Bass technique for small hands

Well one thing which would help you reach your fretboard a little easier would be to place your thumb on the back of your bass neck while playing. Basically try to maintain that position as much as possible. You may find yourself slipping now and again keep at it. It's not actually an exercise but it will give you more reach. Hope this is some help to you.

 

Just make sure your wrist isn't bent at too much of an angle. That can lead to problems down the road.

 

Always try to keep your thumb on the back of the neck. Your hands will be stronger, faster, and have more dexterity.

You'll be able to play for hours.

Chances are you'll have to put the body of your bass on the front of your body/chest instead of to one side to make it happen.

Most guys play to the side and strain their backs in the process. You'll be starting off right and gigging full nights.

 

My hands aren't the biggest; listen to lemonzest. Use your pinky finger if you aren't yet.

Doing your normal playing and practicing will increase your reach over time. You can also do some finger exercises as found on active-bass.com or in this:

Amazon.com: Bass Fitness - An Exercising Handbook (Guitar School) (0073999601770): Josquin des Pres: Books

The important thing is to maintain healthy hand/wrist/arm position all the while.

 

I have really small hands and it hasn't caused me any trouble, I learned to use my pinky finger about as much as my index finger and it helped a lot when I first started off.

 

Let me encourage you that with enough practice, you can learn to play the bass with small hands.

Guitar Master Django Reinhardt could use only two fingers on his fretting hand and he's a virtuoso.

Django Reinhardt J'attendrai Swing - YouTube

How about this bassist who has NO ARMS!

Armless lead singer also plays bass guitar with feet- Big Toe covering Stone Temple Pilots - YouTube

This classical pianist has no arms either:



I hope that these videos inspire you.

 

One thing that has helped me is the position of my thumb on the back of the neck. I'm a bigger guy who has smaller hands which is rather ironic. Anyways, I had started learning the "right" way and was putting my thumb on the back of the neck but I was putting it way too high on the back of the neck. I found that if I put it lower my fingers reached all the frets that much easier. I actually now have almost no trouble at all with the first twelve frets on my four string.

Hope that helps

 

I feel your pain. I'm a big guy with small hands myself.

 

Strange that part of the problem is you cannot make your hands bigger in relation to the instrument, but you can make the instrument smaller in relation to your hands.......and you will not do it??????????

Get over this and get a bass that fits, you will be surprised the difference it makes to your ability to play.

 

You'll need to move your fretting hand more than someone with big hands, but that shouldn't cause more trouble than just learning where the notes are and how to fret them. It will come to you, soon enough.

Here's a video of someone I know and his hands aren't very big, either, and he often plays a 5 string bass-
Grooveology - Sidewinder - YouTube

 

I always thought my hands were small since the majority of people I ahve played with have bigger hands ( like all the teacher I had ) but I never had a big problem playing my basses. I may have adopted a very good technic from the get go to avoid any pain or discomfort and I play 6 strings basses and DB.

 

I am completely convinced that the only handicap small hands brings to bass players are handicaps people create in their heads. I have small hands, but it never even crossed my mind in relation to playing the bass, and it's never been a problem for me. There are countless little boys and girls on youtube shredding on full scale basses, and it's not a problem for them. Some people however, are unfortunate enough to have someone at one time or another tell them they have small hands and that it will make things harder, they believe it, and then it becomes so. I think the best thing to do is work at getting the notion that you're handicapped out of your head, and move forward with your bass playing. I promise your small hands won't be a hinderance at all, unless you make it so.

 

+1

I dont have the biggest hands and it used to worry me, but I just decided to employ the 124 fingering more than 123, make sure I keep my thumb on the back of the neck and go for it. A couple of years ago I got a G&L L2500 tribute which has a thick neck on it but I have had no problems at all. I read alot of people talking about how certain basses have "big" necks and I shake my head, some of the ones often mentioned are NOT "big" at all and I wonder how small their hands are.

 

i have small hands ....when i started playing alot of bass a couple years ago it did take my guitar hands a few months to really get used to the rigors of bass.....however, they got there fine ....i use alot of 1st finger and pinky to minimize stretches.....i often play a 2 and 3 fret span in the first position with 1st and pinky if the line i'm playing doesn't require any more than that.

 

i have small hands too - i totally agree with you! it's true!

 

Another little trick for us bassists is to "pivot" your fretting hand when the pad or tip of the thumb is placed on the center horizontal of the back of the neck.

Instead of sliding or trying to stretch one finger (usually the pinky finger) one extra fret position, let your whole hand move to the fret keeping your thumb on the back of the neck.

 

Understand in your hands it is not a smaller bass, it is the same proportions as a larger bass has in bigger hands.
I play short scale basses, never ever found them limiting.
But each to their own, I just like to have things fit me in my life, rather than not fit.

 

For quickness try maintaining the thumb position and just move the hand.

This is good for times when you have to reach a 4 or 5 fret distance. For example I use this when playing "Rescue Me" by Fontella Bass.