Denson is one of the most formidable bassists in Utah. With a Doctorate in classical music and jazz studies, and skills in many genres of music, Denson has worked as a giging-pro on bass guitar, acoustic jazz bass, drums, and classical double bass. His credentials include tours to China, Taiwan, Australia, and most of Europe; and playing with jazz greats Bob Mintzer, Bob Berg, Randy Brecker, Nicholas Payton, Bob Shepard, Jamie Abersold, Wycliffe Gordon, Tom Scott, Shelly Berg, Bobby Shew, and many others. As a classical musician, he is principal bassist for the Salt Lake Symphony and Sinfonia Salt Lake, and has recorded for TV, video games, and movies. As an educator, He has maintained a private studio for over 30 years, traveled the west as an adjudicator and clinician, and has also been a teacher at many universities in the area: University of Utah, UVU, USU, BYU- Idaho, Snow College, SLCC, and Weber State. Currently, he is on faculty at Victor Wooten’s Center for Music and Nature.
Great educational video, I like it very much your passion and time spent to do this type of content exploring every useful considerations about timing and beat with bass guitar.
I've played fretless bass since 1978. To get a more upright sound, remove the bridge and stick on 1/16" flat rubber under the bridge. You'll have to readjust the saddles down of course, but the sound will have less sustain and and natural thump is created. Carve a hole in the bottom of the rubber for the grinding wire.
Great soothing tones. The harmonics stay well sustained too. I have several comments: First, I always thought the fretless electric bass would be easy to learn and play. It is definitely a great approach for ear training. If we go back and listen to the greats of the 1920's and 30's swing and jazz bands we see the fretless upright with a very wide neck that gets wider as you work your way toward the body. It is also beyond two octaves. The neck curvature is greater too as it was universal. There was no option for a 16 inch radius. Those players had to put a great deal of emphasis on finger position to have each string hit the correct note that got farther away from them as they worked their way toward the body. This was labor. Some of those guys were incredibly fluent and all over the fret board but it must have been exhausting. The electric bass wasn't even thought of then. So, if they could master the upright why do we go in saying that the electric 4 or 5 string fretless 90 years later is an aggressive move or too much of a step to take? The only barrier that I see is if you were also a vocalist while playing a fretless bass you're head would be facing down at the neck / fretboard. Other than that it shouldn't be intimidating. My questions are: do you find less string buzzing because of the absence of frets even when playing with low action? Also, is it easier to set up a four string fretless compared to all the steps required to set up a four string fretted bass? I think that most of the concerns following a set up stem from frets. Thumbs up and subscribed.
@@GuyVogel thanks so much!! Setting up a fretless is the same as a fretted, but the measurements are slightly different because of no frets. I still check neck relief at the 5th and 8th pitch marker (where a fret would be). As long as relief is good, buzz should be minimal.
I just put an unmarked neck on a pbass and the dots on the side are the same as a fretted bass. I am struggling right now. Any tips? Maybe measure the frets on the old neck with a micrometer and tape the lines on for now? What are your thoughts?
@@kandem01 I bought a fretless acoustic bass that was like this. The manufacturer was lazy and just slapped an unfretted fingerboard on it. The dots were where the have been if there were frets. lol it was bad. I had to return it. But yeah. Measure out where the frets should be and use some tape to line it up. Use a tuner to check the pitches on the E and G strings and make the lines parallel with the nut.
Thanks for sharing , I made a bass guitar using a Carvin fretless neck and I need help with intonation etc . I know it will take time but I'm willing to improve . ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-JlFVeOQ2ZGk.htmlsi=t6EKL9l-QA32NEXH
The reason a P Bass is called a PRECISION Bass is because the FRETS define the notes PRECISELY. The first LIVE fretless player I saw was Alphonso Johnson with Weather Report in the early 70's. I went home and pulled the frets out of my Jazz Bass. Truth.
To me it's the difference between a 66 key keyboard or a GRAND PIANO'S full range. For me it was joining a DREAM THEATER cover band. Myung's bass parts required it. And some Steve Vai tunes we did too. "For the Love of God". If you can use it, and make it sound great,... BTW, Phil Lesh with The Grateful Dead played the first 6 string I ever saw. An Alembic?
Oh and one other thing...there is a picture of Jaco and a 5 string acoustic he made. If he would have been alive these days he for sure would at least mess around on a 6 and maybe 7.
And when people get bent out of shape about anything to do with a musician and their instrument of choice....100% of the time it is because that person can't play it or do it.
Whether you are playing an ACDC cover gig or a Dream Theater cover gig play a 6 string if it is comfortable. My answer to people when they ask me why I play 5 and 6 strings these days is, "You don't see keyboard players using all possible 88 keys in a gig. Why do I need to use every string and every note just to appease someone else? I like it".
In 1975 I saw Herbie Hancock with the Head Hunters. Paul Jackson on bass. The week after I sold my guitar and bought a P bass. In 1979 I moved from Germany to the USA to play bass professionally. I did that until 2004. Now I'm 68 I still play and yes, I also have a 6 string bass but what I hear you do in this clip ( and I know you can play) would have never made such a profound impact on my life.
Took the frets off of my cheap jazz bass and filled them in with wood filler, I love the sound of it and I want to start playing more “fretless” stuff like funk and jazz
Great tip, very helpful. I play an acoustic fretless bass, and I’ll use this tip to get used to the upright bass that I bought and will arrive in a few days. Thank you!
I love six-strings and I really don't understand why. I got obsessed with ERBs in the early nineties when I saw players on the BBC's Top of the Pops playing basses which had more than four strings. I mean, that just blew my mind. Finally managed to get my own in about 2002 (a 1989 Warwick Thumb VI) and it pretty much ruined my life. I just couldn't play it. Then, years later, I realised this wasn't because of the extra strings, but because the string spacing was only 16.5mm and I'd done everything up to then on 19/20mm. Changed my technique and bingo! All these doors started to open. Then one night I was left drunk and unsupervised on the internet and saw an Ibanez BTB7 and fell in love with the headstock. So I bought it. I have absolutely no situation in which I'd ever need a seven-string, but I fell in love with it immediately and it just draws me in like a magnet to pick it up. I think the proportions of an ERB seem more pleasing too. It's almost like the neck on a four-string is somehow too narrow, but upping it even just buy one string to a five and widening the neck just seem to bring the proportions in to line. Anyway, even though I don't really have any justification to own, let alone play a six (and one of them nearly put me off playing for ever), I still utterly love them and wouldn't be without one
@@joaniepeters2565 thanks! It’s an inlay. A white tiger. Check out the unboxing video ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-OEr2YQu-yjY.htmlsi=sQheEpM5aKWb3itb
I do a six- because I just want to be unique- I am getting around to putting some double coil hamburgers on it- A Glarry- I also have large hands so I want to be able to do things that are difficult
I began playing 4-string bass in 1975 because Black Sabbath was my favorite band, and I wanted to be Geezer. LOL Anyway, Four strings was enough to play most of the metal stuff i loved. But as I got older and gigged less my musical taste began to change to playing more melodic stuff, so in 2012 I bought a six-string ESP bass, tuned it low E to hi F, and learned to two hand tap and never looked back. All I needed was my six-string bass and a looper pedal and I can entertain myself for hours.
