I want to play bass, but I also don't want to let my father down...help!

[Bassmanbob]

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

If your father's going to lay a trip on you for playing the instrument you love, he's letting you down.

Munjibunga:

You may very well be my favorite poster here at Talkbass. I don't know how old your are, but your wit and wisdom entertain me every time I read what you write.

I wanted my two kids to be musicians. My older one chose gymnastics and she's great at it and loves it. She sees my interest in music and now plays trumpet in the middle school band. I never told her to pick up an instrument. My younger daughter is now taking piano lessons at age 8 by her request. Your dad shouldn't try to get you to play what he wants. Let him do that.

1. Just tell him that you appreciate his interest in you, but that it makes you feel uncomfortable the way he's doing it.
2. You're a big boy now. If he doesn't like you playing bass, that's too bad for him. There's no reason to become spiteful to your dad, but you should be able to make your own choices. If you don't switch because of him, it's nobody's fault but your own.

[Kelly Coyle]

You're going to disappoint him sooner or later. Why wait any longer?

[Munjibunga]

Originally Posted by Bassmanbob

Munjibunga:

You may very well be my favorite poster here at Talkbass. I don't know how old your are, but your wit and wisdom entertain me every time I read what you write.

I wanted my two kids to be musicians. My older one chose gymnastics and she's great at it and loves it. She sees my interest in music and now plays trumpet in the middle school band. I never told her to pick up an instrument. My younger daughter is now taking piano lessons at age 8 by her request. Your dad shouldn't try to get you to play what he wants. Let him do that.

1. Just tell him that you appreciate his interest in you, but that it makes you feel uncomfortable the way he's doing it.
2. You're a big boy now. If he doesn't like you playing bass, that's too bad for him. There's no reason to become spiteful to your dad, but you should be able to make your own choices. If you don't switch because of him, it's nobody's fault but your own.

Thanks for the props, man. I have a seven-year-old daughter who owns a percussion rig that Sheila E would covet. She plays them a little, but hasn't gotten the bug. I always say I want her to be a rock 'n' roll drummer, and she protests every time. She says she wants to be a veterinarian, so apparently my plan is working.

She wants to take piano lessons when she's 8, so I can dig that. She does have a pretty deep appreciation of music. We were at an art festival today, listening to a kind of progressive jazz group, and she looks over and says, "Dad, these guys sound kind of like Steely Dan." It brought tears to my eyes.

Anyway, I'm glad you get what I say. Sometimes the kids here think I'm grumpy or mean. I'm not, except to them. I've been around a while. When my daughter becomes a teenager, I have prepared a response to her newly-found infinite wisdom: "Just remember, I've been around a half century longer than you have."

[Bassmanbob]

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

Thanks for the props, man. I have a seven-year-old daughter who owns a percussion rig that Sheila E would covet. She plays them a little, but hasn't gotten the bug. I always say I want her to be a rock 'n' roll drummer, and she protests every time. She says she wants to be a veterinarian, so apparently my plan is working.

She wants to take piano lessons when she's 8, so I can dig that. She does have a pretty deep appreciation of music. We were at an art festival today, listening to a kind of progressive jazz group, and she looks over and says, "Dad, these guys sound kind of like Steely Dan." It brought tears to my eyes.

Anyway, I'm glad you get what I say. Sometimes the kids here think I'm grumpy or mean. I'm not, except to them. I've been around a while. When my daughter becomes a teenager, I have prepared a response to her newly-found infinite wisdom: "Just remember, I've been around a half century longer than you have."

To which she will respond, "But Dad. You don't understand. Things were different then."

I'm impressed with the Steely Dan comment. I can relate. My kids can pick out Beatle songs in the car without ever hearing that particular song before. That's when I get to steer the radio away from Usher and Kelly Clarkson for three minutes. But they like watching my Hard Days Night DVD with me too.

Sorry for the hyjacking guys.

[Seigi]

I think that you would not be letting your dad down. You need to be really good at moving your fingers around and stretching your fingers out to play bass. It may be simpler than guitars, but it's really the backbone of the song. You can't have a song with no bass.

[Brad Johnson]

I've made it a point to not try to steer my son in any direction, especially bass, as far as a hobby or vocation. I fugred if he had the bug, it would bite him and move him in whatever direction he needed to go. That's what happened to me. I was exposed to a lot of music but not a lot of musicians as a child, my son has the benefit of both.

On his own he decided to play sax and has taught himself keyboards (he could pick out Yellowjackets and Steely Dan melodies by ear at an early age, which I admittedly thought was very cool, especially considering some of the tone deaf working musicians I know ). Almost two years ago he came to me and said he was interested in exploring electric bass and wanted to know if I'd let him borrow one. I gave him a 97 fender MIA Jazz Deluxe 5 (and a Korg PX4B and an amp) and he's been having a ball ever since with it. It turns out though that his true calling seems to be production... he gets the whole picture and his compositions are adventurous and very cool. He's also great at building sounds and mixing.

All of this is to say, if someone's father actually takes issue with what their offspring plays, that's the father's problem, not the son or daughter's. They should play whatever they want. He should just be happy in the fact that they even have the drive to be a musician. Most people don't.