Influential Players Bass Books

[mambo4]

1. Translates to other instruments. Learning to read music enables faster learning on other instruments if you ever decide to learn another one. Listing this one first for me as I started on French horn. Learning bass was significantly easier since I could already read music.

2. Access to additional music. Not everything is available in tab.

3. Faster learning on new music/ability to sight read.

The benefit that I rarely see mentioned is what I call rhythmic awareness.
It's knowing precisely* how a rhythm goes, vs playing what you sort of remember.
It is especially powerful for a bassist.

*of course there will still be room for interpretation, but you have a precise model to vary.

 

[bass12]

Since it has come up a few times since I mentioned it. Benefits I have noticed of reading music.

1. Translates to other instruments. Learning to read music enables faster learning on other instruments if you ever decide to learn another one. Listing this one first for me as I started on French horn. Learning bass was significantly easier since I could already read music.

2. Access to additional music. Not everything is available in tab.

3. Faster learning on new music/ability to sight read.

I would add:

- Reading music is probably the best way to learn your fretboard.

- Reading will help solidify your concept of time and note length and will likely improve your timing as a result.

- Being able to visualize rhythms will help you remember bass lines. It might also help your time.

- Reading will allow you to function in a wider variety of live performance circumstances.

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

Joel Quarrington, Canadian School of Double Bass, Books I&II. Classical approach for DB, but if you have the patience and inclination, works for EB. I use this method for fretless EB.

 

[Ritter667]

"The Music Lesson: A Spiritual Search for Growth Through Music" by Victor Wooten.

It doesn't teach you to copy Wooten's lines though.