er... not sure what you're referring to - i was talking about people showing emotion while they play. i didn't talk about instruction at all.
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What am I doing wrong?
- Thread starter TheIndieKid
- Start date
er... not sure what you're referring to - i was talking about people showing emotion while they play. i didn't talk about instruction at all.
"i believe there are people who REALLY put their heart and soul into their music without showing it on their faces or showy gestures, and there are others who have lots of facial expressions and gestures but aren't keyed into what they're playing at all. and i strongly believe that no one - not a spouse, grandma, bandmate or anyone else - should change what you're doing or how you're doing it if you love to play".
If you're limiting this to facial gestures/showy gestures or not, cool. If you're talking about any/everything to do with your playing, people often find helpful advice from others.
Let's talk about Grandma for a minute ...Grandma represents the OP's audience. Knowledgeable or not is immaterial. Grandma is just one of very many that hopefully, the OP will have the opportunity to play in front of. If you're playing only for yourself then ignore Grandma's critique. If, however, the goal is to be a successful musician, playing live shows in front of ever-increasing audiences, then others, besides Grandma, will certainly notice the flaws as well. Take Grandma's critique as a motivational force to become a better musician
Thank you, as this is my point exactly. There were some earlier comments stating (to the effect) that she may not understand what she's hearing, etc. People know what they like and they vote with their feet if they don't dig what you're doing, regardless of how artistic you think you are.
If you're not trying to get paid, then I guess it doesn't matter.
Play quiet. Loud doesn't equal more emotion. Listen to any James Brown, Bruce Springsteen or Prince live record and you'll get a masterclass in dynamics. When they bring it down you can feel the audience being more gripped than when they are playing up.
From what I can decipher from her comments is she is basically saying to play with a wider range of articulation, which a great deal of bass players generally are petty bad at doing. Articulation and dynamics brings lines to life.
That's a performance aspect though in which case listen up because people hear what you are doing better than you do. If you are practising though that's entirely different in which case it is often a mechanical nuts and bolts process, in which case no disrespect to your gran but she's confusing practice with performance.
From what I can decipher from her comments is she is basically saying to play with a wider range of articulation, which a great deal of bass players generally are petty bad at doing. Articulation and dynamics brings lines to life.
That's a performance aspect though in which case listen up because people hear what you are doing better than you do. If you are practising though that's entirely different in which case it is often a mechanical nuts and bolts process, in which case no disrespect to your gran but she's confusing practice with performance.
Also remember, it is not always the bass player's job to carry the emotional content of the song. Take for example a song like U2's "With or Without You." The bass line on its own is not particularly exciting or emotional. But when correctly executed with the vocals and other instruments, the sum total of the parts is a very emotional song. 
