Teaching a student to hear bass in songs?

[RollingMonkey]

I give bass lessons to beginners, and one of them has a particular problem with hearing bass in songs. He hears all the higher-frequency stuff he's used to (guitars, snare, cymbal, etc.), but has a problem hearing the low frequencies. Not a good thing if you want to become a bassist, I'm sure you'll all agree. I believe he will get it with time just by actively trying to listen to bass, but I'd like to make myself useful to him, and speed up that process as much as possible. Any suggestions on how I can achieve this? Thanks in advance!

[moogboy]

tell him to get some albums that have a very prominent bass in the mix. that and have him get albums that have a very distinctive bass tone. that worked for me.

[jsbass]

Rush. I'm guessing this kid (Or older? Usually it seems older learners don't have as much of a problem with this, as the music they listened to has more prominent bass.) listens to a lot of newer material? A lot of that stuff now a days has almost no distinct bass in it.

You could try listening to an album with him and pointing out what the bass is and what the guitars aren't so maybe he can distinguish a difference.

[lola99]

Can he turn off the treble and turn on the bass on whatever it is he's listening to? It works like a charm with my children, anyway.

[Mark Perry]

I remember having the same problem back in the day, now i can't not hear the bass in songs! I guess listening to styles feuturing bass prominently such as RnB, Funk, Jazz etc. helped me a lot.
I supose time spent simply playing the bass will help him know what to listen out for in a bass.
How about an album like Herbie Hancocks headhunters to start? You could (gradually over time*) move onto recordings with less prominent bass until you get to a Deftones album or something (where the bass can be very difficult to hear).

*Edit

[TeeMartin]

You could show him the guitar pro files with the bass isolated.

[Jeff Moote]

I can't figure out how people can not hear it, even if they're not a bassist. A bad mix is one thing, but even most of the crappy radio material these days has a bassline that you can pick out.

I've heard of other people with this issue, and similarly people who can't isolate any one sound in a mix. Personally I have a hard time hearing the "mix" as one, and tend to separate everything naturally. It's great for learning tunes, but not so great for listening enjoyment. I do appreciate a really coherent mix though - it helps me bring it together

[BASS_KATE]

CRANK UP THE BASS AND TURN DOWN THE TREBLE! A LOT OF NEW SONGS HAVE MORE TREBLE . . . AND HE'S PROBABLY USED TO LiSTENiNG TO THAT! TURN UP THE BASS, LiSTEN TO THE SONG, AND THEN PLAY THE SONG AGAiN WiTH THE BASS AND TREBLE AT NORMAL LEVELS!

[Tape]

If this is a kid or teenager, have him listen to some RHCP, Primus, and other bands he likes that have distinct basslines. Also, maybe make him better understand what he;s listening for. He'll never find it if he doesnt know what he's looking for.

[ric1312]

Originally Posted by Jeff Moote

I can't figure out how people can not hear it, even if they're not a bassist. A bad mix is one thing, but even most of the crappy radio material these days has a bassline that you can pick out.

I've heard of other people with this issue, and similarly people who can't isolate any one sound in a mix. Personally I have a hard time hearing the "mix" as one, and tend to separate everything naturally. It's great for learning tunes, but not so great for listening enjoyment. I do appreciate a really coherent mix though - it helps me bring it together

I had the same problem. It has more to do with the mind and what it is attuned to usually listening to/picking out. Originally I just sang in my band, a few years later and I learned the bass. But, when I started it was hard to pick out the bass because as a singer in the past I took all of my pitch cues from the guitar so that was where my ear was trained to listen for pitch.

Even on more bass heavy rock, the bass seemed to blend in with the guitar if guitar was playing, until I got more attuned to listening for the bass.

I still can't pick out notes by ear, but at least I can just with my ear concentrate on the bass and be able to tell that I'm not playing the right notes.

[chutsk10]

+1 with RUSH. Not only will he hear the bass, but it will inspire him.. or so it inspired me.

[ryla]

this kid is standing on the point of no return - once he starts hearing the bass. he will for the rest of his life hear the bass first and foremost even to the point of obsession for the rest of his life, like most of us bass players, he is about to lose his treble cherry.

[JimmyM]

There's an old saying I like to say..."Nobody notices bass until it stops playing." If you could get your hands on some music with and without the bass line, maybe he could zero in on it a little better. Maybe a music minus one album or something. Older Van Halen albums have the bass panned to one side, and that might work, too.

[JRR]

Play him the Ramones' first album with the balance turned all the way to one side (they recorded the guitar panned hard to one side and the bass to the other-- can't remember which side is bass and which is guitar off hand). The bass is soloed-- Dee Dee in all his glory. For the novice bassist, it's a good education (and try downpicking everything, Dee Dee-style; not that easy!).

Oh, and PLEASE play him some James Brown.

Other good ones:
Gang of Four
R.E.M.
Morphine
Joy Division

[emagdnim]

Originally Posted by Jeff Moote

I can't figure out how people can not hear it, even if they're not a bassist. A bad mix is one thing, but even most of the crappy radio material these days has a bassline that you can pick out.

they're actually hearing it, but they dont know how it sounds like, so they cannot really hear it.

get him some music with predominant basslines and it will get a lot easier, I suggest some James Jamerson songs so he can hear the bass and he can feel the groove the bass is making.
good luck

[Otso]

Originally Posted by emagdnim

they're actually hearing it, but they dont know how it sounds like, so they cannot really hear it.

Exactly. A few years ago I had no idea what the bass sounded like. Then I fiddled around with one in the school music class and it was like an angel choir and clouds parting moment, when I realized that a lot of cool stuff going on in recordings I like, is bass.

Maybe you could play the bassline of the song, and then play the recording. That way the student would know what to listen for.

[All_¥our_Bass]

A lot of old Pink Floyd songs have very prominent bass.
Examples: (and there's probably more too)
Money
One Of These Days
Set the Controls for the Heart Of the Sun
Another Brick in the Wall, Pt 2
Have a Cigar
Embryo

[moogboy]

get him some Who albums. the worlds greatest bassist, John Entwistle is always on the Left side in the mix, along with drums and certain other things. that helps a lot. definetly the Who, Yes because the tone is so distinctive, and Rush because and the tone is very distinctive again. one thing that i have noticed is that songs where there is an intro like 'Red Barchetta' by Rush where the bass comes in during a part where the guitar is not at its full volume. those songs have very easy to follow basslines because you hear it almost in isolation, and then you recognize the tone and feel of the bass as the song goes on.

[K9Jay79]

I agree with a lot of the suggestions. The best one, I think is you playing the bass line to a song recording. Have him turn the recording volume up and down as you play. When he has the volume low, he'll hear your part and start to know what's coming next. When he turns the recording volume up, your bass will start to blend into the recording. If he starts to lose it, he can turn it back down... just a thought.

[RollingMonkey]

Many great suggestions here! Thanks! I'll give 'em a go and see if it works out...