Bass instruments come in all shapes and forms, but the “mother of all basses” is the classic double bass, also called upright bass, and often referred to as jazz bass.
Instead of bowing the strings like they usually do in an orchestra, with an upright bass you pluck it the strings in various ways to create more of a rhythm and groove kind of feel for the bass parts.
Here are my top recommendations for VST plugins and sample libraries focusing on a great double bass:
5 Best Double Bass VST Sample Libraries
- Spectrasonics Trilian
- Ample Bass Upright
- Acoustic Bass Premier G
- VSL Synchronized Plucked Instruments
- CoreBass Pear
The Power of Double Bass in Music
Why is upright bass such a big part of jazz, acoustic band music of all styles, and often used in film music as well for underscores and minimal scores? Well, because of one thing: rhythm & groove in the low end.
A double bass part can add that sense of drive in a very smooth way, without taking away from dialogue and effects in movies, or the lead singer in a song, or leading melody instrument(s) in a composition.
What you should Focus on
With an upright bass sample library or VST plugin you really want to focus on what type of tone and sound quality you get from the recordings and samples. How notes connect, such as legato, slides etc. are hugely important in the low end.
Vibrato is not that important in bass parts, but dynamic range (layers) and round robins (variations per note) are very important. As are added articulations and special effects you can use for shaping your performance, or adding occasional spices.