How Many Styles Can A Good Player Handle?

[StyleOverShow]

Usually I play in a couple of three bands, each with a different focus: straight ahead jazz; classic rock; and R&B/show.

The techniques vary widely and I use different axes for the bands.

My question asks is it possible for a player to be good, even very good in more than two styles of play. Passable playing is not what I'm talking about. Can you get the groove right for "Cat Scratch Fever" (what little there is of it), and play a decent version of Giant Steps, and burn 16ths in Tower of Powers "What is Hip" equally.

I have had teachers who claim to be able to play everything but they all had their strengths and were thin in other genres or techniques (better at jazz and walking than slapping and popping for instance).

I am guessing that for most on TB, they play a single genre of music with one band or two (there seems to be a fair amount of worship and rock players). While their opinions may have some insight, I am looking to hear from those who have tried to straddle several genres.

I am thinking about giving up doing the classic rock thing altogether. I find that the jazz style has become my focus and that there is no 'rush' when playing Seven Nation Army (not a good classic rock example admittedly but you get the point).

[Pacman]

It's very possible. Actually, for bass players, it's more common of professionals than for players of just about any other instrument.

[GeneralElectric]

Its very possible. Currently my main focus is a party band where we'll be required to play funky stuff like Jamiroquai and RHCP one night, classic rock the next, blues another, etc etc.

It just depends on what the crowd wants since they're the ones paying us in booze and money.

However I have several other different bands which meet on occasion where I'll be playing Motown, Jazz, Alternative, etc etc.

[JimmyM]

Same here. But I don't think it's a necessity to play a bunch of different styles to be good. It certainly doesn't hurt, and it certainly ups your hireability, but a bassist who can play only one style brilliantly is still good.

[Deacon_Blues]

I know 4-5 pros in my home town (50,000 people) that are proficient in virtually any genre although they of course have their own favorite styles. So for sure it's possible. Here, you don't survive as a working bassist if you only know a few styles of music well.

[Trauts]

I'm reasonably good at several styles though have some major weaknesses. I regularly play in worship bands, fill in for local swing bands, have played funk rock, reggae, and hard rock (with the same band!), supported acoustic singer song-writer stuff, done some solo bass stuff and spent the summer filling in for a death metal group (great fun though I think I looked a little out of place- found a whole new way of utilising Wooten style double thumbing though!). However my basic walking bass and soloing over chord progressions is very limited, so whilst I can handle slower tempo swing and stuff the pace of bebop means I am pretty quickly lost, and my solos sound dreadful.
I guess that a bassist can play extremely proficiently in loads of styles if their good enough (enough session players have done it) but even monsters like that should know what they can work on- I've never met a bassist who felt they were flawless (met a few guitarists who have though, maybe it's the temperament).
I suppose one limitation for most players is basic technical aspects. I'm proud that I can tap, sweep, play three fingered, matt garrison style four fingered, slap and double thumb, but if we're honest the guy who can walk near flawlessly improvising through loads of standards in a three hour gig is always gonna get the nod ahead of me even if he 'just' uses good old two finger fingerstyle, simply because the amount of gigs for which the techniques listed above are prerequisite is very small, whereas the number requiring accurate walking is much larger.

[warlord shank]

I play in several teen garage bands in my area- going from death metal (august burns red covers) to ska to my school jazz band to funk to rnb and country- it all depends on the level of proficiency your talking about and the degree of professionalism. I think its a sort of inverse bell curve- at low levels of proficiency/professionalism you get bassists who can fill in for any band just because they are in demand, and at really high levels of professionalism you get bassists who can do absolutely everything because thats what they do.

[JimmyM]

Originally Posted by warlord shank

I play in several teen garage bands in my area- going from death metal (august burns red covers) to ska to my school jazz band to funk to rnb and country- it all depends on the level of proficiency your talking about and the degree of professionalism. I think its a sort of inverse bell curve- at low levels of proficiency/professionalism you get bassists who can fill in for any band just because they are in demand, and at really high levels of professionalism you get bassists who can do absolutely everything because thats what they do.

That's a pretty astute observation for a teenager

[Nyarlathotep]

IMHO, any player can learn/handle as many styles as many styles as she/he wants. Whether they can handle them with any level of proficiency depends on how much time they want to devote to practice.

Also, one thing I've noticed is a lot of styles borrow/share certain aspects of each other. Like say you play blues really well, you can transfer a lot of that knowledge to jazz. You might not be able to take a solo or something fancy right away, but you can support a jazz band which is a good place to start. Someone will prolly disagree with me, but I view funk and reggae as fairly similar in some ways. A little change in timing and such and one can give a good basis for the other.

One thing I would personally like to do, is get up to the point where I can learn some advance jazz or something, and give myself a good basis for technical metal, but learn something a little different at the same time.

[j.a.e.r.i.p]

Look at Pino! Pino played on D'angelo records and has toured with the who, and has toured with john mayer. Those are three VERY different schools of thought, i'd say that he was more than proficient.

[warlord shank]

Originally Posted by JimmyM

That's a pretty astute observation for a teenager

I try

[BassChuck]

I think its possible but difficult to be equally strong in a lot of different styles. To be really good, you'd have to play in several bands, like 4 or 5, on a regular basis... and all of those bands would have to be giging regularly.

I think what happens is that a lot of bands claim to play in many styles. But likely you aren't better at all of those styles than the other band members.

[nysbob]

I think if you have solid technique and can execute, your only remaining hurdle is understanding the genre you're working in and your musicality. If you have all those elements going, there's no reason you can't be excellent in several areas.

[theunknowndude]

Originally Posted by DanielTulip

IMHO, any player can learn/handle as many styles as many styles as she/he wants. Whether they can handle them with any level of proficiency depends on how much time they want to devote to practice.

Also, one thing I've noticed is a lot of styles borrow/share certain aspects of each other. Like say you play blues really well, you can transfer a lot of that knowledge to jazz. You might not be able to take a solo or something fancy right away, but you can support a jazz band which is a good place to start. Someone will prolly disagree with me, but I view funk and reggae as fairly similar in some ways. A little change in timing and such and one can give a good basis for the other.

One thing I would personally like to do, is get up to the point where I can learn some advance jazz or something, and give myself a good basis for technical metal, but learn something a little different at the same time.

well there IS that old saying by some people that most metalheads are just failed jazz musicians...

I for one am a metal head at heart,... but im trying to diversify,... a) I don't want to be stuck in a rut, b) I wan't more knowledge and c) knowledge is power

alot of 'classical' music has wormed its way into genres too,... not to mention I have been liking bands like diablo swing orchestra and mr bungle etc who mix and match and make it sound awesome... I think those two bands above are enough fact that it can be done

[onlyclave]

4. Definitely no more than 4.

[KJung]

I can play both country and western.

[VroomVroom]

LOL!

It depends on your focus. What do you want to do on the instrument? What kind of gigs do you want to play? Versatility is something I strive for, and I love gigs that go from a swinging waltz to a wicked tumbao to 16th note funk in the course of a coupla' sets. I think the more genres and styles we study, the better musicians we become.

[brianrost]

My feeling is that if you like various styles of music, why not play them.