I'm Struggling To Learn Bass With A Learning Disability

[MotorCityMinion]

First off @MrNoob your writing and grammar far exceed most people here.

These were my thoughts as well. Your handicaps are definitely not apparent in writing. Quite a few people will never get it. Lack of rythem or tone deaf is common. Play what You want to play, starting with the easiest tunes. Have fun in your quest and enjoy the small accomplishments. They all add up.

 

[baileyboy]

private message sent to you...

 

[Cricket55]

So I'm a high school student who's in special education and takes bass lessons (outside of school). I feel like being learning disabled is really affecting me being able to learn bass.

I've been taking bass lessons for probably almost a year and all I've really been able to do is memorize the frets and play songs along with my teacher but fail to be able to do them without him.

He's been trying to push arpeggios for weeks now but I don't understand them at all. If you asked me ANYTHING related to arpeggios I'd have no idea what to say even though we've been going over them for over a month.

I don't know what to do. It makes the lessons so stressful because I'm simply not learning anything. I know it's not my teacher's fault, we get along well and he's works quite nicely with me despite not knowing I have a disability.

I've been thinking of telling him but I don't know what difference it would make and I'm honestly embarrassed cause I just don't have the mental capacity of most his other students.

If you're wondering what the disability is, I have ADD, am suspected of autism, and have a very low processing speed of 70 (one point away from the mentally handicapped mark). The low processing speed is basically what it sounds like, in short it means I am extremely slow.

I have all of that along with a couple other weaknesses. It's so exhausting. It shows in my lessons. Like for example I'm always messing up because I can't read the music and play at the same time. I usually mess up when it comes to repeating lines or moving onto a different one because I find step by step processes to be extremely confusing but that's really what music is all based on.

I don't want to give up on music because it's my biggest passion but my conditions are really holding me back. Any advice? I know this isn't something usually discussed here but I'm at such a loss.

Hi -

I've been playing bass/guitar for 40 years, teach special ed as my day gig...longtime lurker here, but your post was the first to get me to chime in.

Loads of good advice here already. Definitely tell your teacher, maybe slow the pace of lessons, make time to just play, etc. etc. I don't have much to add to all that.

One thing I will throw out there: don't confuse "processing speed" with "mental capacity." I can tell from your writing you have plenty of mental capacity. If it takes you longer to process information, or if it takes some experimentation to discover the appropriate route to understanding certain things, well... there it is.

As far as arpeggios go, it helped me when I was learning them to think of them as patterns, instead of individual notes. I used to write them out on modified guitar chord diagrams, no open strings. First, I played them in one octave from the root, then 2 octaves from the root. The advantage here is that once you have absorbed a pattern, you can move it around to all the other keys as long as you know where the root is...it's a lot of "bang for the buck."

And now, one question: what kind of music do you want to play? What bass player(s) are you listening to? Who or what made you say to yourself..."Yeah! I want to do that!" You'll get better suggestions, I think, for what you might do if your goal is clearer. It helps a lot to be playing music that you really like, especially in the beginning. Practice time should be fun, and something you look forward to, not a chore.

All for now and best wishes for the journey.

Peace,

Cricket

 

[OogieWaWa]

Wonderful advice here, I'm 62 and have only been playing for 12 years, but I'm playing out 25 times a year and having fun! And learning as an "old fart" is a disability all on it's own.

I also ended up teaching technical subjects in my career, and liked it so much I got a degree in adult education.

A couple of things stand out from what I learned...

First, traditional music instruction classes that your teacher may have went to seem to lag behind the times with regard to alternate learning methods. Your teacher may just not know how else to help you. But he could learn, or someone else may be better at it. Heh, my first vocal teacher "fired me" because I couldn't learn from her traditional teaching methods!

What things do you do well? Simple math? Visual learn-by-watching? Are you good at recognizing patterns, either numbers or visual things? Can you hear the bass lines in songs inside your head pretty well?

Whatever your strengths are can be applied to your learning. Instead of seeing or hearing them as notes, would you be able to use their numerical pattern to help? If you look at your fretboard, can you see the different patterns that the arpeggio notes are based on? Can you hear the arpeggios in music, do you know how they are supposed to soud, and find out how to just mimic the SOUND on the bass? Have you tried humming what they sound like, and just make your hands find the notes that sound right so that a different part of your brain is leading you?

If you write something out do you remember it better? I took tons of notes for years in technical classes, but never went back and referred to them! But just the fact that I wrote them out was how I managed to get them in my brain, and it works really well for me. That was my key Aha in life! Whoda thunkit?! And that's exactly how I learn lyrics now that I've been learning to sing for the last year!

Maybe just try getting with a drummer and guitar and/or keyboard in a no-pressure deal and start playing a song, ask them how they think it should sound as well as what you think, totally ignoring any theory on purpose. Some people just learn better in a supportive group setting. And then try to APPLY that to your lessons.

Anyway, I'm betting somewhere down the line you will become known as a very good bass player. You certainly have the capacity and ambition to do that, all you really need to do is how to get to that goal using your strengths. I'd wish you luck, but somehow I don't think you're going to need it!

 

[2strings2frets]

You have some most excellent and knowledgeable mentors on this site. I cannot add to what has already been said except to encourage you to relax and have fun with music. Theory is a means to an end but there are other routes. When I want to relax,I pull out an old book I have which is nothing but simple bass riffs. I just play slowly and allow the deep tones of the bass to soak and soothe. Sometimes I just play three note arpeggios here and there on the fretboard, It’s my quiet space ,I just enjoy the moment and make no comparisons. Enjoy the day.

 

[slapshot]

Just sent pm

 

[Solude]

Apologies if this was brought up already but... move on to another topic. It might simply be you need another piece of the puzzle before circling back to this one.

If it makes you feel better, unless you plan to write your own music, theory doesn't help you play songs someone else created. It helps understand what is going on but doesn't get your fingers where they need to be in time.

 

[motoman]

I also have a learning disability and I have been playing bass on and off for 10 years. I,m still at a beginner level. I,t seem like if I finally learn something if I don,t keep practicing it I forget it months later. So yes I feel your pain. But if you really like playing keep at it we all need something in life to relieve stress and focus our attention on.

 

[Reedt2000]

if I don't keep practicing it I forget it months later.

This is not just you. All of us have to play regularly to stay sharp and continue to grow as players.

 

[And I]

Ask your teacher to focus on teaching you technique and how to play the songs you like. If he can't or won't maybe he's not the right teacher for you. Lots of great players don't know much theory.