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How would you rate your playing?

I consider myself to be:

  • a hobbyist. I don't plan on getting better...

    Votes: 4 1.9%

  • an amateur. I'm working on getting betting.

    Votes: 60 28.2%

  • advance amateur. I can hold my own in most settings.

    Votes: 80 37.6%

  • the pentatonic champion. I can play, but most of what I do is pentatonics.

    Votes: 26 12.2%

  • advanced. Modes, Pentatonics, Arpeggios, Chromatics... all second nature.

    Votes: 43 20.2%
  • Total voters
    213
#61
bass12 said:
That poll doesn't actually address a broad section of the musicianship spectrum. ;)
Click to expand...

True enough. Someone's probably explained already, but just a few glaring omissions:
  • Can you read charts? Sight read?
  • Can you sing lead or backup?
  • Can you learn songs quickly by ear or by reading?
  • Can you fake your way through a song you've never played before? How about never heard before?
  • The previous two lead up to: Can you do a short-notice sub gig with a band you've never played with before, including songs you've never played before?
 
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#63
I'm an okay bassist. I've worked hard to be okay. But, the best thing is that I look forward to getting better every day. I think having a job other than bass playing, while it takes away some time for practice and gigs, also allows me to not be so worried about how good I'm getting and how I match up to the competition.
 
#67
I work about 3 out of 4 weekends a month and get paid pretty good for it. Where should I rate myself? I know I can hold my own. I will never be the best but I really don't care, I am far from being the worst. I enjoy myself every time I get on the stage and to me that is really all that counts. I know my limits and sometimes I even try to push them a little too far. I feel like I am better now than I have ever been.
 
#68
My self-assessment is that I kinda suck, but to try to be objective:


My weak points:
  • Can't sight read
  • Can't read charts very well
  • Have a terrible singing voice (I mostly do shout backups)
  • Don't know advanced chord theory... i.e. I truly suck at jazz
  • Not that creative melodically, can't solo well. I don't even want to solo (but this might be a positive ;))

My strong points:
  • Can fake many genres (not jazz)
  • Quick learner for "radio-style" songs in many genres (rock, pop, R&B, reggae, funk, punk, blues, country, metal, etc)
  • Can learn many of those bass lines just by listening -- tricky tunes (e.g. Rush) excepted
  • Have a pretty good repertoire in a bunch of genres
  • Good listener at the gig, can adjust to different drummers
  • Transpose pretty well (5 string bass helped a lot)
  • Have pretty good fretboard knowledge, I can play in any key in any position on the fretboard
  • Know scales pretty well
  • I own a tux
  • I try not to be a dick

Because of my positives:
  • I sometimes play short-notice (a week or less) sub gigs with bands I've never played with before, including songs I've never played before, sometimes without advance rehearsal. I do homework on YouTube, or ask for chords by numbers. This is what gives me the greatest satisfaction playing bass: helping a band out of an emergency situation!
  • I am not one of the top bassists in my area (not even close!) but I gig nearly every weekend (mostly bar gigs) with 5-6 different bands, even though my vocal ability is pretty much nil
  • I'm frequently asked to join gigging bands (bar bands). There does seem to be a shortage of gig ready bassists in my area, so luck is a factor
 
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#69
I hate to be that dude, but i picked the advanced one.

- I have great control of my playing in any situation
- I can read TAB very well, and am learning standard notation
- I know the theory of harmony pretty well, know arpeggios, chromatics, advanced chord notation, many scales, and basically every fret pattern of the popular and somewhat unpopular scales, and know the chords in those scales, even some exotic ones.
- I'm a good listener when it comes to picking up songs i don't know
- I can get around the fretboard fast efficiently (one of my warmup songs is The Dance of Eternity by Dream Theater lol)
- With my knowledge of harmony and etc., I've much improved as a soloist as well
- I don't have a big ego and am willing to learn more and except that I am bad at some aspects of bass which I strive to practice and improve
(added bonus)- Having absolute pitch makes me a human guitar tuner

Some things I need to improve are my slapping technique, since I primarily play a 6 string, and I also need to improve my muting, overall, as I use the moveable anchor technique, even in fast riffs and octaves
 
#72
I rated myself as an amateur but most people that I play with would probably rate me higher (I am pretty critical of myself in most things). The irritating part is that I know theory, composition, arranging, bass-line functions and how to craft a good bass line from years of being a theory-focused tuba player. So, I know what I should play and what I could be playing but I don't have the technique/chops to back it up yet. Someday I hope to be able to play what is in my head.
 
#75
This seems more a survey of technical knowledge than actual playing ability. I have a music degree (a Bachelor's but try telling someone you have a BM!) I wasn't a jazz major but played in jazz ensembles, practiced modes arpeggios scales et al till they were coming out of my a**. Played pro and semi-pro before and after formal education. I have excellent time feel and can lay down a credible groove in most genres. But I took 20+years off from regular playing and am rusty as a coffin nail. So, I currently consider myself a knowledgable hack (but with a solid backbeat.)
 
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#76
I went with amateur. I've been playing bass nearly as long as I've been playing guitar, but mostly 95 percent guitar to 5 percent bass over that time. In the last year or so that ratio has completely inverted. Moreover it seems I truly like playing bass more than I like playing guitar nowadays. Can't say for sure why that's happened, but that's where I'm at.

So basically I can handle most garage/punk/surf situations. I can imitate or at least fake much more complex stuff. And like some of the others have said I can actually tell you what I'm doing if you give me a second or two to think about it. But my compositional/improvisational skills are nowhere near where they should be. Sight reading? Forget about it. Technique? Pretty much straight pick with a bit of Entwistle-style "typewriter" clanking.

Bottom line is I sometimes feel like I'm way too old to be as bad as I am, but at the same time I still have fun and most folks who've heard me play think I don't completely suck (though I often think they're just being nice when they say so).
 
#78
I have never learned theory and if someone tells me to play a particular scale, mode, etc, I have no idea what they are talking about. I learn everything by ear and in my 37 years of playing have been asked to join every band that I have auditioned for. I have tried to learn theory many times but just don't get it. I have an IQ of 147, graduated from a well known university, am a member of the International Honor Society and the National Society For Leadership and Success. The point I am making is that my struggles with theory have nothing to do with a lack of intelligence.

As far as my playing is concerned, it is difficult to answer without sounding arrogant. I have been playing since 1978. I currently play with several professors from Berklee College of Music and one person who holds a "Chair" position there. He hires me for all of his recording projects. We have done music for television, movies, local tv and radio commercials and were just hired to music for a tv and radio commercial for a well known international company. He said he uses me because I always play exactly what he wants even if we have never discussed the project in great detail. He usually sends me an email with a rough track and I create a bass line. One time when we were rehearsing for a gig, he asked to play something other than the root and used a music term to describe what he wanted. I told him that I had no idea what he meant. I will never forget his response," How the hell can you play that well and not understand what it is you are playing?" I told him that I know all the notes and play according to what sounds good to me. He then replied with "If you learned theory and how to read, you would be deadly and could play with anyone in the world". We recently played a gig and they called out a couple of songs that I had never heard. I was able to jump in and play them without causing a "train wreck". The drummer who also teaches music said he has never seen anyone just jump into a song they had never heard and play it well enough that it sounded good. The person who holds the "chair" position told me that I actually understand theory extremely well, I just don't know the terminology. He has offered to teach me. I would say that I based on the feedback they have provided, my playing is advanced.
 
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