Has anyone taken lessons after they played for a long time?

Tupac · #1 01-23-2013, 08:20 AM

I kept meaning to find some as a beginner but never got around to it. I was steadily improving anyway and watching plenty of lesson videos for good technique. But lately I've been thinking of taking lessons to learn theory and get a pro's opinion on my technique. Has anyone ever done this after already establishing themselves on bass?

Ed Fuqua · #2 01-23-2013, 08:31 AM

Yes. I'd been playing for about 20 years and living and playing in NYC for about 10 when I started studying with Joe Solomon. But just look around; Rufus Reid quit his day job as Director of the jazz program at William Patterson University to study with his teacher (and this is after a 30+ year career as a jazz musician), Ray Brown, Charlie Haden and others studied with Herman Reinshagen after they had established themselves, both Bob Hurst and Steve Kirby studied with Ron Carter AFTER they had established themselves in NYC.

Febs · #3 01-23-2013, 08:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tupac

I kept meaning to find some as a beginner but never got around to it. I was steadily improving anyway and watching plenty of lesson videos for good technique. But lately I've been thinking of taking lessons to learn theory and get a pro's opinion on my technique. Has anyone ever done this after already establishing themselves on bass?

Yes. I studied upright bass in high school and then college, and then didn't play it for over a decade. When I started playing again, I took lessons.

I also had formal lessons on guitar from age 9 through 18. I returned to one of my guitar teachers when I was 35 and studied with him for a year.

Now, at 43, I would love to continue taking formal lessons, but unfortunately, it would be impossible to fit in my current schedule.

Goatee220 · #4 01-23-2013, 08:44 AM

I had already put out 3 CD's with my old band by the time i took my first formal lessons. I only had about 4 - since they were a gift from an ex-girlfriend, and money was really tight at the time. I wasn't crazy about that teacher either - but I'd love to find a really good teacher and study with him/her. It's nice when you already have a basic understanding of the instrument and dexterity.

JimmyM · #5 01-23-2013, 08:45 AM

Sure did. Been playing since 75 and took lessons in the 90's with Dave LaRue. Best thing I ever did.

Fergie Fulton · #6 01-23-2013, 08:53 AM

Always learning and up for learning, i had my last lesson just before Christmas, working on Jazz figures, reading and brushing up on my approach options...and i'm a pro, a teacher, sessions etc., an active player here in the UK and abroad for over 45 years..and still i feel the need to improve and learn...the day i don't,

i reckon is the day i should hang up my bass.

Tupac · #7 01-23-2013, 08:54 AM

Did the lessons result in a lot of improvement?

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyM

Sure did. Been playing since 75 and took lessons in the 90's with Dave LaRue. Best thing I ever did.

Wow! How was that?

Ed Fuqua · #8 01-23-2013, 09:20 AM

Again, yes. I went from speaking gibberish to being able to communicate meaning. I am no Poet Laureate, but I can convey how I am hearing something with enough clarity that the other musicians I'm playing with can hear it.

MrLenny1 · #9 01-23-2013, 09:40 AM

Yes, took lessons from a 21 year old cat for tapping & slap.
He ran circles around me & got me inspired to study more.

Russell L · #10 01-23-2013, 09:56 AM

I had played some electric bass in a band for four years before I went to college and studied classical upright. I was actually the guitar player, but we all switched around some. I never had an electric bass teacher. Actually, I was the teacher for a few years.

JimmyM · #11 01-23-2013, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tupac

Did the lessons result in a lot of improvement?

Wow! How was that?

Yes, the lessons resulted in a lot of improvement, especially when it comes to reading, and Dave is a class guy and a lot of fun, but he'll work your ass off!

henry2513 · #12 01-23-2013, 10:06 AM

I wasn't established but I am taking lessons after playing for 6 years just once a month because my teacher is on a different continent but even that has resulted in some dramatic changes and insights into stuff like harmony that I would have never figured out on my own and ive looked at whats on youtube bought books etc. Find a good pro who's also a good teacher.

lfmn16 · #13 01-23-2013, 10:23 AM

I've been playing for over 40 years and I recently took a few lessons with an old teacher of mine to get a fresh set of ears that I trusted on my playing.

It's never too late and everybody can learn something from the right teacher. It doesn't matter how good you are.

DiabolusInMusic · #14 01-23-2013, 10:27 AM

I have been playing a little more than a decade and I still take lessons on a regular basis. I tend to find a teacher I want to study with and take a month or two worth of lessons, I am always looking for new teachers who have something to teach me.

I highly recommend you take lessons, what could it possibly hurt aside from your wallet? By the way it is the best "gear" you can buy, it definitely does the most for your tone.

Biggbass · #15 01-23-2013, 10:41 AM

Yes...every ten years or so it's good to take a lesson if, for no other reason, to help get you to the next plateau.

Fergie Fulton · #16 01-23-2013, 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiabolusInMusic

By the way it is the best "gear" you can buy, it definitely does the most for your tone.

So true, so true, i always remember my golf pro bemoaning the fact that golfers would pay (back then)£200+ for a new driver, when a couple of £20 lessons from him would have taught them how to hit the one they've got....and more.

dalkowski · #17 01-23-2013, 10:46 AM

Yes, do it. Several years ago, I took my first lessons since I was in high school. That's 30-something years. I met a teacher, told him my goals and he designed a plan that took my playing places it's never been.

He's moved far far away, but if I had the time, the money and another teacher like him, I'd be taking more lessons.

baileyboy · #18 01-23-2013, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tupac

... I've been thinking of taking lessons... Has anyone ever done this after already establishing themselves on bass?

Me, too. I played for years, but was limited by bad technique (was only fretting with index and middle finger). I decided to take lessons from a bass pro (Broadway player, tours with bands, gives lessons... for 40+ years). This is the best investment I ever made. Now, four years later after weekly lessons (first 3 years) and once-a-month lessons thereafter, I can construct bass lines for songs I never thought I would ever be able to play, and learn them very quickly. I can read music, though I have to sit with tunes to figure them out from sheet music. Overall, my bass playing experience has become so much more enjoyable knowing I can hold my own with other local gigging musicians.

phillybass101 · #19 01-23-2013, 10:59 AM

I'm 57, been playing since I was 15 and have studied with Anthony Wellington, and am about to start studying with Jazz Bass Phenom Tyrone Brown. Nuff said. Anyone can be taught a lesson or two.

grumpyfunk · #20 01-23-2013, 11:02 AM

Yes, I just started taking lessons, my first lessons since graduating from music school. There is always more to learn!