Building a practice regim

Kindofblue · #1 10-13-2008, 05:08 PM

Hello,

Im a 16 year old bassist who is mostly into jazz,and want to build a practice "routine". Not so much a set order in which I do stuff and certain times, but spend it in 30-40 minute intervals. Going through stuff like Scales,Rythm,Reading etc.

My question is...do any of you have certain "routines" that you do?

thanks,

hdiddy · #2 10-13-2008, 06:36 PM

I just pick the most important thing that I suck at the most and work on that for a while. Once I finish that, then I move on the next things I suck at most.

In the beginning I would focus on scales first, then my walking, then my soloing. In the beginning I would always do scales for a warmup.

Example would be...
Scale warm up 20 minutes
Walking for 40 minutes (cuz my walking sucked more than my soloing and it's more important)
Soloing for 40 minutes

As I sucked less at walking, I change up my routine at what I at more. I treat them all as little modules and I work on no more than 3 modules a day (cuz my brain can't handle too many subjects).

Other example practice subjects:
* Broken 2 feel
* Walking in other meters
* Learning a new tune
* Dissecting a short lick and play it through 12 keys and Cycle of 4ths/5ths. I will play the phrase backwards too through 12 keys & 4ths/5ths
* Playing scales ascending/descending in intervals (3rds, 4ths, 5ths, etc)
* drumming/rhythm exercises

So my usual routine right now is (I'm doing 4 cuz one of them is not all that brain intensive):
1. Either scales or lick dissection (40 min)
2. Rhythm/drumming exercises (20 min)
3. Learning a new tune (1 hr min)
4. Piano (learning some basic comping) (1 hr)

I'll spread this over the entire day... an hour in the morning, and an hour or two at night.

Zombbg4 · #3 10-13-2008, 06:56 PM

Always include...

Warm Up- Scales, work on intonation, make sure you're using good technique.

Music- Practice the music you have. This could be getting rhythms/ notes down, walking over changes ect...

Sight reading- Good readers get the gig, and it's just makes life easier (in music).

Ear Training- Super important. Helps you solos, walking lines ect... Sing along with scales, scale patterns, solos, walking lines. "If you can't sing it, you can't play it". Well, you can but if you can hear what note comes next it will free you playing/creativity up.

Transcribing- Transcribe a melody or solo every day, or every other, or every week. This helps with A LOT. The earlier you start the better.

Just some ideas. Use what works, ditch what doesn't. Try lots of different things untill you find what feels good and is the most productive.

But ALWAYS use a metronome and make sure you session is focused, break it into 20 minutes sessions if you must.

Kindofblue · #4 10-14-2008, 03:41 PM

Thanks, that was more so what I was looking for, not so down for the negative "I cant do it cuz my brain cant focuz" whole thing.

Which leads me to my next point. Do you find sometimes you take breaks and just listen to music? I know that happend last week, its like I was "de-hydrated" and needed some "gatorade" and just listened and refilled.

hdiddy · #5 10-14-2008, 04:53 PM

Just because you're away from practicing doesn't mean your mind isn't processing the information you practiced. For myself, I get alot out of doing other things and suddenly when I come back to the instrument I get an epiphany. I'm just like that with alot of things I do. Don't let anyone ever tell you you're no good unless you practice 8 hours a day (at least as an amateur). 5 minutes of focused practicing is twice as good as 1 hr of noodling.

OTOH, if you plan on being a professional musician you still want to put in those 8 hours tho. I would.

Kindofblue · #6 10-14-2008, 06:58 PM

I wouldn't go to that extent of 8 hours,Because you just contridicted yourself. Your on the same track as me, I can practice some things without using my bass. I don't plan on being professional as in the sense of being in a full gigging band for the rest of my life. But I plan to do a music-related job for my career. Ie private teaching, session playing, recording, writing, band director etc.

hdiddy · #7 10-14-2008, 10:27 PM

Yeah I intentionally contradicted myself. I guess I meant to say is that when you're at that level of commitment, it's a totally different ball game. I would think that if you aspire to be a master, it would be hard to get there without serious devotion to working at it.

It isn't to say that you can't learn alot from little bits of practice, but it doesn't mean that you can't learn a ton from hard practicing either. I can learn alot by practicing the RIGHT WAY at little at a time... but I can also immerse myself in that world and really learn to speak music as another language too. It's like learning a language in high school versus going to a foreign country for a long period of time. You can learn it both ways but one way is going to lead faster (with more work) to the higher level of mastery.

EDIT: One more thing... even as an amateur, I did spend 6 months being a full time music student and practiced 8-10 hrs/day. Even if you don't ever plan on being a full time pro, I think it's a good idea to do something like that at least once. If I had the time and money I would just go off to Berklee for just 1 year (I wouldn't care about the degree) just to immerse myself.

joel kelsey · #8 10-14-2008, 10:29 PM

I would suggest that you get a teacher if you don't already have one. Someone with more experience than you and knows your playing can help guide you in the right direction. I would also practice with a metronome. Also, practicing in front of a mirror can be very helpful. It helps to set goals and develop your routine based on your goals and what you need the most improvement on. I spend a lot of my practice time working on my sound and technique. Whatever you are practicing, be patient. If you get flustered take a break. Some people keep a practice journal to help keep them on track. I hope this helps. Good Luck.

hdiddy · #9 10-14-2008, 10:33 PM

+1 on the teacher. As I like to quote what Ron Carter said at a workshop I was at (even tho you probably have one)...

Quit messing around and get a teacher!

damonsmith · #10 10-15-2008, 11:26 AM

I find it very important to separate working on the instrument and working on music. It really helps to clarify the goals of the moment.
When you are working on etudes and such, if it sounds right and your technique is all screwed up, it isn't right.
Music is an aural art, but part of playing bass is tactile. Spending time getting everything to sound right as well as look right is going to make the music part a lot more efficient. Note: "looking right" just means you are playing with efficient technique that is not going to hold you back or worse injure you in the future.

So for part of your practice session, position, posture, bow position (this part should be all arco) and intonation are the priorities. Getting a full length mirror involved is a good idea.

When working on music the music needs to be the first priority. Getting hung up on technical problems is going to interfere with music making. If a problem comes up my suggestion is to stop and attack it from all sides then go back to working on the music.

Also, for the most part practicing should not sound good - you should be working on things you cannot do. Playing things you know well and can already play is called playing a concert for yourself and not called practicing.

Obe · #11 10-15-2008, 11:34 AM

My $.03 (inflation). To gain speed, practice slow and accurate, using a metronome as mentioned already, then increase speed gradually so that you are still accurate, rather than play fast and sloppy and attempt to take out the sloppy while still playing fast. One of my early problems, and one of my "student's" problems. Not really a student but a relative that I am showing things to, since he has a high school music teacher already and teaching is not my strong point. And also get a good teacher if possible, you may have to try a few to find one that clicks with you. < /$.03 input>

Zombbg4 · #12 10-15-2008, 11:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kindofblue

Thanks, that was more so what I was looking for, not so down for the negative "I cant do it cuz my brain cant focuz" whole thing.

Which leads me to my next point. Do you find sometimes you take breaks and just listen to music? I know that happend last week, its like I was "de-hydrated" and needed some "gatorade" and just listened and refilled.

Yeah! Let your body and mind rest by letting some good music flow through it. Plus, you'll have what you are striving for fresh in your head while you practice. Whether to "rehydrate" or be inspired, listening is key. My friend who plays trombone at UNT says an hour of his practice routine is singing his music and listening. A lot can be done away from the instrument.

In mingus' book he says he got to a point to where he could practice in his head and only needed to be on the bass to maintain stamina ect... But its friggin mingus....Also most of the book isnt exactly true.

Kindofblue · #13 10-16-2008, 01:56 PM

Yeah, these is preety much just going over the same thing now lol. In my opinion, the amount of practicing you do is personal, and everyone learns differently.

damonsmith · #14 10-16-2008, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kindofblue

Yeah, these is preety much just going over the same thing now lol. In my opinion, the amount of practicing you do is personal, and everyone learns differently.

I wouldn't say that. You only find that kind of thing out after the fact. So since you are young I would go with a legit practice routine. Scales, etudes out of whatever method your teacher uses - all arco. Then work with a metronome, on all different settings 1/4 on 2 and 4 and on all 4.
Then work on tunes, transcribing and swing feel.
A solid practice routine won't hurt you, but too little of one can. If you do as I said and separate music and the instrument then when you are not feeling creative you can STILL saw through some scales and etudes and then do some listening as opposed to just listening and not touching the instrument.

Kindofblue · #15 10-16-2008, 09:28 PM

Yeah, thats what I started doing. Thanks alot for that tip. Its like doing more "concrete" work by that I mean practicing scales and such when you dont have a peice to work on.

Yes,I do have a teacher by the way.

damonsmith · #16 10-17-2008, 10:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kindofblue

Yeah, thats what I started doing. Thanks alot for that tip. Its like doing more "concrete" work by that I mean practicing scales and such when you dont have a peice to work on.

Yes,I do have a teacher by the way.

Yeah, that is great way to look at it. I would also recommend learning to read all three clefs (bass, treble, tenor). That makes a variety of classical music available. Reading some classical music or out the Charlie parker Ominibook or that book of Paul Chambers solos can really help you get work done when you are not feeling super creative.

Ed Fuqua · #17 10-17-2008, 10:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kindofblue

In my opinion, the amount of practicing you do is personal, and everyone learns differently.

I would add - yes, everyone learns differently. What is NOT different are the skill sets necessary to play the instrument AND to play this music. Both physical approach and conceptual approach require a LOT of work; you are the only one who can decide how deep you want to go and how much work you want to put into it. But you can't expect to get very deep if you DON'T put the work in.

hdiddy · #18 10-17-2008, 11:14 AM

To add to Ed's comment. It take a lot work just to find out the best way you learn. I took me about 30 years of playing music (various instruments) and other activities to figure out the most efficient way for me to assimilate information. Even then, there are still many/most times where nothing can be learned without hard hands on practicing.

Sometimes you have to and need to be able to learn things by the brute force of rote learning.