On Sunday, November 27, 2016, we held the very first Walking Bass Showcase.
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The 1st Walking Bass Showcase
The Walking Bass Showcase is a student recital event open to everyone taking lessons with me.
I had been planning it since summer, and the day had finally come.
Here’s how the whole day went.
10:00 AM — Setup and Departure
At 10 in the morning, my student M came over to help haul gear.
It was a rare, perfectly clear day. So naturally:
Cheers. Asahi and Jagarico in front of the FamilyMart at 10 in the morning.
We used to do this kind of thing all the time back in the day.
11:00 AM — Venue Setup
For this event, we rented out a small izakaya bar called Kuromon Ichiba in Ueno exclusively for the day.
It had no music setup whatsoever, so we brought in a portable PA system, moved tables out of the way, lined up chairs, and spent a while figuring out how everything should go.
Where should the keyboard go?
How about here?
How does the volume sound?
Too quiet?
We kept going back and forth like that, trying things out as we went.
I’d always been on the player side of things, so getting a little taste of what it’s like backstage was eye-opening.
12:30 PM — Musicians Arrive
The musicians who joined us as the house rhythm section were:
Guitar — Shintaro Masuda
Drums — Yu Yamamoto
Both of them are musicians I’ve worked with for years — absolutely solid and reliable.
1:00 PM — Rehearsal Begins
Sound check started at 1:00.
We ran electric bass, guitar, and piano through a portable PA system (CLASSIC PRO PAeZ) I’d purchased from Sound House. For upright bass, we tried running a monitor feed, but the acoustic sound was so much better that we just played it without amplification.
After sound check, people went out to grab lunch and had some free time before the show.
Since all my students do individual lessons, most of them were meeting each other for the first time. I was a little worried it might feel awkward and quiet — but:
Everyone started fueling up. Far from awkward — the room was already buzzing with conversation, practically feeling like an after-party before the show even started.
I was thinking, we haven’t even played yet — but went ahead and had another drink myself.
That’s jazz for you.
2:30 PM — Showtime
I hosted and MCed the event.
We had 9 bassists plus one full band — 10 bass players in total.
The songs performed were:
- Isn’t She Lovely
- Blues Work
- Fly Me to the Moon
- I’ll Close My Eyes
- Softly as in a Morning Sunrise
- Milestones
- Autumn Leaves
- Satin Doll
- You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To
- Fly Me to the Moon
- The Days of Wine and Roses
Isn’t She Lovely
Made famous by Stevie Wonder, this one was performed as a bass duo.
M, the youngest performer at 19 years old, looked a little nervous up there.
Blues Work
Best known from Lou Donaldson’s recording, this one also went down as a bass duo.
A bluesy tune works surprisingly well as a bass duo!
Fly Me to the Moon
A jam session staple.
This performer tackled the bass melody head.
I’ll Close My Eyes
Another jam session classic.
The melody is so catchy and memorable — it’s one I used to listen to a lot when I was just starting out.
Softly as in a Morning Sunrise
A tune where that dramatic shift to the B section really stands out.
This one also featured the bass melody head!
Milestones
A modal jazz standard with the slightly tricky AABBA form.
The tempo was fast, but they pushed through to the end.
Everyone locked in.
(Though in the back, people were already drinking pretty steadily.)
Autumn Leaves
A true autumn classic.
This player had only started walking bass that summer — and made it all the way through a solo.
Satin Doll
The only woman in this group of active jazz students.
Satin Doll is catchy enough that beginners often tackle it early — but there’s a lot of depth to it once you dig in.
You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To
The Captain takes the stage. Helen Merrill’s recording is the famous one.
I have to say — the Captain was putting away drinks at an impressive rate. (laughs)
Fly Me to the Moon / The Days of Wine and Roses
The life-of-the-party crew shows up — and brings a full band.
This group also handled photography for the event. Thank you!
They’re a hardworking group — but they also drink like pros. The five of them knocked back roughly 60 drinks between them. (Estimated.)
Finale
To wrap up, the house musicians played a couple of tunes.
We played “A Child Is Born” and “Ornithology.”
After Party
We talked gear, technique, music — the kind of shop talk that gets more fun when there are a bunch of bassists all in the same room, which is a rare thing. It was a blast.
Thanks, Everyone
I went into it with a lot of nerves, but everything went smoothly without a single problem. I’m genuinely grateful.
Thanks to everyone who came out and performed!
We’ll definitely do a 2nd Showcase — so keep practicing until then. I will too.
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