As many of you will know, a bass musician is likely to find themselves playing in many different settings and instrumental combinations.
Is it possible for bass guitar and piano/keyboard to play well together? This is a situation which presented itself recently when playing with keyboardist Jordan.
Speaking as the bassist, who doesn't have the same range as the keyboard player, the general rule is that both can't play the low end at the same time. On the keyboard, that's anything from the C below Middle C or lower.
If the keys player is going to play a single note or chord with the left hand to support the right hand then it is best constrained to that one octave below Middle C, otherwise the bass and the keys will mix and muddy the sound.
Given that the piano/keyboard is the most versatile of the two instruments in terms of range, Jordan focused on the melody on the higher end with the bass providing the rhythmic and harmonic foundation at the lower end.
Keyboardists also have the added advantage of a host of other instrumental sounds at the press of a button and, sometimes, play different instrumentals with each hand, eg. with half the keyboard set to piano, organ or clavichord (to add to the rhythm section) and the other half of the keyboard set to saxophone, horn, flute, violins, or even guitar (for the lead). The possibilities are endless.
The bass also has its own advantages over the keyboard at the low end, so much so that there are whole articles out there consisting tips and tricks to replicate the sound of the bass guitar with the keyboard.
That's not the purpose of this blog post and, when all's said and done, there's nothing better than the real thing. What it does tell us, however, is that there is a place for bass guitar alongside the keyboard in a band setting and together they can compliment one another to create the very best sound over the whole range.
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