to vary the pitch of their strings while playing.
Where the strings are struck relative to bridge changes to the tone of the sound considerably. Plucking or picking close the bridge generally produces a more muted note, while sounding the string closer to the neck produces a fuller, more resonant tone.
Bass guitars also have magnetic pickups mounted on the body underneath the strings. A musician plucks the strings with their fingers. This makes the strings vibrate. The magnetic pickups detect the vibrations. Then the vibrations from the strings are converted into an electronic signal which is sent with a metal cable to an electronic amplifier and a loudspeaker. The musician rotates a volume control knob that is located on the body of the bass to make the sound
Saint Anna
Saint Anna is the mother of Virgin Mary and the grandmother of Jesus. Her husband is Saint Joachim. Her name is a version of the Hebrew name Hanna. Anna means grace.
According to tradition, Joachim went to a temple to pray, but was not allowed in because he did not have a child. Anna heard, prayed, and sacrificed. She promised God that she would bring up a child in God's name. An angel came to Anna and Joachim and told them that God would grant her a baby. Anna had the baby soon after and named the girl Mary. Anna kept her promise. When Mary was about three years old Joachim and Anna brought her up in the Second Temple.
Once, as Anna prayed beneath a laurel tree near her home in Galilee, an angel appeared and said to her, "Anna, Anna, the Lord has heard your prayer, and you shall conceive, and shall bring forth; and your seed shall be spoken of in all the world." Anna replied, "As the Lord my God lives, if I beget either male or female, I will bring it as a gift to the Lord my God; and it shall minister to Him in holy things all the days of its life." This is how Anna became the mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The feast (name) day of St. Anna and St. Joachim is July 26.
Nepal
Nepal () is a country in South Asia bordering the Republic of India and the People's Republic of China. Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world, is found there, as well as the Himalaya Mountains. 12 of the world's highest mountain peaks are in Nepal. It is also the birthplace of Buddha. It has recently become a secular country, but before it was the only Hindu kingdom in the world. Nepal is a very important pilgrimage place for both Hindus and Buddhists. The population of Nepal in 2007 was almost 29 million people.
Nepali is the official language, and there are many other regional languages. English and Hindi are widely understood. The capital city of Nepal is Kathmandu which has a population of over 1.4 million people. The second largest city is Pokhara. Pokhara is a major tourist attraction of Nepal which is rich in natural beauty. Pokhara includes many lakes, Phewa Tal is one of them.
Nepal is a landlocked country, which means it is not next to any ocean, and it is surrounded by India and China. Mount Everest is on the border Nepal shares with China. Nepal is a little smaller than Illinois and Bangladesh, but a little bigger than Kyrgyzstan. It also has the second-highest average elevation in the world at (10,715 ft), only behind Bhutan.
Nepal used to be an agricultural country until 1950. Since 1951 it entered the modern era and has made progress. Agriculture, however is still a major economic activity, employing 80% of the population and providing 37% of GDP. Only about 20% of the total area is cultivable; another 33% is forested; most of the rest is mountainous. Rice and wheat are the main food crops. The lowland Terai region produces an agricultural surplus, part of which supplies the food-deficient hill areas.
China is the 2nd largest exporter to Nepal, but India is the largest buyer of Nepal's goods, China's imports from Nepal are zero, thus burdening Nepal's monetary stability and monetary balance. The yearly monsoon rain, or lack of it, strongly influences economic growth. From 1996 to 1999, real GDP growth averaged less than 4%. The growth rate recovered in 1999, rising to 6% before slipping slightly in 2001 to 5.5%.Nepal has 1/3 of its trade with India.
The people of Nepal belong to two main groups; Indo-Aryan group and Tibeto-Burman group. Indo-Aryans are mostly Hindus and they celebrate Hindu festivals like Dashain, Tihar, Teej, Maghe Sankranti, Krishna Janmastami, Holi, Janai Purnima, Matatirtha Aunsi, Chhath, etc. Tibeto-Burmans are Buddhist and they celebrate Lhosar, Buddha Jayanti, etc.