Scooping - Bowing Technique Lesson by Joseph Conyers

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In this video, Joseph Conyers and Geoff Chalmers discuss 'scooping' technique on the double bass which Joseph often uses in his online course on orchestral excerpts, Orchestra Chops Vol. 1.
Joseph demonstrates how a scooping technique on the string will create a better sound, and how you can achieve this. This includes how to use the natural weight of your body and use the right amount of pressure to get a rich, full sound from your bass.
Want to learn more from Joseph? Check out his other videos here:
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[@gavinhobbs3831]

As a very dedicated beginner at the delightful age of 53 , sadly no teacher's in my area so no lessons and that's what I'm wanting to thank all you fantastic folk at Discoverdoubleass.com have made available so many fantastic tutorials , trying to learn how to Arco on your own is an ear wrenching six month endeavour . Your tutorials are helpful , interesting and bang on exciting and great confidence boosters , thank you all. Cheers. Gavin.

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

Thanks so much for your kind words Gavin. It's great to hear you've enjoyed the lessons and I hope your practice is going well :-)

[@jonathanwingmusic]

I'm currently learning cello and my teacher spoke to me about this idea of "scooping" the bow beneath the string for a better sound. She also used an analogy of spreading peanut butter on toast, and I've heard another one about visualizing your bow as a heavy ship, the strings as the surface of water, and your 1st finger as the captain of the ship which steers and you can visualize the bottom of the ship sinking beneath the surface of the "water." All good food for thought, but it was still difficult for me to grasp or produce the right sound. After watching this video, even though designed for bass, I immediately understood the "scoop" and after 5 minutes of practicing it, the difference is night and day! I'm suddenly producing a much a more resonate tone out of my cello. Maybe it's because I love ice cream so much which is why the visualization works so well for me ;) Such a great explanation of bowing. So glad I found this video, thank you!

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

That's so great to hear! Thanks for watching and we are glad it helped.

[@MDsteeler1]

Joe is awesome. He explained the whole idea of arm weight on the bow in a very concise & easy to understand way.

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

I'm glad you enjoyed it as much as I did. Joe is such a great communicator!

[@jacobclarke3305]

Man this was a killer lesson! I've been really digging into my bow practice lately and this is EXACTLY what I needed to see!!!

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

Awesome 👏

[@JaeilJi]

Here's a big appreciation of a bassist from Korea. The information that scooping is really helpful for me that I haven't heard about. However also Mr. Conyers' personal energy is giving me a lot of good vibes. Thank you very much for sharing this video.

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

Happy to help and thanks for watching :-)

[@josephconyers440]

Glad you enjoyed it!! 😄

[@brattingprincess]

He has his own channel!!

[@Pensivata]

David Allen Moore talked about 'finding the natural resonance' of the string - and keeping it ringing - so this seems to tally with the idea of 'riding the wave' - indeed, all great insights into the endless quest for a good sound..

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

Thanks, it's great to hear you've enjoyed the lessons. I also loved the way Joe and David describe things, it really helps.

[@ibassnote]

Everything he says is pure gold. My version of “scooping” is more like an airplane landing but then taking off before stopping. So the airplane approaches the runway, adjusting the weight to land smoothly, then allows the plane to place full weight on the runway but then slowly takes off again (the landing wheels should continue spinning). Another way to visualize it. And Haagen Daz Chocolate Chocolate Chip is the undisputed king of ice creams;)

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

Thanks for watching and I’m glad you enjoyed it. I’ve also heard of the aeroplane metaphor and it’s another really useful one.

[@johnrobinsoniii4028]

“Pure Gold”? How about “Pure Platinum”!!

[@orlandoavogadro]

I don't even play double bass, but this is so fascinating. Thank you Joe, and thank you Discover Double Bass, I'm really starting to love this instrument! Now I really want to start playing it...

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

That's awesome to hear! I'm so pleased you're enjoying the bass and hope you manage to get hold of one. They are so expressive and I bet you will love it!

[@alexandrafisher3614]

Excellent lesson!

[@SteveWatsonMusic]

Terrific analogy! Thank you for sharing this one. Love it.

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching.

[@eliasgomez9712]

Excelente canal y contenido, felicitaciones!

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

Thanks :-)

[@bassmonk2920]

How come I have never heard of this technique.....thanks

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for watching :-)

[@brattingprincess]

Yes! My private teacher made me practice scooping out the sound for violin!

[@brunomaia..7710]

I am very interested in taking the Joseph Conyers's DDB [master class] course. I am sure there will be so many more interesting concepts to hear about just like the one shown in this video. I have come from a Jazz background, but this year started focusing all my practice time in orchestral music. I am also quite interested in Joseph Conyers's choice of audition exerpts which I am sure will make a life time difference to me. After completion of the volume 1 I am sure I am going to be looking forward to the volume 2 of this course, which I believe is not yet available. Best to all at DDB.

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

Thanks Bruno, I'm sure you would enjoy Orchestra Chops. There are some great lessons in there and Jospeh is such an engaging teacher. Vol.2 is due out later this year.

[@brattingprincess]

Joseph also has his own channel!

[@feliksaksyonov7191]

Always nice to see happy bass player.)

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

Absolutely! :-) Joe's energy is infectious!

[@Fretlessness]

wonderful food metaphor

[@walpolebassman]

Julius Levine used the metaphor of drawing a (sideways) figure 8 with the hand. the bow would "scoop" in one direction and change bow without stopping and scoop in the other direction. He often times used the term "get to the bottom of them string".

[@johnhermann5301]

I agree butter pecan is hard to beat lol!

[@davidcolintunstall6048]

Hi. Nice video as always. Could someone please tell me what the comfy looking rubber sheath thing is that goes over the winding and the frog on his bow please and where I can get one?

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

I'm not sure where you would get one. I've seen them put on by luthiers when doing a re hair.

[@jodi183]

One of my teachers told me something similar, but she likened this motion as to that of petting a cat.

[@DiscoverDoubleBass]

I LOVE that way of describing the motion!

[@vnsteele]

This question isn’t really related to the lesson, but is there such a thing as having your strings to far from the board?

[@josephconyers440]

Yes!! While playing with the strings high above the board can ultimately give you more power, it could wreak havoc on your ability to depress the strings with your left hand. It's a balance that we all must figure via practice and trial and error!

[@JonathanStefaniak]

Great lesson, but hearing an intelligent person talk about microscopic hooks on the hair grabbing the string is absurd. If this was true, we wouldn't need rosin.