I am a Bassist

 

I am a bassist.  I approach music and writing from a completely different perspective than that of a guitarist.  I don’t hear, process, or engage the same way as a guitarist.  I didn’t pick this instrument because I thought it would be easy – I chose it because I understood what it was about. 

Being a bassist isn’t always about playing the root note of what the guitarist is playing.  I am not an octave pedal in a bipedal position.  My job is to weave a connective thread between the melody the lead guitarist is playing and making it fit with the emotion and language of the singer.  It is about building a foundation with the drums and the rhythm guitarist juxtaposed against the free-spirited soarings of the lead singer and lead guitarist. 

I am called to tie everything together without being noticed.  I can thunder the lows and play melodic runs.  I can create dissonance and tension and then provide the resolution.  If I do my job without drawing attention to myself I have done it well.  You may not notice me when I play but you sure know something is missing when I don’t. 

If all you want is someone to play one finger root-notes, then you don’t want me - for I am a bassist. What you seek is a frustrated rhythm guitarist, snubbed from his desired position, who will play your one-finger root notes with all the enthusiasm of Ebeneezer Scrooge in a Forever 21 store.