looking at neck

[retitled]

when playing on stage, how often do you look at your neck? to make sure your hitting the right fret i mean. not the neck attaching your head to your sholders hehe

[dls59]

Not often at all. If I don't know where everything is by now, I'll never know.

[Eli M.]

It depends on the music and the situation. I generally look when I'm doing something really hard, especially something that involves big leaps and position changes back and forth. When I'm singing, I never look (I might glance at the fretboard now and then).

That's on bass guitar. On double bass I don't look; it wouldn't help since there aren't that many visual clues.

[Jace The Bass]

Learning to read music will definitley help in learning not to look at your fretboard as will experience of the time that put in

[Joe P]

I pretty much STARE at my fretting hand constantly. I'm getting so I can look away more all the time, but still when I do, I have to rather force myself, and all the while I'm not looking, my mind is half-way in 'panic mode'. I ALWAYS have to look to change positions, but within a position I'm sure I don't have to look as much as I do.

It's partly psychological, though, I think.

One thing that's strange to me is that if I want to gauranteed screw-up, all I have to do is look at my plucking-hand for longer than a few plucks. I'll for-sure fret a wrong note if I do that. Oh - OR watch either of my hands in a mirror while I play.

Joe

[embellisher]

When playing music I am very familiar with, not very often, unless I have to make a huge intervallic leap up or down the neck.

When playing unfamiliar material, it is a habit that I have had a hard time breaking.

[FR5]

I have been playing fretless exclusively for more than 10 years now and I still look at the neck quite a lot. At least that is what I have always thought.

But last year I joined a band where I do a lot of backing vocals and even some lead vocals and I have discovered that I generally look at the neck only at beginning of verses and choruses, and when I have to play a fast lick in the upper ranges. In rehearsal setting I look at the lead vocalist very often to get the vocals right and at the same time I have eye contact with the other band members (especially the drummer).

We record our rehearsals so I get to check my intonation regularly (and decide to increase my practice hours). I am about to buy a digital camcorder and it will be interesting to film a rehearsal to see how often I really do look at the neck, and what it looks like to an audience (apart from an ugly guy with a beautiful bass).

Steven

[Philbiker]

No audience wants to watch a bunch of guys stare at their necks. If you have even the smallest concern about what kind of presentation you make, you need to start practicing your bass looking over at a wall or something all the time. When you play in front of an audience you need to look AT THEM not your neck.

I look at my neck rarely, and I'm (finally after 5 years of playing) starting to be able to play my fretless with decent intonation without looking at the neck very often.

edit.... I'm staring at the neck in my avatar.... But that's a studio situation and I'm playing a fretless!!! Give me a break!

[nicoli]

Originally Posted by retitled

when playing on stage, how often do you look at your neck?

Too often, according to the gig photos. It's weird, when I really start to get into what I'm playing I have a tendency to start staring at the fretboard... doesn't make a lot of sense but I guess it becomes me inside the music, as opposed to me being there to interact with the audience.

Starting to play in a pub band has helped me make great strides in this department, as all of a sudden I have a lot of dancing women to look at while I'm playing. That's about the only way I've been able to break out of the habit - when I have a great audience.