Hand stress/Sitting/standing and a few other

[Bass-desires]

Hey Guys, I just finished 1 1/2 hr practicing and it was good. But I have noticed some issues I wanted to ask yall if you have had happen.

First off I used to practice mostly sitting, and I have found my hands not working so well standing. Much more stress on my hands it seems. Raise the bass?

And all those instructors and books always say 'relax your left hand' well shoot how can you relax it when your pressing the frets so they don't buzz? Even plucking lightly, if I don't have enough pressure, it doesn't work. Where is the middle ground? My left is getting too tired too quickly.

Another, I was told to have a gap between your hand so the neck doesn't touch your palm, but I won't lie I can't figure out how to do this in a standing position.

Hahaha thanks guys!

[fearceol]

As far as sitting/standing is concerned, ideally the bass should be at the same level (belt buckle area) for both.

The pressure needed to fret a string is actually very little. Try playing some notes without your thumb on the back of the neck and you'll notice this. The tried and trusted method for fretting is to keep the thumb half way down the back of the neck, roughly in line with the middle and ring fingers. If you can master this while sitting, and keep the bass at the same level for standing, with a bit of practice it should come as second nature. Also do some warm ups before and after playing. Build up your playing time gradually. Do a search for "left hand bass technique" on You Tube. Lots of videos there (on warm ups also).

I'm by no means an expert, but this is the method I use and I seldom suffer from fretting hand tiredness.

Hope this helps.

[sflajimmy]

As mentioned above your bass should be in the same position sitting or standing. Not too low either. I know it looks cool to have your bass slung low but it puts a lot of stress on your wrist and it can lead to problems down the road. Relax your hand in it's natural position and that is how you should hold your bass. Not with your palm flat on the back of neck and your thumb over the top of the neck. It helps to practice standing and sitting, that way you'll get used to playing while standing as well.

[unclejane]

Originally Posted by Bass-desires

Hey Guys, I just finished 1 1/2 hr practicing and it was good. But I have noticed some issues I wanted to ask yall if you have had happen.

First off I used to practice mostly sitting, and I have found my hands not working so well standing. Much more stress on my hands it seems. Raise the bass?

And all those instructors and books always say 'relax your left hand' well shoot how can you relax it when your pressing the frets so they don't buzz? Even plucking lightly, if I don't have enough pressure, it doesn't work. Where is the middle ground? My left is getting too tired too quickly.

Another, I was told to have a gap between your hand so the neck doesn't touch your palm, but I won't lie I can't figure out how to do this in a standing position.

Hahaha thanks guys!

May not be you, but the bass. Step 1 is watch the following video of Bunny Brunel. This should be, IMO, required viewing for all bass players and was a complete revelation to me when I first watched it:

http://www.carvinchannel.com/play.php?vid=116

If you have to hold the neck up, obviously you won't be able to let your fretting hand float and stay in position without contacting the neck.
Some basses are a little more manageable seated but do just like Bunny describes when you try to play them on the strap.

My G&L L2000 is the only production bass I've ever played that was perfectly balanced (never been able to try a Bunny Brunel unfortunately) and so it's comfortable to play sitting or standing. My L2500 does have a little bit of neck dive but is still a lot better than most other basses. I sit on the strap when playing it seated to keep the neck from falling down. I'm thinking of putting a second strap lock a little further up the back edge of it to allow it to balance properly when standing up.

Once you get the balance problem solved, staying in position on the fretting hand will be a lot easier.

LS

[Bass-desires]

I am downloading the video now.

And thank you for the advice, I was really hammering into the frets, maybe because when I first started my hands were pretty weak and I had to

(Yoda voice)
.....now to unlearn what I have learned....

I am going to play around with the strap tomorrow at different heights and see what feels good also.

I have a Thunderbird that is infamous for neck dive, the strap button has been moved so it will sit pretty well on the shoulders but it still dips to horizontal if I let it.

I'll keep you guys posted and thanks again for the help..... now if you could go answer the other posted question haha!

[unclejane]

Originally Posted by Bass-desires

I am downloading the video now.

And thank you for the advice, I was really hammering into the frets, maybe because when I first started my hands were pretty weak and I had to

(Yoda voice)
.....now to unlearn what I have learned....

I am going to play around with the strap tomorrow at different heights and see what feels good also.

I have a Thunderbird that is infamous for neck dive, the strap button has been moved so it will sit pretty well on the shoulders but it still dips to horizontal if I let it.

I'll keep you guys posted and thanks again for the help..... now if you could go answer the other posted question haha!

Well keeping your hand relaxed will be easier when you get the balance problem solved. The idea is to tense only the finger that you're using for fretting and keeping the rest relaxed. The residual tension elsewhere is usually due to having to hold a poorly balanced bass neck up while you're trying to play.

Until BB specifically addressed it, I had no idea that poor balance was actually a problem. I thought all basses were made that way and I was just going to have to live with it. I've gone into high-end bass shops trying virtually everything in there including the boutiques and never ran into one that I didn't have to hold the neck with my hand. 4 strings aren't so bad, but the 5 string and more basses with the thicker necks are usually just awful and can only be played by sitting on the strap.

LS

[Bass-desires]

When talking about sitting on the strap you mean the 'classical' position where you are sitting and the body is between your legs with the neck angled out to your fretting hand?