Group Lessons

[Currens1]

Hi there,

I'm sure this topic's been asked many times with respects to instructors and so on. I am starting to learn the bass now, have been dabbling with books, metronomes and jamming with others whenever I can for the past couple months. I am ready to take the next step and do some lessons with an instructor. I would like to know some opinions on the idea of group lessons. How do they work? Do they work like they did in high school where the instructor mandated what was played and half the class is disinterested and takes a half-hearted stab at playing?

I have played piano as a boy and guitar as a teenager and am now 23. I by no means care too much about age. I think group lessons would bring that "playing with others" aspect into it that's all so reccommended! I love jamming with others, it brings the FUN level straight to the roof for me! I get so excited, I can't sit still, all smiles, and cherishes putting in the runs when I sense a break!(especially with my buddy) I've also played with older folks where I keep it simple and have just as much fun! What have been your experiences?

Cheers!

[MalcolmAmos]

Only time I did group lessons was once at a community college, don't waste your time or money. Pace is slow and the class moves at the speed of the least talented ones. Individual instructions from your own instructor cost less or just about the same.

And then a week long class at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC. Great experience. Morning spent on lecture, afternoons with individual one on one sessions with an instructor then time with small groups and after dinner jamming sessions till all wee hours. Not bass, this was back in my claw-hammer banjo days. Cost - over $1,000 plus travel expense. You pay for what you get. https://www.folkschool.org/

Difference between the two - individual instruction and the jamming at night after class - we were all living at the school.

[DSims63]

Sweetwater in Fort Wayne Indiana has a class they call Build A Band. They team up like minded students matching musical taste, ability levels, and ages. I have been a part of it for almost 2 months now and love it. I am fairly new to music, only playing for a little over 19 months and it has been a major learning experience. I have also been taking bass lessons at Sweetwater as well and I am completely happy with the classes and teachers, i don't know if they have any places anywhere else in the country but if you are close to Fort Wayne you might want to give them a try.

[MarkMgibson]

Group lessons are a waste of time in my opinion. Every student will probably start at a different level, and certainly learn at different rates, and the teacher won't have time to deal with every student individually, and the slowest students generally get the most attention. There's not really any "jamming" involved either; they're usually more like your high school analogy. You'll learn 10 times faster with individual lessons.