Thursday, November 12th


    Theo was once again in his recording studio after saying goodbye to Aurora when she went to school.


    Theo wanted to start learning a new instrument today.


    And it was another essential instrument in a music band.


    The electric bass!


    The bass guitar, upright bass, tuba, bassoon, and the far left keys on a piano are just a few overlooked instruments in music - they are all bass


    instruments, ying lower frequency notes in


    rtion to the rest of the band.


    The electric bass is certainly the most overlooked instrument in a music band.


    It''s normal for the listeners to not be able to hear the bass ying.


    Many different factors cause bass to be difficult to pick out of a song. The anatomy of the human ear is mostly to me, and things like overtones, recording techniques, rhythmic arrangement, and others can make learning to iste bass in your ear even more tricky.


    Human ears are made of three main parts. Outer,


    middle and inner.


    The outer is the part we see, the flesh and


    cartge that sound waves bounce off of when


    sound enters. Its shape allows us to localize and


    focus sound in the brain.


    The middle of the ear acts as an amplifier for


    sound waves - this is where the eardrum lives.


    The eardrum is named ordingly, as it acts as


    a drum. Sound bounces off of it and creates


    vibrations that are sent to the inner part of the


    ear.


    The inner part of the ear is really what makes


    hearing happen. Inside the inner ear is the


    cochlea. The cochlea converts these vibrations


    into electrical signals that our brains can


    process.


    The cochlea is more effective at converting


    vibrations into auditory signals when those


    vibrations are at higher frequencies.


    The general


    range of human hearing is 20Hz to 20kHz


    ording to cochlea.org. This is the range in


    which the cochlea is most effective; hearing


    pitches lower than 20Hz is possible but difficult.


    Different animals have different ranges as well,


    which I think is interesting.


    It''s why dogs respond


    to dog whistles, and elephants would be better at


    hearing bass than we are; they hear from 16Hz.


    Primarily speaking, the bass is hard to hear because of the human hearing range.


    Though bass notes are usually a higher frequency than 20Hz, the minimum frequency we can hear, songs have many other auditory stimtionsyered on top.


    When you begin adding more music, bass notes


    are easily muddied.


    To summarize:


    The Electric Bass falls in a range of frequencies that are naturally more difficult for the human ear to hear.


    The essibility and abundance of music have


    desensitized our ears to be able to actively


    listen to all of the parts in a piece of music.


    The low frequency of the bass ispeting


    with other higher-range and brighter tone color


    instruments in music.


    Bass notes are often paired with drums. In


    some songs, bass notes will hit on the same


    beat as the kick drum, making it more difficult


    to hear.


    Recording techniques, effects, and distortion


    can further dampen the bright tones in the bass


    lines.


    It''s because of all these reasons that most people are unaware of the cruciality of the bass in music.


    Before exining the importance of the bass in music.


    It''s important to ask.


    What is music?


    This question might seem rudimentary, but it''s


    important to the conversation. Music isprised


    of three main elements:


    Melody - The single-line phrase of notes on a


    staff that is usually recurring throughout a


    song.


    Rhythm - The cement of sounds in time.


    Harmony - The simultaneous urrence of


    two or more tones.


    Some melodic instruments include saxophone,


    flute, harp, and a vocalist. Melody is usually


    the "singable" part of a song - like a happy birthday or twinkle twinkle little star.


    In music, all instruments should be yed in time.


    But drums, marimba, and timpani are a few under


    the category of rhythmic instruments, which help


    drive the rhythm along.


    Harmonic instruments would be your guitar, piano,


    or violin. Harmony can also be created by multiple


    instruments or voices, such as a symphony or a


    choir.


    The unique aspect regarding bass is that it falls


    into two of these categories at once - rhythm and


    harmony!


    The bass ys two roles at once.


    If someone is looking for an answer to the question of why bass is so important in music, first the person should know what sets bass instruments apart from a drum kit or a guitar.


    In a rock band, the bass guitar acts as a bridge


    between drums and guitar. The bass guitar can


    drive a rhythm like the drums while also ying


    pitch like a guitar. It''s the bassist''s responsibility to


    hold the band together in rhythm and harmony.


    The harmonic function of the bass provides a reference point for all other higher frequencies yed over it. When our brains process a chord, the emotional content of that chord stems from the lowest pitch - the bass note.


    Changing the bass note canpletely alter the


    feeling one gets upon hearing the chord.


    Harmonically, the bass provides a foundation


    that music is built upon.


    The rhythmic function of the bass is the following.


    Bass in music resonates with us because rhythm


    is naturally urring - in nature and our bodies.


    Bass is harder to hear and easier to feel. Low-


    range frequencies produced by bass


    instruments cause resonance and vibrations


    otherwise difficult to recreate using drums or


    guitar.


    It''s these vibrations that get our feet


    tapping and deeply resonating with the consistent


    and repetitive rhythms we are familiar with, like a


    heartbeat.


    To sum it all up:


    Bass is important in music because It bridges the gap between guitar and drums.


    It provides a harmonic context and reference


    point.


    It resonates with the rhythms urring


    naturally in our bodies.


    It supplements the stability of a song.


    It''s because Theo knew all of these things, that he paid extra attention whilst he learned the instrument.


    But with the tempo practice that Theo did for learning the drums, he had much less difficulty learning how to y the electric bass.


    After all, one of the functions of the bass was to work with the drums to set the rhythm of the song.


    Therefore, his drumming skill was handy as he was learning the instrument.


    And his enhanced musical ear and amazing motor coordination yed a crucial part again in his learning experience.


    By the end of the day, Theo was able to y songs as if he yed bass for years.


    He reached the professional skill in one day!


    It was much faster than when he was learning guitar and drums.


    Mainly because he had the experience of learning new instruments and the base skills in drumming.


    To finish the day of learning before he went to the restaurant to cook.


    He started ying a famous song from his past life that had an amazing bass solo.


    Californication by Red Hot Chilli Peppers!


    DUM DUN DAN DAN


    […Marry me, girl, be my fairy to the world, be my very own constetion


    A teenage bride with a baby inside getting high on information


    And buy me a star on the boulevard, it''s Californication…]


    Theo yed skillfully and the popr song from the North American rock band was heard for the first time in that world.


    The electric bass made its entrance!