What if you gave a guitarist a four stringed guitar? Thats alot of their chord shapes and high notes for soloing gone. How would they cope? it's all a matter of what your used to.
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Guitarists say the dumbest things.
- Thread starter 73jbass
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Heres one for you. My buddy had this guy playing guitar with him in this duo. He allways wanted to walk home from jobs, even if it were ten miles, so he could prowl around. Strange dude. Well a sheriff had pulled some one over and was haveing a heated discussion with them. So this fellow walks by and starts to watch. The sherriff turned to the guitar player and says "move along". To which this fellow replied "you can't tell me what to do" Well apparently he could because the sheriff then pepper sprayed him and tossed him in the car and took to the pokey.
Man I'm cracking up just typing it and it was 15 yeards ago.
Man I'm cracking up just typing it and it was 15 yeards ago.
for all you people out there who think the amount of strings is what makes something hard, check out this guy on the ukulele, it has 4 strings, its tiny and it sounds awsome, i really love it, and i couldnt pick up and play that just becouse it has 4 strings, it would take alot of practice
to me, its the style you are playing that makes something hard or not, doesnt matter what instrument you are playing
to me, its the style you are playing that makes something hard or not, doesnt matter what instrument you are playing
Most definetly it depends on style, I've seen that video before and all I can say is that guy can shred that little plinker like no one I'v seen.
That's a good counterpoint you got there. What a great player, very nice- technique and feeling to boot. I think he was in GP this month.
I was just pushing a little bit on the insecurity that many bass players have because many folks starting out hear that "it's easier because it only has four strings" thing. It takes a more mature musician to understand that it doesn't matter at all and the whole argument one way or the other is pretty ridiculous. To say a musical instrument is "less difficult" because of the number of strings is completely ignorant and does not deserve any kind of response nor defensiveness. More likely a guitarist who says such a thing is trying to compensate for their own lack of skill or talent.
But this was fun and we have a nice little thread of why such thinking is off-base.
I was just pushing a little bit on the insecurity that many bass players have because many folks starting out hear that "it's easier because it only has four strings" thing. It takes a more mature musician to understand that it doesn't matter at all and the whole argument one way or the other is pretty ridiculous. To say a musical instrument is "less difficult" because of the number of strings is completely ignorant and does not deserve any kind of response nor defensiveness. More likely a guitarist who says such a thing is trying to compensate for their own lack of skill or talent.
But this was fun and we have a nice little thread of why such thinking is off-base.
Maybe it's just me, but here's a couple of recent statements from my band's lead guitar player that left me speechless....
"I just don't think you should play that bassline because it grooves too much."
"The lead guitar is in charge of the rhythm in a song."
before he come to the next practice, Restring his guitar in reverse, that'll show him
This is the first real +1 I've wanted to make of this thread.
^For this reason.
As was mentioned, a violin isn't easier to play than a guitar, even though it's smaller and has fewer strings.
It's all about the approach and technique you use to play, what fits the music and what doesn't.
It's no the instrument, it's who plays it. I mean, I can proabably learn a simple tune on any instrument within a day. And so can the guitarist. Yes, maybe the primitive bass lines are easier to play than primitive chords, but I can learn them pretty quick and so can the guitarist. But I'd like to see the guitarist play some Ryan Martine/Flea/whoever lines. And I won't be able to play the guitar like Slash/Clapton/Vai.
And as for 4 strings being easier.. Absolutely no difference. The guitarist doesn't have to finger all six at the same time and neither does a bass player.
BTW, There are 6-stringed basses too.
And as for 4 strings being easier.. Absolutely no difference. The guitarist doesn't have to finger all six at the same time and neither does a bass player.
BTW, There are 6-stringed basses too.
Our former guitarist/vocalist would ALWAYS scream before going into a chorus or back into the verse. We were supposed to be a funk band but his love of distortion knew no bounds. Anyhow, we were going over the chord changes to some tune in F and I said that the next chord was Bb. He stops me and says:
"It's A#, guitars don't have flats" I had to turn away to conceal my ear to ear grin before attempting to explain to him why it should be called Bb instead of A# and that believe it or not, guitars have flats too All of this to no avail. I tried a couple more times to edumacate him but that didn't work.
Once we added a sax player it was just a matter of time before the conversation would come up again. Sure enough it did and I just concealed my laughter as the sax player spent 10 minutes trying to convince him of the same thing. He was a blues guy primarily and would rarely play anything but power chords and the Bo-Diddley beat when playing rhythm.
"It's A#, guitars don't have flats"
I had to turn away to conceal my ear to ear grin before attempting to explain to him why it should be called Bb instead of A# and that believe it or not, guitars have flats too All of this to no avail. I tried a couple more times to edumacate him but that didn't work. Once we added a sax player it was just a matter of time before the conversation would come up again. Sure enough it did and I just concealed my laughter as the sax player spent 10 minutes trying to convince him of the same thing. He was a blues guy primarily and would rarely play anything but power chords and the Bo-Diddley beat when playing rhythm.
I can kind of understand why people are saying that "4 strings are easier than six". It seems that way because well... There's more of them and remembering my first time on guitar I had no idea where to start.
Upon learning about both instruments however, I've learned that those six strings are no harder than 4 at all, because:
- If you want to reach a different octave range on a bass you've often got to travel a longer distance on the neck as opposed to just 2 down and 2/3 across.
- Chords (yes, I use them... sue me) are much more difficult because the strings are further apart
At the same time however, the 6-string guitar player has a different set of expectations cast upon him/her. S/he has to fulfill a different role. This can be easier or harder depending on the particular style of the guitarist and the band in which s/he plays.
"As for guitarists making better bassists..." guitarists can benefit from playing a little bass. It'll teach them about the foundation they're building on and the rythm they're supplementing. Also bassists can benefit from playing a little guitar, because learning chord structures can help us to understand what the guitarist is trying to do. Learning drums can be quite beneficial for all of the above because it helps with timing.
What I'm trying to say is no instrument is harder than another, some people just play harder.
Upon learning about both instruments however, I've learned that those six strings are no harder than 4 at all, because:
- If you want to reach a different octave range on a bass you've often got to travel a longer distance on the neck as opposed to just 2 down and 2/3 across.
- Chords (yes, I use them... sue me) are much more difficult because the strings are further apart
At the same time however, the 6-string guitar player has a different set of expectations cast upon him/her. S/he has to fulfill a different role. This can be easier or harder depending on the particular style of the guitarist and the band in which s/he plays.
"As for guitarists making better bassists..." guitarists can benefit from playing a little bass. It'll teach them about the foundation they're building on and the rythm they're supplementing. Also bassists can benefit from playing a little guitar, because learning chord structures can help us to understand what the guitarist is trying to do. Learning drums can be quite beneficial for all of the above because it helps with timing.
What I'm trying to say is no instrument is harder than another, some people just play harder.
Personal favorite:
Girlfriend, myself, and guitarist(now her ex-best friend, long story) are in the car, listening to Portrait of Tracy
Nick(guitar): Yeah, I do that kind of stuff all the time for fun.
Myself and Girlfriend:....
Nick: What? I do!
Girl: Nick; shut up.
Me: Agreed.
And yeah. He's also smart enough to be "disturbing the peace", while drunk, in the middle of downtown. Needless to say, neither of us like him anymore.
Girlfriend, myself, and guitarist(now her ex-best friend, long story) are in the car, listening to Portrait of Tracy
Nick(guitar): Yeah, I do that kind of stuff all the time for fun.
Myself and Girlfriend:....
Nick: What? I do!
Girl: Nick; shut up.
Me: Agreed.
And yeah. He's also smart enough to be "disturbing the peace", while drunk, in the middle of downtown. Needless to say, neither of us like him anymore.
