Pit Music: String/Electric Bass parts from musicals.

[ckeaton]

Pit Music: String/Electric Bass parts from musicals.#0

Posted: 7/16/04 at 10:01am

I am putting a general request out there:

Does anyone know if there is a way to get the Bass music for the pit orchestra of some popular musicals?

I am a bassist, and some of the best times I've ever had were in the pit. I am working on polishing up my "pit" chops, because I want to put myself out there again.

One of the best (and most fun) ways that I have found to polish up the old Mercedes has been to accompany my favorite shows on CD. Trouble is, the publically available music is often transposed, and the piano F-clef transcription is hardly ever as complicated or true to the actual bass parts.

I really would appreciate any assistance...
Though as I post, I'm afraid it's probably a lost cause.

Hugs!
CK :)

Hamlet's father.

[Jon]

re: Pit Music: String/Electric Bass parts from musicals.#1

Posted: 7/16/04 at 10:12am

Since the orchestra parts for musicals are rented, the only way someone would have copies would be if they xeroxed the music before they returned it (which, technically, would be illegal...)

[ckeaton]

re: Pit Music: String/Electric Bass parts from musicals.#2

Posted: 7/16/04 at 10:20am

Oh I am aware of that. I've never done that myself, which is why I am cursed to sit in front of my CD player with a pen and some staff paper...

You never know. It doesn't hurt to ask though.

This sux.

Hamlet's father.

[chauvelin128]

re: Pit Music: String/Electric Bass parts from musicals.#3

Posted: 7/16/04 at 10:27am

For most shows, the bass part in the music is pretty general, unless the orchestrator has written some kind of specific riff. The bassist in the show then improvises around it. I'm a piano player/musical director, and it's the same deal with the piano part. The exception is Jason Robert Brown, who writes out EVERYTHING. You would probably do alright with a vocal selections book and your cd- the sheet music would at least give you the chords and maybe a couple patterns. After that, it should be simple to play around and figure out some of the stuff the guy on the cd is doing.

[ckeaton]

re: Pit Music: String/Electric Bass parts from musicals.#4

Posted: 7/16/04 at 10:30am

Chauv...
That's exactly what I have been doing.
The Vocal Selections/CD combo works about 50% of the time though.

Hamlet's father.