My personal experience. I'm no pro and Ive been playing off and on for 25 years. I find practicing scales to be really boring. Of course knowing the major scales is helpful but practicing them repeatedly will bore you to tears. I do a couple things when I practice. Playing by ear is cool and fun sometimes but I get the tabs of the songs I like from various bands and play along with it. This is beneficial because it allows you to see the style a bass player has with the kind of music you like. The other thing I do is I learned some guitar chords. So I will come up with 4-5 chord structures and play it in various styles and at different speeds, record it and then come up with bass parts for it. Sometimes I'll do it the other way around. Helpful if you don't have a band to play with all the time.
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Quote on a chalkboard in the church basement this week :
" If I had eight hours to chop down a tree , I'd take six to sharpen my axe"
A. Lincoln
Probably missed it somewhere , but you started playing fretless bass as a beginner and you want decent intonation at 100 hours ? How much ear training have you done previously ? Singing ? other instruments ? If you did you'd have a better idea of how much ear training, by itself and off the bass you should be doing.
If I were you , I'd pick up the fretted and use that exclusively to do all your playing and spend good time , daily doing just plain ear training. Solfegge if you want to read , any of the many apps ("Intonation" for iOS is pretty good imho) , totally clear of the bass. Music uses your language centers and you have to think the pitch, imagine it, before you play it. Another case where the way people have been studying music for hundreds of years is indeed a good idea. Ear training is lifelong if you want to be good at it. Eventually it becomes second nature but that's going to be a while yet.
I bet your teacher wouldn't suggest it because it can be dry and is not necessarily fun , and doesn't want to risk losing a student.
And +1 on all the advice to play with other people, especially your wife . With your fretted bass.
" If I had eight hours to chop down a tree , I'd take six to sharpen my axe"
A. Lincoln
Probably missed it somewhere , but you started playing fretless bass as a beginner and you want decent intonation at 100 hours ? How much ear training have you done previously ? Singing ? other instruments ? If you did you'd have a better idea of how much ear training, by itself and off the bass you should be doing.
If I were you , I'd pick up the fretted and use that exclusively to do all your playing and spend good time , daily doing just plain ear training. Solfegge if you want to read , any of the many apps ("Intonation" for iOS is pretty good imho) , totally clear of the bass. Music uses your language centers and you have to think the pitch, imagine it, before you play it. Another case where the way people have been studying music for hundreds of years is indeed a good idea. Ear training is lifelong if you want to be good at it. Eventually it becomes second nature but that's going to be a while yet.
I bet your teacher wouldn't suggest it because it can be dry and is not necessarily fun , and doesn't want to risk losing a student.
And +1 on all the advice to play with other people, especially your wife . With your fretted bass.
I don't even know where to begin with this post.
How about this: MUSIC IS HARD. It takes TIME. Be patient. At 6 months you should NOT be trying to play difficult parts - you should be learning how to play, in general. Learn how to SWING. Forget learning rock tunes - learn where the pocket is. You will never make a thin dime playing like Geddy Lee, cool as he is. You will make money playing like Babbit, Jamerson or Kay - and if you don't know who they are, get yer google on!
How about this: MUSIC IS HARD. It takes TIME. Be patient. At 6 months you should NOT be trying to play difficult parts - you should be learning how to play, in general. Learn how to SWING. Forget learning rock tunes - learn where the pocket is. You will never make a thin dime playing like Geddy Lee, cool as he is. You will make money playing like Babbit, Jamerson or Kay - and if you don't know who they are, get yer google on!
Where to go from here?
So I took my first lesson on 1/13/16 and I’ve played every day since which is 134 days and roughly 100 hours of practice.
I’m taking lessons from a great guy. He’s a professional musician, been playing bass for 20 years, is very patient and I have absolutely no complaints.
After 7 half hour lessons and those approximately 100 hours of practice I can play a few songs. I’m working on Jane’s Addiction “Three Days” now.
I practice pentatonic and chromatic scales for the most part and spend half of my practice time playing along with Pandora (Which I completely improvise and just try and stay in tune) Currently on the Pearl Jam station just because I like trying to stay in tune with Eddie’s voice not necessarily the bass lines.
So where do I go from here? I have one more ½ hour lesson next week and it might be my last until I can justify the cost. My plan is to have him play along with me and my wife with her on the guitar just for fun so we can practice together. Other than that I’m not even sure what to ask him. He’ll sometimes say “What do you want to learn today” and right now I can’t think of an answer.
I’m also playing along to video lesson and that’s probably going to be my main instruction for a while now.
I don’t know much about “theory” but I’m trying to enroll in an online class for beginners.
I’m somewhat happy with my progress but I’m feeling somewhat unfulfilled. Should I be practicing with my wife and friends more? Reading books (I’m not a fan of instruction manuals) or bite the bullet and find the money to continue with my weekly lessons?
Oh, and 90% of my time is spent on the fretless without a pick. I have a fretted bass too and I might even own a pick. LOL
Thanks
The best and quickest way to learn is to play with others and try to make sure you're the worst player in the room.
Cool story bro, was that early 00s/late 90s when the industry was flush? Or now that things are tight and Berklee grads fight for $50 gigs in Nashville?
Good luck surviving on that in 2016.
Hey big deal it was 2006-2012. Berklee grads mean nothing, we used to fire Berkeley grads, anyone can pay to go to Boston or do online, doesn't mean they are a good player.
Just cause you can't get a gig doesn't mean others can't. Judging by your responses your snarky and smug attitude would definitely not go over well in an audition at SIR.
I don't treat people that pay me like this.
Just people on forums that want to pretend their ignorance is a good thing.
I'm gigging as regularly as I'd like, had two shows in the past two weeks....festival in a month or so.
It's especially hard to get a paying gig in the Peninsula/Bay Area since there are enough schmucks falling for the whole pay to play thing that bands pretty much go broke before they can build a following. A lot of the neighborhoods that had nightlife are becoming gentrified forcing the music establishments out.
C/S,
Rev J
C/S,
Rev J
Ric5
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Where to go from here?
So I took my first lesson on 1/13/16 and I’ve played every day since which is 134 days and roughly 100 hours of practice.
I’m taking lessons from a great guy. He’s a professional musician, been playing bass for 20 years, is very patient and I have absolutely no complaints.
After 7 half hour lessons and those approximately 100 hours of practice I can play a few songs. I’m working on Jane’s Addiction “Three Days” now.
I practice pentatonic and chromatic scales for the most part and spend half of my practice time playing along with Pandora (Which I completely improvise and just try and stay in tune) Currently on the Pearl Jam station just because I like trying to stay in tune with Eddie’s voice not necessarily the bass lines.
So where do I go from here? I have one more ½ hour lesson next week and it might be my last until I can justify the cost. My plan is to have him play along with me and my wife with her on the guitar just for fun so we can practice together. Other than that I’m not even sure what to ask him. He’ll sometimes say “What do you want to learn today” and right now I can’t think of an answer.
I’m also playing along to video lesson and that’s probably going to be my main instruction for a while now.
I don’t know much about “theory” but I’m trying to enroll in an online class for beginners.
I’m somewhat happy with my progress but I’m feeling somewhat unfulfilled. Should I be practicing with my wife and friends more? Reading books (I’m not a fan of instruction manuals) or bite the bullet and find the money to continue with my weekly lessons?
Oh, and 90% of my time is spent on the fretless without a pick. I have a fretted bass too and I might even own a pick. LOL
Thanks
To improve you need to play with a band ...
Practicing scales is a waste of time ... learn the scales and the theory but practice songs
Pretty much the what I'm taking away from the thread
ThxPlay with others. Preferable patient musicians who are talented...I have a few of those
Practice as much as possible but do it right and enjoy it.
Listen and learn from my instructor
Don't get overwhelmed
Use online resources, books etc...
Understand that this takes time and effort and that you never stop learning
Oh, and keep my smart ass sarcasm to myself
No plans to gig but if I do it'll be at events and at Stanford Hospital where my wife's band has a standing invitation.
The bars on the Peninsula don't pay either. You think they would since it costs 3 grand for a 1 bedroom apartment(?)
Pretty much the what I'm taking away from the thread
Play with others. Preferable patient musicians who are talented...I have a few of those
Practice as much as possible but do it right and enjoy it.
Listen and learn from my instructor
Don't get overwhelmed
Use online resources, books etc...
Understand that this takes time and effort and that you never stop learning
Oh, and keep my smart ass sarcasm to myself
No plans to gig but if I do it'll be at events and at Stanford Hospital where my wife's band has a standing invitation.
The bars on the Peninsula don't pay either. You think they would since it costs 3 grand for a 1 bedroom apartment(?)
A one bedroom in Berkeley is $1,800. I'm lucky because I've been in the same rent controlled studio apartment for 8 years and am only paying $534 a month utilities included. I'm in the minority because as an in home caregiver I make minimum wage and I can make a living.
C/S,
Rev J
Learning music is very much a process. Effective practice too also a process that can take a few years to refine. I think in my almost 50 years of playing an instrument (not bass) I had to learn to enjoy the process and become less focused on outcome. Of course goals and outcome even timetables can become important but nothing is more important than engagement with what you're doing at the moment.
I'm in heavy woodshed mode right now. Usually I spend an hour before work doing right hand warm ups from Dave Overthrows "Shredding Bass Guitar" after work it's an hour of left hand warm ups from the same book, 15 minutes on the first example out of Alex Websters "Extreme Metal Bass" a half an hour transposing a Janek Gwizdala lick through all of the modes of the Major, Melodic Minor, Harmonic Minor and Hungarian Minor scales. Followed by a half an hour working on a minor key melodic exercise that I got as a freebie for signing up for Gwizdalas mailing list, then 15 minutes of rhythm permutations from Kai Eckhardt, 15 minutes slapping, and altering through Gary Willis fretboard harmony book and some Afro Cuban grooves. I generally do this 3 or 4 times a week.
C/S,
Rev J
C/S,
Rev J
I'm few years older than you been playing about 5 months now I just jumped in and started tabbing songs I enjoyed i practice a few hours a day have quite a few songs I can play through by memory.Nothing more fulfilling than learning the song through listening to bass lines getting them right.
I know this is a hobby for me but down road I would like to learn to read music and all that good stuff.its all about your goals you want to achieve you can make it as boring or exciting as you want.
I know this is a hobby for me but down road I would like to learn to read music and all that good stuff.its all about your goals you want to achieve you can make it as boring or exciting as you want.
Fair point...but when you take the OP's original quote below, I don't think his practice routine is very constructive after seven lessons.
"I practice pentatonic and chromatic scales for the most part"
Where's the motivation in having a pupil practice this ? Would you not feel underwhelmed, if after seven lessons, this is what you are supposed to practice ?
Don't have time read the entire thread, but I wanted to say this. I started when I was 40. I did play rhythm guitar though prior. No real knowledge of theory but could play chords to hundreds of songs and could learn new ones quickly. I took bass lesson for a few months. It focused on theory and technique. All of a sudden the chords I used to play on guitar made sense. Once I stopped driving for an hour round-trip for a 30 min lesson once a week, I signed up for Scott's Bass Lessons online. Best money I have spent. I'm glad I started with a in-person teacher, but this is a great way to continue online. I get much more practice in a week with structured lessons. I also play in a worship band and a classic rock cover band. I jumped in over my head, but I knew enough about myself to know that the pressure would result in me learning the songs. Finally, I like Rocksmith. It is an incredibly fun way to play bass to great songs (I download a ton). I don't think it teaches you to be a bass player itself, but you can learn songs and have a blast.
Rock on!
Rock on!
