http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYKahj7RGys
Can a wash basin be turned into an instrument?
First, when I saw this source of inspiration, I thought "Oh, this is really cool" and I opened all the links… But they opened all at the same time and I got the impression that all the different songs and sounds together made one big show...
I really like the photo above and the ambiance of the Jug Bands. Jug bands are a mix of traditional and home-made instruments. When I listen to jug band songs I really get the feeling of being in the USA.
The instrument on this photo is a washtub bass, the home-made version of the double bass. The double bass is really a strange box-like instrument because it is not very beautiful, and it is so very BIG! When I was a bit younger, I saw a very little skinny man playing double bass and it struck me as very peculiar, really.
I think a washtub bass is more fun than a double bass and just as important, because it gives the bass line and the rhythm.
“The Double Bass” by Patrick Süskind is the story of a double bass player who describes the history of his instrument, his role in the orchestra, and the relationship between a player and his instrument. Later on, we understand that he is going a bit crazy because he doesn't understand why the other players don't look at him, and why the girl who he has fallen in love with doesn't look at him. He has a cynical look on everything and everybody around him…
Julien Le Provost did a good interpretation in the play version (see the link above).
I think it is a good book/play, because it gives us an insight into what ordinary members of an orchestra might think and feel. In fact, if you think about it, most people in life feel like the double bass player sometime in their lives: a bit excluded or unimportant…
Article by Anne-Sophie Belbezet
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