Where should I be after 1 month of playing?

lonestarwings · #1 02-08-2008, 12:02 AM

Hi. I've been playing the bass for 1 month now. What milestones should I be looking to achieve at this point, if any? I've taken 3 lessons and here's what I've done so far:

Played every song and exercise in "Hal Leonard Bass Method Book 1" by Ed Friedland consistently without many mistakes.

Learned Thirds and Fifths.

Learned major and minor scales.

Learned the blues scale pattern.

Learned the Major and Minor Pentatonic scale pattern.

Learned 8 and 12 bar blues/boogie patterns, played with open and closed strings.

Learned several "scale exercises" using both open and closed strings.

Committed the notes played on open strings and the first 5 frets by memory, working on the next 5.

Learned to read Bass Clef.

Gotten blisters on both index fingers plus my right middle finger and thumb.

Are there any important milestones that I'm missing in my first month? I've only been playing finger style, no picks or slap.

Next I've ordered Bass Method Book 2 and another book "easy pop bass lines". I plan on playing through those in addition to continuing to study the material my teacher gives me (which is mostly scale and pattern related up to this point). Thoughts?

meev992 · #2 02-08-2008, 12:16 AM

You're off to a good start. I think you should just prepare yourself, when you start hitting those moments when you "peak", as it can be frustrating at times.

bburk · #3 02-08-2008, 12:17 AM

I'm sure that I won't be the first one to say this, but there really is no curriculum. Just ask yourself "Am I happy with my progress so far?" If you are, great! If not, seek out more knowledge and practice more.

If you still feel lost, try to set some goals for yourself. Perhaps you have some favorite songs that you would like to be able to play... Whatever your goal is, tell your instructor and he/she should work to help you achieve it.

It's all about what YOU want.

NKUSigEp · #4 02-08-2008, 12:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lonestarwings

Played every song and exercise in "Hal Leonard Bass Method Book 1" by Ed Friedland consistently without many mistakes.

Already more than I know after almost 11 years.

There aren't any milestones really to speak of - I think my best advice is to find a band around your skill level...even if ya make crappy music, you're still learning. And build up your handstrength and coordination! I still constantly rap my fingers on a desk or my leg or whatever in some random but repeated order (1,2,4,1,3,1,2,4,1,3, etc or whatever works).

lonestarwings · #5 02-08-2008, 12:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meev992

You're off to a good start. I think you should just prepare yourself, when you start hitting those moments when you "peak", as it can be frustrating at times.

I think I'm starting to get to one of those. In addition to the things I listed above I've been trying to learn "sweet child of mine" by guns and roses and "longview" by green day and haven't really been able to master either one too well using tab. If I take them at about half tempo I can get through them, crank it to 120+ bpm like the artist does and forget it.

I'm hoping my new books will epxlain some of the techniques in those songs, like hammer ons, slides, and help me get them down better. About the only pop song I can really play right now is "low rider".

GradyBass · #6 02-08-2008, 12:35 AM

You should be having fun after 1 month.

Everything else is just icing.

meev992 · #7 02-08-2008, 02:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GradyBass

You should be having fun after 1 month.

Everything else is just icing.

Ditto,

It's probably more important that you're actually still interested after one month. There are plenty of people that try to pick up an instrument and quickly lose their conviction.

punkbassistfc · #8 02-08-2008, 03:21 AM

Dude, after on month you should be playing geddy and flea tabs note for note. Just kidding. Seriously, learning is not a competition. Just go at your own pace and set your own goals that challenge you enough but dont drown you.

theunknowndude · #9 02-08-2008, 03:27 AM

don't worry about the being able to play as fast as the song thing, that just comes with time,...

the first song I tried to play was 46 & 2 by Tool...

it took me around 2-3 months just to get that quick with pick... (I been a guitarist for a long time so preferred pick!) but now im learning to use my fingers and its been another 3 or so months to try and use my fingers nimbly enough to pull off that intro!

i was so dissapointed in myself and took it hard that first month tho and my teacher just told me not to worry,...
"theyve been playing bass like what, 15 years? you will probably laugh at how simplistic that song is in 15 years time!"

im learning slap and its taking me a while,... gonna be a long time before im flea paced! just keep at it and have fun is the main thing

Busker · #10 02-08-2008, 04:04 AM

I think you've got a good foundation beginning, but maybe its time to try to start learning your a few of your favorite songs. Plug in a CD and see if you can start to reproduce the bass lines you hear. Start with some simple songs. It may be frustrating at first. Heck, it may be frustrating after 10 years. Most of the bass players on your favorite recordings are going to be really good, and it can be very hard at first to reproduce their lines and approximate their tone.

bassbully · #11 02-08-2008, 07:20 AM

In a Band.........................j/k...keep it up

Rickett Customs · #12 02-08-2008, 07:34 AM

Yeah, theres no finish lines in any of our futures, just landmarks.
If you ever feel like you've reached "the finish line", you're in the wrong race and that usually means you've acquired an ego.
Anybody here in TB or elsewhere, who feels they have no more to learn is full of crap, if not I'll tell 'em

Valerus · #13 02-08-2008, 09:11 AM

Doing better in one month than I did in one year.

meev992 · #14 02-08-2008, 09:27 AM

Alembicplyr....pleaaase change your avatar.

Most women can't even do that.

Rickett Customs · #15 02-08-2008, 09:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meev992

Most women can't even do that.

I disagree,You haven't seen any at 30yrs+ yet, have you? It's gravity's fault

But enough of the derail.

-Kramer- · #16 02-08-2008, 09:39 AM

This might be a little difficult for you right now but you should start to learn some songs by ear. Try figuring out some simple tunes like "Mary Had a Little Lamb" and happy birthday. This will develop your ear and allow you to learn songs without tab. I waited way too long to start doing this and still have trouble learning songs by ear.

Valerus · #17 02-08-2008, 09:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meev992

Alembicplyr....pleaaase change your avatar.

Most women can't even do that.

haha

Phe · #18 02-08-2008, 10:31 AM

I think you've achieved more in one month than I did in two years. Kudos on great start!

I also recommend learning songs by ear. Simple stuff first (okay, if you can learn Charlie Parker solos by ear, by all means do it!)

Marcury · #19 02-08-2008, 10:56 AM

Keep at it, if you are comfortable with what you've listed and can play it all at will, then you're off to a great start, if not keep working with the list till you integrate all that and then move on.

cheapbasslovin · #20 02-08-2008, 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meev992

Alembicplyr....pleaaase change your avatar.

Most women can't even do that.

+1
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD MAKE IT STOP

EDIT:::: Sorry for hijacking the thread. What everyone else said. Your way farther along than I was, but I wasn't learning the music, just songs and notes, and a little technique. Haunts me to this day my ign'ance. You are doing fine IF it doesn't feel like work.