Quote:
Originally Posted by Pettson  Hi, i have just started playing slap bass on my five string. But there is one problem. I dont know how to mute the b and the e string while i slap the a or d. Anyone have any tips, please? 
Ty
Johan |
This is what takes all the practice time. A combination of left and right hand muting (palm and fingers of your right hand... assuming you play 'right handed' and the fingers of your left hand) will get the job done.
For example, if you are slapping the E string, it's usually pretty easy to have the tip of one of your left hand fingers touching the B to keep it muted, and the palm of your right hand combined with the rest of your left hand muting the lower strings. If you are slapping on the A string, usually a finger from the left hand on the E string and your right hand palm on the B string will keep things clean. It feels strange at first, but it works.
Once you get this down, there is nothing on a 4 string that can't easily be done on a 5 string, but it takes some work.
One key practice point... while it is typically a good idea to practice at least some of the time without an amp to really get a feel for the instrument, etc., this can be misleading when slapping, since you can't easily hear those unwanted ringing strings. Crank you amp up at home every once in a while to really do an 'honesty check' on your string muting.
IMO and IME!
