Hug-a-Bassist Day: Embrace the Teachings of Berklee Online’s Bass Instructors

October 12 marks Hug-a-Bassist Day, a little-known but much-needed celebration that honors those who lay down the low end. This year, we’re celebrating by shining the spotlight on Berklee Online’s four bass instructors—each as essential as the four strings on a standard bass guitar. 

But before we get ahead of ourselves, do bassists really need a hug? The responses from our instructors are as diverse as their musical backgrounds. Dave Clark (whose birthday coincidentally falls on the October 12 day of celebration for Hug-a-Bassist Day) says, “Absolutely hugs! I do hope folks appreciate our contribution.” 

Rich Appleman echoes the sentiment, saying “I haven’t heard of Hug-a-Bassist Day but I am interested.” He goes on to say, “Of course bass players deserve a hug … Many don’t appreciate us.” He shares a humorous anecdote about when bass legend Ron Carter spoke at Berklee Commencement in 2005. Carter began by saying, “I am surprised you invited me to speak because no one notices the bass player … until they stop playing.”

Danny Morris says he believes hugs are universal: “Everybody needs a hug,” he says, regardless if they play bass or not. “Sometimes it’s a thankless job, but bassists are selfless people who love being part of a community.” 

Anthony Vitti has a different perspective: “Nope,” he says. “The people that matter know what we do.”

Vitti stands out amongst his Berklee Online bass colleagues in that he is the only native bass player among them.

“The first bass line I learned was the Beatles’ ‘Day Tripper,’” he says. “A friend taught it to me in eighth grade in 1978.”

With Berklee Online Vitti is the author and instructor of the Rock Bass course, and instructor of the Slap Bass course, which he wrote with the late Lenny Stallworth.

STUDY BASS WITH BERKLEE ONLINE

For the other bass instructors at Berklee Online, the journey to the bass began with a different instrument. Trumpet was the original instrument for both Appleman and Morris (who co-authored the Bass Performance 101 course together for Berklee Online). Appleman recalls picking up the trumpet in grade school, only to have his middle school band teacher steer him toward the sousaphone.

“That put me in the bass clef, which felt great,” says Appleman, who is chair emeritus of the Bass department at Berklee College of Music. 

Morris played trumpet for a longer time before he felt the bass beckon. Someone in his dorm at Ithaca College had a bass, and he says he was just drawn to it.

“I started playing along to James Taylor and Led Zeppelin records, and the instrument just spoke to me,” he says, while strolling back to his office on the Boston campus of Berklee College of Music. “I felt it was meant to be, and I stopped playing trumpet. There’s something about the instrument that is just so much fun, but I think it’s the role of it, like I just walked from Beacon Street to where I am now, and I’m admiring all of the beautiful gardens and buildings, and I don’t look up. I’m looking at the ground, so I guess I’m just attracted to the ground.”

In addition to Bass Performance 101, Morris is also the author and instructor for the Berklee Online course R&B Bass, and an instructor for Music for Beginners.

Dave Clark says his first instrument wasn’t bass either, but his transition was even later in life than Morris or Appleman. 

“I was playing drums professionally and teaching drums, but as a composer/songwriter I wanted to lead a lifestyle involving more pitches,” he says. “So I was practicing piano to that end when a friend’s band needed a bass player—and had known that I’d been fooling around on one—and asked if I could fill in until they got a ‘real one,’ and I just made sure that they had no need to get a ‘real’ one by arriving at the rehearsals super prepared.”

Clark teaches Jazz Bass, written by the late Jim Stinnett (who hilariously posed for his author profile photo holding a bass of a different “stripe”).

Clark’s commitment to mastering the bass extends to the instruments he plays, where each piece of equipment carries its own story. As Clark puts it: “I play my Juzek upright bass the most. It formerly belonged to Sam Jones, and it appears on the cover of his Something in Common album. Something in Common indeed!”

Just like Clark, the other bass instructors at Berklee Online have their own trusted gear that they rely on to craft their sound.

Appleman says his current bass of choice is a Kay upright and a Sadowsky five-string electric. For amps he uses a Walter Woods head with any good speaker cabinet, as well as a Gallien Krueger MB Bass Combo amp. Of the latter, he says, “It’s small, sounds good, and has XLR outputs, which are great for the sound folks.”

Vitti says he owns about 15 basses, most of which are Fender Jazz basses, but his favorite is more than 50 years old.

“I play a custom 1969 seafoam green Jazz bass,” he says. “It was custom ordered from Fender in 1969 with a mahogany body and brass nut.”

As for Morris, his most prized possession is his 1965 Fender Precision bass.  

“I don’t take it out of the house anymore,” he says. “I wouldn’t be able to just leave it in a corner.” Instead, he relies on his Modern Vintage basses, crafted by Rob Elrick, a former student of Morris’s from the late 1980s.

Their bond was so strong that typing “dannymo” on modernvintageguitars.com will trigger a sizable discount at checkout.

Reflecting on his long career, Morris believes his relationship with students keeps him young. When asked what advice he’d give to prospective Berklee Online learners, he enthusiastically responds, “Come on in! Let’s discover together how to study music. It’s a language. With more than 40 years of experience teaching, I still feel as though I’m a student first and foremost.”

Vitti also shares his thoughts on online learning: “The online courses are awesome. I am able to pack much more material into the online course than I can in a regular Berklee lab that meets once a week.”

Appleman adds his advice for Berklee Online bass students: “Make sure you have the required equipment and available time to spend on course material and practice. Ask lots of questions and make lots of friends.”

Clark echoes this sentiment: “Practice as much and as thoughtfully as you can and do a lot of listening in the style of the course you are taking.”

As Hug-a-Bassist Day rolls around, it’s clear that Berklee Online’s bass instructors bring more than just rhythm to the table—they bring a lifetime of stories, knowledge, and a deep love for music. Whether they started on trumpet, drums, or piano, they all found their way to the bass and made it their own. Their dedication not only shapes their sound but also resonates with their students. So, whether or not you’re handing out actual hugs today, maybe send a little appreciation their way—it’s the least we can do for those who add that essential depth to every track.

Check out the playlist below for songs that include all of the bass lines that these instructors mentioned in this article, as well as additional favorites they have selected for our Bass Handbook.