Can I teach people bass?

[brlottermann]

Hey,
I'm trying to earn some money over this coming summer to supply my raging heroine addiction (just kidding, I want to buy a warwick fretless ) and I was thinking of teaching beginner electric bass lessons in funk, rock, jazz, and blues. Heres the deal:

I'm almost 16 years old, I've been playing bass for almost 4 years, I practice every day at least 2 hours. I've been taking classical piano lessons for about 10 years, and in those classes we would cover a lot of theory and formal music study. I've been in a consistent rock/funk/jazz band for 3 years.

I'm thinking, since most music lessons in my area cost around $45-$60 I would offer mine for just $20. I would give the lessons to people ages 7-16 in my city, and they could be half hour or full hour sessions. I can easily place an advertisement in the local paper.

If you want to hear me play bass to assess my teaching abilities or something, watch my newest video:
"Come as You Are" bass jam (Interlochen application) - YouTube

[cloverkeys]

Who could possibly come on here and say "no".

There are not to my knowledge any music teaching police.

Go for it, your more than qualified to teach a beginner how to hold a bass and fret notes.

[brlottermann]

just wondering, as I would probably teach them my way of playing bass, not necessarily the "textbook" methods.

[funkyebk]

Originally Posted by brlottermann

just wondering, as I would probably teach them my way of playing bass, not necessarily the "textbook" methods.

Your style is your style. I'm not going to tell you there's anything wrong with "your" style, but If you want to teach, especially beginners, teaching them "your style" and not the basics or "textbook" methods would be doing them a great disservice.

[lowfreq33]

Originally Posted by cloverkeys

Who could possibly come on here and say "no".

There are not to my knowledge any music teaching police.

Go for it, your more than qualified to teach a beginner how to hold a bass and fret notes.

I will gladly come on here and say no. You're not qualified to teach.

[Nugun]

Hmm. If it were a friend-to-friend type of deal I would say go for it. Hell, I'm a bit past your age limit but I'd sit down to see what you could show me.

With that being said however, I would not feel comfortable saying you should go and teach strangers the basics of bass playing for money. At least not without a bit more experience in music and teaching. It's one thing to know, but another entirely to pass on.

That's my two cents anyway.

[Jools4001]

If you are not confident in charging the $45-60 going rate for music lessons then you probably can't put your hand on your heart and stack up the teaching credentials to charge that much.

All but the most gullible of potential clients will also question why your lessons are less than half the normal price and conclude that it's because they are not up to scratch.

[pnut166]

"heroine addiction". I like that

[1SHOT1HIT]

Teach people if you want to teach people, You play well and the only way your gonna learn if you can teach someone is to go try.
If your good they'll come back if you suck they won't.

Be up front with your clients in telling them that you are just getting into teaching others and make sure they are aware of what you are able to help them with before any hands are shaken, or cash is exchanged.

You definitely don't need anyone here's permission to do it. If you want to do it then go for it.
Just keep in mind that not everyone can teach what they are good at, it's gonna take a ton of patience, just remember when you first started. Even better, did you take lessons? Was your instructor good? If so then try to remember back to what helped you out.

Good luck.

[5StringFool]

Nice playing. Reminds me of Abraham Laboriel.

http://youtu.be/1a7IfNlwuJU

I say go for it, but I'd stick to the basics of a more standard bass technique. Throwing a four finger technique at a beginner might be a bit much.

[JesusMetalFunk]

Hey I am slightly older than you, and I give lessons to a few kids. I work on teaching concepts, and then the students go practice the applications on their own time. I think it's cooler than any other high school job that my friends have, except maybe the girl who runs her own photo business.

But we both run into the same problem. No high school student can have a shot at any client by charging normal price, (45-60$ in your area is a bunch!) because they will always try to find the best teacher available, and a lot of times it isn't the 16-17 year old kid.

Try your best at organization, and revisit your fundamental playing. DON'T teach someone who to play the bass WRONG!

But go for it.

[Clef_de_fa]

Definitively don't teach your way of playing, in particular your plucking hand.

Concentrate on the basic, if you can't charge what it is really worth people will think you don't have any real value.

Also, it isn't easy to pass down your knowledge.

[mcblahflooper94]

I've taught many friends of mine the very basics, really simple songs like Seven Nation Army and Smoke One The Water. I don't find teaching difficult at all, because I can put up with a lot of people, I have lots of patience, and the people I have taught so far have only been friends. That being said, I don't like the idea of teaching people the standard textbook "two finger way". I let them try it their way, but I tell them how to fix bad habits, such as having their thumb not behind the neck, not using their pinky, etc.

[JimmyM]

Originally Posted by Clef_de_fa

Definitively don't teach your way of playing, in particular your plucking hand.

While I agree that it's not your usual bass technique, and I think he could do some things to clean it up a bit, got to admit that the kid plays pretty well and his thing works for him. I don't know that it'll work to teach other kids that style because it's pretty unusual and it could be cleaned up a bit (Gary Willis plays a similar but more efficient style), but on a musical level, I think he could teach beginners at least.

[elgecko]

The problem you'll likely run into is that you're not marketing your services to 7-16 years olds. You'll most likely be marketing to their parents. Believe it or not, a lot of people of parental age will have the notion that the only things a 16 year old is qualified to teach are video game playing and advanced texting techniques.

[brlottermann]

Yeah, I agree with all these posts, I will definitely go back to the books I learned from a few years ago, and study them a bit. I still remember all the basic, textbook techniques, just I dont necesarily follow them myself. I'm naturally a pretty mellow, patient guy, so I dont think I would get fed up if my student didnt grasp something right away haha.

What I'm hoping is that people would associate my low price with the fact that I'm just 16 and not a professional instructor, not with me being a bad bassist. I'm thinking that these lessons would just be for student that want to try out the bass guitar, to see if they like it. I guess if the student is really dedicated to it, then the parents would feel okay with upgrading to a REAL teacher, for the full $60 an hour or whatever.

[Chazinroch]

I gave my first lessons at 16 and my "student" went go to gig locally for many years.
Also to teach is to learn twice.

Remember:

Teacher shows and explains
Student shows as teacher explains (coaches)
Student shows and explains

Good luck and nice playing!!

[JimmyM]

Originally Posted by elgecko

The problem you'll likely run into is that you're not marketing your services to 7-16 years olds. You'll most likely be marketing to their parents. Believe it or not, a lot of people of parental age will have the notion that the only things a 16 year old is qualified to teach are video game playing and advanced texting techniques.

They aren't wrong, either. No way I'd have taught for money when I was 16, and I was gigging professionally with dudes twice or 3x my age back then. I took lessons when I was 16, not gave them

But I admire the kid's spirit, and I think he would have something to offer beginners.

[DigitalMan]

A friend of mine has a son who started teaching guitar at the local music store around 16. He was/is an accomplished guitar player, and teaching was a great step forward for him as well.

I wouldn't cut your rate down to $20 though. If the going rate is $45 the. $30-35 is more than reasonable.

Also, see if you can do your teaching in association with a music store or local music academy. Being surrounded by experienced instructors even for different instruments would be a great environment.

[CrashMiller]

Wasn`t initially going to say you could teach, simply because of your age. But after listening to the clip you provided, I see no problem with you teaching.

What loop station are you using in the clipÉ