Do Alembics scare people?

[glocke]

Does anyone ever get the impression that alembics scare people? Ive shown up for auditions with my Series 1 bass, and people admire the looks and sound, but often times I get the impression they want someone who plays one of those fender basses, and I dont get called back even when everything sounds right and the groove feels right..
 
Unless its the grateful dead tshirts I like to wear....hmmm..

[811952]

Certainly.  Frustrating, it is, but then I understand that these are probably gigs I wouldn't enjoy playing anyway.  Check out the Bass Discrimination thread for more on the same topic...
 
John
 
(Message edited by 811952 on September 20, 2005)

[bassman10096]

Musicians seem to be just as prone (if not more so) to insecurities as others.  I guess, despite the time some folks spend on stage in the public eye, they never really get over themselves.  
 
I found when I was younger that I embarassed pretty easily.  Now that I'm older (or at least, not as young...), I think I've revealed about every stupid, clumsy, ugly and embarrassing side of myself on stage at one time or another.  
 
Afraid of Alembics?  That's nothin...Wait'll they see my tuba!

[dannobasso]

Yes......yes they are.....very frightened indeed.

[glocke]

ha...that bass discrimination thread is great...
 
It really does amaze me what types of concerns alot of bands have when it comes down to what people are playing...
I didnt get a recent gig with an alt.country band (whatever that is), I thik because I brought my S1 instead of my jazz bass...
 
One comment from the audition I got was geee..too bad your not more interested in playing your fender, we could have been an all fender band...the two guitar players played strats....

[george_wright]

Herd instinct isn't limited to stringed instruments.   I've played saxophone since 1960, and I've seen brand prejudice up close and personal.  You ain't jack unless you play a Selmer Mk VI.  Check eBay prices on Mk VI's sometime!  (From a proud player of  a 1932-vintage Conn 12M.)

[88persuader]

Actually I think bass players who play more than just the root scares many people. 1st some people think anything more than the root is overplaying (and in some styles it is) and secondly many many guitarist are intimidated by ANY stringed instrument that might heaven forbid take away some of their spot light. There is a lot of EGO in music. We ALL have one and historically, in rock at least many bass players are just failed guitarists. And even if they're wonderful players they get overlooked. Look at Led Zep! John Paul Jones was an amazing player and did some wonderful stuff to push that band but he's largly overlooked. Everyone talks about Page, Plant and Bohnam but listen to the support Jones creates for the band. Listen to the Lemon song, Good times Bad times, the list goes on. So i think in the rock culture bass players are suppose to know their place and that place is in the background. I don't know if this is YOUR problem but i know i've come up against it on occasion. Maybe because they can HEAR you they don't think you fit? Something to consider. Maybe you should bring cheap gear to the audition and bring your Alembic after you have the gig. That would give you a clue anyway if the bass has anything to do with the problem.

[gare]

Fear is a good thing..use it to your advantage !  
Play an Almebic,then they will fear you ! LOL  
 
I agree with what Ray said, over time I've encountered more than a few guitarists that can't seem to count to 4 (no offense to those of the higher persuasion),if you're not playing roots and fifths it's easy to loose them.  
Ok, cheap entertainment.

[flaxattack]

i played out with the wolf last night at a blues open mic night.
scared?
my girfreind told me 2 bass players walked out the door after i started playing the wolf....
about 6 people came over and were gawking at him...
this place is a musician hangout- they all new it was an alembic
those who dont know- well there is always fender...... yuck

[slapbass]

I understand the intimidation when you pull the Alembic out or any high end boutique bass for that matter. I have been shunned, turned down, picked, poked, and prodded for the simple fact that I have good gear and the rest of them don't! I like how I got my current jazz gig. The audition was going great except that I was playing a 5 string and I should have brought my upright and I had the newly acquired series 2 5 string. When the wife of the saxophonist comes out side to say hi and tell me how well it sounded (the rest of the guys didn't want to here this I could sense the tension from the beginning). She stayed outside until we started playing again I pulled the bass back out of the case and strapped up and she said  Dam son with a bass that good looking you get all the women LOL. I cracked up and said but with a bass habit like this I can make run for cover she cracked up. But after that comment the rest of the guys accepted me and know we play a couple of weekly dinner shows.

[rockbassist]

I'm not sure that the reason some musicians have a problem with bassists using Boutique basses is due to the fact that we have good gear and they don't. I think it really comes down to lack of product knowledge on their part. Recently, I was having a conversation with a Berklee grad. When I told him that I use Alembic basses, he responded with Who are they? Are they any good?, another person who was standing close by mumbled Garbage. I was fortunate that I had a computer nearby and showed them the Alembic website. Their attitudes changed completely. So many people have been brainwashed into thinking that if it's not a Fender, Ibanez or Musicman it must be junk, otherwise they would have heard of it. I also have a vintage Fender but I hardly play it since I bought my Epics. The fact is that many Boutique manufacturers do very little if any advertising. They also do not cater to mass merchandisers. When I am auditioning players or going on auditions myself, I'm concerned with whether or not the other guys can play. Not what type of gear they have. I have heard Fender Squiers sound great in the hands of accomplished players and Boutique basses sound like crap in the hands of someone who cannot play or is full of himself. The bottom line is that we have to find what we like and use that regardless of what other people think. Isn't music also supposed to be about self expression?

[jetbass79]

Tone comes from the fingertips...John McLaughlin and Chet Atkins cannot be wrong about that.  However, the fact that there are so many conservative guitar players and sound engineers and producers make people afraid of something that looks weird to them.  
 
BMWs and Mercedes Benz' don't scare people so why should a high end instrument that is truly high end (e.g. not a $5K Les Paul that really is just...well...$5K) scare people?  That's messed up.  I would still rather own a really expensive Series II bass before I would spend the money on a fancy boutique automobile, even if I had the money for both since the bass represents higher utility to me...

[howierd]

I remember going to a jam session about 25 years ago and some members of some big named local bands in the Washington DC area were there and one guitar player saw me pull out my Series I and all he said was an Alembic I'm scared..... Very sarcasticlly... So some people just  think that if you play an Alembic you are trying to be better than everyone else just because of the Instrument you play. They will eventually get over it somehow.
Howierd

[beelee]

I here echos of the bass discrimination thread here.........LOL
 
To me I never cared what kind of instrument a person plays,  brand, what it looks like or the number of strings it has etc.
 
As long as you can play, are dedicated, reliable and proplerly maintain your gear Those are some of the things that should really matter.
 
I've been playing more than a four string bass since the mid 80's, do I always use every string on the neck ? no I play for what the song requires first, but its nice not to have to tune a string down and have the other options a extended range instrument gives you NO LIMITS.....
 
All the instruments I own/play were purchased cause I like the way they look, sound and feel, not for brand name, I've never owned any Gibsons, Rickenbackers and just bought my first Fender a few years ago ( a P bass that was customised with EMG pup and a Kahler Trem, ( it realy sounds and plays great) that now I'll be selling cause I found an Explioter w/ a Kahler Trem, I hate to part with it but I don't need both).
 
What instrument you choose to play is to me a very personal choice.
 
If someone doesn't like you cause of what kind of instrument you play, that's just so foolish and narrow minded.......
 
You should see some of the looks I've gotten and heard the comments when I take my 7 string bass out, I just laugh and smile.......and after they hear me play it their attitude turns completely around.
 
Bruce

[ajdover]

I think that once you pull the Alembic out of the case, expectations are raised.  Truth be told most folks can't afford an Alembic or other high end instrument (those that aren't in demand pros, anyway).  The only reason I can is the fact that I have no children and am fortunate enough to have the disposable income available to support the Wickersham family business.  When you take an Alembic out of the case, the look and quality alone impresses.  Most folks I've run into automatically assume I must be a good player (I consider myself a fair player, but of course, I've heard guys with technical skills that make me sound like all of my fingers are taped together) because I have such an expensive bass.  I guess it goes with anything expensive, e.g., one must be doing well if one can afford a Corvette, Mercedes, etc.  It's not necessarily true, but there's the perception.
 
I haven't scared anyone with my Alembic (with the possible exception of my Spyder - singers are oddly terrified that I might skewer them or something with the V shaped headstock).  I have scared them with my looks.  I guess if I had to choose, I'd rather have it be my looks than my bass.  I can always put a paper bag on my head ...  
 
I've never been told to put my Alembic away by anyone anytime I've used them, so I don't think it's so much fear as intimidation because of the mine's better than yours mentality some folks have.  As has been noted, I've heard guys play cheap basses that sound phenomenal, and others play the nicest Fodera you've ever seen sound like a total catastrophe.  It's in the fingers, heart and head.  A quality instrument helps, but there's no substitute for ability and feel.
 
My two cents,
 
Alan