I’ve also got the Christian McBride course; it was my initial plunge into the online bass course world. It’s not great on technical exercises to study and practice, but just hearing him talk and play is so inspiring that it doesn’t matter!
It's not supposed to be, it's a level 4 of 4 course (advanced players). If you want that stuff, look at his other course which is level 3. If you need more, i'd look at all the other Bob DeBoo courses there - they seem solid. Also do not overlook the Group Practice Sessions (even in the CMB courses) that Bob leads as he walks you through actual practice.
Playing piano is a great way to put the bass in perspective. You get to hear (and get your hands on) the entire spectrum of sound and range, and it really opens up the big picture perspective. I had a premonition of this back when I was at Berklee in 1984 and hearing all these great pianists. I was a guitar student then and couldn’t afford to stay (my family had no $$ and I was working multiple jobs while trying to pay for school),but hearing what the piano could do led me to switch instruments when I came back to Louisville to study theory and composition. It turned out to be a life changing move.
The two voice (outer voices) counterpoint perspective is also incredibly important. In my graduate counterpoint class, my professor had me analyze every prelude and fugue in the WTC and then write imitating various examples. It opened up my brain to counterpoint like a giant can opener. I was studying the Omni book at the same time on the side, and quickly came to understand that there was little harmonic difference between the two styles, and that in Bach’s writing, the instances of the outer voices coinciding on a single note was usually reserved for cadences, where the tension was momentarily released. The rest of the time, the outer voices provide the harmonic framework, and when they pass through a unison or octave, it really thins out the texture even if both lines make perfect sense on their own.
I was still 10-12 years away from taking up the bass at that time, but that basic counterpoint lesson stuck and I’m still really sensitive to that paradigm. Practicing the 2 part inventions and sinfonias, especially really slowly, is a great way to bring this into focus and doesn’t require the kinds of piano chops that the WTC does.
I’d love to hear more about the CMB course if you have the time.
Yeah in hindsight I wish someone just smacked me upside the head and made me work on piano chops. Would've saved a lot of time/frustration since I already had some skill already. CMB literally does that in the Your Sound Is Your Signature (YSIYS) course. Also in his prior course he tells you that all the top flight bassists play piano. Say no more Christian.
Even just a few weeks into I see the massive benefits. It places you in the harmony and gives you sense of how to compliment the comper/signer and everything else going on. That's what CMB does... he's providing the missing link in the chain. He gives you a glimpse into why he plays so many roots and when he deviates, tells you exactly why he does it and where in the harmony does his note sit. Ron Carter is also doing the same but I feel like he's hinting at it. CMB just tells you to your face how it is. Now given that RC is a huge influence on CMB, it requires going back to RC's material and going through it deeply and not taking it for granted.
I find in some ways RC is kinda mystical in the way he teaches. BTW RC's book on Drops and Diggety-Bop is a freaking goldmine. Again, it's not long but the concepts buried in it are endless. Rhythmic figures, intetional targets, etc etc. What I have gleaned from listening to RC in what he's been talking about since the start of the Pandemic is that Mr Carter approaches the music in an extremely holistic fashion - more than I can appreciate. As if everything is improvised but extremely deliberate. As if every note was intended and there was 0% jive. It gives me a different perspective on the Ray Brown and RC method books. They put those basic scales into those books for a reason. And a big one yet I think most of us gloss it over.
As for CMB and the YSIYS course, it's kinda like the pro-level course I've always wanted - esp coming from an now-arguable bass living legend. He covers everything from:
* His personal development, even some shortcomings. His influences that formed his worldview on how bass is played.
* Higher level advance ranging on different play styles, two feel, walking, playing fast, his approach to arco and when he uses it/why
* How to hook up with a drummer or pianist. There is several sessions where he's with Carl Allen and they talk about the interaction between bass & drums. For piano he sits at the piano and walks you through his finding the appriopriate notes based on what the piano voicing is chosen. whut?
* Musicianship stuff: importance of keeping gigs through playing roots, how to keep a gig, how to lose a gig
* Inside game: he even has sessions where he's leading a listening session showing you what he's hearing and what he's paying attention to. What he has studied in the past when it comes to Ray Brown and such.
Keep in mind this course compliments his prior course (Fundamentals of Jazz Bass). Even in that prior course, there's sprinkling of pro-level tidbits. Ex: advice on learning piano is in the prior course. In a way they're both overviews of jazz bass but I would consider FOJB as the 101 vs. YSIYS is the 201 level course. But it you take your years to master both obviously.
Both are worthy of the price of admission. And then the RC course well that one kinda runs the gamut but for me I think you need some chops already to really appreciate what RC has to say. Regardless, both offer their worldview and it's important to keep that in mind. But I think RC's legacy in the music is gigantic and would be foolish to overlook the deets of what he has to say. My $.02 on that.
Whatever the cost of admission is for both CMB courses is worth it to me. I wish I had this years ago bc CMB is such a great role model and he tells you what to expect if you wanna play at an advanced/pro level. I think there's something for everybody in it. After watch it, i realize how much I skipped over. ugh. humbling. Time to get my ass back into the shed.
