Arran McSporran

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De Profundis - Longing Bass Solo

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Released: Jan 1, 2010

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De Profundis - Longing Bass Solo
1:23
217 plays
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De Profundis - Ablaze In Autumn's Fire
11:33
73 plays
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De Profundis - Nocturnal Splendour
8:15
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De Profundis - Cease To Be
9:39
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De Profundis - Crimson Black Bleeding
9:39
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Total Plays: 925 / Plays Today: 2See All Featured ►

Biography

Arran began playing bass at 15 and, now 24, has been a professional electric bass player since finishing his studies at the Academy Of Contemporary Music in 2007. He has toured nationally and internationally, playing gigs all around the UK as well as India, France, Germany, Belgium, Holland, Poland, Austria, Romania and Portugal. He has played large international festivals and is regularly gigging in and around London and the South-East of England.

He is currently performing in the bands De Profundis, Seven7, The Separation and function band Barcoda. Arran also played and recorded with the reformed lineup of 80’s supergroup Statetrooper (featuring members of Weapon, Michael Schenker Group and Praying Mantis) before they went on hiatus. He also performs session work (most recently for Estonian keyboard virtuoso Sergey Boykov on his progressive fusion solo album) and plays in other function and tribute bands. He is currently finishing writing and arranging songs for the Jazz Fusion band ‘Makaton Scheme’ which will begin recording and performing in 2011. He performs at, and co-runs, the fortnightly ‘Guildford Jazz Club’, which highlights new local and international Jazz music artists.

Arran primarily uses 6-string fretless and fretted Ibanez basses. These have a larger musical range, allowing for greater freedom of expression as well as minimising movement on the neck due to the increased notes in each position. He also uses 4-string basses when situations do not allow the use of a 6-string instrument. In Seven7 he uses a midi system installed in his fretless Ibanez to add extra depth to the music, without the need for a keyboard player.

He is a very versatile player, having played with acoustic songwriters, in jazz duos and trios, in rock and metal bands, in tribute bands, in cover bands performing a wide variety of different genres and styles and also in orchestras for musical theatre, where he has played classic and contemporary musicals. He has played in all kinds of venues, from large international festivals to small, intimate pubs, clubs and private parties. He is often commended for his professionalism, tone, feel and technique.

Arran’s approach to the bass is characterised by his love of other cultural music. He has intimately studied the music of Turkey, North and South India, Spain, China and Africa and these influences are often present in his playing. His lines often have a Jazz theoretical basis, but are played with the experimental, virtuosic spirit of Progressive Rock. He is one of the few bass players using a fretless bass in metal, and the quotes below are a tribute to his phrasing and sensitivity, as he plays elegant, flowing passages underneath the heavy guitars. His greatest passion, however, is trying to forge his own style and voice on his instrument, rather than emulating those who have gone before.

Arran teaches music at the Idol Hands music school in Oxted, Surrey, and has been giving private tuition since the age of 18. Rates are competitive and more information can be found on the Idol Hands website.

Arran also does website design and has designed and built the websites for The Separation , Seven7 and MGP Records, as well as his personal website. He also does video editing, including the De Profundis album trailer and 'making of' video, the video for the Seven7 song 'Changing' and his own personal videos, which can be found below.

The songs here are from Arran's three bands with generally released original material.

More information on Arran's work and teaching can be found at www.arranmcsporran.co.uk

Arran is listed on TheTutorPages.com

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General Info

Genre: Jazz / Progressive / Rock
Location London, London and South East, UK
Profile Views: 6891
Last Login: 8/17/2011
Member Since 11/24/2006
Website arranmcsporran.co.uk
Record Label Sony/Relapse/Kolony/Engineer/MGP
Type of Label Major
Bio
Arran has been a professional electric bass player since finishing his studies at the Academy Of Contemporary Music in 2007. He holds a BTEC National Certificate in Music Practice with double distinction and a Contemporary Popular Music Certificate in Higher Education with distinctions. He is currently performing in the bands De Profundis, Seven7, The Separation and function band Barcoda. He has toured nationally and internationally, playing gigs all around the UK as well as France, Germany, Belgium, Holland, Poland, Austria, Romania and Portugal. He has played large international festivals and is regularly gigging in and around the South-East of England. He primarily uses 6-string fretted and fretless basses. These have a larger musical range, allowing for greater freedom of expression as well as minimising movement on the neck due to the increased notes in each position. He also uses 4-string basses when situations do not allow the use of a 6-string instrument. Arran's music reading has also allowed him to have regular involvement in orchestras for musical theatre. Arran teaches music at the Idol Hands music school in Oxted, Surrey, and has been giving private tuition since the age of 18. Rates are competitive and more information can be found on the Idol Hands website. Arran also does website design and has designed and built the websites for The Separation, Seven7 and MGP Records, as well as his personal website. He also does video editing, including the De Profundis album trailer and 'making of' video, the video for the Seven7 song 'Changing' and his own personal videos. The songs here are from Arran's three bands with generally released original material. More information on Arran's work and teaching can be found at www.arranmcsporran.co.uk.
Members
Seven7, The Separation, De Profundis, Barcoda
Influences
In no particular order: Billy Sheehan, Geddy Lee, John Entwistle, Devin Townsend and projects (inc SYL), Marty Friedman, Nicolas Meier, Jason Becker, Dream Theater, Joseph F Howell, John Patitucci, Michael Manring, John Coltrane, Michael Brecker, Nic Preston, Robert Fripp and King Crimson, Yes, Bill Bruford, Cannonball Adderley, Charlie Parker, Hiromi, Tony Grey, Allan Holdsworth, Steve Lawson, Steve Vai, Trent Reznor, Gary Numan, Paul Gilbert, Stanley Jordan, Jeff Beck, Cliff Burton, Jonas Hellborg, Shawn Lane, Les Claypool, Stu Hamm, Oteil Burbridge, Victor Wooten, Jaco Pastorius, Martin Mickels, Bari Parrott, Guthrie Govan, Planet X, Brett Garsed, Mike Oldfield, Frank Zappa, Scott Henderson, Frank Gambale, Mattias 'IA' Eklundh, Jordan Rudess, Prince, Tony Levin etc etc...
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