Crossroads in playing technique

[Ritchski]

I feel like I have wasted a lot of time. I have been leaning the bass guitar for a few years self taught. The last year I have been working on my general technique. I have adopted a style where I mostly mute strings with my picking hand using floating thumb technique. With my fretting hand I barely do any muting really.

I feel like I am about to realize that I have not been concentrating on muting with my fretting hand enough. The reason for this is a want to get into slap bass stuff. My fretting hand is totally unequipped to mute the strings properly, although I can play reasonably well ordinarily. I know the obvious answer is laying your hand across strings but for me is seems really cumbersome, like starting again really. I’m ok if that is the case but I need to know I’m going in the right direction

I basically need to know where each of my fingers need to be when muting strings while slapping the bass, is there a standard technique for doing this? I know its difficult to describe. Also, do you use one fretting hand technique for slap bass and picking or do you vary with different styles. I am wondering if I should just learn one way and stick to it?

Thanks for any feedback, I realize this is basic stuff.

[Michael Campbel]

I can't help you with your technique, but I'll offer this: Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time. =)

[TOOL460002]

fingers flat on the fret board and not arched.

there is a time for arched fingers. guitar players arch their fingers to play chords. the same applies to bass. my brother plays guitar, and has little oval shaped calusses (spelled wrong... sorry) on the tips of his fingers. i have light ones there, but they are mostly on the pads in varying areas on different fingers.

again, there is a time and place for everything, obviously, but the point is: fingers flat, and make sure not ring out harmonics, because that will happen sometimes if youre not careful.

fingers flat bro. good luck.

[rcarraher]

Originally Posted by Ritchski

I feel like I have wasted a lot of time. I have been leaning the bass guitar for a few years self taught. The last year I have been working on my general technique. I have adopted a style where I mostly mute strings with my picking hand using floating thumb technique. With my fretting hand I barely do any muting really.

I feel like I am about to realize that I have not been concentrating on muting with my fretting hand enough. The reason for this is a want to get into slap bass stuff. My fretting hand is totally unequipped to mute the strings properly, although I can play reasonably well ordinarily. I know the obvious answer is laying your hand across strings but for me is seems really cumbersome, like starting again really. I’m ok if that is the case but I need to know I’m going in the right direction

I basically need to know where each of my fingers need to be when muting strings while slapping the bass, is there a standard technique for doing this? I know its difficult to describe. Also, do you use one fretting hand technique for slap bass and picking or do you vary with different styles. I am wondering if I should just learn one way and stick to it?

Thanks for any feedback, I realize this is basic stuff.

I'm not a slap player and have no real desire to learn, but I recently got a lesson in left hand muting. Up until 99 I gigged on a pretty regular basis; at least 8-10 times a month and more in the summer months. I moved to Oregon in 99 and now, even tho' I've been playing with the same hgroup of guys for about 6 to 7 years we only gig maybe on average 4 times a month, and not even every month.

I recently had to make a trip back to the mid west for a guitar players funeral and was asked to sit in with the band for a few numbers for the tribute after the funeral. I got to town (KC) on Thursday night, and the tribute/memorial was Saturday afternoon, so I had the opportunity to rehearse with these guys that I hadn't played with in 10 years. During the rehearsal, the keyboard player (and co leader of the band) kept telling me on one tune (can't even remember which tune at the moment) to play the line more "staccato". Everytime I tried, I kept getting either pull offs or "almost" harmonic/dead notes/ghost notes. It was driving me crazy!

Got a quick hint here from a TBer and managed to carry off the 4 or 5 tunes we did together, but what it had made me realize is that my fret hand had gotten very lazy. It also made me realize the benifits of playing with players that are very good and push you to be very good (not that our little classic rock band is bad, just a bit too casual). After 30 plus years of playing, and almost ten years of being lazy and not pushed to be "articulate"? It was time to go back to the wood shed.

[Ritchski]

thanks for the comments. yeah it seems that i need to concentrate on this a lot more, i fret the bass like a normal guitar which for slapping is no good. i'm just struggling with keeping the E string quiet, i dont really want to get into using my thumb over the fret board.

thats an interesting story rcarraher, just shows that you never finish learning i guess. i started playing bass because it seemed more accessible but the depth of this thing is incredible, which is daunting as well as exciting. sometimes i get discouraged but for some reason i keep pressing on, hopefully that means i will eventully get to a level I am happy with, seems like a far away place at the moment though

[Lichtaffen]

I'm not sure there is a definite technique per se to muting. I think when you consciously realize you need to do it, you do it and thus develop your own way of doing it. Everyone's hands are different. If you have small hands then you're not going to be able to use the techniques that people with big hands can. Just practice consciously.