Best ways for a beginner to learn the bass?

[DogPlaysBass]

3. Dirty Bass, Clean Technique by Dog Plays Bass (don't be put off by the goofy web site--this e-book is terrific)

Agreed!

 

[Sizlack]

www.studybass.com is an excellent place to start (was for me). All his lessons are well written and easy to understand. The samples and exercises are great too. I've been using it for a little over three months now.
I did however find someone to give me lessons at a price I can afford, and I don't have to drive 45min. to an hour to Dallas. I start next week

 

[Stumbo]

You might want to check out the links in my sig. below for some great TB info that may help you along the way.

Good luck.

Let us know how it goes.

 

[Ric5]

Best ways for a beginner to learn the bass?

1 - Get lessons.
2 - Play in a band.
3 - Instructional dvds.

 

[CrackerJackLee]

warm up exercise E 1 2 3 4, ... E 4 1 2 3

Thanks for the reminder. This exercise is rich for positional playing and for using each finger to assist the others - and it feels great.

 

[Soverntear]

im on board with the teacher route as well. im right now on hold with mine (financial reasons) but we've become good friends so hes willing to check out my technique every time we see each other so i dont fall in to bad habits. id also try and get a jazz guy for a teacher, jazz guys if nothing else will correct bad technique like no one else.

as for other methds, well scales, modes all that should be done right out of the gate. getting a metronome is a no brainier. books, hal leonard all the way. io made the mistake of bass for dummies and well i wish i would have went hal

 

[Turock]

Fender B-DEC.

 

[Sparks55]

I guess if ya wanna shell out the money for a teacher, maybe im just spoiled cuz my bro and uncle are both pro bassists but I mainly tought myself, but already having a background in music helped me I guess.

Definitely find a teacher. I used the internet and books and watched others at gigs for the first 6 months enough to get up and running with a cover/blues band. Took my first lesson and realized that subtle technique issues (finger/hand/arm stress for me) were actually limiting my progress. I never would have found ths out on my own in the mirror. I looked hard and found a local teacher that is very flexible with schedule so I can take lessons as I can afford them. Due to work it takes me longer to do the material anyway. He is expensive but worth it from lesson 1. So find a teacher that you like the way they play and the way they relate the information to you. Think of the first lesson or two as an audition FOR THE TEACHER, and it's good to discuss this with the instructor. They should respect you for being this serious. it may also reveal an ego that you don't jive with. If you don't it can become very expensive starting with someone new. Good luck!
Mark

 

[Shaky]

Best ways for a beginner to learn the bass?

1 - Get lessons.
2 - Play in a band.
3 - Instructional dvds.

I agree with this, especially 2 and 3.

Don't wait too long to jam with others. I am no Geddy Lee, but my bass playing improved 100% at a fast very rate once I finally overcame my fear of embarrassing myself and started playing with other musicians. There are things you learn when playing with others that you can't any other way.

I love instructional videos because you can review them as much as you want at you own convenience. If you want a lot of technical information scales and theory geared towards bass, I really liked "The Bass Grimorie" DVD and book. It's a little chessy, but full of info. I also liked Randy Jackson's "Mastering the Groove." It's a little dated but still informative. There are many beginner videos out there. I have checked out several from my local library.

Whatever route you go, don't give up. If you get frustrated, take some time off if needed then come back to it The best bass players out there got that way because they put the time in.

 

[milkman-27]

Superchops 4 Bass dvd lessons

 

[mcapote]

And finally, keep this in mind: On the Internet, the tab is ALMOST ALWAYS WRONG.

Christ I thought it was me. I was looking at some tabs like why such an awkward way of switching strings when you can easily go up the fretboard and hit the next note easier, or even some song where completely wrong key or sour notes.

 

[suraci]

I have not read too many threads here

Listen to bass players
emulate the notes they play- play by ear- ear is critical.. critical

Notice how they pick the best notes... generally other notes and or rhythms are not as good

work on your time feel- your steadiness of beat

before above, develop a little technique- a major scale
a chordal arpeggio
chromatic scale

try reading music

listen to how different your sound is as you pluck differently

learn to mute strings with both hands

learn how to tune bass

forget soloing

your role as bass player is unique- groove-ing hitting roots of chords- making others sound good- like a defensive lineman, not a quarterback or receiver.... you protect the line- your parts are generally easier... you have more time and freedom to be very thoughtful about your playing
you are not showing off like some do
you hold it all together

 

[ksandvik]

Get an old tube radio and listen to the AM radio stations (like Radio Luxemburg) that you could barely hear the bass lines and try to play along with a cheap acoustic guitar.

Anyway, I'm a big believer in playing anything you hear. And to play with as many musicians as possible.

 

[suraci]

Get an old tube radio and listen to the AM radio stations (like Radio Luxemburg) that you could barely hear the bass lines and try to play along with a cheap acoustic guitar.

Anyway, I'm a big believer in playing anything you hear. And to play with as many musicians as possible.

++++1

 

[ZH_Driver]

One thing you really have to do is listen... explore many different styles of music and just actively listen to the bass line and the way it interacts with the drummer and other musicians. And I mean MANY different styles. The bass off Led Zep II is quite cool to listen to, but you then also need to look how other styles use the bass (bring on the funk!). Remember, the bass is the rock for the other band members, you don't need to be a showman, be solid, keep the groove (especially the timing, but also be rythmical) and worry about the tricky bits later. (you can listen to music almost anywhere, good 'practice time' when you can't be with your bass as long as you pay attention to the music).

Playing with other people (once you have some basic chops sorted out ) will improve you no end, and quickly... as long as you keep listening! One ear for you, one for the rest of the band.

Once you have a reasonable understanding of the fret-board (i.e. from all the basic theory stuff you will learn by following all the advice given so far), learn the major scale and ALL its modes. (You can go on further from this later). Basically, you first learn the major and minor scales (which is the 6th mode of the major). Then once you have those two in your head, learn the 4th and 5th modes (each is only one note different to the major). Then all of a sudden you find that you know 4 out of 7, and that the following three are similar to what you already know! Knowing the modes really opens up the way to be able to jam with people and come up with a groove that is not just a rythm of the root note. Best way to learn the scales/modes? Learn a couple... THEN USE THEM! So by the time you learn the next couple, you already have a 'context' in which to remember the first two.

I get the train to work and on it I use a metronome (which happens to be on my iPhone ) to do timing excercises (tapping my leg with my fingers). There are a number of really good excercises you can do and since it is about having the timing on the inside, you don't need to have your bass with you! PM me if you want more details on that. (A good metronome will give a nice sharp noise on the mark, a cheeper one will give more of a beep which goes for too long and will not do you as much good, you want a suond likt a drummers rimshot on the snare)

Be carefull of watching/listening to people like Victor Wooten or Jaco Pastorius... you may get over-whelmed and give up! (Seriously though, get in to listening to those maestros, just don't expect to be like them without 2 decades of hard work!)

I could write all day... but just remember, learning the 'technical' stuff (notes, technique, scales etc) is important, but it is only a small part of the bigger picture.

Also, don't be afraid of playing with your tone knob and the position where you pluck/pick/slap/whack at. You'll get a lot of different sounds out of your bass. It took me years to 'find' my tone knob, it is good to play with one on a one pick-up bass so you can get a feel for it, (like a P-bass), when you have a tone knob for each of two pick-ups too early it may be overwhelming. Unconventional right-hand technique will create many new tones!

So where were we... oh yes. Learn the basics, listen to lots of different bass, and learn to 'groove'.

 

[Grateful Dawg]

One thing I am not getting correction on from the online sites I am using (jamplay, studybass) is rebound tone off a string when I release it after playing a note. The string plays a slight note from rebouding off the fret and I haven't yet found a way to correct it.

 

[dreamadream99]

I guess if ya wanna shell out the money for a teacher,

This guy has already dismissed the best advice given, and you guys are still giving him more.

 

[dreamadream99]

Disregard. Didn’t even notice this thread died a decade ago.