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Historical
outline of individual instruments
Strings
Double bass
Early History
- Double basses may have
been around as early as 1493 based on a description by Prospero.
The earliest known illustration of an instrument in the fashion
of a double bass dates to 1516. Its exact origins have been debated.
One of the earliest bass string voice appeared in the viol family.
- The numerous tunings
of the double bass have been central to its history. Research suggests
that there may have been as many as 40-50 different tunings over
the years. The design, dimensions, and number of strings have been
refashioned over the centuries as well.
- The five or six-string
violone, the predecessor of the double bass, appeared in orchestras
by the late 17th and early 18th centuries. To confuse matters, the
term violone has been used to refer to the bass in the viol family.
- During the early 17th
century, the five-string bass was common in Austria and Germany.
18th century and
later
- During the early 18th
century, the three-string bass was common, and was often tuned to
A-D-G or G-D-G.
- In the orchestra, it
is not clear exactly when the double bass became a standard member.
The Paris Opéra, for instance, included double basses by
the early 18th century.
- During the mid-18th
century, court orchestras sometimes had more bassists than cellists.
- By the 1920’s,
an additional E string was included among professional players,
resulting in the current-day tuning of E-A-D-G for four-string basses.
- In modern practice,
basses have four or five strings, and may have a sloped shape similar
to a viola da gamba, or a shape like a violin.
- Orchestral music often
requires virtuosic technique from players. Some well-known exposed
passages appear in: Britten’s Young Person’s Guide to
the Orchestra and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Ginastera’s
Variaciones concertantes, Mahler’s First Symphony, Mussorgsky’s
Pictures from an Exhibition (orch. Ravel, 1922), Prokofiev’s
suite Lieutenant Kije, Saint-Saëns Le carnaval des animaux,
and Stavinsky’s suite Pulcinella.
Orchestra-History
Early
History • Classical
period • Romantic
period • 20th
century to present
Repertoire
Classical
period • Romantic period
• 20th century to present
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