From electric bass to upright bass

[EivindT]

Hi!

I'm a 19 year old male wanting to learn to play the upright bass.
I currently play on a fender jazz. Just wanting to know how hard it is to learn the upright bass by myself, with more or less good experience with the electric bass.

I play jazz/fusion-stuff from before on the el-bass, like Stevie Wonder - confusion -ish material. But let's start with the basics.

I can't afford a teacher for the upright bass, and have to learn it by myself.

So.. How hard is it, compared? Any starter tips like what bass to buy, playing techniques, etc?

[waleross]

I don't play String Bass right now , don't have one but hope to get one soon. I studied it and got a performance degree in music. OK, that being said IMO you sould get an instructor/teacher to get you started. If you don't have an instrument yet then you really need a guide to find you an instrument at the very least. My first Bass Teacher helped me get started, I already knew how to play the electric but the Upright is a different animal. If you live near a community college or a University with a Music Dept. , then that could be a great place to get leads for an instrument and a teacher. I am sure that other "active" players with give you similar advice. Studying the String Bass is like any other disipline such as martial arts,etc. You have to center yourself around the String Bass.....A good teacher/instructor becomes very important when starting out. Best of luck . . . .

[eerbrev]

Originally Posted by waleross

I don't play String Bass right now , don't have one but hope to get one soon. I studied it and got a performance degree in music. OK, that being said IMO you sould get an instructor/teacher to get you started. If you don't have an instrument yet then you really need a guide to find you an instrument at the very least. My first Bass Teacher helped me get started, I already knew how to play the electric but the Upright is a different animal. If you live near a community college or a University with a Music Dept. , then that could be a great place to get leads for an instrument and a teacher. I am sure that other "active" players with give you similar advice. Studying the String Bass is like any other disipline such as martial arts,etc. You have to center yourself around the String Bass.....A good teacher/instructor becomes very important when starting out. Best of luck . . . .

I had written out a huge comment, but then is realised. That^^^. just... that.

Seriously though, check the "newbie" links. They're going to be super-helpful, and answer 9/10 ths of your questions. We'll deal with the other 1/10 later.

regards,

Alex

[Stick_Player]

Just get one and play it. Forget the teacher bit.

If you have some ears, LISTEN to a lot of upright players - there are scads of good ones out there.

Hang with some upright players, that you like in your area, and steal from them.

[wdnewman]

Do not, and I repeat, DO NOT go out and "get one and just play it"! You aren't talking about some seventh graders guitar here. You can mess your hands up with an upright if it is not played correctly. Also, if you are planning to buy one you better have a lot of personal knowledge OR have an expert along with you. There is junk out there by the tens of thousands on Ebay and Craigslist and you never, ever save money buying a bass because it is cheap.

This should be your plan of action:

1. As noted previously, real ALL of the newbie links here. Twice. That should give you enough knowledge to get started.

2. If you can't afford a teacher, find someone who plays upright professionally to give you advise. They may charge you for the advise. If you cannot afford to pay them, then get a part time job and save your money until you can afford to pay them. Sometimes these people are called teachers.

3. Armed with this knowledge, and with the help of your teacher, rent a bass. There is no more inexpensive way than this. Within a year you will know exactly what you want in a bass, and what you want to stay away from. Then you can start to think about a purchase. Plan on no less than $1,500 for a professionally setup plywood bass from a reputable dealer.

This may all sound like too much effort. If it sounds that way to you, then you really don't want to learn bass after all, and you can save yourself some time and do something else. Upright bass is sometimes called "the dark side" and for good reason. It is the devil to play. It can pull you in and wrap you up and the learning never stops.

There. If you are not discouraged by this, then go for it. You are already in the right place, just go on up to the newbie links and get started. If you have any questions that you don't want to post here, then PM me. Feel free.

And....

welcome.

[Dbassmon]

Many have migrated to the double bass side of the fence.

Teacher - Yes!!

1) Instruct correct technique
2) point out that which we can not easily see ourselves (errors in position and approach)
3) explain difficult concepts or techniques
4) teachers set goals and evaluate progress....

Resulting in exponentially shortened learning curve, proper technique minimizes fatigue and injury, musical interaction is a major source of inspiration to improve

Student- Mentor... Many times this will grow to be one of the most important relationships in your life.

Get a paper route, bus tables, shovel snow, do whatever you need to do to get the money to pay for lessons from the best teacher you can find. I will be worth every ounce of energy and money.

[Square Bear]

i started playing DB in college about 7 years ago. i was 21 and i had played piano, guitar, drum set, saxophone then finally electric bass for several years. i wanted to play jazz and i was playing at community college in some combos when i was asked to go study double bass at the state university because they really needed someone and they could get me some money for tuition. what the hell i figured.

truth is i had played double bass in high school without a teacher for a bit. the school let me take one home to practice on and i played in the jazz ensemble. also, i goofed around on an instrument at BC, so i definitely gained some experience trying to work without a teacher. fortunately i never bought a bass, as i probably would have ended up with a worthless pos, not knowing what i know now about cheap basses. all in all, i played for maybe 4 or 5 years off and on without a teacher before i actually started playing the bass. i had no technique but was having fun i guess. you probably won't injure yourself (especially if you use some common sense about things), but of course it is a possibility, especially if you are susceptible to repetitive strain injury. i did not injure myself, but i also made zero progress. my point is, you can do it but you shouldn't expect much of anything for your efforts until you get a teacher. within a year after i started taking lessons i was playing in the jazz ensemble and i remember playing in the orchestra concert that year - the program was pictures at an exhibition and symphonic metamorphosis. i was happy about my technique and my sound. i felt really good about what i was doing and had to do more of it. next year i will have my second degree in bass performance and i am very happy with my sound now. i've managed to get myself some very good training at this point and i owe it all to that initial step of getting a good teacher at a state university. i agree that your local community college or university would be a good place to investigate. who knows, maybe you can get a pell grant, earn a degree in (x) and register for free lessons while you're at it. best of luck!

[Michael Case]

When I first got a DB I started studying on my own for six months. I tried to approach it like the electric, fingering and all. I basically had to unlearn what I taught myself. I teacher will get you playing correctly, advise you on purchasing a bass, and even setting it up for optimal performance.

A teacher is a great way to start on the instrument, even if it's only for a few months to develop good technique.

[Stick_Player]

Do not, and I repeat, DO NOT go out and "get one and just play it"!

Why not? It worked for me.

Sure, go out and get a teacher if you want. Or don't. It CAN work both ways.

approach it like the electric, fingering and all

One cannot do that -- but isn't it obvious?

This whole debate can be settled once you know your level of musical intuitiveness.

[Ed Fuqua]

Originally Posted by Stick_Player

Why not? It worked for me.

You don't list upright in your profile, can you give us a little more information about how it "worked" for you? How long did you play, who did you play with and do you have any recorded examples of you playing upright?

[crowsmengegus]

Originally Posted by Stick_Player

Why not? It worked for me.

Sure, go out and get a teacher if you want. Or don't. It CAN work both ways.



One cannot do that -- but isn't it obvious?

This whole debate can be settled once you know your level of musical intuitiveness.

Sorry this is ridiculous. After a decade of regular playing I'm still working through technique issues to try to keep from hurting myself. Many professional players are too. If you are a self taught DB player and you haven't damaged yourself after a year or two then you are either impossibly lucky or you are just casually messing around on the instrument. I suspect that with most "DB players" who say you can teach yourself to play without repercussions it is the latter.

[wdnewman]

Originally Posted by Stick_Player

.
One cannot do that -- but isn't it obvious?

It is obvious to a teacher. Which is why you don't just "go out and play it."
BTW, what the heck is "musical intuitiveness"?

[burns_isaac]

I am in the same boat as you man. Have been seriously playing electric jazz bass for sometime now. I am also a trombone player but thats neither here nor there. GO GET A TEACHER man! Go buy Ray Browns Method book and Dr. Mortons Tortorous book of excercises and work technique like a mad man. I dont care if you can play Jaco or Clarke or Patitucci on electric. None of that matters when your standing there with the beast that a DB is. Please get a teacher. Oh and no I do not consider myself a DB player which is why i dont list it.

[Ed Fuqua]

Gee, where did Stick go?

[Stick_Player]

Gee, where did Stick go?

I've been outta town. Sorry, I had no idea that I'd be so missed!

BTW, what the heck is "musical intuitiveness"?

I am guessing you don't have any? It is obvious to a teacher, though.

Relax academic DBers. The ORIGINAL post stated: "I can't afford a teacher for the upright bass, and have to learn it by myself."

I simply offered some support without squashing the desire.

And what was wrong with my initial so-called advice:

"If you have some ears, LISTEN to a lot of upright players - there are scads of good ones out there.

Hang with some upright players, that you like in your area, and steal from them."

It also sounds like half of the posters responded by saying that they too started without a teacher.

BTW, I play both acoustic and EUB and have recorded with both - big deal. And I'll be sure to add that useless info to my profile, someday.

[crowsmengegus]

Originally Posted by Stick_Player

Relax academic DBers. The ORIGINAL post stated: "I can't afford a teacher for the upright bass, and have to learn it by myself."
....

Hi Stick, the OP needs encouragement to set aside a little money every month for a lesson. Regardless of your experience Stick, I think it's bad advice to tell someone to try to teach themselves to play DB, especially coming from a background in electric bass. I say this because DB players (and many musicians on other instruments) struggle with injury all the time. There is nothing academic about it.

EivindT, don't let us scare you off. Let us know how your search for a bass (and teacher we hope) is going!

[Stick_Player]

I think it's bad advice to tell someone to try to teach themselves to play DB, especially coming from a background in electric bass.

That's a curious position to take. But why?

Maybe I have embraced my position because I took up an instrument with virtually no history - the Stick.

I would say that I 'seriously' began playing upright at about the same time as the Stick - long ago.

And I started on electric bass (or bass guitar, if you like) even longer ago, before either upright or Stick.

Anyways, take lessons if you want.

[Andrew McGregor]

It's the potential for injury that makes it bad advice. Just because you did it and haven't injured your hands (yet) doesn't mean that the average beginner can get away with that.

Not that you have to take lessons every week for many years to get good, that isn't necessary (although it certainly won't hurt)... just enough to get the foundations of good technique, maybe a half dozen lessons at the beginning, and a checkup every few months for a couple of years. Establish good habits at the beginning, and you won't have injuries.

To the OP, I'll say from experience: hand injuries suck. Don't risk it, get someone good to show you the fundamentals.

[Feral Feline]

It's not just hand injuries...

I took some lessons, stopped going when time and money weren't convening and promptly injured my elbow -- specifically the point where all the forearm muscles attach to the elbow.

The muscles tightened up so much that there was no give, only take and it took its toll in the form of something akin to "Tennis Elbow".
IT STILL BOTHERS ME and my myotherapist tells me I'll forever have to mollycoddle the injury. It flares up whenever I get tense, such as trying to match escalating volume wars, overpractice etc.

Not just hands that get hurt...
I get tired feet, especially my right foot because I'm not centred and leaning on the one foot more than the other causes the leg muscles to cramp up;
my back aches because I'm hunched over, twisting and leaning over the instrument instead of centred and letting the bass come to me.

I remind myself to remember my first lessons and stand correctly etc., but enthusiasm is an unruly force that takes over and continues to threaten health.

"Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect." Chief Seattle

And so it is with our bodies. Everything connects to the core -- Hands, arms, shoulders, neck, spine/ribs/back, hips, legs, feet, toes...

So, yeah, save your pennies, save yourself from injury, and pop for some instruction.

[crowsmengegus]

Originally Posted by Stick_Player

That's a curious position to take. But why?

This position is probably a majority opinion. An electric player might expect to be able to use their skills to produce music on the DB, even as a very beginner. This would make them more prone to injury.