airtime for the bassist really sucks

hayabusa

hayabusa

New member
i've noticed in many concert/music videos, airtime for the bassist really sucks. in a typical shot, the airtime splits as so:

lead vocal: 70%
guitarist: 20% (and that's only when solo time)
bassist and drummer: share the remaining 10% (bass solos are so rare they're hardly caught on tape)

is filming the bassist really so much a waste of time?

i guess in order for any bassist to get more limelight, he/she needs to learn how to sing too..

just frustrated cause i hoped to learn some technics when wathcing but never got to..

is the bassist discriminated?
 
look at it this way...if the camera was on the bassist 70% of the time while the singer was singing or the guitarist was soloing ..... kinda weird ...rite?
 
It's how the real world works. The frontman must always be the most appealing. The emphasis of a mix is also on the vocals.
So you want 70% on the bassists? Sure, ask the bassist to front/sing for the band.
 
well even during bass solos sometimes bassists don't get any airtime too!

Eg.

Andy Fraser(Free) - Mr. Big
John Entwistle(The Who) - My Generation

You can check out the videos. During their solo 95% of the time is on the guitarists strumming chords! Ah well..
 
That's why we have drum festivals, cos watching drummers just can't get enough from all that crappy footage :D

Some drummers are featured solo, while others bring along their band if they wanna showcase their playing in context. But the drummer's in the spotlight while the rest take a backseat :lol:
 
my suggestions for producing band video:

1. cameraman should try to shoot more than one member at a time. don't ask me how, it's his problem. it's a waste of film to focus on the nose hair of the singer most of the time. hihihi..
2. bring back those 70's kind of split screen footage. they're really cool. if that's passe, then use the 'phantom' effect. (are today's editors lazier?)
 
Don't expect the industry to change overnight.
Like I have mentioned, emphasis is always on the good looking frontman.
Usually when there is guitar solos, camera is on the guitarist.
In an interview even, it's always one person talking for the band.
Why don't you shoot your own MTV?
Don't call them noob, many producers are have been around for a long time.

Camera man has no say on how shots are composed. They only frame up the picture.
They always follow the producer/director's instructions which are in the shot list.
 
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i think the best is to just video a story, and just a few clips of the band members. like how funeral for a friend does it. their videos are so cool!!
 
I'D RATHER HAVE SCANTILY CLAD WOMEN PRANCING AROUND in the music vids rather than band members all the time!
 
I'd rather have less air time... Most of the time I'd be caught looking at pretty girls in the crowd.

But seriously lah, nobody really cares about bassists, unless you're really cute, then maybe the girls will take notice. So let's play our thing, and complain a little less.
 
be a front man bassist e.g. Mark King / Geddy Lee / Paul McCartney / Sting

get all the airtime in the world dah
 
Sometimes its true bassist dont get much air time, but have u ask this qns, do they want the camera to be focus on them? Some bassist are shy u know. Like me. heheheeh..
 
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