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more basses = less skill?
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The title of this thread is kinda putting words into the mouths of the bass players you were talking to that they didn't really say. I think they have a point, but it should be understood for what it is and not what it isn't.
FWIW, almost all classical players subscribe to this belief. They tend to have one instrument that they put their life savings into and that's it. Even tympani players take their instrument(s) with them when they audition somewhere. The main exceptions being musicians with instruments that are too cumbersome to travel with, like piano and organ, but who would argue that a concert pianist isn't up to snuff because he's performing on a different piano every night?
FWIW, almost all classical players subscribe to this belief. They tend to have one instrument that they put their life savings into and that's it. Even tympani players take their instrument(s) with them when they audition somewhere. The main exceptions being musicians with instruments that are too cumbersome to travel with, like piano and organ, but who would argue that a concert pianist isn't up to snuff because he's performing on a different piano every night?
Rickett Customs
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As soon as It was stated that it was "ok" if one is fretted and one fretless.........there's a hole in that logic, it would still be two basses, right? I would fall in this example, I use 1 fretted and 1 fretless. Doesn't matter how many basses you have, if you don't have the skill, they all mean nothing. Has nothing to do with the instrument, provided there are a few common sense thing taken into inventory:
1) It be set up to your liking and be comfortable to you.
2) it would not hinder your playing (warped neck, high action, dead notes, etc.)
Ultimately, there is ZERO logic in the statement between the # of basses and skill since they are not even remotely associated together as one.
1) It be set up to your liking and be comfortable to you.
2) it would not hinder your playing (warped neck, high action, dead notes, etc.)
Ultimately, there is ZERO logic in the statement between the # of basses and skill since they are not even remotely associated together as one.
The number of basses means nothing in regards to your skill level. Whoever said this is not very bright. You want a single bass go for it. Until I find a bass than can sound like every bass I want to sound like I am stuck, as are the rest of you, with having multiple instruments.
John Enwhistle died with a collection of over 200 instruments, the majority of them basses. I don't think it affected him at all. I own 10 and play all of them and keep a record to see which basses get which playing time.
I understand what the OP and the people he was referencing were talking about. I have a bass that feel like "home" compared to my other basses. It feels more comfortable, and everything I do on it is just a little easier. I know what it is going to sound like no matter what I do to it, before I do it. I have a deep understanding of that instrument, and I feel more intuitive on it. Maybe it comes from my classical background (Euphonium, of all things!), but I get what they are saying.
Can I play well on other basses, sure, but I prefer "The One."
EDIT: I didn't vote in the poll, because the answer I was looking for wasn't there.
Can I play well on other basses, sure, but I prefer "The One."
EDIT: I didn't vote in the poll, because the answer I was looking for wasn't there.
gnjpowell
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- Nov 12, 2010
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Uhm, I'm sorry, but to me sounds like a very silly argument 
It's like saying "you can be an awesome painter if you only use 1 paintbrush" , or a "pro driver only if you drive 1 car"...
IMO it has a lot more to do with practice and fine tuning your skills rather than how many basses you play on. You can suck playing on 1 bass as well as playing on 100. And the other way round: if you're good, you will sound good on any bass - that's why those famous bassists have a killer tone and they keep that signature sound no matter what they're playing through.
As for the 2nd question: I now prefer to play basses from a certain brand, but I've owned a lot of different basses in the past and it was cool. The main reason for playing the same type of bass and brand now is being able to switch them on the fly since all of them have the same neck, but other than that, I'd say it's better to play more type of basses rather than sticking to just 1, because you will accumulate more experience and understand what works best for you and why.
It's like saying "you can be an awesome painter if you only use 1 paintbrush" , or a "pro driver only if you drive 1 car"...IMO it has a lot more to do with practice and fine tuning your skills rather than how many basses you play on. You can suck playing on 1 bass as well as playing on 100. And the other way round: if you're good, you will sound good on any bass - that's why those famous bassists have a killer tone and they keep that signature sound no matter what they're playing through.
As for the 2nd question: I now prefer to play basses from a certain brand, but I've owned a lot of different basses in the past and it was cool. The main reason for playing the same type of bass and brand now is being able to switch them on the fly since all of them have the same neck, but other than that, I'd say it's better to play more type of basses rather than sticking to just 1, because you will accumulate more experience and understand what works best for you and why.
I would say that maybe different styles of basses lend themselves to different styles of playing. For example could Mark King play like he does on a T-bird down by his knees and could a 4 on the floor pick player do what he does on a fretless 6 string hiked up to his chin. Probably they could make it work but would it be the best instrument for their styles?
There is something to be said however for having one instrument and really getting to know it. Sheehan played the "wife" until it was literally falling apart and had his signature Yamaha crafted to mimic it with some modern improvements.
There is something to be said however for having one instrument and really getting to know it. Sheehan played the "wife" until it was literally falling apart and had his signature Yamaha crafted to mimic it with some modern improvements.
- Dec 21, 2007
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This is coming from the "beware the man who only owns one gun - he's probably pretty good with it".
And it's total BS. You can have one bass and suck. You can have many basses and be great. And vice versa.
It comes down to the player, not the instrument, and most definitely not the number of instruments.
Let's take it a step further - what about multi-instrumentalists? There are some great ones. Some people have a combination of talent and drive that allows them to do more. But by your friend's logic, they'd really really stink. Geez, not only different string spacing and ergonomics, but different strings! Different number of strings! Different (OMG) TUNINGS! And heck, maybe they play piano too, or (lord forbid) a brass or wind instrument!!
David Lindley won the Topanga Canyon Fiddle Contest, starting when he was a teenager, for so many years running that they made him a judge. All the while playing guitar (lots of different ones), lap steel, banjo, and just about anything else with strings that he could get his hands on.
Didn't seem to hold him back any. We could point up other examples as well.
Oh right, Marcus Miller plays bass clarinet pretty well. Poor guy. Just think how good a bass player he could be if he had focused and gotten to be "best friends" with one instrument?
I'm starting to feel bad for Marcus now - all the work he missed...
And it's total BS. You can have one bass and suck. You can have many basses and be great. And vice versa.
It comes down to the player, not the instrument, and most definitely not the number of instruments.
Let's take it a step further - what about multi-instrumentalists? There are some great ones. Some people have a combination of talent and drive that allows them to do more. But by your friend's logic, they'd really really stink. Geez, not only different string spacing and ergonomics, but different strings! Different number of strings! Different (OMG) TUNINGS! And heck, maybe they play piano too, or (lord forbid) a brass or wind instrument!!
David Lindley won the Topanga Canyon Fiddle Contest, starting when he was a teenager, for so many years running that they made him a judge. All the while playing guitar (lots of different ones), lap steel, banjo, and just about anything else with strings that he could get his hands on.
Didn't seem to hold him back any. We could point up other examples as well.
Oh right, Marcus Miller plays bass clarinet pretty well. Poor guy. Just think how good a bass player he could be if he had focused and gotten to be "best friends" with one instrument?
I'm starting to feel bad for Marcus now - all the work he missed...
gnjpowell
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- Nov 12, 2010
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- Bass & guitar tech, FOH sound, backline rentals
I think the premise is silly. If you're good you're good, if you're not you're not regardless of the number of basses you own.
I honestly don't see how limiting yourself to one instrument can make you better. I think if you want to develop good foundations and fundamentals on any instrument a good test is seeing how well you do on an instrument unfamiliar to you. I play bass, I don't say I play a sting ray or a jazz, it's bass. Most of the concepts(the exception being fretted to fretless, 4 vs extended but even then the fundamentals more or less are the same across any of those platforms) are the same and I think it does more harm if you can only apply what you've learned on a particular instrument. It's like using your gear as a crutch rather than a extension of your musicality.
Also to add, I believe it's been rumored or even just some what known that Jaco practiced on a fretted p bass neck on a jazz. He was using one in that instructional video that I'm sure everyone's seen. He probably missed out on a lot by switching neck profiles between performances and practice right? Instead he learned the whole spectrum of what was bass and he was Jaco regardless of what he played.
One of my instructors at berklee mentioned near the end of Jaco's life he often would just show up in his classes and watch the students. None of the students there ever went "hey that's Jaco". He was already a legend through the halls, but at this point he'd been sleeping on the streets often and looked just like a homeless man. One day he asked one of the students warming up before class to play his bass, the kid kind of eyed his teacher and after a nod to give him the go, the kid kind of reluctantly let this wild hair bread man play his brand new rickenbacker. Within minutes all the kids passing in the hall jammed into this tiny classroom because it was apparent the weird crazy haired breaded guy who had been hanging around campus was actually Jaco himself. While there's a lot to take away from the story and I'm horrible at telling it being english is not my first language, I think in applying it to this context, Jaco was Jaco. He was Jaco playing bass.
Another thing, while a 4 vs a 6 or high vs low action may lend itself to a different approach, different patterns, a lot of your finger work should be pretty consistent, unless your inconsistencies are apart of what you're trying to do. On fretless, besides the more expressive vibratos, I try and keep my technique the same. Finger shapes, wrist angle, intensity of attack, dynamics, etc.
Also to add, I believe it's been rumored or even just some what known that Jaco practiced on a fretted p bass neck on a jazz. He was using one in that instructional video that I'm sure everyone's seen. He probably missed out on a lot by switching neck profiles between performances and practice right? Instead he learned the whole spectrum of what was bass and he was Jaco regardless of what he played.
One of my instructors at berklee mentioned near the end of Jaco's life he often would just show up in his classes and watch the students. None of the students there ever went "hey that's Jaco". He was already a legend through the halls, but at this point he'd been sleeping on the streets often and looked just like a homeless man. One day he asked one of the students warming up before class to play his bass, the kid kind of eyed his teacher and after a nod to give him the go, the kid kind of reluctantly let this wild hair bread man play his brand new rickenbacker. Within minutes all the kids passing in the hall jammed into this tiny classroom because it was apparent the weird crazy haired breaded guy who had been hanging around campus was actually Jaco himself. While there's a lot to take away from the story and I'm horrible at telling it being english is not my first language, I think in applying it to this context, Jaco was Jaco. He was Jaco playing bass.
Another thing, while a 4 vs a 6 or high vs low action may lend itself to a different approach, different patterns, a lot of your finger work should be pretty consistent, unless your inconsistencies are apart of what you're trying to do. On fretless, besides the more expressive vibratos, I try and keep my technique the same. Finger shapes, wrist angle, intensity of attack, dynamics, etc.
Agree with this. I think one thing to stay away from (at least for me) is turning instruments over frequently. I have a friend who plays guitar. He's more or less a beginner but he has made it a hobby to buy and sell/trade in guitars, sometimes only keeping them for a few weeks. His playing hasn't really gotten any better and I think this is partly due to not getting comfortable with the instrument - that break in period - and then all of a sudden, he's gone out and traded it for something else.
I think having a "number 1" bass and doing your learning on that is good, after you've gained a certain amount of proficiency then you can get more...
