experienced bassist wants more critique (instead of lessons) from a teacher

hgregs · #1 10-18-2010, 01:38 PM

i've been playing music for almost 30yrs - but only in the past 13yrs did i start playing bass in gigging bands, and only in past 3yrs very seriously (gigging 2x/mo). i'm 99% self taught. i know my way around scales/chords/changes/etc.

i'm at the point where i simply want a teacher to help me critique and breakdown what i'm doing right and wrong. i record all my gigs - and would like a professional take on it, with guidance on what to change, and what to emphasize.

i took a semester of lessons at the local conservatory that was supposed to be jazz lessons - but he simply gave me his lesson plan - a bit redumentary for me. as i searched here and online, it seems like most bass teachers offer to give you their lessons instead of helping me progress from where i am.

is there something out there for me?

MalcolmAmos · #2 10-19-2010, 07:35 AM

Yes what you want is out there, finding the instructor that will work with you the way you want is another matter.

Ask other musicians in you area who this person might be. I'm very lucky to have John Defoore living in the same town. John could do this, however, for you to use John the commute would get old.

jallenbass · #3 10-19-2010, 08:55 AM

What aspects of your playing do you want critiqued?

hgregs · #4 10-19-2010, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jallenbass

What aspects of your playing do you want critiqued?

everything: choice of notes (resolving to root, moving to the next change), my ability to develop a groove, am i playing too much or not enough, am i using the correct scale(s), is my sound within the band helping or hurting, what could i do to sound better - or maybe even hearing keep doing what i'm doing.

**251** · #5 10-19-2010, 02:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hgregs

i've been playing music for almost 30yrs - but only in the past 13yrs did i start playing bass in gigging bands, and only in past 3yrs very seriously (gigging 2x/mo). i'm 99% self taught. i know my way around scales/chords/changes/etc.

i'm at the point where i simply want a teacher to help me critique and breakdown what i'm doing right and wrong. i record all my gigs - and would like a professional take on it, with guidance on what to change, and what to emphasize.

i took a semester of lessons at the local conservatory that was supposed to be jazz lessons - but he simply gave me his lesson plan - a bit redumentary for me. as i searched here and online, it seems like most bass teachers offer to give you their lessons instead of helping me progress from where i am.

is there something out there for me?

You already have a list of topics you want to cover so you are looking for a music tutor, not a teacher. You may be better off with a tutor whose main ax is not bass. Being able to play duets is likely to show you more of what you want to see/hear. Look for a small music school that welcomes adult players, perhaps runs ensemble classes. Visit & explain your situation & what you want to do.

Good luck

codeinedreams · #6 10-20-2010, 02:43 PM

how about posting your videos or recordings here and having TBers critique them?

hgregs · #7 10-20-2010, 03:02 PM

sure...

here are samples where our keyboardist has complained about the lack of pocket or groove.

http://www.archive.org/download/sbb2...8-28d01t07.mp3
http://www.archive.org/download/sbb2...8-28d01t08.mp3
http://www.archive.org/download/sbb2...8-28d02t06.mp3
http://www.archive.org/download/sbb2...8-28d01t09.mp3

a very nice TBer saw this post and PM'd me with the offer to give me his critique - which he did very well and throroughly. thanks tap! one thing he pointed out was to focus on stopping the note from ringing through to the next note (all tunes), developing begining/ending phrasing (big river), not being too root-focused (mississippi), and nailing the riff (truckin'). he also caught the bad note in intro to the first tune (me and my uncle).

but i'll throw it out there for the gang, too. thanks in advance guys!

Fergie Fulton · #8 10-20-2010, 03:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hgregs

everything: choice of notes (resolving to root, moving to the next change), my ability to develop a groove, am i playing too much or not enough, am i using the correct scale(s), is my sound within the band helping or hurting, what could i do to sound better - or maybe even hearing keep doing what i'm doing.

What you are looking for is experience, your experience. I feel you have all the tools you need, you just need to play and sort out what the players that you work with like. I'm afraid its each to there own, we all approach things a little different, that is the nuance of being a player, and that nuance i what gets you, or not gets you gigs, and gigs are experience.

That may sound like a cope out answer, but think about it this way, if one hundred bass players all graduate with the same skill level and qualifications, then what is the difference that will get one hired over the other?

One Bad Monkey · #9 10-20-2010, 04:09 PM

To me, it sounds like you're just playing along to the band, not playing WITH the band. Sure, you're hitting the hits with them, but practice something long enough and anyone can do that. Listen to what everyone else is doing, and adjust some of your playing to mimic more of that, and I think you will hear a difference.

The other thing I'd recommend is working on helping to build from a verse to a chorus. All of the basslines sound very cut and dry. Work in some fills to help set up the bridge or chorus coming out of a verse, and then break it back down for the second verse.

I just read an interview with Will Lee, where he says he tries to listen to himself as a producer would, as in "Does this add to the song? What fits the song itself?" I think that is mainly what you need to focus on, because it's there, you just need to fine tune it.