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Double Bass Video Lesson for Beginning Student

praisebass

praisebass

Aug 20, 2009
655
140
Missouri
#1
My fifth grade bass student has been excelling at his instrument despite that he's playing my 3/4 Kay and his instructor (me) has never formally studied bass pedagogy. He's at the top of his orchestra class and has played through all the challenge pieces suggested by the instructor. He wants to learn the theme from 'The Imperial March' - Darth Vader's theme from Star Wars as a reward for completing the challenge pieces well ahead of most of the class.

My thought is to transpose it from Eb to D and get a real bass teacher to video a lesson so that we can get proper fingering and positions. Getting ongoing live lessons from a bass teacher are not an option for us right now.

What are your thoughts? How would I go about hiring a teacher to do this for me?
 
#2
Get a book.

http://www.amazon.com/ABCs-Absolute-Beginner-Intermediate-Student/dp/0825852552

It will teach him and you'll be able to help him, too. If you need it, then go through the book yourself and stay a few pages ahead of your son.

Have him figure out the song himself in D - it's great ear-training.

If the book does its job, he'll figure out fingerings himself and/or with your help. If you have fingering questions, post a PDF of the music with your ideas on fingering pencilled in and we can all chime in.

There isn't only one "proper" fingering for things.

There's no need to reinvent the wheel, IMHO, when there are good method books for kids out there already.

-S-
 
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#3
Thanks. That looks like a good resource. I've been working with him through Essential Strings 2000 which is used in the orchestra class but I've never been really crazy about that book. I think I'll take your advise and notate this together and figure out fingering and positions together. I've been worried about messing him up starting him off with bad habits but he seems to be doing very well.
 
#5
Reluctantly, I'll chime in here and encourage you to locate a genuine, real-life, teacher for your aspiring bassist. And that's because I don't believe a book can teach the majority of people how to proficiently play the upright. Granted, there are notable exceptions of folks who taught themselves, mastered their instrument and went on to stellar careers, but, and the but is much bigger than the non-but, those folks are the exceptions. The smart money is on finding that video instruction, IMO. Since you're in the mid-West, I'd start with a Google search of respected upright bass instructors in the Mid-West. If you can locate someone in your time-zone with the chops and the schedule works out, then go with them and mail them a check - see how it works out. If the schedule is tough, then augment your search to folks not in the Mid-West USA, but still, established, experienced teachers and performers. There should be no end to your list, but if you run out of ideas, you could try, if they're accepting more students, Chris Fitzgerald - KY, Rufus Reid - NJ, or John Goldsby - Germany. It should be obvious, but, in your case, I don't think you aspired to perform in a National orchestra and so being self-taught was okay, but your 5th grader might, and so, frankly, deserves the benefit of his accomplished predecessors.
 
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#6
What Tom Lane, said, too - always, always, always a teacher is best.

Tom, the profile says Missouri, a big commute the people you listed. :)

The problem w/ video instruction is that it's a one-way street. That's not necessarily a problem when you're trying to find the hidden screws to remove the glove compartment from your old BMW, but it is a problem when you're trying to learn to play an instrument, you're trying to do what the video shows but you're actually _not_ doing it correctly, and there's no one there to point out your mistakes. I see so much poor technique teaching double bass to kids in person, even when I mention it nearly constantly, that I can't imagine how a video recording can make much of a substitute for a real teacher. Skype/Facetime? Maybe that.

-S-
 
#7
Steve Freides said:
What Tom Lane, said, too - always, always, always a teacher is best.

Tom, the profile says Missouri, a big commute the people you listed. :)

The problem w/ video instruction is that it's a one-way street. That's not necessarily a problem when you're trying to find the hidden screws to remove the glove compartment from your old BMW, but it is a problem when you're trying to learn to play an instrument, you're trying to do what the video shows but you're actually _not_ doing it correctly, and there's no one there to point out your mistakes. I see so much poor technique teaching double bass to kids in person, even when I mention it nearly constantly, that I can't imagine how a video recording can make much of a substitute for a real teacher. Skype/Facetime? Maybe that.

-S-
Click to expand...

Ah, my mistake, I thought we were talking about Skype lessons, which is why I suggested those folks. I completely agree that interaction in real-time is crucial. I've never done a Skype lesson but I've used Skype and teachers I respect tell me that it works okay, not as well as in the same room, but if you're in the middle of no-where, then it's a good alternative.
 
#8
Tom, I dunno. :) He said "get a teacher to video a lesson," by which I assumed he meant asking someone to prepare a YouTube kind of thing, a lesson on a particular piece. I've taught over Skype, two student to date, and while I don't love it, I agree it's better than nothing. The big problem, at least as I've experienced, is playing together. Skype seems to want to favor the person who's making the most sound, and therefore most of the time, only one person can hear the other. Maybe I need a more powerful computer? Again, I dunno.

-S-
 
#9
Steve Freides said:
Tom, I dunno. :) He said "get a teacher to video a lesson," by which I assumed he meant asking someone to prepare a YouTube kind of thing, a lesson on a particular piece. I've taught over Skype, two student to date, and while I don't love it, I agree it's better than nothing. The big problem, at least as I've experienced, is playing together. Skype seems to want to favor the person who's making the most sound, and therefore most of the time, only one person can hear the other. Maybe I need a more powerful computer? Again, I dunno.

-S-
Click to expand...

As I said, I haven't done it, but, I can foresee the issue of trying to play together. I think the issue is the speed of the internet. A way around that is for the teacher to record a track that they email to the student and then the student plays along with the recording. Not quite the same as playing together and it takes some planning, but it's simple to implement.
 

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