Instruments
Double Bass
The modern bass, which serves as a foundation at once harmonic and rhythmic in jazz and many other musical genres, has as its direct ancestor is the classical double bass, also known as the contrabass. Those two terms are associated with classical music almost exclusively. The lowest member of the Western family of stringed instruments, it is a viol of roughly human height. Usually it has four strings, but five- and six-stringed instruments, often associated with contemporary popular acoustic styles, in fact date back to the early years of the instrument's existence. The double bass first took its recognizable form at the beginning of the sixteenth century. It was used as a continuo (harmonic-support) instrument during the Baroque era, and various composers, including Mozart, wrote works featuring a solo double bass. The instrument's chief role in classical music, however, is as the foundation of the symphony orchestra's string section. In many orchestral works, the bass duplicates the cello line at the interval of an octave below, providing the volume and power necessary to fill a large concert hall.