academyofbluegrass.com lessons?

germ_77 · #1 11-19-2011, 08:17 AM

Just found this website,

Bass | Academy of Bluegrass

Has anyone ever registered for this site? I am wondering if these lessons are worth it and what people think about them.

over_the_moon · #2 11-19-2011, 08:23 AM

I haven't done it, but $30/month isn't bad to see if it works for you.

germ_77 · #3 11-19-2011, 09:31 AM

Thats what I was thinking, from looking at the site and the instructors credentials doesnt look like it can hurt to try for a month and if its good then get one of the cheaper long term packs.

MrSunshine · #4 11-20-2011, 08:00 AM

I've been using it to learn the banjo and it's been fantastic for me

Chuck

Sandi861 · #5 11-20-2011, 08:42 AM

I just started with it a week ago,but so far its been good. Missy Raines is the instructor and does a good job. The bass curriculum doesnt have as many lessons as the other instruments, but since I am a total newbie, I'm sure it will keep me busy for a while!

germ_77 · #6 11-20-2011, 09:04 AM

Sandi those are some of the questions I was wondering as well as often lessons are added.

The lessons that are on there, are they pretty long and detailed? I went through the description of the lessons and a lot of them are things I know quite well but the intermediate and advanced ones I am interested. Was just wondering if they are fairly long and detailed or just quick short lessons.

I think I might sign up for the 3 months and try it out this week either way. What would you say is a rough estimate of the length of an average lesson thats listed in the carriculum? The sample videos were only like 2-3 minutes so I am just curious if that is the norm for the lessons or if that is just a quick cut out segment for a sample.

Bass Doc · #7 12-12-2011, 05:26 PM

Totally worth it for me. I learned sooooo much. But I'm a beginner.

Sandi861 · #8 12-14-2011, 05:52 PM

I feel more capable of giving an opinion on the site since I've been on it a month now. The average lesson is between 5 - 7 minutes and covers one concise topic. For me, its been great since I am such a beginner. You can also view other students video submissions and the instructor response. I have learned quite a bit from that as well. So far, I am still very pleased.

germ_77 · #9 12-25-2011, 09:24 PM

Same here, I signed up for the bass lessons and fiddle now as well (although I have only looked at the fiddle ones once so far due to time but they seem really good as well).

I know pretty much all of the lessons in the easy and intermediate ones but having a guide to focus on is really helping, gives me something specfic to practice and focus on instead of just randomly doing things.

I have been noticing a lot of progress and missy seems to give really good feedback.

I hope they add a lot more for the bass lessons though, apparently the site itself is really new and the bass lessons havent been on there for long so I am guessing this is just the start of a lot to come.

Sandi861 · #10 12-26-2011, 02:14 AM

Yes, they are fairly new. Did you notice that they just added a School for dobro?! Let's hope they will now expand the other schools!!

bobsax · #11 02-04-2012, 10:42 AM

I think it's great. Missy is a really good teacher and always has good feedback.

mthebert · #12 02-07-2012, 03:40 PM

Hey all, I'm pretty new to bass (3-4 months), new to talkbass (first post!) and new to the academy of bluegrass as of this week.

Missy seems to be a really good teacher and they have a nice setup overall and it's nice to see attention paid to upright bass. I have had a few small problems with their site, not all the lessons were loading on my iPad, vs on a pc they were fine. But these are normal stuff every site has.

She is really complete, so if you are off on an island and don't know any bass players, they cover everything, how do I stand, what does my left hand do, my right hand, my thumb, how do i pluck, what about these callouses, what kind of strings do I need, how do I plug this thing in, do I need it set up. if you want to play right away, some of this gets in the way. But she really goes beyond the basic 'how do I hold my hand' stuff every book does (poorly).

There are 3 levels and I'm about halfway through the beginner stuff and about 90 min of videos so there's a lot of stuff, but you should be able to get through it in less than the 3 months you get for your 90 bucks. I think there are 32 beginner vids, 5 min avg length.

I come from guitar and there is a lot of stuff online for guitar, and it's mostly crap. This is actually pretty good stuff and they try to do a lot with the community aspect, including periodically asking you to record yourself and upload it for feedback from missy. And she doesn't just mail it in, she gives you 5 min of good feedback each time, personalized and she seems to really follow along with your progress.

I was skeptical but I did it anyway and I have to say I'm impressed so far. I don't know where you end up but if you are starting from scratch, it's probably worth it, and way better than some 50 dollar DVDs or 30 dollar books, (but it's more expensive too.). The great part about the Internet especially for things like playing upright bluegrass bass is not having a local community, how do you learn? You definitely feel like you are part of a group, and have places to get help.

How's that for a first post? Don't mock the newbie too bad!

Matt Thebert

bobsax · #13 02-11-2012, 01:37 PM

Hi Matt
I quit AOB for the holidays. I finished the beginner section and it was really great for the 3months that I had it.
As much as I love bluegrass I also like jazz and I'm trying to get the right fingerings for scales up the neck.

Have you noticed if there are lessons for the harder flat scales and upper fingerboard scales like Eb on the A string?

Also Does anybody know of a more jazzy site that is similar to AOB?

AOB is such an incredible deal. I spent a couple hundred bucks on private lessons and didn't get a 10th of what AOB gave me for $90.

mthebert · #14 02-14-2012, 09:11 PM

Bobsax, I am about half-way through Intermediate and I just peeked ahead to see what was left. Where the Beginner section was more universal to any style with some bluegrass thrown in, the next sections are more bluegrass and playing bluegrass songs and some style lessons, no more scale work.

The intermediate section has a heavy focus on finding your way around the neck, picking which 1-5 combos you want to use, mastering the nashville number system and how to transpose a song quickly to a different key using the nashville number system.

I've really only seen 2 online courses for upright and they are both bluegrass. If you find a more jazz oriented one let me know!

I agree with you on the cost. At first I didn't like it, I was used to paying maybe 10-15 bucks a month for similar guitar sites online so $90 upfront seemed a bit high, but then after I saw the feedback you get, I see it like you - its a bargain to get feedback from someone her level and she does a good job. Plus the content is pretty good vs anything else I've tried for any instrument online. Hopefully they will fill some gaps for bass content, it seems less deep than the others and that might give you the additional scale work.

Tejano Bass · #15 02-15-2012, 06:46 AM

Bobsax, F Y I, just in case you didn't already know and/or were not already familiar with her total body of work . . . but, Missy is, also, a very accomplished jazz bassist as well . . . maybe, she would be receptive to working with you on the "jazzy" side of the disc as well - couldn't hurt to ask . . .

DoyleB · #16 03-17-2012, 02:34 PM

Not knowing what to expect and being new to the bass with 40 plus years of guitar under my belt, I signed-up for the Academy of Bluegrass to help me fine tune my bass playing. Some have said, there are not many lessons but I have found both MIssy and the site to be quite helpful. On the site you can submit your homework by uploading videos of yourself practicing.playing tunes. Missy will then do a video critique so that you can see/hear what she has to say about your technique.

For me, it has worked really well and well worth one month to give it a try. I signed up for six months - no regrets. Give it a try especially if you are new to the bass.