Beginner Bassist at 47...

[Kimberly Munn]

Hey, we are all in this mess. It is always like this. The more you learn the more you realise that you are merely a servant to the universe we call music.

You have been playing your instrument for 5 months. Don't expect things to come in so fast, tou need patience and time to progress smoothly. Playing an instrument is all about muscle memory and mental training. Much like playing tennis for example. You don't master that backhand in 5 practice sessions.

As for muting the unused strings issue - don't worry about it at all. I never teach my students to learn to mute the strings as it is one of those technique fields that looks very difficult to pull off but comes in naturally by its own with a lot of practice and becones second nature much like changing gears on a manual gearbox (european here, he he).

Sooner or later when you accomodate your right hand fingers on the strings and will feel straight at home, you will naturally find a way to manage this problem. Focus on getting a good tone out of your fingers instead as it is time much better spent.

The reason for this is that you want to mute strings by extrapolating/developing the technique that you acquired which suits your body geometry best and feels the most comfortable for you, rather than first learning how to mute them from a certain youtube video and then develop your actual technique around it. It almost always ends up in frustration for the player.

Great advice! Thank you so much! I'll keep plugging away and try my best to enjoy the ride!

 

[Kimberly Munn]

I'm right there with you.

At 48 I decided it was time to learn something new and decided music was it. After studying some music theory, it became obvious to me that there were many concepts that were difficult without actually playing an instrument. After thought, introspection, and listening to music I enjoy, I decided that bass was for me. I bought myself a bass and an amp and found a teacher.

I went through what you describe. At the beginning, you don't know what you don't know. Then as you start to get into things, you start to see that it isn't as easy as it looks. Just like everything else, pros make it look easy. And there is a point of frustration when you wonder if you will ever "get it".

What works for me:

1. I found a great teacher. He has been a professional musician for more than 40 years and has been teaching nearly as long. And has the patience of a saint for putting up with beginners.
2. I am working through a course (Hal Leonard Bass Method) with my teacher. It gives structure - learn one thing at a time and build upon what has been learned.
3. Think through (and be ruthlessly honest with yourself) what your problem areas are and develop a plan with the teacher to address those problems.
4. Don't try to fix every problem at the same time. Pick them off one at a time. By way of example, I worked on muting using floating thumb. Then I worked on plucking with 2 fingers. Then I worked on shifting. Then I worked on left hand muting. You can't fix everything at once. Pick one at a time and fix it.
5. The metronome is your best friend and your worst enemy. For learning new techniques, I find that I have to learn the geography of things before worrying about timing. Only after working that out, do I move onto the metronome. Working religiously with a metronome has let me develop a great sense of timing.

I play for my own enjoyment. I have no plan or expectation to get into a gigging band. But I do get together with others to make some noise once in a while. I like to add some structure to that as well - I try to plan what songs we plan to work through so that everyone can learn their parts before getting together. Makes for a more enjoyable experience.

Having a great instructor is worth every penny. He really keeps me on track, pushes when I need it, has me pull back at times and he's constantly saying that I will find what works best for me with the muting. He throws out ideas but really is having me find my own way on that. I am trying to fix every problem and obviously I need to dial it back. Thank you for your input!

 

[Kimberly Munn]

Hi Kim.

I started earlier this year at age 59. Woke up from heart surgery and suddenly had the need to give it a try.

I feel your joy and your frustrations.

My only advice is to give yourself time and not to pressure yourself. If you're not having fun go do something else for a few hours and come back later. Your bass will be waiting.

Oh... and too much TalkBass cuts into valuable practice time. That's a fact.

LOL! That is so true about being on here cutting into practice time! Yay you for going for your dreams!

 

[Kimberly Munn]

Hey Kim,

I started about 9 months ago at 45 and have just joined my first band. So no - not too old at all.

Here are pointers from my first year

1 - Buy some XL88 or GHS fast Fret. Do this right now. Best $20 I ever spent on bass.

2 - I wouldn't spend money on lessons at first. Learn the basics from a youtube course or an app. Check out the yousician app. You can use it for 15 mins a day for free or get a subscription for more time. For the same price of a 1 hour lesson your will get 100's of hours of play from a course/app.

3 - Don't let your new status prevent you from trying to find other players. (learn some ACDC and other easy songs - ACDC seems to universally known by everyone.) Also be up front about your ability. I let people know i'm a web designer - not a musician and have been playing for 1 year. I play bass for fun not my career - but do take it seriously - but I don't understand most music theory and still nowhere near having the fretboard memorized. I found 90% of the people I met are cool and alot in the same situation - but there are 'unemployed rockstars' out there with attitudes. You'll want to avoid these types. Best they stay in a basement somewhere.

I had to look at what GHS Fast Fret was! I use a paint brush to dust off my strings periodically. I have already changed my strings with great success. I was soooo nervous about it! For me having an instructor has helped so much. I have a lot of questions and it saves me time not having to google everything. LOL Thanks for the warning on the snobs. He he!

 

[Sparkl]

Hey Kim,

I started about 9 months ago at 45 and have just joined my first band. So no - not too old at all.

Here are pointers from my first year

1 - Buy some XL88 or GHS fast Fret. Do this right now. Best $20 I ever spent on bass.

2 - I wouldn't spend money on lessons at first. Learn the basics from a youtube course or an app. Check out the yousician app. You can use it for 15 mins a day for free or get a subscription for more time. For the same price of a 1 hour lesson your will get 100's of hours of play from a course/app.

3 - Don't let your new status prevent you from trying to find other players. (learn some ACDC and other easy songs - ACDC seems to universally known by everyone.) Also be up front about your ability. I let people know i'm a web designer - not a musician and have been playing for 1 year. I play bass for fun not my career - but do take it seriously - but I don't understand most music theory and still nowhere near having the fretboard memorized. I found 90% of the people I met are cool and alot in the same situation - but there are 'unemployed rockstars' out there with attitudes. You'll want to avoid these types. Best they stay in a basement somewhere.

Strongly disagree on pt2.

It is hard for people to understand the importance of introducting first lessons on a bass guitar without achieving a high level of playing on a specific instrument first, to then really understand the issue.

It is hard for a starter to nail down the position technique well without constantly checking yourself in the mirror and being self critical enough ro really correct yourself everytime you make a mistake to really benefit from it in a relative amount of time.

I started out as a self taught bass player after switching from piano. Played for almost 10 years before I was accepted to bachelor studies at my music academy in Austria. I remember my first lesson very well, when my professor told me to play a couple tunes. "Yea man, you have a nice tone, great timing, but your technique is just really bad. We gotta work on it asap."

I literally spent my whole first year re-learning my finger technique and try to unlearn mostly everything I have "learned" in the past 10 years.

This is a lengthy process and takes a strong will to relearn somethink you think you know already, rather then spending a couple bucks to have quality forst time lessons and learning the trait properly in the first go and never have to worry about it.

As a result I have spent a whole year just practicig scales and carefully watching my fingers and position, cca 7-8 hours a day. At the end of the year, professor told me my hand technique now looked like a text book example.

I never understood the technique I was about to learn until I did. Now I realise obviously just how crappy my technique actually was and how much it slowed my progress in terms of precision of playing and speed of execution.

I get a lot of students with this problem and students that fon't want to listen and don't work on their technique until they realise they screwed it or even worse, they start thinking they are not up for the job and quit it alltogether.

It also makes the teaching process complicated since I have to usually spend a grwat portion of lessons i the first year or two just to correct the students bad technique habits. And most of them never get it why. Those who happen to progress with bass playing much further do come back and thank me for it though.

Good technique is a fundament to the bass playing guys!! Its where the tone comes from!

Obviously there are a number of valid techniques and styles of playing but there are certain checkpoints that you absolutely must master if you ever wish having your finger and positional technique figured out.

So no, if you can afford it, don't think twice, get yourself a quality teacher ASAP.

 

[Kimberly Munn]

also started old.
not good now - will never be good, but it's fun any.

We'll get good if we just keep on practicing!

 

[moreblues]

Many great posts here, and I agree!
I started guitar in 1969 and bass in 1971 because we needed a bass player and the other guitarist was much better then me.
Never picked up my old strat much since then... fast forward to today...one of my best friends who never played an instrument started playing bass 6 years ago at age 60....today he his killing it!
So if it is in your heart and mind, you are never too old to start.
Practice as much as you can,daily if possible,even if it is only for a short time. Congratulations and keep playing !

 

[Kimberly Munn]

Strongly disagree on pt2.

It is hard for people to understand the importance of introducting first lessons on a bass guitar without achieving a high level of playing on a specific instrument first, to then really understand the issue.

It is hard for a starter to nail down the position technique well without constantly checking yourself in the mirror and being self critical enough ro really correct yourself everytime you make a mistake to really benefit from it in a relative amount of time.

I started out as a self taught bass player after switching from piano. Played for almost 10 years before I was accepted to bachelor studies at my music academy in Austria. I remember my first lesson very well, when my professor told me to play a couple tunes. "Yea man, you have a nice tone, great timing, but your technique is just really bad. We gotta work on it asap."

I literally spent my whole first year re-learning my finger technique and try to unlearn mostly everything I have "learned" in the past 10 years.

This is a lengthy process and takes a strong will to relearn somethink you think you know already, rather then spending a couple bucks to have quality forst time lessons and learning the trait properly in the first go and never have to worry about it.

As a result I have spent a whole year just practicig scales and carefully watching my fingers and position, cca 7-8 hours a day. At the end of the year, professor told me my hand technique now looked like a text book example.

I never understood the technique I was about to learn until I did. Now I realise obviously just how crappy my technique actually was and how much it slowed my progress in terms of precision of playing and speed of execution.

I get a lot of students with this problem and students that fon't want to listen and don't work on their technique until they realise they screwed it or even worse, they start thinking they are not up for the job and quit it alltogether.

It also makes the teaching process complicated since I have to usually spend a grwat portion of lessons i the first year or two just to correct the students bad technique habits. And most of them never get it why. Those who happen to progress with bass playing much further do come back and thank me for it though.

Good technique is a fundament to the bass playing guys!! Its where the tone comes from!

Obviously there are a number of valid techniques and styles of playing but there are certain checkpoints that you absolutely must master if you ever wish having your finger and positional technique figured out.

So no, if you can afford it, don't think twice, get yourself a quality teacher ASAP.

I've been taking lessons almost since day one. For me having an instructor is a must! I don't want to waste my time not learning proper technique!

 

[Kimberly Munn]

Many great posts here, and I agree!
I started guitar in 1969 and bass in 1971 because we needed a bass player and the other guitarist was much better then me.
Never picked up my old strat much since then... fast forward to today...one of my best friends who never played an instrument started playing bass 6 years ago at age 60....today he his killing it!
So if it is in your heart and mind, you are never too old to start.
Practice as much as you can,daily if possible,even if it is only for a short time. Congratulations and keep playing !

Thank you for the encouragement! I will continue to practice as much as I can!!!

 

[Stratomato]

The fact that you are now noticing things like unwanted string noise is a good thing! It means you have made a leap from "you don't know what you don't know" to "you do know what you don't know," or "conscious incompetence." I recommend slowing down a lot and work on the parts you trying until you figure out how to stop the string noise, etc. You can do it! It just takes practice and patience. Do focused practice 25-50% and the rest of the time just have fun and play along with some easy songs you enjoy.

 

[RichardW]

I picked up the bass at 45 (now 60) with zero experience on any musical instrument. Been gigging in a band for 10 years. Look at Dusty Hill of ZZ Top. His hands are like paws. You will figure out how to make it work with the hands you have. Just keep at it.

Keep checking in on TB, too. You'll learn a lot and get a lot of support. Welcome!

 

[Sparkl]

I've been taking lessons almost since day one. For me having an instructor is a must! I don't want to waste my time not learning proper technique!

I am glad you see things this way honestly! It will benefit your playing and long term progression A LOT!

 

[Kimberly Munn]

You'll find a lot of players here who started late in life. I started messing around almost 20 years ago but had no time to really learn to play so that's all I did (mess around ... and accumulate gear I wasn't really using that much ) for a long time. I was about 47 or so when I finally had some time and started taking lessons, by 50 I started playing in occasional jam session, and about a year and a half ago I started playing in a regular weekly jam session. I'm 55 and about 3 months ago I joined a gigging band and have finally started playing out.

If you don't think it's too late, then it's NOT too late. Just play!

EDIT: I've posted this a few times recently but it applies here, too. My dad played violin in my grandfathers's bands up until he was 22 then completely stopped playing. At 84, he finally took his violin out of the case again, thinking that it might help relieve some of the stiffness from arthritis. He was soon considering joining a band but was nervous so he took lessons for a few months. At that point his teacher told him he didn't need her and to just play. He turns 92 in two days and is STILL gigging!

So, yeah, you're never too old!

Awesome about you and your Dad! Thank you for sharing!!!

 

[Kimberly Munn]

I picked up the bass at 45 (now 60) with zero experience on any musical instrument. Been gigging in a band for 10 years. Look at Dusty Hill of ZZ Top. His hands are like paws. You will figure out how to make it work with the hands you have. Just keep at it.

Keep checking in on TB, too. You'll learn a lot and get a lot of support. Welcome!

I am so inspired by all of the people my age and older who are just starting!

 

[Kimberly Munn]

I started in my mid-30s, had never played an instrument before (not counting a few months of piano lessons when I was a kid). A guitarist I knew taught me some songs to get started, then I ended up taking lessons for two years while starting a garage band with friends. Eighteen years later, I have a bunch of great gear. I'm not nearly as good as I'd like to be, but if I spent as much time practicing as I have on TB over the years, I'd be a hell of a lot better. Anyway, I have some gigs under my belt and I've gotten to the point where I'm not completely self-conscious about being on stage. It's a blast, honestly.

You're never too old. Welcome to the party.

Thanks awesome! Thank you for the welcome!

 

[Kimberly Munn]

The fact that you are now noticing things like unwanted string noise is a good thing! It means you have made a leap from "you don't know what you don't know" to "you do know what you don't know," or "conscious incompetence." I recommend slowing down a lot and work on the parts you trying until you figure out how to stop the string noise, etc. You can do it! It just takes practice and patience. Do focused practice 25-50% and the rest of the time just have fun and play along with some easy songs you enjoy.

Thanks for the advice!

 

[Kimberly Munn]

I am glad you see things this way honestly! It will benefit your playing and long term progression A LOT!

This is an investment in me and I'm worth it!

 

[Sparkl]

This is an investment in me and I'm worth it!

Also, learning proper technique will warrant you the best chances not to end up getting a bad nerve or tendon injury which can result in years of prohivited activity or in worst case scenario even prevent you from playing ever again.

Believe me, this is a real issue, especially when you practice for longer periods (professional musicians). Basically every 3rd student at my academy eventually developed an injury for their lack of proper technique/forcing themselves to play when they physically couldn't (exhaustion).

 

[Kimberly Munn]

Also, learning proper technique will warrant you the best chances not to end up getting a bad nerve or tendon injury which can result in years of prohivited activity or in worst case scenario even prevent you from playing ever again.

Believe me, this is a real issue, especially when you practice for longer periods (professional musicians). Basically every 3rd student at my academy eventually developed an injury for their lack of proper technique/forcing themselves to play when they physically couldn't (exhaustion).

Such a good point. I was trying different ways of holding my thumb at the back yesterday and I'm so sore today!

 

[pappabass]

STAY WITH IT !!! I started at 35. Don't try too hard, give it time. About muting other strings:
1. Play clean with your playing hand. Don't try pop slap right now. After 20+ years of trying I still can't do it clean.
2. I saw a video of this guy who fretted with all his fingers. Looked like he was playing bar chords. He fretted with his 1 st finger, the others muted the other strings. Sounded good.