A suggestion for advanced players

[IamGroot]

I realize this is a very limited audience, but.......

Some of us will move on to busier music that will require a lot of position shifting to reach all the notes. Bach violin pieces and Charley Parker sax solos are two good examples. When you get to this point, I found it very useful to think hand position first, notes second.

Here is a notated copy from a Bach piece where I added the position in red Roman numerals (like a classical guitarist). My positions may not necessarily correspond to yours because I play OFPF. Also, there are multiple options that will work. The key is to decide on one option and stick with it.

Happy Playing.

Groot

 

[AGCurry]

If you've managed to learn where your left hand goes immediately when someone yells "seven!", this could be useful. I've been working Simandl for three years with teachers who tell me it's not important to learn the positions by number.

 

[LBS-bass]

I am not an advanced player, but I learn a lot of repertoire, and one of the biggest stumbling blocks for me is figuring out the positioning that makes the most sense throughout each song. It's a big deal and rightly something we need to call attention to.

 

[CallMeAl]

I’d put myself in the upper-intermediate category, but I think this kind of discussion and thought process is important for everyone.

I spent so many years just winging my fingerings and positions. Now one of my very first missions with a new piece is decide on a fingering/position that works. Waaaay easier to get it solid from the beginning, than to try and unlearn a bad fingering.

I hear this in online lesson content way too much; just pick a fingering that works for you… with very little guidance on what that means, or how to go about deciding that.

 

[IamGroot]

I can handle regular bass duties pretty easily. Exception would be Hysteria by Muse or Teen Town.
When I have to learn a complicated solo, getting the positions sorted out up front makes the job a lot easier. I print out the part and pencil the positions and let motor memory take over.

 

[bfields]

Dumb question: so XII is the position that puts your first finger on the 12th fret?

 

[IamGroot]

Dumb question: so XII is the position that puts your first finger on the 12th fret?

Yes, this is classical guitar notation. Simandl uses a similar concept but the position numbers don't line up with the frets.

 

[IamGroot]

I’d put myself in the upper-intermediate category, but I think this kind of discussion and thought process is important for everyone.

I spent so many years just winging my fingerings and positions. Now one of my very first missions with a new piece is decide on a fingering/position that works. Waaaay easier to get it solid from the beginning, than to try and unlearn a bad fingering.

I hear this in online lesson content way too much; just pick a fingering that works for you… with very little guidance on what that means, or how to go about deciding that.

"a fingering that works for you"....
I see really good players who use totally different fingering positions than I use and make it sound good.

I describe my technique as Simandl with an extra finger.

 

[GwenOnBass]

Working right now with Ari Cap's Pattern System for the Bass Player, and it's absolutely changing how I would read a piece like that.