Exercises for longer notes, better rhythmic stability and better hands coordination

[MichiBass]

Hello,

I'm looking for some exercises because I noticed that some things don't go well in my playing. I'm looking for exercises to achieve the following:

1. Longer Notes. I noticed my notes get chocked, they have a shorter life because I don't let them ring out enough time. This happens to me mainly when playing walking bass. Do you have any tips in order to make my notes longer. This is VERY important in jazz, walking bass etc.

2. Better rhythmic stability. I loose the groove often, I go past or behind the beat, or simply I stop when I get out of ideas, or when things go too fast for me. Also, I often don't hook up with the drummer...

3. Better hands coordination. Sometimes my right hand goes faster then the left one or the other way. Even if my right hand swings, my left hand is late and the notes are very short then.

It would be pretty great if I could incorporate all these points in one exercise. It also would be great if I could relate this exercises to walking bass, soloing, swinging eights or something. Metronome exercises would also be cool. Anyway, I'll practice everything with a metronome.

Thanks in advance!

Michi

[bomofiglio]

Originally Posted by MichiBass

1. Longer Notes. I noticed my notes get chocked, they have a shorter life because I don't let them ring out enough time. This happens to me mainly when playing walking bass. Do you have any tips in order to make my notes longer. This is VERY important in jazz, walking bass etc.

2. Better rhythmic stability. I loose the groove often, I go past or behind the beat, or simply I stop when I get out of ideas, or when things go too fast for me. Also, I often don't hook up with the drummer...

3. Better hands coordination. Sometimes my right hand goes faster then the left one or the other way. Even if my right hand swings, my left hand is late and the notes are very short then.

It would be pretty great if I could incorporate all these points in one exercise. It also would be great if I could relate this exercises to walking bass, soloing, swinging eights or something. Metronome exercises would also be cool. Anyway, I'll practice everything with a metronome.

Thanks in advance!

Michi

Sounds to me like all those problems stem from simply going too fast for yourself. Slow it down and work your way up.

[mat gregory]

Originally Posted by MichiBass

Hello,

I'm looking for some exercises because I noticed that some things don't go well in my playing. I'm looking for exercises to achieve the following:

1. Longer Notes. I noticed my notes get chocked, they have a shorter life because I don't let them ring out enough time. This happens to me mainly when playing walking bass. Do you have any tips in order to make my notes longer. This is VERY important in jazz, walking bass etc.

2. Better rhythmic stability. I loose the groove often, I go past or behind the beat, or simply I stop when I get out of ideas, or when things go too fast for me. Also, I often don't hook up with the drummer...

3. Better hands coordination. Sometimes my right hand goes faster then the left one or the other way. Even if my right hand swings, my left hand is late and the notes are very short then.

It would be pretty great if I could incorporate all these points in one exercise. It also would be great if I could relate this exercises to walking bass, soloing, swinging eights or something. Metronome exercises would also be cool. Anyway, I'll practice everything with a metronome.

Thanks in advance!

Michi

Hey, for your first points you might want to have a look at this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wiV5iFPfIs

For the third you just need to play scales and arpeggios, theres a sticky thread at the top of this forum with loads of ideas for improving co-ordination

[JTE]

Practice slowly and with precise time. Using a metronome will help with this, even if it's just to mark your progress. Play something at 60 BPM, even if that's stupid slow for the song. When you can articulate it precisely at 60 (record yourself so you KNOW whether you've nailed it or not) then bump it up to say 70 BPM. Repeat. You say you'll practice everything with the 'nome. If it's set to click on each beat, then it's not doing you a lot of good. Set it to supply only the back beat (beats 2 and 4). That forces you to nail the down beats (a key element of your job as a bassist!) and will tell you in about six beats if your time sucks.

What to play? I used to do exercises, but I've found that exercises generally don't help with music. They only help the physical aspects of playing, and you can work on music while developing those physical aspects. You wanna work on coordinating your two hands? Learn some Rocco, Jerry Jemmott, Jaco 16th note grooves. Play "What Is Hip" for 20 minutes with the 'nome kicking only 2 and 4. That'll get your rhythm together, both hands working together, and you'll be a funk master.

Wanna learn to play long notes? Learn some classic country music stuff (that means before Garth Brooks fans ruined country music). Learn what Bee Spears plays on those old Waylon and Willie things. Learn to play those precise notes in things like Ray Price tunes or Patsy Cline's killer version of "Crazy", heck check out Linda Ronstadt's version of "Crazy" too. Learn exactly what Tim Drummond's doing on Neil Young's "Out On The Weekend". Why those? Because they're simple so you can concentrate on the note length instead of the notes. Once you get that together, then carrying it over to walking bass in jazz tunes will be easier.

It really sounds like you're teaching yourself so you're not getting it balanced. Take some time.

jte

[IconBasser]

+1 one on using the metronome. I used to have the same problem with playing solos, then I started playing along with a met to improve my timing, and lo and behold, my timing was improved

-try to force yourself to relax. I know that sometimes when I'm playing with other people, I'll start to tense up when concentrating. Consciously make your muscles go limp, use only what's required to play, it'll calm you down and you'll play better.

[jefkritz]

regarding running out of ideas, that shouldn't ever be an issue. when you 'run out of ideas' just play the same thing again.

i find that i can only really sink into a groove once i've played it, full of intent, so much that i've overcome boredom at least 2 or 3 times. though the line might be very similar, really you should be subtly altering the phrasing to find where the notes really want to sit.

Originally Posted by MichiBass

Hello,

I'm looking for some exercises because I noticed that some things don't go well in my playing. I'm looking for exercises to achieve the following:

1. Longer Notes. I noticed my notes get chocked, they have a shorter life because I don't let them ring out enough time. This happens to me mainly when playing walking bass. Do you have any tips in order to make my notes longer. This is VERY important in jazz, walking bass etc.

2. Better rhythmic stability. I loose the groove often, I go past or behind the beat, or simply I stop when I get out of ideas, or when things go too fast for me. Also, I often don't hook up with the drummer...

3. Better hands coordination. Sometimes my right hand goes faster then the left one or the other way. Even if my right hand swings, my left hand is late and the notes are very short then.

It would be pretty great if I could incorporate all these points in one exercise. It also would be great if I could relate this exercises to walking bass, soloing, swinging eights or something. Metronome exercises would also be cool. Anyway, I'll practice everything with a metronome.

Thanks in advance!

Michi

Practice legato feel at slow tempos. Put the metronome on every 1, then every 2, then every 3, then every 4. That will improve your timekeeping. When you practice this specific part of technique, remove anything else that might obstruct your focus - so in other words keep your lines very simple and don't try to do anything wild. This way you can focus only on timekeeping and finger technique.

Also, the faster you play, the more you will err towards 'compositional' playing rather than 'improvised' playing. In other words, the faster you play, the more you will rely on things that you can fall back on, rehearsed pre-composed licks and melodies. If you practice slow then you give yourself time for creative ideas to surface. If you want to practice being creative, you should practice slow, because it's difficult to be creative when the tempo is fast, so you'll only be practicing pre-rehearsed licks.

[MichiBass]

Thanks for all the tips!
The Adam Nitti Clip is very helpful indeed

I keep playing slow.

[grifff]

Check the excercises thread.