Does anyone else here get discouraged when listening to an amazing player?

[Mike Sorr]

I know this is an unhealthy thought process, but I feel a mixture of inspiration, awe, and discouragement when I hear a fantastic bass player.



The intensity of each of these feelings will vary from time to time and sometimes discouragement will be the largest of the three feelings. This is very apparent in situations when I see a 10 year old who is way better than me, or a multi instrumentalist who casually picks up a bass and shreds.

I know this isn't a healthy mindset, and what I am seeing is the finished product. I don't see the countless times where they mess up, or all of the takes before that one.

Can anyone relate?

I find that the older I get, the less I care about what other people are doing. I know there are people out there half my age and way younger doing things I couldn’t do if I had another lifetime to practice. I can either be depressed about it, or just do what I do as well as I can do it.

 

[Wesley R]

Nope, I've seen/met many bass players better and not as good as me.

I have been selected in auditions over players that were way more capable than I.

A friend threw a pretty big party. Some folks were jamming and I joined in. There was a female bassist who literally put all the other bassists to shame. Some drunk asked me about how embarrassed I must be because a woman played so much better than I did. He couldn't grasp the concept that many people play better than me, and their gender simply did not play into the equation.

 

[31HZ]

Hearing someone markedly better than me makes me excited about the prospect of my own improvement, and I go home and hit the shed hard.

 

[bassfran]

When I was a kid and first learning to play one day I heard Stanley Clarke and wanted to hang it up. “What’s the point?”, “I’ll NEVER be as good as that, etc..”

But that doesn’t really matter as we are not the same person. Nor did I want to play that kind of music. I’m still glad to this day that I stayed at it. All I can control is being the best ‘bassfran’ as I can be.

 

[hrodbert696]

I know this is an unhealthy thought process, but I feel a mixture of inspiration, awe, and discouragement when I hear a fantastic bass player.

The intensity of each of these feelings will vary from time to time and sometimes discouragement will be the largest of the three feelings. This is very apparent in situations when I see a 10 year old who is way better than me, or a multi instrumentalist who casually picks up a bass and shreds.

I know this isn't a healthy mindset, and what I am seeing is the finished product. I don't see the countless times where they mess up, or all of the takes before that one.

Can anyone relate?

Not at all, really. The way I think of it is that music is a good thing to give to the world. Everyone who can add some, should, and it's great. Some have huge abilities and give a lot, some have modest abilities and give a little. But whatever they're giving is never a bad thing; all of it adds to the whole. It's like donating to a charity; some can give a dollar and some can give a million, but all are contributing to a good cause. So whatever music I'm able to play, in my own limited abilities, I accept as the good thing it is, for what it is.

 

[57pbass]

Never.. a wise man once told me that “there’s always someone better than you” so just give your best effort and enjoy the ride.

 

[Gorilla Monsoon]

Had a neighbor move in next door at my old residence. Saw him carrying a gig bag with what had to be a bass. Talked to him briefly, he showed me a clip of himself playing on YouTube. I offered to let him play my fav bass at the time, a Modulus Graphite, took it inside, and the guy tore my face off. Jaw-dropping good. Here i thought i was gonna show him something. Turns out he plays with Kendrick Lamar. Watched him play for 10 minutes, saw some things, went home and got better just from what I picked up from that 10 minutes. Nowhere NEAR what the guy could do, but that encounter became a lesson of sorts.

 

[Wasnex]

When I was young I found great players to always be an inspiration. My thought process was, maybe someday I can play like that.

Towards the end of my playing career, my organization hired a young bass player who had more technique than I will ever have. He influenced me to become a better player, but I was also faced with the limits of my talent and drive. It was clear I would never be able to do what he could do...and while I was approaching the down hill slope, he was still climbing the mountain and getting better along the way.

I actually crossed over to audio within a few years of his arrival, and a blast. My decision was influenced by a range of factors, and not just the new player's superior talent and skill. Probably the biggest factor is my skill level had risen well beyond the baseline required to do the job. Also my organization had lost several of its best players and the musical excellence had significantly declined.

In my experience, a desire for continued musical growth is a huge part of why musicians continue to play. Once that need/desire for growth is lost, you're probably rapidly approaching a point where the joy of playing will leave you.

I don't really feel too bad about it. We each have a our own unique talents and limitations. One of my strengths is that I tend to pick up things fairly quickly. The weakness is my skill-level tends to plateau before achieving excellence. The idea is that I tend to run well ahead of others in early development. The few that stick with it, eventually catch up and then pass me. However, I consider my musical skill above average.

I tend to enjoy variety rather than being a specialist. I could never be a top jazzer, classical, commercial, etc player. However, I was pretty good at all of them. The trick is to find a niche where your unique mix of interests, talents, and abilities are useful and valued. I was lucky enough to find such a niche. So I had what I consider to be a relatively long and successful career as a full-time professional musician.

To this day, I lack interest in being an active bass player. I still practice and buy new stuff, but the fascination with learning music and drive to perform is no longer with me. I could do it if I had to, but it would not bring me the intrinsic joy I used to feel...I.E it would be work.

 

[groovaholic]

I feel a mixture of inspiration, awe, and discouragement when I hear a fantastic bass player....Can anyone relate?

I think we all have those feelings, and it's healthy to benchmark off other players for that little kick in the @$$ that keeps us from stagnating or getting complacent.
But why on earth would hearing someone better make you want to hang it up?

Just because someone is a better player than you doesn't mean that they'd automatically get all the gigs.
In 90% of musical situations, fit and attitude are more important than chops.
There are few musical settings that require playing at virtuoso level.

Also, so what if that great player has a great gig - there are many bands in the world.
Keep at it, and find the band that appreciates your playing.

 

[sean_on_bass]

i get inspired and motivated

 

[gln1955]

Good for them. I can do a lot of other things better than that 10-year-old prodigy, so there.

I play for fun, so as long as I am good enough not to get kicked out of my band, I'm fine. I work on whatever new skills whenever I feel like it and don't care a bit what anyone else does.

 

[iiipopes]

When I hear some bass virtuoso performance, especially a solo performance, my question is yes, that is a spectacular display of technique. But being bass, can the performer support an ensemble?

 

[KevInDaBassment]

Not really...if people being better than me at something discouraged me from ever doing it, I would never do anything lol

As Charles Wright said..."Express yourself!", that's what it's all about

 

[portpc]

Not at all - As music is subjective I find it better to simply admire their talent and give them praise even if it's not my cup of tea. Everyone likes compliments!

Can I recall any of it the next day or do I find myself humming it? IMHO that'd the true test of talent and if the music was memorable.

I recall reading how Billy Greer the bassist/vocals in Kansas was awestruck when Steve Morse was in the band. He was apprehensive about performing with such a great player.
His tension was quickly eased when he learned Steve was not a singer - He admired Billy's voice and his ability to sing/play.

 

[Bunk McNulty]

I can’t do what Jaco did. And he wouldn’t want to do what I do.

 

[funkifiedsoul]

It's easy to listen to a musician and think "I'll never be that good!" when you're young and/or first staring out. The honest truth is you're only limited by the amount of work and practice you're willing to do.

+1

Most who intimidate you now have put in the time and work that you haven't yet. Let them be a reminder of what is possible if you do. I'd also suggest not focussing on playing like others play, but rather on playing how you feel, which takes time to develop when you're young. A lot of people think chops means being able to play a lot of notes fast, which in and of itself doesn't equal better musicianship. The word chops really means simply having the technique to execute smoothly whatever you're playing. For example, Willy Weeks and countless others don't have Jaco & Stanley chops but they're still monsters because of what and how they play!

 

[Engle]

I know this is an unhealthy thought process, but I feel a mixture of inspiration, awe, and discouragement when I hear a fantastic bass player.

The intensity of each of these feelings will vary from time to time and sometimes discouragement will be the largest of the three feelings. This is very apparent in situations when I see a 10 year old who is way better than me, or a multi instrumentalist who casually picks up a bass and shreds.

I know this isn't a healthy mindset, and what I am seeing is the finished product. I don't see the countless times where they mess up, or all of the takes before that one.

Can anyone relate?

I just don't watch YouTube videos of amazing 10 year old bass players!
When I saw Stanley Clarke 20 years ago, I thought to myself "quit or practice more". I decided to get more serious about playing. I'm never hitting those levels, but I have improved a lot.

 

[ceetee]

I know this is an unhealthy thought process, but I feel a mixture of inspiration, awe, and discouragement when I hear a fantastic bass player.

The intensity of each of these feelings will vary from time to time and sometimes discouragement will be the largest of the three feelings. This is very apparent in situations when I see a 10 year old who is way better than me, or a multi instrumentalist who casually picks up a bass and shreds.

I know this isn't a healthy mindset, and what I am seeing is the finished product. I don't see the countless times where they mess up, or all of the takes before that one.

Can anyone relate?

To me, it's a matter of live choices. I didn't choose to play guitar at age 5 or 7 like John5. Recently, a guy from my neck of the woods won a grammy. Hasn't had anything else in mind other than making music. I've had different things in mind, I will never be as good a musician. By worlds. Still like making music. The result is the product of lots of different factors. Some are choices, some are obstacles you cannot control. The guy with the grammy had to overcome some major ones. Still love making music.

 

[ceetee]

Nope, I've seen/met many bass players better and not as good as me.

I have been selected in auditions over players that were way more capable than I.

A friend threw a pretty big party. Some folks were jamming and I joined in. There was a female bassist who literally put all the other bassists to shame. Some drunk asked me about how embarrassed I must be because a woman played so much better than I did. He couldn't grasp the concept that many people play better than me, and their gender simply did not play into the equation.

Quite sad that he reduces himself to that point where only gender counts.

 

[mambo4]

Nope, never discouraged. There is no music I can't play. Just music I can't play yet.
My experience has been that it is always a simple matter of practice.
Often a lot of practice. But , moving one phrase, one bar at a time, I think anyone can get there, at least when it comes to specific material.

For more general "skill level" consideration, brilliant players are not to be viewed as competition or a personal yard stick. They are to be viewed as a light house , beckoning me to "move in this direction"

Could I come up Jamerson's line on with "Darling Dear"? Of course not . but given a year or two of practice I could probably pull it off well enough for a gig.