"pop" with middle finger?

If you're "so early" in this...why not get comfortable using both the index & middle for popping.
There is something called a flam.
Victor Wooten & Alain Caron are 2 players that excel at this.

 

ditto.


good luck!

 

Flea pops with his middle finger. When I was a beginner I just copied what I saw him doing. Works fine for me.

 

Is there some rule that says it has to be index finger?

Comfort is important, and for a whole host of reasons (reach, spacing, speed, economy of movement) the middle finger always worked more naturally for me.

I seem to remember a lot of my peers, and a host of role models, such as Flea, primarily used their middle finger too.

That said, playing position is a key factor : if you wear your bass below the belt, the middle finger is usually more comfortable.

If you wear your bass above your belt, or play primarily seated, the index finger may be more practical.

Everyone's body is different.

 

I'm not going to position myself as a tutor - I'm comfortable just doing what works for me.

If by

you / Scott means "popping" with the thumb, that's not a limitation I've ever run into.

If you / Scott meant regular (ie neither slap, nor pop) down strokes with your thumb - yes, that would be a limitation with your thumb pointed downwards.

In situations where that was required, I slightly changed angle, so that my thumb was parallel with the strings, enabling both both regular down strokes, and slapping / popping.

In all honesty, I don't think I've been required to play any slap bass since the early 2000's, much less had any interest in doing so (in spite of being pretty damn good at that aggressive punk / funk style), so take all of this with a big pinch of salt, as I'm well out of practice in that regard.

Scott, and his instructional courses, are very highly regarded, and recognised.

I don't see any conflict in you following his tuition, with regards to the angle of your thumb, and both your own, and my preference for using the middle finger for popping.

Doesn't part of your membership fee to Scott's Bass Lessons include either some direct email Q&A with tutors, or access to a members discussion board?

They may have valid reasons to preach the index finger, but I've honestly never encountered one beyond personal preference, or the niche ability to play trills.

 

I think Scott’s reference is to double thumbing - rapidly alternating slapped down stroke then a slapped up stroke with your thumb. Effectively doubles your playing speed.

Either index or middle is fine IMO IME, but thumb angle/forearm angle can strongly influence which one is more comfortable.

 

Flam with index and middle, one string or two string.


Double Thumb technique
double thumb bass guitar - بحث Google

 

I use my index,middle,ring in that order to pop triplets and at times when ive been playing too long, ill switch to my middle for regular pops just to give the index a rest. If I were you, id learn both or all 3. easier to build muscle memory than it is to reprogram it.

 

You should be able to pluck with either finger (and even with your ring finger for nice triplets

Practice practice practice. And since you're just starting, it's great to get this thing down: try to use as little force as possible to generate the sound. Let the amp do the work, you don't have to generate the volume with your hands.
Check this video out:

Check how it looks effortless. There's no slapping the bass like it owes you money. And the index and middle fingers appear to barely get under the strings, and pop kinda sideways.

 

It's worth the woodshed time getting comfortable popping with both index and middle, IMHO. Then you can pull off the T-P-P "machine gun" triplet trick.

 

For me:

• Thumb slap + middle finger g string pop
• Thumb slap + middle finger g string pop and index d string pop. G and d double stops too with both index and middle.
• Thumb + index for motor snap
• Pick + ring finger pop
• Pick + middle finger and ring finger double stops

Haven't found a use for my right pinkie yet.

Best wishes to you!

 

Work S-L-O-W-L-Y and learn to use either/both fingers. You shouldn’t decide that there’s only one way for you to play. Bear in mind that awhile ago you couldn’t play at all and now you can. Always add to and improve your bag of tricks and one day you’ll hear, “How’d you do that??!!” Practice new things S-L-O-W-L-Y to teach yourself the right movements. After you get it right it’s much easier to make it fast.

 

I use middle, just more comfortable. Do what feels right.

 

It's prolly fine, but if you're concerned study other techniques.

 

I go either or, mostly index, but middle as well, to give the index a break. The index will get sore after a lot of popping, I’ll switch to middle. There’s no right or wrong if you can play it clean.

Cool stuff happens with both, popping the D with index and G with middle.

Don’t neglect the left hand slap, it’s the hardest one to get even and clean. Get all four working together, thumb, left hand slap, index middle.

Check out Tony Oppenhiem’s book Slap It for a great technique study. Use one of the online drum machines or apps to slow tempos down till you get clean.

Look into your set up, slappers tend towards very light strings, low action, and a light touch.

Have fun!

 

Here's Brian Bromberg, a jazz/fusion icon, explaining his reason for using his middle rather than index, to pop.

 

I use both. It definitely helps to be proficient with index and middle. It's all muscle memory.