I interviewed world-renowned bassist Bunny Brunel at NAMM 2020. Bunny Brunel is a two-time Grammy-nominated artist, who has played with Chic Corea, Herbie Hancock, and many other jazz luminaries. He heads his own band Bunny Brunel CAB, and has designed his own signature series basses for ESP Guitars. We talked about a new magazine coming out in the Spring – Virtuoso Bass.

Interview by Sheryl Aronson
Responses by Bunny Brunel

Sheryl Aronson: Please talk about the new magazine Virtuoso Bass.

Bunny Brunel: One of the main factors that went into creating Virtuoso Bass magazine was my desire to tell young musicians about the artists that created bass playing and techniques – such as the “bass line” and things like that. We’ve read about a many bass players in magazines, but they were not those creators of a particular style that everyone is using now. For instance, Bernard Odum, [the] bass player for James Brown. he came out with incredible bass lines that no one had ever done before. That revolutionized the way musicians played the bass. That’s the funk bass style.

Sheryl Aronson: Who are some other bass players that revolutionized bass playing?

Bunny Brunel: There are about 10 bass players (I’m not going to mention them all here, but they will be featured in Virtuoso Bass.) These players created a unique style, and people are still using these bass lines. I want to talk about these artists, as well as virtuosos that can play amazing solos on the acoustic bass, such as one of my favorites … Eddie Gomez. Before him, you had Scott LaFaro (Bill Evans Trio), Gary Peacock, and after that Stanley Clarke came out. These musicians inspired me to play the way I play.

Sheryl Aronson: What advice can you give other bass players?

Bunny Brunel: I always listen to the great players who play bass lines. I tell my students that it’s great you can play a solo and the melody, but if you want to have a gig playing the bass – you’re going to have to PLAY THE BASS! You’re going to have to be in the pocket. First things first, you’re going to have to learn how to play the bass.

Sheryl Aronson: Very good advice. The magazine that you are now holding was a special issue for the NAMM show. When will the first issue come out of Virtuoso Bass?

Bunny Brunel: The first issue will come out in the Spring 2020.

In this issue we will feature Stanley Clarke, Eddie Gomez, and Kyle Eastwood.

Kyle was one of my students I taught how to play the electric bass and the acoustic bass. He is fantastic.

Sheryl Aronson: Please talk about the differences between playing the electric bass and the acoustic bass. A lot of electric bass players don’t know how to play the acoustic bass.

Bunny Brunel: The upright bass doesn’t have frets, so you have to learn how to position your hands and fingers. It’s a harder instrument to play. You play the scales with different fingerings. I, myself combine electric bass fingerings on the acoustic bass. It makes playing the acoustic bass a lot easier. Originally, the classical players were playing on the low strings then went to the G-string to go up and down the bass. They’re not playing on the middle of the neck that way. A lot of virtuoso bass players are using the electric bass fingering on the acoustic bass.

Sheryl Aronson: Is it easy for an electric bass player to learn how to play the acoustic bass?

Bunny Brunel: Yes, because they already know where they’re supposed to put their fingers, so they’ll know how to set up the acoustic bass.

Sheryl Aronson: What else do you want everyone to know about Virtuoso Bass magazine?

Bunny Brunel: We are going to talk about the people who created the style of playing the bass who aren’t necessarily in the limelight such as Paul Jackson, who played with Herbie Hancock. He came out with some incredible bass lines, but you don’t hear too much about his accomplishments. His timing really kills—he’s in the timing pocket. We will be introducing artists like this, who really have made a difference in bass playing. Chuck Rainey is another example.

Sheryl Aronson: You will also be offering lessons in the magazine.

Bunny Brunel: Yes, I will put in a lesson, but I will also ask other bass players to do lessons as well. Musicians can find my lessons in all the books and videos that I have published.