Progress...

charic · #1 11-08-2006, 12:15 PM

Im wondering if my playing on bass is progressing at the "normal" (loosly used) rate. Ive been playin 7-8 months now. My most recent song i learnt was my generation by the who (took me ages though) other than that i seem to be in a rut for finding songs to play. I seem to play and perfect a lot of stuff rather than new stuff, so if any suggestions on where to go from here it would be appreciated.

But back to the main question, is this the standard of song youd expect of someone whos been playing for 7-8months or more or less.

VanillaO · #2 11-08-2006, 12:32 PM

there is no standard.. people learn different genres, people learn faster/slower, people learn different..I knew my generation after about 2 months, but that's partiallyb ecause it was one of the first songs i set out to learn because i loved the solo

rainbownorth · #3 11-13-2006, 02:25 AM

well...ive been playing for (squints in concentration) 11 months. Ive just recently learnt sir psycho sexy(RHCP), and a couple of tori amos songs (i was damn proud of those ones, i had to learn em by ear). But its less about how good the song is, and more about how it helps you develop your playing in terms of hand dexterity, pitch, musical understanding, and, if the song allows it, improvisation etc etc. Those are the only things i look for in playing covers. Really, theyre just a way to have fun between serious practice sessions.

So...for us to REALLY gauge how good you are, what can you do with your bass? How much scale/chord theory do you know, how quickly can you play, can you slap/tap etc, anything.What have you learnt so far?Me, atm im just learning to pick with 3 fingers, just learning to slap, i got a fair to average scale knowledge, my biggest problem is im not that quick.So yeah...enlighten me. Its just easier to tell you if youre on the right track in terms of capability and chops than what covers you can play. Besides it gives a better indication of how well youre REALLY going.

charic · #4 11-13-2006, 02:00 PM

Umm... speed wise.. well i dont ever really struggle with the speed on songs, being a metal/punk/rock player the speed is usually a fair speed, can play things at speeds such as stockholm syndrome, the real me (recent learn and damn proud!

) which isnt particularly fast but is fast on the fingers, i can finger pick with 4 fingers (keyboard player good right hand dexterity) but still have better speed and technique with 2 fingers. However still prefer playin with a pick due to the sound and the feel (plus david ellefson is one of my heros

). I dont play slap dont like the sound, im learning tap at the moment tho. Chords and scales i use mainly from what i learnt on the keyboard (bin playin since i was 5/6 so bout 15 years experience).

rainbownorth · #5 11-13-2006, 03:36 PM

Well, youre STREETS ahead of me then, and i been playing a good couple of months more than you.The lack of slap is no big deal, some like it some dont, im undecided as yet. I dont think ill use it much even when im good at it.Im impressed with your finger picking skills as well.You should pretty much have learnt all the scale and chord knowledge you need from keyboard as well, its the same theory, just harder to visulaise on strings than on keys.

Im jealous, but having said that, I have no prior musical experience, and im 100% entirely self taught. May I ask you...do you find having experience with the keyboard helps you with learning and playing bass?It sure sounds like it does. Im very interested in learning the keyboard as well. Not just to help with bass playing, I'm just interested in expanding my musical horizons, and i like the idea of playing keys. That and being able to play something that gives a basic structure and rhythm im hoping will help to be able to create more and better bass lines for times when the rest of the band isnt there.

theshadow2001 · #6 11-13-2006, 06:13 PM

I wouldn't worry about your rate of progress too much. It might be better just to focus on the things that are going to make you a better player (thats what I say when I mean musician and not some guy trying to shag as many women as possible) You know, things like learning your fretboard playing with the metronome trying your hardest to get that bass line down to that song you like.

Focus on making yourself better, not how far you've come. Because no matter how far you've come it will never be far enough.

rainbownorth · #7 11-13-2006, 06:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by theshadow2001

I wouldn't worry about your rate of progress too much. It might be better just to focus on the things that are going to make you a better player (thats what I say when I mean musician and not some guy trying to shag as many women as possible) You know, things like learning your fretboard playing with the metronome trying your hardest to get that bass line down to that song you like.

Focus on making yourself better, not how far you've come. Because no matter how far you've come it will never be far enough.

+1 to that. No matter how much you improve theres always ways to keep bettering yourself. Its almost silly to think of improvement on a time scale anyway really.

charic · #8 11-14-2006, 12:53 PM

I find keys has probably helped a fair bit, my finger picking skills are ok but as i say i prefer the sound of the pick and it feels more natural (yes i know this doesnt make sense!) to me.

Keyboard is a fun instrument to play, one thing i found has helped is a nifty little program called powertab. However i seem to play keys better now that i play bass, more control

.

Prior musical experience will allways help, no matter what instrument. I have a grade 5 theory so that has most bases covered theory wise.

I would really love to find more musicians in my area to jam with as my improv skills seem lacking to me tho.

rainbownorth · #9 11-14-2006, 04:45 PM

yeah, jamming is essential, besides being the most fun you can have with other guys

. Ive always found it harder to just come up with a bass line on my own, its so much easier when youve got other people to give you a little inspiration.

Chriss62 · #10 11-17-2006, 10:56 AM

Jamming with other musicians is a gret big part of progress and growth.

Personally, I always seem to progress when i plays in front of any number of people that i haven't played in from of before. It may be a crappy gig, or some people at a coffee shop, or just some people a friend brought over, but after, i feel i've realized something about my playing.

Another thing, recording yourself play in any aspect, even just screwing around, will reveal to you your secrets. I have all these sort of archival tapes of my own playing, and jamming with folks, and when i go back and listen to them, i find not only that i can hear my progress, but i can also hear the whole musical train of thought i was on at the time, and go on to utilize that snapshot of you musical mind. Kind of tough to explain really; hope you understand what i mean.

I guess i sound kind of crazy. Oh well....

Correlli · #11 11-17-2006, 04:24 PM

+1 no standard. you learn at your own pace. I really don't get into this "you should doing 'this', by 'this' amount of time". I found recently, that it took me 20 years to pick up something that may have taken someone else 1 year or less.

rainbownorth · #12 11-19-2006, 04:23 PM

Besides that, everyone will find different things that they feel are more important at different stages to learn. For example, im using the pacman method to learn my fretboard and intervals as well as i know the back of my hand, and i feel this is more important to me than, say, learning to slap, tap, or play really really fast. This is why people will progress at different speeds, and in different areas. It is also why every single bass player has their own unique style. Each person progresses in different areas, and in different ways, and learns to interpret their inspirations in different musical forms. Which is why music is the greatest thing in the world; its the language of everyone on the face of the planet, but we all speak it in different ways.