Beginner in training Need some help

Start at studybass.com
This is a great site for beginners
Also you may want to look at Scott's bass lessons http://scottsbasslessons.com/
Great video instruction

 

If you are teaching yourself, the following information will get you started. Good luck and have fun. I should mention, we play chord tones 95% of the time so when playing a song follow the chords and gather your bass line from the chord's notes. Now with that in mind...............

Get a copy of Dummies, most of the R-3-5 stuff I listed came right out of dummies and www.studybass.com will be time well spent.

Some sites you will want to bookmark:
http://www.billygreen.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Music Theory - Basic, Intermediate, Advanced.pdf The first 30 pages to start with.
Now here is over an hour of theory presented in a way you may like better.

Have fun and welcome to the bottom end. I've given you enough stuff to keep you busy for a year. Pick one thing and work on that, eat this moster one bite at a time. Scales first, and when those notes are sounding good, move to chord tones and get those under your fingers. See a chord and your fingers just know how to play a bass line for that chord. Then you are ready to play some songs.

 

Code:

Major Scale Box. 

G|---2---|-------|---3---|---4---| 1st string
D|---6---|-------|---7---|---8---|
A|---3---|---4---|-------|---5---|
E|-------|---R---|-------|---2---|4th string

R is the root of the chord or scale, i.e. the name of the chord or scale. The lowest note of the chord or scale - The R, or root of, is also known as the tonic note of the chord or scale. Little more. What is the 2? The 2 is the second note in the scale, the 3 is the 3rd note in the scale, etc. etc.

Want to play a bass line over the Cmaj7 chord. Visualize the major scale box's pattern. Find a C on the 3rd or 4th string and place the box's R on that C note then play the scale degree notes of the Cmaj7 chord found within the box's pattern. The Cmaj7 chord's notes are the root-3-5-7 notes of the C major scale. So the R-3-5-7 notes within the box plays the chord notes of the Cmaj7 chord. Fmaj7 chord coming up next; move the R of the box over a F note on your fretboard - how about the F right over the C note - on your fretboard - and play the R-3-5-7 scale degrees notes again as both are maj7 chords. G7 coming up next, yep find a G note and this time play the R-3-5-b7 (different spelling) for your bass line over the G7 chord. The b7 and b3 notes are flatted notes, i.e. one fret back toward the nut. Sharp (# notes) would be one fret toward the bridge. Flatted notes one fret back toward the nut, and sharped notes one fret ahead toward the bridge.

Place the box's R (root) note over the root note (name of) the chord or scale you want to play and then play the spelling of that item. Major chord R-3-5. Major 7 chord R-3-5-7. Minor chord R-b3-5. Minor seven chord R-b3-5-b7.

On my first post I gave you the spelling on just about anything you will be playing.

Have fun.

 

I've been playing self-taught for a year now. I start off just learning simple songs I like. After a while, I learnt chords and about shapes and notes on the fretboard. In increasing my technical knowledge, it meant that I could expand my repertoire of songs.

 

Why not take a few one-on-one lessons? A dozen lessons will give you a good head start and if you're musically inclined and have some discipline you can go on from there on your own.

 

The way I learned how to play was to play stuff I liked to listen to.. for me it was marliyn manson and metallica tunes. Once I learned the songs I already knew, I then started creating my own stuff out of that.

 

Check my Wiki links page below for lots of great TB info that will you out.

 

A great way of learning is this app for ipad: PlayThe Bass!

Check it out: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/play-bass!-learn-to-play-bass/id666245995?l=de&ls=1&mt=8

 

I followed studybass.com to the end of the lessons. A year later I started getting actual lessons, which is the best decision I ever made. It probably would have been best to start going to lessons right away, but studybass was very helpful.

 

Step 1. The Hal Leonard method books and trying to play along with recordings of songs I like with chord/lyric sheets.
Step 2. Playing with other people live

Along the way there have been other books, videos and this site. In time my endurance, theory knowledge and skills increased

 

We are working on a project to connect teachers and learners.
The idea is to find a cool, independent (not a school) teacher, for a lessons or a course, or some randon tips, or whatever... And be able to learn regardless of location.
Take a look here, you might find something that suits you...
Cheers
http://www.jukeboxlessons.com/categories/bass-guitar
Good luck and keep it up

 

I used bass guitar primer DVD and study bass.com for 6 months and joined the Praise and Worship band at church. When I reach a learning plateau I go for a month of lessons and that will get me over the hump. I also recommend Scottsbasslessons. He has some great stuff on youtube and on his website.

 

Scott Devine on the web.

 

Probably the best! Paul Wolfe is good too!