Hey everyone, I have been playing for about a year and a half, and one of my resolutions this year was to learn to read. Anyway my bass teach threw me thirty etudes which surprisingly I did well with. But I still dont feel totally adequate with the basics of reading, so can anyone suggest a website that can show me dotted notes, sixteenth note counting, etc... I already checked libster, and their reading instructions was stuff I was familiar with. Thanks!

I don't know of any websites, but Rufus Reid's The Evolving Bassist does have some of that rhythmic study.

Also, after you learn the basics of this, practice a lot etudes, and start to become familiar with these concepts, the James Jamerson Motown study book, Standing in the Shadows of Motown, (with accompanying CDs), contains a lot of "higher level" reading, i.e. syncopation, sixteenth notes, chromaticisms, etc.

Originally posted by Mikey96
Hey everyone, I have been playing for about a year and a half, and one of my resolutions this year was to learn to read. Anyway my bass teach threw me thirty etudes which surprisingly I did well with. But I still dont feel totally adequate with the basics of reading, so can anyone suggest a website that can show me dotted notes, sixteenth note counting, etc... I already checked libster, and their reading instructions was stuff I was familiar with. Thanks!

other than Libster I dont know of any sites that can help you. Other than TalkBass of course.

might i suggest to you that you obtain a copy of the Bach Cello Suites. This is what was recomended to me, by a few of the most respected talkbass members. Its got all of what your asking about and then some, and is very challenging. Im working on them and man they will teach you everything you need to know about reading music i think.

Bach: good for pitches. Bleah for rhythm; too straightforward.

Berklee publishes this book called "Reading Basslines" that has some parts written out in both "slow" and "fast" signatures, eg. 4/4 and cut time, 3/4 and 6/8. Usefull if you suffer from bar-clutter dyslexia.

Best advice for complex rhythm is to buy a piece of sheet music for a tune that you already know the line to. That way you can see how the tricky stuff is written out.

I would also suggest to ask your teacher. It takes time and discipline to hash out complex rhythms, and a teacher can really help show you the tricks. Once you do learn how to count these rhythms, I truly believe the only way to do it is to start as slow as possible, with a metronome. 50, 60, 70 bpm. Whatever. Learn to count sixteenth notes, (1-e-and-a, 2-e-and-a, 3-e-and-a, 4-e-and-a), learn what makes 12/8 different from 6/4, learn to clap quarter note triplets while stomping out a 5/4 rhythm. This stuff doesn't come slowly, but a teacher can help tremendously. Then the books will really help drive it home.

Originally posted by Christopher
Bach: good for pitches. Bleah for rhythm; too straightforward.

yeah, thats true,about the rythms but i think your missing the point, it will teach him everything he needs to know about reading music. and thats the important part

Ok thanks everyone, I will go out and buy a book this weekend, and I have been using my metronome at about 55 bpm for these etudes, because I live and die by my metronome, it has helped me so much.