Bass Guitar - Description Paper (Detailed)

Description paper

You can describe an object a few ways. Depending on what that object is, you have to decide on the best manner of analyzing it. If you were describing a musical instrument like a bass or guitar, the physical description might be sufficient. However, to a musician there's a lot more to it.

Sitting in a music stand in the corner of a room right now is a bass. This bass looks very simple to the eye, but actually has a lot more detail than you think. To the normal eye, someone sees a smooth body shape with a long wooden neck overlapping and continuing vertically up. This requires a closer look.

Zooming in closer at the neck, little dots start to appear. These markings are like reminders of what notes are to be played by the musician. They start to shine a bit in a chrome-type reflection. Underneath those dots is the actual neck, which looks like a smooth, flat-tone wood.

Also on that same neck are what look like sectioned off pieces. Metal bars go horizontally across the neck to mark off certain notes. These bars get closer together as the neck gets closer to the body. When a finger is pressed down between two of these bars, a note is signified. Above the neck is what is called a head. On this particular body-shape, are metallic knobs called machine-heads, which tighten or loosen the strings depending on which way they're rotated.

On the other side of this neck is the largest part of the bass. This is the body. The body can be any number of shapes. This particular shape is like a glossy black melted figure eight with horns. The horns point toward the head of the bass. The right horn is a bit higher than the left. These details have to do with making the bass comfortable to hold and play.

In the center of the body are plastic bars with magnetic studs lined up under the strings. These magnets pick up the vibrations from the strings and create