Tips to earing?

cuponoodles55 · #1 10-11-2011, 08:07 PM

Hello fellow bassists! I am fairly new to this place, but I plan to be very active as I love playing the bass and it is a passion of mine. I was wondering if anybody had tips to earing songs? I know I should start with easy songs, but I am so bad at it. Does anyone have a list of easy songs I could ear, and/or any tips to helping start out. I have been playing bass on and off for 3 or so years, but I only started taking it seriously a couple of months ago. Thanks and have a good day everyone!

P.S. Sorry if this isn't in the right forum.

kr0n · #2 10-12-2011, 12:33 AM

I'll just dish out what I've heard, I suck at it as well so no pro tips from me.

This day and age you can get pretty nifty software for it, such as Transcribe! and Amazing Slow Downer or similar to slow down the song without pitch shifting and equalizer options to isolate bass frequencies (if that's what you're gonna do).

Start with REAAALLY easy, like Twinkle Twinkle or Birthday songs.

Most songs end with the tonic key so the last note for the track usually is the root of the key.

Most start from the top and move to the bottom, so figure out the song structure first and go deeper from there.

Ear training in general helps and knowledge of scales. Diatonic songs become way easier when you know the correct key.

Hope that helps.

cuponoodles55 · #3 10-12-2011, 09:29 AM

I'm downloading Transcribe!, now thanks

EDIT: How do you make it so you only hear the bass? or do I need another program for that?

Aaron J · #4 10-12-2011, 12:42 PM

Everything that was said in the above post is spot on. Transcribing is a great way to develop your ear and a knowledge of theory is certainly helpful.

But, at the end of the day, hearing your way through songs is just something that comes with time. Just spend a lot of time doing it...many songs have similar forms/structures/changes that you will begin to recognize. Play along with any music you can. The more experience that you have, the easier it becomes. In a live situation, if you don't know a tune, you will play a wrong note from time to time. The real test is how you react and recover from it without the audience knowing...

KingRazor · #5 10-12-2011, 02:49 PM

The more I play and the more I listen to music, the better I've gotten at playing stuff by ear.

It will come!

ERMAL · #6 10-12-2011, 03:39 PM

I have found (in addition to the other great tips) if you can get to where you can sing the part, you can usually pick out the notes on the fingerboard. Good luck.

carlthegroover · #7 10-13-2011, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aaron J

In a live situation, if you don't know a tune, you will play a wrong note from time to time. The real test is how you react and recover from it without the audience knowing...

Moving again to the right key/ notes without losing the groove/ timing, I think.

Jay2U · #8 10-13-2011, 06:47 PM

I downloaded a lot of tabs. As many of them aren't complete or are erratic, I started earing basslines. Most blues appeared to be quite easy to start with. Once you have got some experience, it becomes a lot easier. You kind of develop an ear for it. I now pick up more complicated stuff like Iron Maiden and Children of Boddom. It also helps to put the music on your headhones and mix your bass in and just start trying.

steveksux · #9 10-13-2011, 07:10 PM

Pick a key, whatever key you want. I pick C, there's no sharps or flats to worry about. Assume every song is in that key while you try to learn it by ear. You might also want to think in terms of the Nashville Number system. I IV V, etc = C F G in key of C.

Doing that lets you recognize the common chord progressions sooner. Its not obvious that F# B C# is the same as C F G. If you break them down as both I IV V, you start to recognize that pattern easier.

Just keep at it. Try to figure it out just by ear, whatever you can. Then check it against the bass. Try to do more next time.

Takes time.

Randy