Wondering if anyone has any tips/tricks for playing when standing, particularly when it comes to the roll angle of the bass. I dont play standing up a lot, but when I do, I need to elevate my foot on my plucking side or play off my hip in order to reproduce the same roll angle of the neck as when sitting down. If I just stand normally, the fretboard is facing away from my body, whereas when I sit, I tend to have it angled so I can see it—this not only affects sight, but also wrist angle.
Do people who play standing up just learn to live with the different playing position or are there any tricks with strap setup to get the bass to “angle back” towards me instead of “flopping forward”?
The rear plane of the bass body is relatively flat, so it is going to naturally follow the contour of the player’s torso (chest/belly). Depending on the degree of topographical padding of a given player, the bass body and fingerboard planes are generally going to face forward much more than they would if the player were to “roll” them backward while sitting.
Since the bass hangs from a strap while standing, there is no way to “roll” the bass backward similar to when the player sits to play.
Josh and other bass teachers highly recommend that students let the bass hang from the strap while playing sitting down. That way, there’s no difference in the fingerboard orientation whether playing while standing or sitting.
Yes, it makes it hard/kinda impossible to look at your fretting hand while playing, but it’s worth learning how to do it if you ever want to play standing up. Hope this helps.
I dont play standing up a lot, lately just when i was moving and didnt have any chairs but i often play with a strap while im seated. My strap is adjusted high so the bass hangs almost touching my lap which makes the playing position and feel very similar whether standing or seated. Also i rarely need to look at my fretboard so being able to see the fretboard isnt too significant. In any case, if you want to feel comfortable playing standing, you just need to do it a lot… good old SAID principle
Do you have side fret markers? They’re helpful when standing.
Depends …. You can train your body to do much more arduous tasks. Fitness and health etc come into this. The more you practice the more you get used to a thing.
but i often play with a strap while im seated. My strap is adjusted high so the bass hangs almost touching my lap which makes the playing position and feel very similar whether standing or seated. Also i rarely need to look at my fretboard so being able to see the fretboard isnt too significant. In any case, if you want to feel comfortable playing standing, you just need to do it a lot… good old SAID principle 