page_title: Jazz bass
hierarchical_section_title: Jazz bass
caption_attribution_description: English: Ron Carter Quartet play at "Altes Pfandhaus" in Cologne. See http://www.altes-pfandhaus.de/programm/veranstaltungen/ron-carter-quartet.html Deutsch: Ron Carter Quartett im "Alten Pfandhaus" in Köln. Siehe http://www.altes-pfandhaus.de/programm/veranstaltungen/ron-carter-quartet.html
context_page_description: Jazz bass is the use of the double bass or bass guitar to improvise accompaniment basslines and solos in a jazz or jazz fusion style. Players began using the double bass in jazz in the 1890s to supply the low-pitched walking basslines that outlined the chord progressions of the songs. From the 1920s and 1930s Swing and big band era, through 1940s Bebop and 1950s Hard Bop, to the 1960s-era "free jazz" movement, the resonant, woody sound of the double bass anchored everything from small jazz combos to large jazz big bands.
  Beginning in the early 1950s, some jazz bass players began to use the electric bass guitar in place of the double bass. The electric bass, which was easier to amplify to loud volumes onstage, gained particular prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s jazz subgenre which blended jazz with the powerfully amplified electric instruments of rock music, creating jazz fusion.
  Most jazz bassists specialize in either the double bass or the electric bass, although the ability to "double" is common. A small number of players, such as Stanley Clarke and John Patitucci, have achieved virtuoso skill on both instruments.
context_section_description: Jazz bass is the use of the double bass or bass guitar to improvise accompaniment ("comping") basslines and solos in a jazz or jazz fusion style. Players began using the double bass in jazz in the 1890s to supply the low-pitched walking basslines that outlined the chord progressions of the songs. From the 1920s and 1930s Swing and big band era, through 1940s Bebop and 1950s Hard Bop, to the 1960s-era "free jazz" movement, the resonant, woody sound of the double bass anchored everything from small jazz combos to large jazz big bands.
  Beginning in the early 1950s, some jazz bass players began to use the electric bass guitar in place of the double bass. The electric bass, which was easier to amplify to loud volumes onstage, gained particular prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s jazz subgenre which blended jazz with the powerfully amplified electric instruments of rock music, creating jazz fusion.
  Most jazz bassists specialize in either the double bass or the electric bass, although the ability to "double" (play both instruments) is common. A small number of players, such as Stanley Clarke and John Patitucci, have achieved virtuoso skill on both instruments. Whether a jazz bassist is "comping" (accompanying) with a walking bassline or soloing, or playing on a double bass or an electric bass, they usually aim to create a rhythmic drive and "timefeel" that creates a sense of swing and groove.
caption: Ron Carter pictured playing with his Quartet at "Altes Pfandhaus" in Cologne
exif: {"Image Make": "FUJIFILM", "Image Model": "FinePix F30", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "GIMP 2.4.6", "Image DateTime": "2008:12:06 12:24:47", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "Image Copyright": "", "Image ExifOffset": "266", "Image PrintIM": "[80, 114, 105, 110, 116, 73, 77, 0, 48, 50, 53, 48, 0, 0, 2, 0, 2, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0]", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "1334", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "4176", "Thumbnail YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/60", "EXIF FNumber": "5", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "800", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2008:10:07 20:50:35", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2008:10:07 20:50:35", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "2", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "6", "EXIF ApertureValue": "23/5", "EXIF BrightnessValue": "207/100", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "-67/100", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "3", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Spot", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "24", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "448", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "936", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "1186", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "3932", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "3932", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "3", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal", "EXIF SubjectDistanceRange": "0"}