New to Bass have a couple questions

[matt76]

I recently started playing bass and I have some questions.

I will explain how i am learning for the time being. First i am working myself through the Hal Leanord Bass Method book. I do that for about 30 -40 minutes per night. I have downloaded some reggae bass tabs from Sublime, The Absynnians, Alpha Blondy, and Bob Marley and have learned them and play along for practice afterwards for a good 20-30 minutes. Mostly, in the future i want to play in Reggae or ska/punk bands.

1) Any comments or suggestions as to my routine
2) How long should i be playing before i attempt to get together with other musicians
3) Any suggestions for beginning bass would be great too

thanks

[lateralus423]

Practice some scales, and imo start playing with people right away if you can and they dont mind, you may learn a few things doing so it will be very beneficial.

[richardn517]

honestley i dont feel im qualified to give advice on Q's 1 and 3, ive only been playing for a year and a half myself. But i can say play with other musicians as much as possible thats where youll get most of your experience, trust me it will better you in the long run.

( Dont let really experienced players discourage you though, learn from them!)

[matt76]

Originally Posted by lateralus423

Practice some scales, and imo start playing with people right away if you can and they dont mind, you may learn a few things doing so it will be very beneficial.

That's what i was hoping for but i am curious as to how patient good musicians would be with a beginning bassist. At this point all i would be able to do is play a song i know but beyond that i would be lost.

thanks for the reply

[fcleff]

Originally Posted by lateralus423

Practice some scales, and imo start playing with people right away if you can and they dont mind, you may learn a few things doing so it will be very beneficial.

+1 That's good advice. Playing with a group is very beneficial. If you can, find a good teacher in your area. That kind of feedback is good to have. You don't want to develop any bad habits. Good luck. Sounds like you're off to a good start.

[fcleff]

Originally Posted by matt76

That's what i was hoping for but i am curious as to how patient good musicians would be with a beginning bassist. At this point all i would be able to do is play a song i know but beyond that i would be lost.

thanks for the reply

Just be upfront and honest about your abilities. Ask if you can sit in on a tune so you can get some feedback. Offer to bring some beer (or some other favor), if you're old enough, if need be . Most musicians I know are more than willing to help out at least a little.

[matt76]

Originally Posted by fcleff

Just be upfront and honest about your abilities. Ask if you can sit in on a tune so you can get some feedback. Offer to bring some beer (or some other favor), if you're old enough, if need be . Most musicians I know are more than willing to help out at least a little.

Great advice...i think i'll take it. I might be a beginner at bass but at 30, I am an expert at purchasing beer.

[bassfacekevin]

In my opinion, I think that you should get a metronome now! Practice with it, because if can play something simple, but with rock-solid time, it will groove, and in turn, will make other people want to play with you. I have also found that when beginning, try to learn as much as you can from ear. Practice learning a lick at a time from different songs (increasing in complexity). Or, if you want to try something else, try jamming along with a song (making up your own lines to compliment everything else). If you have a good ear, and unmovable time, then you'll not only be ready to play with other people, but will be asked/encouraged from those other people to do so!

~K

[fcleff]

Originally Posted by bassfacekevin

In my opinion, I think that you should get a metronome now! Practice with it, because if can play something simple, but with rock-solid time, it will groove, and in turn, will make other people want to play with you. I have also found that when beginning, try to learn as much as you can from ear. Practice learning a lick at a time from different songs (increasing in complexity). Or, if you want to try something else, try jamming along with a song (making up your own lines to compliment everything else). If you have a good ear, and unmovable time, then you'll not only be ready to play with other people, but will be asked/encouraged from those other people to do so!

~K

+1 Indeed! Get that metronome!

[dave_p]

sounds like a good start
go ahead and just learn the major scale and its modes now, its not hard. also learn the the 7th chord that corresponds to each mode.
practice them up and down the neck in all keys, ascending and descending. one octave and then 2. that will keep you busy for a while
and will reap benefits later that do not seem apparent right away.

[ToR-Tu-Ra]

Try getting a teacher. If you can't, I think your approach is quite good. Listen to a lot of music, figure out the bass line, but also try to relate it to the theory you're learning from books and, of course, relate it to what the other instruments are playing. I like to figure out the chords to each song I learn and strum them on my guitar (I can't do anything else on a guitar but strumming some chords), this way I get to know the song better and not only the bass line.

About playing with other people: I'm all for it. If you feel you're not good enough. Then join a punk rock band. You don't need to know how to play to make punk rock . At least "back in the day" you din't

[matt76]

Originally Posted by bassfacekevin

In my opinion, I think that you should get a metronome now! Practice with it, because if can play something simple, but with rock-solid time, it will groove, and in turn, will make other people want to play with you. I have also found that when beginning, try to learn as much as you can from ear. Practice learning a lick at a time from different songs (increasing in complexity). Or, if you want to try something else, try jamming along with a song (making up your own lines to compliment everything else). If you have a good ear, and unmovable time, then you'll not only be ready to play with other people, but will be asked/encouraged from those other people to do so!

~K

Yes, i bought a metronome with my bass and amp. Thanks for the advice, i definitly don't want to be off on timing.

[matt76]

Originally Posted by dave_p

sounds like a good start
go ahead and just learn the major scale and its modes now, its not hard. also learn the the 7th chord that corresponds to each mode.
practice them up and down the neck in all keys, ascending and descending. one octave and then 2. that will keep you busy for a while
and will reap benefits later that do not seem apparent right away.

Can you give me an example of a major scale and its modes? And 7th cord??? In the book i am using right now, I haven't really gotten to a part that is a specific major scale, so i am a bit lost there.

[dave_p]

okay, real quick
I II III IV V VI VII I
1 w 2 w 3 h 4 w 5 w 6 w 7 h 8(1) octave
w= whole step h= 1/2 step

if you start on any note and count starting at 1 and play whole steps except between 3 and 4 and 7 and 8 where you would play 1/2 steps. this is the major scale.

if you just play the notes that fall on the 1, 3, 5 and 7 you have a maj 7th chord.

try that out and tell me if it helps.

[Bottom Feeder]

Scales are a great way to become familiar with the patterns you will be playing now and in the future.
I think the best way to get the "feel" for the tunes you will be playing is putting on a CD of a relatively simple tune that you are familiar with. Be right next to the CD player so you can start and stop and rewind easily. Play the tune and try to start playing along with it. When you mess up, play back the passage on the CD and pick out the bass line in the tune. Practice the line until you're comfortable with it and try again.
If you run into a segment that seems long with lots of fingering, just try to break it into pieces by learning the fingering within a single bar. Then as you learn all the patterns within each bar you can piece them back together to play the whole passage. This way you are playing a tune that you like and learning to keep time andchallenging yourself at the same time. Soon you will have the whole tune down.

[RockFace]

hey man congratulations on starting up.

if you have friends that play, start playing with them immediately. even if you think you suck. i can say from personal experience, the stuff you can learn playing with people almost makes the stuff you can learn on your own obsolete. you can worry about theory and all that stuff later, if you even want to.

i started out learning scales and modes, mostly to get all 4 of my ffretting ingers going and comfortable, not necessarily to learn how to use them in my playing. i still do them all the time.

regarding a bass, it depends on how much money you want to spend. i was spoiled and had a beautiful ESP 5 string bass for my first (my dad is a purist musician), but i just recently bought a Fender Standard Jazz Bass. they're not expensive but the sound is really incredible. look into Jazz and Precision basses by Fender, or, if you want to go with something cheaper, you can get a Squier (sp?) Jazz or P-bass to get you started.

good luck. rock on.

[4string4life]

When you start to play with other people you'll find that most jams/songs come from someone randomly playing something and everyone else complementing that. To develop this ear/feel, turn on the radio and try to play something that fits with the song. You'll be surprised how quickly your ear develops. I hate to say it but my only other suggestion would be play scales over and over till you want to kill yourself. You'll need to know them inside and out.

[airrick]

Originally Posted by matt76

That's what i was hoping for but i am curious as to how patient good musicians would be with a beginning bassist. At this point all i would be able to do is play a song i know but beyond that i would be lost.

thanks for the reply

umm, learn how to sightread, if all you can do is play a song (from tabs?) then you are no better than someone who has played for one day, or for that matter not played at all


but i don't think thats what you mean, is it?

[Alec W. Conway]

Start doing some forearm workout. Forearms flat on a bench or table, and lift weights with your wrist, palm up AND palm down. This helped me SO much speed and endurance-wise.