The bass guitar is played with fingers by plucking, slapping, popping, or tapping or using a pick. The bass is similar to and is constructed like an electric guitar, but with a larger body, a longer neck, and has usually four strings. These are tuned one octave lower than the four lower strings of a guitar.
Materials used for making a bass guitar
The bodies are usually made of wood but other materials such as graphite is also used from time to time. The most common wood used is alder, for the neck is maple, and for the fret board rosewood. This is the rule but a wide variety of woods like mahogany, maple, ash, and poplar may be used to make the body.
The wood and shape is mostly an aesthetic consideration. Other design options include finishes and colors, such as lacquer, wax and oil. Bass guitar necks, which are longer than regular electric guitar necks, are generally made of maple.
A brief history
In the 1930s, Paul Tutmarc from Seattle made a guitar style electric bass instrument that was fretted and designed to be held and played horizontally. Unfortunately, his invention never caught the public imagination, and little further development of the instrument took place until the 1950s when rock n’ roll became popular.
In late 50s, Leo Fender stated to work on the first mass produced electric bass. In the 50s and 60s, the term “Fender bass” was used to describe this new instrument.
Different components of the bass guitar
Bass guitars uses components like strings, tuning and pickups, frets to produce music.
Frets and fretless bass
Frets are metal strips inserted into the neck to make it easier to play and to easier get the correct note. On a fretted bass, the frets divide the fingerboard into semitone divisions. The first Fender basses had 20 frets. Fretless basses have a more distinct sound, because the strings must be pressed down directly onto the wood of the fingerboard to get a note.
Strings and tuning
The standard bass has four strings, tuned E, A, D and G, with the original frequency of the E string set at about 41 Hz. This tuning is the same as the standard tuning on the lower four strings on a 6 string guitar, only an octave lower. Bass guitars with five and six strings are also common.
Pickups
Electric basses use, just like guitars, magnetic pickups. The vibrations of the metal strings make sounds in the pickup.
Amplification and effects
The electric bass must be connected to an amplifier for live performances or almost no sound would be heard. Electric bass guitarists use either a combo amplifier, which combines an amplifier and a speaker in a single cabinet, or an amplifier and a separate speaker cabinet.
