Oh no!

I think that learning another instrument like guitar (or piano) will help you to more fully understand what is happening musically (ie. chords & harmony). Go for it! Pick up that guitar an have some fun. You're not going to "hurt" your bass playing. You can play bass parts on the guitar when you get a cool idea for a bassline. Then you can transfer those bass lines over to the bass. Be creative, learn a lot, have fun...

Joe

 

Playing anything will always affect your musicianship for the better. Even if you picked up the Oboe. However, don't sacrifice your time on bass to a great extent. Nothing beats time on your main instrument but learning guitar may help you with undersanding chord structures, hearing chord progressions, and overall musical form. I play a little guitar and I find it does make a positive impact on my bass playing skills (and, of course vice versa).

 

Always try to make time for both, learning more than one instrument, especially one that uses a different cleft is always good expierience. Try to get an hour of both a day if you can, I tend to get 5 hours of practice a day, 3 on piano and 2 on bass both with voice (piano is my primary at Berklee hence more time needed). But you'll probably find that what is applied to one can be given to the other in theory and technique.

The guitar would really help with chord progressions, especially with bass improv or walking if you find an Em11 (#9/b9) chord.

But that is still nothing to this from my harmony class:

I, II, #IIdim, III, VII/II, II, subVII/I, I

that's an advanced progression to show how a seven chord based off the II resolves back to the II, and the sub 7 (half step up from I) resolves a minor 2nd to the I.

That was definitely a lot more than asked but just for curiosity.

 

The two intruments compliment each other extremely well.

I have a Fender Strat - beautiful instrument.

I think it makes a musician more creative and self-sufficient, learning more than one instrument.

 

I am a big fan of learning new instruments, both because of the fact that I just find it fun, and because it gives you another way of thinking of music through the abilities/constraints of another instrument. Especially when the instrument is so similar (guitar to bass), and there is nothing detrimental about guitar playing (other than time lost on bass). I would say that while your physical ability to play bass will not increase as much as if you played it the whole time you had to practice, you will advance musically just as much, and I think more, by playing other instruments, and long as you still have a significant amount of time to play bass.

 

I agree with these guys that learning geetar will help your bass playing. Any instrument where you can play chords will help you with hearing notes within the chord.

Have you given any thought to playing keys instead? Granted guitars are similar in that they are a stringed instrument so may be quicker to learn. But keyboard players are such a rare breed (at least around here), if you played keys AND bass you would never be lacking for gigs. You could join the club with JPJ and Geddy!

Another plus is keyboard knowledge really helps in college music programs like theory if you think you will ever be heading that route.