I'm getting worse...need some advice

[zofhbass]

I don't know if it's just a rut, a few bad days, some sort of a burnout overpracticing or what but I'm getting frustrated with not being able to play certain stuff that I could play before (certain runs/fills and passages).

I'm always warming up and stretching my hands/fingers, always practicing with a metronome, changing it up etc. and I've actually felt some new improvements after quite some time of just playing for 2-3 hours couple times a week during band rehearsals as my practice.

I've been practicing 1.5 to 2.5 hours a day for the past month (not including breaks) which is awesome considering that I'm working two jobs, but things are kind of slow at one of them so I'm managing to pull it off.

Anyways, I'm having trouble with playing the stuff I could play before and I'm weirded out even more because I can feel that my fingers got stronger and more articulate, yet they suddenly stiffen up when I'm trying to pull off some fills and passages I had no trouble with before.

I even thought that I might have damaged a nerve in my hand or fingers because nothing else made sense.

Some advice or experience on this would REALLY help
I don't know what to do at this point other than taking a break till the end of the week.

Thank you!

 

[Drucifer]

You're doing great to get that much practice in working two jobs and band practice. Take breaks and work on other things, or rest. Don't try to measure improvement after only one day or even one week. Slow everything down and learn the licks backwards and forwards (not literally) at a slow tempo, then gradually increase the tempo. If the brain doesn't know what to do, the fingers won't do it. Train the brain along with the fingers. If you have stiff fingers or pain, take a break and see a doctor if it continues. Hope this helps.

 

[Mushroo]

Two comments.

First, yes, it does sound like you're overdoing it, both physically and mentally.

Second, a philosophical shift in how to spend your practice time, which has worked for me (YMMV): Don't practice what you already know! Spend your practice time acquiring new skills, not repeating runs and fills that you already learned in the past. This should break you out of that rut and give you a feeling of forward progress again.

 

[artsta]

Sounds like your body is a little out of sync with your mind. i.e., your mind is racing ahead of your body.

I would spend the practice just tuning into your sound. Play one note and let it ring right out till it stops. Try to just play one perfect note, and love the sound of that one note.

Put on your favourite song, and just practice landing one big note per chord change with the drums. Dont worry about fills.

The older I get, the more I play within my abilities. I dont try to get more dexterous anymore, I just try to get deeper in the pocket when I am playing, and I have found that simplifying my playing does that. I guess it depends on the music you are trying to play too.

Finally, I think the weirded out feelings are coming from tension. You might be getting frustrated and that may be making you tense through your body. When you do exercises with a tense body, your body doesnt like it. Perhaps find a relaxation app and do some breathing to remove tension in your body before you practice.

 

[zofhbass]

Wow thank you for your replies!

@Mushroo I do practice new songs and techniques but I'm having trouble with the stuff I already know how to play but can't pull off (e.g. a fill/run in a song that I play with my band that I don't practice anymore and was always able to play) but it's probably the overdoing it part of the story and other work and daily life affiliated stress that accumulated.
Just for an example, a piece that I've learned to play some time ago and now I'm struggling with
I'm not playing this with the band obviously, this was just for my personal joy and a challenge of sorts
the run at exactly 1:31 (the link starts 10s before the run just for context)
I can't pull off that run anymore
I know it's a stupid thing to fuss about but it's really annoying because it didn't make sense at the time, after all that practice that I couldn't pull off something that I've already overcame, practiced and played without issues

@artsta I totally get what you're saying and I love to relax and just get in the pocket, but I'm trying to incorporate some new tricks up my sleeve so that's the reasoning behind all this recent practicing and yes, probably all the tension is getting to me so I start the practice with the tension already in my head and body

 

[mambo4]

If you can't play it yet: slow it down
If you could play it before but can't play it now: slow it down

 

[Paulabass]

As we age, our brains atrophy. By the time you get to my age you'll be struggling with 'smoke on the water' and forgetting.......damn, lost my train of thought.

 

[pappabass]

Sorry if this hurts your feelings, but make sure you are practicing the bass part, not spending your whole time doing solos, popping/slapping, running up & down scales. Plus, after a while you could develop carpal tunnel syndrome. Happened to someone I knew.

 

[zofhbass]

@Paulabass I'm 24 so that is scary to hear haha
@pappabass yes, I understand and I'm always practicing everything slowly with a metronome, including standard chromatic stuff, groups of 3 notes, various scales etc. and everything I'm struggling with at that moment
I have this habit of digging in and pressing with my left hand while practicing, way more than usual while just playing to a song, so maybe that plays a role in this too even though I don't feel any pain in my fingers or wrists, just this feeling of stiffness at certain runs like the one mentioned above
Thanks for the reply!

 

[Jazz Ad]

Most of what we call muscle memory and physical training is actually just training your brain to command proper movements.
Don't stress over the physical aspect of things. Thinking about playing while letting your hands rest is training too.

 

[BurnOut]

I've told this story before elsewhere.
I take vocal lessons from my neighbor who is an opera/theater teacher known around the country. At first I was rough, got better every lesson. My singing improved by leaps and bounds. After about a year the simple warm up stuff we did started whooping my butt. I was over thinking everything I was doing instead of just doing it. Thinking about it just made it worse. When I just go in and do it without thinking about every little thing, it all comes together.

 

[Mushroo]

@Paulabass I'm 24 so that is scary to hear haha
@pappabass yes, I understand and I'm always practicing everything slowly with a metronome, including standard chromatic stuff, groups of 3 notes, various scales etc. and everything I'm struggling with at that moment
I have this habit of digging in and pressing with my left hand while practicing, way more than usual while just playing to a song, so maybe that plays a role in this too even though I don't feel any pain in my fingers or wrists, just this feeling of stiffness at certain runs like the one mentioned above
Thanks for the reply!

Scales!?! No wonder you are frustrated, if you are working two jobs and then coming home and practicing scales.

I want you to take a month completely off from practicing scales, chromatics, spider exercises, etc. and focus only on exercises that push you forward in fun, creative, and musically meaningful ways.

What are your biggest musical weakness right now? You mention relaxation while practicing is a potential issue. So just practice that for a week or two. Pick some easy bass lines, that you can play with one or two fingers (oldies station is a great resource) and practice playing them as smooth and relaxed as possible, with a minimum of effort. Imagine you are an old graybeard like Lee Sklar who plays hundreds of shows a year over many decades; you need to stay relaxed and injury free to have a long and successful career. Visualize your old arthritic hands and making every note count.

If you genuinely don't know your major and minor scales yet, then by all means take a couple of weeks and really learn them. But I suspect you already know your scales quite well. Repeating something boring over and over again, past the point that you have it memorized, isn't practicing, it's self-flagellation.

 

[zofhbass]

Well they're not just typical major-minor scales with variations, e.g. I'll practice stuff that Janek Gwizdala and Hadrien Feraud teach, a lot of jazz-fusion influenced routines but I totally see your point.
I've decided to take a break and just do some stretching for now and then take it slow and have a bit of fun because it really is demotivating and it does get boring.

Thank you all for replying and helping!

 

[Lobster11]

I have this habit of digging in and pressing with my left hand while practicing, way more than usual while just playing to a song....

Well, there's your problem: Your hands are tensing up when you practice those passages. And that's probably because (1) the passages you are practicing are the hardest ones, and (2) now that you've psyched yourself out, worrying that you won't be able to play it right, you tense up even more each time.
As others have said, practice those parts much more slowly -- however slow it has to be for you to be able to play it perfectly each time, with your hands relaxed -- and then gradually increase the speed. And stop thinking about what you used to be able to do and just focus on now. You'll be back up to speed (literally) in no time.

 

[zofhbass]

(1) the passages you are practicing are the hardest ones, and (2) now that you've psyched yourself out, worrying that you won't be able to play it right, you tense up even more each time.

That is exactly what's going on!
Thank you

 

[saabfender]

Slow down. You are try to play faster/harder than you are ready for. You are wearing yourself out pushing too hard. Sure, man’s grasp should always exceed his reach but your bumping up against some practical limits.

I wouldn’t sweat it. Still practice as much as you have but do a substantial amount of just music playing on stuff you already know and doesn’t consume a bunch of mental horsepower.

The key to this is in the title of the thread. You’re running your new motor too hard. It’s all coming together nicely as it is without your expectation that you’ll measure up to your musical voice.

It’s coming together fine. Ease up on the gas.

 

[40Hz]

Yep…

First it’s roses, roses, roses.
Then it’s thorns, thorns, thorns.​

It happens. Especially if you play fretless. I’ve been playing over 40 years and there’s times when something just isn’t happening. Or everything sounds off. It can be frustrating. But backing off a little or stepping completely away from it for an hour, or even a full day, often works cure. At least for me.

There’s a book out by George Leonard titled Mastery that I found extremely helpful. Especially the first few chapters where he examines the the impediments to mastering a skill or task and the issue of ”plateauing” where you attain a certain level of competency only to become suddenly stalled and unable to make further progress.

I normally take a dim view of self-help books and programs. I’ve read through a ton of them and there’s maybe three or four I actually thought were worth the price of their paperback. But this little book is one of the very few good ones IMO.

Luck!

 

[Deleted member 271037]

I sometimes get like that if I focus to much on playing things PERFECTLY rather than just feeling the music, enjoy myself and engage auto pilot. And it has never happened when playing with a band, only when I practise alone and concentrate too much on what I'm doing. Very much a mental thing, for me at least. If it gets a lot worse over time it's probably a good idea to get it checked by a neurologist but it doesn't sound like you're anywhere close to start worrying about that. Probably just a mental thing by concentrating too hard rather than enjoying yourself.

 

[pappabass]

I had a fellow musician tell me that someone told him to love every note that you play.

 

[Whousedtoplay]

Just my personal thoughts.
1. Your brain (your experience, your perception) matures faster than your technique. And your more advanced brain (with all that new information) does not like your lagging behind technical articulation, which was not an issue previously. And that hidden, suppressed “complex” sends controversial signals to your nerves.
2. From a technical point of view, it’s normal to have stiffening fingers from time to time.
I would change my exercises (from the samo samo) and exercise less.
3. Slow down.
4. Start transcribing more - deeper not superficialy faster.
5. I have also noticed that when your brain is tired (two jobs, plus other obligations) it also adds some “internal dissatisfaction”.