Fun Stuff > BAND

Teaching myself bass guitar...

(1/24) > >>

Albatron:
So I saw that other thread about learning guitar, figured i'd make one of my own.
My friend left his electric bass he never plays at my house, so I've started learning it. Anybody else play bass have tips advice etc?

JimmyJazz:
THis may be cliche advice, but I reccomend getting a teacher. And it doesn't have to be long term either-just long enough so you know the basics  so you don't fuck yourself over with some little thing later on down the line. (Happeened to me with guitar; I held the pick wrong for the first three years of self-teaching.) Listen to your favorite music and try to figure out some lines on your own. Also, PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE. Cliche, but important.

the Goat:
I agree with getting a good teacher. I had one for less than a year, a total of maybe 12 lessons. When you're starting out getting the basics right are essential and a teacher can show you how to do that in a very in-depth and personable way that a book or video could never manage, especially with regards to technique. Teachers also generally have some useful tidbits that they let go every now and again. I still remember the advice my first teacher gave me: "don't let your lines be boring" and "don't be afraid to feel the rhythm. Its okay to look like a dork if you sound good".

Beyond that, a fret map of the bass neck and bit of musical theory will help you make sense of music. I recommend "Edly's Musical Theory for Practical People". It's about as straightforward and friendly a theory book as exists and covers notes, scales, modes and more. You can usually find it pretty reasonably on half.com.

I listened to a lot of Fugazi, Minutemen and Ramones (with the sound panned to the left channel) and other bands that had very prominent basslines to help understand how bass fit into different settings, which I found really helpful.

Good luck!

greenMonkey:
That advice about listening to basslines in music is great.  I did that with drums; my initial repertoire consisted mostly of Jesus Lizard beats and my fills are still very Jesus Lizard-esque.

PassiveTheory:
As a bass player for five year let me just say this: don't let the instrument be your only instrument. Seriously. Pick up a guitar right now, otherwise you will be tied to other people's desires for the rest of your playing life.

Unless you become a virtuoso like the likes of Victor Wooten, don't ever let yourself be marginalized as only a bassist. That was the mistake I made, thinking that I could be a bassist and still be able to do my own shit. No, that's not the case, because that instrument is steeped in playing with other people, and most of the time, other people suck.

That's why I'm picking up turntables, fuck the bass.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page