Hey guys, I'm a self taught bass player of about 4 years. No theory or scale knowledge at all, this didn't bother me until recently when I realized I wasn't improving my playing anymore. I've become adept at making catchy basslines/riffs, but I don;t want to just call it a day and refuse to keep improving. I don not want to learn other techniques such as slap or tapping. I just want to become a better player in general. help?
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Improve My Playing
- Thread starter Swicked
- Start date
Well, how is your technique? I mean, I guess if you're writing this then you feel like you need improvement. Are you working on what you need help on?
I realized about three years in, that my timing was horrible and that my muting and chops needed a huge improvement. Well, I always kind of knew it, but I never worked on it. For instance, I knew I fretted poorly with my ring finger, but I never just sat for half an hour and worked on it everyday until I resolved it. I merely grumbled about it and carried on.
Eventually, I decided that I really wanted to improve and fix all of my errors. So I started right at the basics. I wrote out a list of all my technical flaws, put them in order of what needed to be corrected first, and I practiced on the first technique (which for me was alternating fingers and having them sound as even as possible), at different tempos and rhythms, until I was comfortable with it. Then I worked on my fretting, etc. and kept moving on. I've gotten a lot better in the last couple of months than I did my first three years.
Tip #1... buy a metronome
I realized about three years in, that my timing was horrible and that my muting and chops needed a huge improvement. Well, I always kind of knew it, but I never worked on it. For instance, I knew I fretted poorly with my ring finger, but I never just sat for half an hour and worked on it everyday until I resolved it. I merely grumbled about it and carried on.
Eventually, I decided that I really wanted to improve and fix all of my errors. So I started right at the basics. I wrote out a list of all my technical flaws, put them in order of what needed to be corrected first, and I practiced on the first technique (which for me was alternating fingers and having them sound as even as possible), at different tempos and rhythms, until I was comfortable with it. Then I worked on my fretting, etc. and kept moving on. I've gotten a lot better in the last couple of months than I did my first three years.
Tip #1... buy a metronome
- Oct 29, 2005
- 1,038
- 39
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Aguilar Amp Gruv Gear and Mono Cases
1. I don't understand the question.
2. I started playing on an old bass, and just played what "sounded good", theory wasn't put off but rather forgotten or overlooked.
3. Not very well at all.
- Oct 29, 2005
- 1,038
- 39
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Aguilar Amp Gruv Gear and Mono Cases
transcriptions are always a way to work up some cool new ideas and push your self to play on someone else's level.
transcribe something.
transcribe something.
Transcribing means playing a song by ear. Not by tab or whatever. It can be hard at first. Start with something you know well. Make sure you can hum it, because if you can't recreate it in your mind, you can't recreate it with your bass.
Oh I see What you mean, I've transcribed some guitar/piano parts in the past. I've become pretty adept at doing it. i would like to try some more exotic instruments but wouldn't know where to start.
- Oct 29, 2005
- 1,038
- 39
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Aguilar Amp Gruv Gear and Mono Cases
Oh, I thought it meant converting different instrument parts to the instrument you play on. If that's the case, then I've been transcribing exclusively since I started playing.
- Oct 29, 2005
- 1,038
- 39
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Aguilar Amp Gruv Gear and Mono Cases
- Oct 29, 2005
- 1,038
- 39
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Aguilar Amp Gruv Gear and Mono Cases
be patient with it.
if you think of it like a language. you're a 4 year old trying to repeat the head of the debate team who graduated MIT at age 12.
That is not something for a novice to transcribe.
Start with songs you like. I'm sure there are plenty. It can be any melody and any instrument.
- Oct 29, 2005
- 1,038
- 39
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Aguilar Amp Gruv Gear and Mono Cases
a little theory goes a long way if you can just practice enough until you can predict the sounds a note will make
It won't be hard for me in terms of just skill but the fact that i usually play stuff such as DFA79 with a more defined beat. But just because it's going to be extremely challenging is no reason to water uit down, if I can transcribe this then I'll feel like I'm improving again which was my main concern.
Transcribing is 1 way to improve, but there are several others. Work on your rhythm. You write catchy riffs, but are they in time? \Can you play them in different keys? Take your time and learn some theory and find out why they are catchy. Are they notes from a chord? from a scale? Analyze what you already to well.
