Has anyone heard of this?

[Andrea84]

I don't know if this is the correct place to post this BUT-

I asked a bassist I know for advice with finger exercises for stretching frets...and he told me-

Go up and down the fret- index finger on 1st fret, middle finger on 2nd,etc-and this helps with being able to stretch fingers.

I have trouble going from different frets and need stretching and speed help and that is what he told me. Has anyone heard of this? I'm guessing this is a normal finger exercise.

Does anyone know of any useful exercises that could help with fret stretching?
I have trouble and never mastered the simple skill of going from 5th to 3rd or in some cases even the frets next to each other smoothly enough-especially when they are on different strings.

Thanks.

[thirtypoint87]

that will help. Experiment with your posture, too. If you wear your bass at your knees -which I totally respect- you'll find it harder to get around than if you wear your bass high enough to place the your thumb in the middle of the back of the neck (at least part of the time).

good luck!

[blowabs]

I was told dont try to stretch too much...i guess i did it too much.....i had carpal tunnel surgery in feb....better now...$8k (& a trip later to Houston for the op./)

[oi_pride]

yes i have heard of this and i use it all the time. try moving up the neck chromatically and then back down. also try alternating finger patterns, like middle then pinkie, first, ring and so on. just try any pattern.

their is a book on bass exercises called Bass Fitness. it has helped me a lot.

[blowabs]

Originally Posted by oi_pride

yes i have heard of this and i use it all the time. try moving up the neck chromatically and then back down. also try alternating finger patterns, like middle then pinkie, first, ring and so on. just try any pattern.

their is a book on bass exercises called Bass Fitness. it has helped me a lot.

Oi
doing this allowed for a full 4 fret range?

[oi_pride]

Originally Posted by blowabs

Oi
doing this allowed for a full 4 fret range?

not sure what you mean by that. but i know that playing fret for finger in any kind of pattern up and down the strings and neck will increase endurance and accuracy.

[oi_pride]

Originally Posted by oi_pride

yes i have heard of this and i use it all the time. try moving up the neck chromatically and then back down. also try alternating finger patterns, like middle then pinkie, first, ring and so on. just try any pattern.

their is a book on bass exercises called Bass Fitness. it has helped me a lot.

i am an idiot i missed spelled there. everyone feel free to rag on me for it. i deserve it.

[blowabs]

Originally Posted by oi_pride

not sure what you mean by that. but i know that playing fret for finger in any kind of pattern up and down the strings and neck will increase endurance and accuracy.

imeant that this stretches the finger spread more? These ex. ?

[oi_pride]

Originally Posted by blowabs

imeant that this stretches the finger spread more? These ex. ?

yes. kind of.
i found that my spread from first finger to ring finger is like four frets. so like i can play the 2nd and 3rd frets with my middle and the 3rd and 4th frets with my ring and hit the 5th with my pinkie if i wanted to. if you want i can email you a .PDF copy of the book i was talking about.

[blowabs]

Originally Posted by oi_pride

yes. kind of.
i found that my spread from first finger to ring finger is like four frets. so like i can play the 2nd and 3rd frets with my middle and the 3rd and 4th frets with my ring and hit the 5th with my pinkie if i wanted to. if you want i can email you a .PDF copy of the book i was talking about.

Oi
armichael@optonline.net
thx

[oi_pride]

Originally Posted by blowabs

Oi
armichael@optonline.net
thx

i'm sending it now. hope you enjoy. talk to you later, got to hit the bed, long day in the studio tomorrow.

[Slax]

Originally Posted by oi_pride

yes. kind of.
i found that my spread from first finger to ring finger is like four frets. so like i can play the 2nd and 3rd frets with my middle and the 3rd and 4th frets with my ring and hit the 5th with my pinkie if i wanted to. if you want i can email you a .PDF copy of the book i was talking about.

I'm a little confused here. While playing there's two ways that I know of for fretting.

One finger per fret: Where, for example, you would put your index on the 1st fret, your middle on the 2nd fret, your ring on the 3rd fret, and your pinky on the 4th fret.

Simandl: Where you use your index, middle and ring/pinky a la double bass for a 3 fret span. So for example, first 1st fret you'd use your index finger, 2nd fret you would use your middle finger, and 3rd fret you'd use both your ring and pinky finger.

[oi_pride]

Originally Posted by Slax

I'm a little confused here. While playing there's two ways that I know of for fretting.

One finger per fret: Where, for example, you would put your index on the 1st fret, your middle on the 2nd fret, your ring on the 3rd fret, and your pinky on the 4th fret.

Simandl: Where you use your index, middle and ring/pinky a la double bass for a 3 fret span. So for example, first 1st fret you'd use your index finger, 2nd fret you would use your middle finger, and 3rd fret you'd use both your ring and pinky finger.

i do use one finger per fret. but over time i realized that if i needed to move really fast for what ever reason i could just use which ever finger was closest to what fret i was going to.

also when i first started i could not get my pinkie to move right so i compensated with the other three. so i have a five to six fret spread from first finger to pinkie.

[blowabs]

Originally Posted by oi_pride

i'm sending it now. hope you enjoy. talk to you later, got to hit the bed, long day in the studio tomorrow.

Thanks a lot, Man!!!!

[fearceol]

Originally Posted by Slax

Simandl: Where you use your index, middle and ring/pinky a la double bass for a 3 fret span. So for example, first 1st fret you'd use your index finger, 2nd fret you would use your middle finger, and 3rd fret you'd use both your ring and pinky finger.

+ 1.

If you are doing chromatic exercises, only use one finger per fret above the 5th fret to avoid over stretching and possible injury. Below the 5th fret use "Slax" advice above.

[MattyBass]

I play both electric and upright...
When Playing upright I pretty much stick to simandl fingering...

but when on electric I use many fingering positions...
For maximum notes without moving...
I use my 1st finger on the root note or 5th fret A for example..
use my 2nd finger skipping a whole step.. 7th fret...
and pinky on the 9th fret... Using my ring finger as needed..
Depending on the scale or song I'm playing..
Make sure to bring your thumb around on the neck, more towards the bottom of the neck it will make this long position much easier...

Note for you Simandl Players that this is essentially Identical to Simandl fingering...
You can just cover more notes cause the electric is smaller...
Essentially you have and Ocatve and a 5th above range without moving your hand once.. Which is great for super fast licks or Bass Chords and melodies..

Basically any note within the octave and a half is litterally at your fingertips...
Plus if you master this wide spread... Every other position seems easy..

But if you are playing jazz or alot of walking basslines...
The 1 finger per fret works better usually...

Hope I was helpful

[oi_pride]

Originally Posted by blowabs

Thanks a lot, Man!!!!

no problem. anytime.

[zarigunn]

I don 't realy know what you mean but i know I can get from G string 8the fret to E string 4 th fret without moving? 0.o
Whats the proble mwith going from 5 to 3 ???

[Beginner Bass]

I do finger-per-fret everywhere. I also use MattyBass's aforementioned technique on some of the higher frets, like when trying to play arpeggioes. But I don't dare attempt that technique below fret 5.

[zarigunn]

what 's that technique ?