Nothing over 1.3 metres long may be taken on a train, says SNCF, the national carrier.
So skis, skateboard, scooters and bicycles are fine.
But not basses or harps, which musicians need to pursue their living. Or even lutes, reportedly.
An outcry is brewing.
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How often does anyone try to take a harp on a train? And double basses probably not much more often.
Ah, evidently more often in France than in the UK, to judge from the article.
I take my bass on the train all the time (and the tube). It’s easy. I’m not the only one either, I see others about sometimes. A harp is probably a different matter.
Double bass players do indeed frequently take their basses on trains and metro (some even have a single wheel which they plug into the bottom of the bass in place of their spike). In a soft case it’s perfectly possible, and is something you see on more journeys than readers might imagine, especially on the continent.
A standard hard cello case this morning was 1.34m high, so even a cello would theoretically be banned.
And I’m pretty sure that most pairs of adult skis are longer than 1.3m, so that will be an interesting one for the SNCF to rule on.
Ah, I was thinking cellos might just be affected as well – thanks for confirming.
When you need to, you need to… and even being stopped once becomes a problem.
Frankly, this is typical of the French .
I was a music student in Siena in the late 1960s when a friend who spoke no Italian asked me to accompany him to Venice to buy a Double Bass from a Bassist in the La Fenice Orchestra. When we returned to the train station with the instrument which had only a cloth case and attempted to board, the conductor came waving his arms wildly and saying no no no. After a very long discussion, we had no choice but to check the instrument insuring it for many Millione di Lira. We were sure it would be destroyed, but it arrived the next day without a scratch. Un Miracolo!
I think people were more respectful in those days. If it was today the double bass would finish up in kit-form.
Solution: you create a bass case that is cube shaped with each side being 1.29m long. Placed diagonally inside it will hold a bass up to 2.23m long.
Brilliant !
Next problem, how to get a cubic bass case through the door ? Hmm cut the sides off until it is about the same shape as a bass.
Peter I think this is brilliant – so what you need is a light, aluminium cube-shaped frame which you can install around your double bass and then demonstrate to the authorities that in fact all the three dimensions are less than 1.3 m, and then you can remove the frame, fold it up and transport the bass as before…
It’s so awful. In south America, a cellist , even with an extra ticket was kicked off a plane. Now France is banning basses? As if being a cellist or bass player isnt already difficult enough.Train is the only way to travel in Europe. Shame on you France.
Since you have a photo of a model railway, why not include a model double bass and attendant player? – with a model train guard saying non!
I have seen arpa dos ordenes and peruvian harps in the Metro. They are over 1.3m.