Standing/Sitting

[Richard Prowse]

Okay, along with what bow you choose to use (German or French), whether you choose to stand or sit while playing is one of the most defining decisions a double bass player makes. I know most of us do a bit of both, depending on the situation we are playing in. For me standing is the way to go. I've experimented with a lot of different sitting positions lately, but standing always wins out for me. Okay, sitting offers more stability. The main problem with standing is balancing or controlling the bass while you move around the fingerboard. I've also thought a lot lately about how some sitting positions slant the bass back more, making the bowed string closer to being parallel (well more like 45 degress really)to the floor and, thus, letting gravity help to keep the bow on the string.
After all of my experimenting, I still prefer to stand. Why? Probably because I feel I can get more physical with the bass, and get my body more involved with the music. Personally, I'm prepared to sacrifce a little accuracy for that.
I'd be really interested in all your thoughts on this topic.