Teaching for the first time (beginner student) - Advice?

[lamonica78]

Ok, I know that there are probably a ton of posts in here, but I am a bit overwhelmed at the moment. If anyone can humor me and give me some practical advice, I'd appreciate it.

I have been playing bass for about 11 years now. I was primarily self taught, though I have been taking formal lessons for well over a year now. I am also firmly grounded in theory from playing saxophone all throughout school/college.

My friend just bought a bass and I offered to teach her. I have never taught before, but it's something I'd like to be able to do in the future, so she is going to be a guinea pig of sorts.

Where do I start for someone that has no formal experience on bass (though, she is a trained singer and knows theory). Any advice (books, websites, techniques, lesson plans, etc) would be greatly appreciated

Thanks,

Steve

[Cameronj]

Start with the Hal Leonard Method books.
For each lesson, I would spend some time on technique then use the method book and then work on a song or two that she likes. If she is having fun she will progress better.

Create a list of songs that will help introduce new techniques and styles and periodically have her work on new ones from that list.

[Jake of Bass]

This just the way I do things. I'm always learning about music and teaching. This is a bit of what I've picked up in the past 6 or so years of teaching.


I always start from the absolute beginning.

Ask if they've played any music before. Previous experience is useful for you to know as it can help relate certain concepts either with pitch, rhythm, theory or ear.

Then go over the bass and briefly explain each part (ie. this is the body, this is the bridge, these are the pickups, the neck, the headstock, machine heads, frets).

Then show how to play demonstrating one hand and then the other. For the right hand I show how you can anchor your thumb on the pickup or neck (I don't use the floating thumb so I don't teach it to avoid incorrect technique, but I don't discourage players who choose to do so). Show the motion of playing a string and how it comes to rest on the string behind it. Explain everything you do and the why. Then move to the left hand and show how to play a fret, how the finger sits just behind the fret, show the buzz you get if they play too far behind the fret. If they have their own bass get them to do each one of these things as you do and gently guide them towards the correct way if they do it incorrectly.

Once that's down start on something easy. A book with notation is a great place to start. I sometimes use tabs as where I teach doesn't really want me photocopying pages and pages from tutorial books as we sell them. At this stage you just want to get them playing something so they have something to practice, have a small sense of achievement AND so you can see how they pick up what you're showing them and how well they can do it. Then just move on from there, gradually getting harder and harder. I must stress here the key word is GRADUALLY as you want to build upon what was previously learned. A bit like laying the next brick on top of the previous one.

Everyone has their own style. For me, when teaching at the early stages, be sure to be encouraging and positive, but make it genuine. Don't patronise your student, but be ready to praise them and point out why they're doing well. Most people at first feel intimidated and are self conscious, hence the need for encouragement to build their self esteem. Always guide their playing towards correct technique, and if you have to pull them up over and over again on the same thing, make light of it like it's something to laugh about rather than get annoyed.

Always give them material that is both challenging and achievable. Only experience and judgment can tell you what is appropriate, but that's part of the fun of teaching. And don't try to cover too much at once. It's better to go slow and be thorough than skim over everything without explaining the how, the what, the why, the when and the where.

You're going to make a few mistakes, maybe give someone a piece to practice that is way too hard or confuse the hell out of them by going over too much theory at once. That happens. Like learning to play music, teaching is something you get better at over time. Try to keep in mind what it's like for them to learn and not know as much as you do. The advantage here for you is you've already walked many miles in a similar pair of shoes, so just remember the journey that got you to where you are now and pass on some of knowledge and experience. Good luck.

[onlyclave]

Originally Posted by lamonica78

Where do I start for someone that has no formal experience on bass (though, she is a trained singer and knows theory). Any advice (books, websites, techniques, lesson plans, etc) would be greatly appreciated

Thanks,

Steve

Teach her to read standard notation.

[lamonica78]

Originally Posted by onlyclave

Teach her to read standard notation.

Thanks, great advice so far by everyone! As for reading standard notation, I will definitely get into that. I gave her a blank neck chart so that she can write out all of the notes and positions on the neck to start.

[onlyclave]

Originally Posted by lamonica78

Thanks, great advice so far by everyone! As for reading standard notation, I will definitely get into that. I gave her a blank neck chart so that she can write out all of the notes and positions on the neck to start.

No no no. Put the bass in her hands and have her show you where all of the Eb's on it are. Then write out a 2-octave Eb major scale and have her show you three different fingering patterns for that scale. No charts required.

If you start her off reading ants on a page and applying them to her bass then she'll be much better off in the end. If she's a trained singer (there's no tab for that except maybe shaped notes) then the reading of the ants will be easier, she just needs to know where they correspond on the instrument.

[lamonica78]

Originally Posted by onlyclave

No no no. Put the bass in her hands and have her show you where all of the Eb's on it are. Then write out a 2-octave Eb major scale and have her show you three different fingering patterns for that scale. No charts required.

If you start her off reading ants on a page and applying them to her bass then she'll be much better off in the end. If she's a trained singer (there's no tab for that except maybe shaped notes) then the reading of the ants will be easier, she just needs to know where they correspond on the instrument.

Ah, gotcha. Will do!

[onlyclave]

Also, since playing bass is all about playing music, write out some tunes for her (no tab. No. Tab.) for her to play. She'll certainly have more fun playing grooves from disco tunes, Queen or other pop music. Scales are actually quite boring and not many people like listening to them.

[Stumbo]

Here's a couple of links that may help you out:
Lesson Plan for Bass Teachers
To teach or not to teach

[lamonica78]

Originally Posted by Stumbo

Here's a couple of links that may help you out:
Lesson Plan for Bass Teachers
To teach or not to teach

Thank you, this is all very helpful!