Well, that was 30 years ago - I'm no prettyboy anymore. I'm probably a better musician at this stage, but nobody's killing themselves over me now.
Sigh
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Sigh
I’m better than a lot of people and also worse than a lot of people.
I really like the first track. You gotta send me some more!
Uhhhh yeah I guess that's one way to compliment someone.
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Wait...So...Did you go home with her??? I need closure on this story!!! ;-)
Also- I've never been told that I'm that good at anything life related (and certain my bass playing wouldn't have received that kind of feedback)...
I started playing when I was 15 and was lucky enough to be surrounded by amazing musicians my whole playing life. Honestly I thought I stunk then.
I quit playing from age 32 to 45. When I started back playing I worked on things I knew I really sucked at such as reading, theory and jazz standards. I have worked my butt off for the last 10 years and have had such a joyous time reconnecting with playing.
I don’t think I suck anymore but I’m constantly aware of not being where I want to be. But, that’s the reason I look forward to getting up every day. To be better than I was yesterday. Here’s a video of a recent thing I worked on
Nice
I started playing when I was 15 and was lucky enough to be surrounded by amazing musicians my whole playing life. Honestly I thought I stunk then.
I quit playing from age 32 to 45. When I started back playing I worked on things I knew I really sucked at such as reading, theory and jazz standards. I have worked my butt off for the last 10 years and have had such a joyous time reconnecting with playing.
I don’t think I suck anymore but I’m constantly aware of not being where I want to be. But, that’s the reason I look forward to getting up every day. To be better than I was yesterday. Here’s a video of a recent thing I worked on
Signal chain?
I did not go home with her. She was the girlfriend of a good friend of mine, who heard her say that to me. Awkward!
Got a bass at 16 to mimic friends, practiced just a few songs for a bar gig with friends (a goodbye party as I was going away for studying abroad). Kept the bass but never played again.
Fast forward to 2011, 32 years old me wanting to have a more "creative" hobby (steady corporate daytime job), picked up a bass again, played a few years with other beginner friends. Wanted to get more serious and joined other gig in 2016 and specially my current one with good player who got chops.
I still consider myself a beginner, no music training, no chops so I try to compensate in serving the music, knowing the material and be a good band member. The material can be challenging (we cover PHISH with lots of Jam) so I see myself more hacking my way through it
The corporate job allow for treating myself with a smallish nice collection of instrument, though a bit ashamed cause can't make the gear shine like it should
Fast forward to 2011, 32 years old me wanting to have a more "creative" hobby (steady corporate daytime job), picked up a bass again, played a few years with other beginner friends. Wanted to get more serious and joined other gig in 2016 and specially my current one with good player who got chops.
I still consider myself a beginner, no music training, no chops so I try to compensate in serving the music, knowing the material and be a good band member. The material can be challenging (we cover PHISH with lots of Jam) so I see myself more hacking my way through it
The corporate job allow for treating myself with a smallish nice collection of instrument, though a bit ashamed cause can't make the gear shine like it should
I'm a believer in the 10,000 hours theory... whether you are a luthier, a bass player, a toolmaker, a figure skater, a golfer, a chef, whatever... if you put 10,000 hours in, most likely you can be good.
I'm a believer in the 10,000 hours theory... whether you are a luthier, a bass player, a toolmaker, a figure skater, a golfer, a chef, whatever... if you put 10,000 hours in, most likely you can be good.
To kind of elaborate on this with a more "traditional" answer - I have been playing bass for 22 years, and had two different teachers in my first couple of years of learning that had different methods of teaching.
My junior high school band teacher taught rhythmic theory - she was very one minded about it, but also understanding of the age group she was teaching so never very demanding. Everything I learned from these classes has carried through to this day.
My guitar teacher taught me how to play blues and rock music, and how to read a guitar player. Besides being a living legend of the original 60s Mersey Beat scene, he was also a very good and patient teacher and he taught me how to approach learning music on my own as he learned.
I have spent the last couple of years learning harmonic theory - and am good enough to be able to reverse engineer what I am playing at any given moment. I have no care to write or read sheet music (although I did learn how to read in school, and can figure it out with a little work whenever it comes up) - and I rarely use tab to learn anything anymore (give me a decent recording and I will figure it out).
I tend to play and write instinctually, as I feel that the best stuff comes from a place of not-knowing (that is not-knowing what is going to happen - not ignorance of theory). I find that writing this way is like connecting to the source - and I approach all art this way, trying to let it come through me rather than actively trying impart my personal motive on it.
As far as whether technique comes into play - it is something completely subjective. I personally prefer stuff that has some blemishes or whatever because it feels real - I find that when technique alone is prioritized, it can come of sounding sterile or uninspired some but not all of the time. But again, that is just how I subjectively listen to music for enjoyment.
As for where I am on the spectrum of musical talent - I couldn't give a damn, because ultimately it is an artistic endeavour that even with theoretical rules is still very abstract conceptually. Here is one thing I do know for sure, I keep getting better and I know I will be a better player any nominal amount of time down the road because of this.
