Double Bass What is best 2nd instrument to learn????

[Avalon82]

Hello All,

Right now I want the Bass Guitar to be my primary Focus and where I want to grow. I have been playing now for several years and enjoy playing in bands with others.

I at times feel limited with Music theory because of only doing this Rhythm instrument so I feel like learning basic things on composition instrument. I have a 61 Key Keyboard at home and I want to just learn playing chords and chord progressions.

When I was in HS I played Trombone for 7 years and Electric and Acoustic Guitar for about 2 years. I cannot play those instruments anymore, however I am thinking of getting an Acoustic Guitar for same reason as playing KEYS

My questions is should I focus on playing some guitar again or will Keyboard be better?

 

[buldog5151bass]

Piano. You can play any voicing you want, any range you want, and all the notes are right in front of your eyes.

 

[Avalon82]

My gut feeling thinks Piano/Keys? I like the way it sounds and how the keys are layed out

 

[Tom Lane]

No contest that piano is better because there are too many chords you can't physically play on guitar. With piano you can play the bass line in your left hand and the chords in your right; the melody in your right hand and the chords/bass line in your left. With guitar, all of that's a serious challenge requiring compromises that you don't have to make with a piano. There's an obvious reason why most accomplished musicians can work a piano along with their primary instrument.

 

[Don Hergert]

I'd say it depends on what genre(s) you are targeting. If classical or jazz or swing or any other classically tied genre, no question, piano (or keyboard). Any roots, country, rock or other Americana genre, guitar...

That said, you've posted this in the double bass area while your primary instrument is bass guitar. Why not work on the other white meat, the double bass? It is a completely different animal.

 

[TheDirtyLowDown]

I started with piano very early, and I think it's invaluable... but my advice is to pick the instrument you love the most, regardless of how practical it is. You're going to spend a lot of time with it, so let your heart be your guide.

(this from the guy who has a glacially paced near-perpetual "I'm learning S-12 E9/B6 tuning pedal steel" quest not because it's practical, or feasible, or helpful to the bands I play in, but because I love it)

 

[Reiska]

For learning to understand music piano is your best bet, you have it all under your 10 fingers. With this said, I`m in the same situation as you are, beeing a drummer who turned into a double bassist a couple of years ago. I`ve had some piano lessons as a kid and have studied some claviature percussion like vibes and marimba too, but I`m far more competent with guitar than any of those. I`m about to take theory / harmony lessons from a buddy of mine and have a cheapo classical guitar in the house allready. I have a idea of tuning the guitar in fourths EADGCF and use it as my learning tool for increasing fingerboard awareness while I`m at it.

 

[Don Hergert]

I have a idea of tuning the guitar in fourths EADGCF and use it as my learning tool for increasing fingerboard awareness while I`m at it.

Good idea! I've done some tuning changes to mandolins and banjos which usually need custom gauge for the higher strings if using steel strings... I'd guess you may need lighter gauge strings for your D and F strings to prevent breakage if you're using steel strings. Nylon should be ok at those tensions.

 

[james condino]

All gigging bass players should be able to look over at the guitar player and be able to understand the chords they are playing, or you'll spend a frustrating lifetime dealing with ignorant guitar players who have piss poor communication skills.....

 

[jlmorgan84]

All gigging bass players should be able to look over at the guitar player and be able to understand the chords they are playing, or you'll spend a frustrating lifetime dealing with ignorant guitar players who have piss poor communication skills.....

This is my experience playing folk/old time music. 90% of the time I'm watching a guitar player's hand playing some song only they know and don't have the chords to, and usually transposing up three because they've got their capo on.

 

[bengreen]

Studied both, competent at neither. But still, for me, it's definitely guitar.

Reason being, I only play classical, which is like 99% bowed. And every spring, there comes along a pops concert with all show tunes, which are like 99% plucked. By day two I'm in serious pain, my fingers blistered and wound in bandaids.

Every year I make a resolution to include some pizz in my practice. Every year I make all kinds of resolutions.

A while back I got a yen to take up classical guitar again, which I hadn't played for some 20 years. And I find it leaves me with just enough right hand calouses that pops on bass are no longer an ordeal.

Plus, more on topic, it is a nice change to play chords and counterpoint.

Other factors: it's similar in technique to bass. It's small, portable and intimate, you can play acoustically without bugging the neighbors. And you don't have to constantly stress over intonation: a guitar's always out of tune!

 

[damonsmith]

All gigging bass players should be able to look over at the guitar player and be able to understand the chords they are playing, or you'll spend a frustrating lifetime dealing with ignorant guitar players who have piss poor communication skills.....

I agree with this if you are going to do rock/pop or other guitar oriented music primarily, then a guitar is better for you. You should be able to read a guitarists left hand like a chord chart.
I am in total agreement with James here, and used to word it even worse than that. Now I say that you can develop skills to work with any interesting guitarist, whether they know what they are doing or not.

I also wouldn't rule out the bass guitar. You can get most of the chord voicing you need to hear on there. For advanced jazz piano can help.

Mingus and Red Mitchell and many other bassists were proficient at piano. However, in my life I've yet to meet a bassist where I thought they were practicing enough that piano or guitar or any other instrument would be a good use of time. If you want to be a bassist, make sure you are focusing on the bass!

 

[Jhengsman]

All gigging bass players should be able to look over at the guitar player and be able to understand the chords they are playing, or you'll spend a frustrating lifetime dealing with ignorant guitar players who have piss poor communication skills.....

I played with a left hander who played a flipped right handed guitar so never had that opportunity. When I di play with a right handed guitarist he had split capos and alternate tunings. However I did used to watch where the pianist stabbed with his left hand as numbers were called out before he cut me loose and I paired with the drummer instead of him in our stage set up.

 

[logdrum]

Piano is harder to learn later in life. I know this from experience (teaching people informally) and better to learn guitar instead. Unless you are Cecil Taylor -- I have to yet hear a 10 finger chord. So a 6 string guitar is plenty.

Since bassist complain about drummers all the time bass guitarist specially, learn how to play percussion or drums. Sorry to be harsh but many people just do not have good time or only know 1 or 2 meters. If possible learn from an African and/or East Indian traditions. Doing this will even benefit you melodically.


Another thing that is a lost art is critically analytically and synthetically listen to music. Know it's history as well and in some cases the politics behind it (ie blues and jazz) Do not put down any genre. Disco to ethnic music from Papua New Guinea.

Another great thing to learn are monophonic instruments like woodwind or brass or a monophonic synth and learn how to imply harmonic movement with non-time aligned notes.

 

[Tom Lane]

The comments about watching the guitarist reminded me that the best answer might be heavily correlated with the genre you play. Roots, folk, rock, and pop music, you might be best off picking up guitar so you can watch their left hand for the chord shape and root as James and others commented. Jazz, piano is probably the better option because most jazz guitarists don't typically play root voicings so reading their left hand won't tell you much about roots. Bossa Nova - I noticed it in your list of favorite genres - is more like jazz; Gilberto played a lot of rootless voicings. On Girl from Ipanema on the Getz/Gilberto recording, for instance, Joao played an AbMaj7b5 over the DbMaj7 chord.

 

[Steve Freides]

I'd say it depends on what genre(s) you are targeting. If classical or jazz or swing or any other classically tied genre, no question, piano (or keyboard). Any roots, country, rock or other Americana genre, guitar...

+1

-S-

 

[FatElvis]

Bass guitar

 

[zontar]

Either way you are expanding things you know & learning new things--so it really depends on what you're looking to do--and type of music can also make a difference.
I know that doesn't really answer the question, but for some piano/keys will work better, in other cases guitar.

I started music with piano lessons--I wanted to play guitar but I got started playing piano--and I don't regret the first two years of piano.
I still know the notes & other stuff, but my playing isn't all that much.
Still I'd like a keyboard around to mess around on.

Then I started guitar & later bass--so I have those covered already so my experience is not yours.

If you want more info I'll add this-mention has been made of the visual aspect of keyboards & that is a good point.

In addition to learning o play I took three years of theory in a class setting.
In all three years there were some things I though of in terms of the guitar & other things in terms of piano-so knowing both was helpful.
The first two years were taught by a keyboard teacher who didn't really know much about guitar-so I translated for the guitar/bass players.
The third year was taught by a guitar teacher who didn't really know the keyboard well, so I translated for the keyboard students.
Doing that helped me learn it better as well.

So the TL;DR is --whichever you choose will help you.

 

[longfinger]

Hello All,

Right now I want the Bass Guitar to be my primary Focus and where I want to grow. I have been playing now for several years and enjoy playing in bands with others.

I at times feel limited with Music theory because of only doing this Rhythm instrument so I feel like learning basic things on composition instrument. I have a 61 Key Keyboard at home and I want to just learn playing chords and chord progressions.

When I was in HS I played Trombone for 7 years and Electric and Acoustic Guitar for about 2 years. I cannot play those instruments anymore, however I am thinking of getting an Acoustic Guitar for same reason as playing KEYS

My questions is should I focus on playing some guitar again or will Keyboard be better?

Start with what you already have, a 61 key keyboard. You can play any chord easily as well as progressions with all the chord tones.
Later on, if you are itching to pick up guitar again, but one, and it will be easy because of your manual skills on bass guitar and your chordal ear from keyboard.

Now if you already had a guitar and were good at playing it, and did not have a keyboard, my tip would be to practice chords on guitar now. Later on, if you are itching to play some keyboard, then get one.

It's your decision to make.

 

[Wasnex]

Hello All,

Right now I want the Bass Guitar to be my primary Focus and where I want to grow. I have been playing now for several years and enjoy playing in bands with others.

I at times feel limited with Music theory because of only doing this Rhythm instrument so I feel like learning basic things on composition instrument. I have a 61 Key Keyboard at home and I want to just learn playing chords and chord progressions.

When I was in HS I played Trombone for 7 years and Electric and Acoustic Guitar for about 2 years. I cannot play those instruments anymore, however I am thinking of getting an Acoustic Guitar for same reason as playing KEYS

My questions is should I focus on playing some guitar again or will Keyboard be better?

Everyone I know who majored in music was required to take class piano. IMHO there is a natural and intuitive linkage between music theory and how the keyboard works. If you can play chord shapes in one octave, you can use the same exact shape across the range of the instrument. Very conducive to learning voice leading and how chord extensions work. Also I think it's a lot easier to learn how to interlink your left and right hand to play melodies and harmonies simultaneously. Or perhaps play a bass line against a harmony

Figuring out how to voice chords on guitar is way more difficult and you may have to change the basic shape to play a given inversion in different octaves. IMHO the one significant advantage guitar has is it's portable. Also if you are writing guitar specific music, you are probably better off doing it on guitar. Otherwise, IMHO keyboard is better is pretty much every conceivable way that I can think of.

If you are going to learn to play keys, you need to learn more than chords. IMHO, You also need to learn chord voicing and voice leading. Voicing relates to how the notes are spaced. In it's most basic terms, chords can be open or closed. Close voicing is basically just the chord tones 1,3,5,7 played adjacent to each other. Open means the notes are spread out more, for example 1,5,7,3. Voice leading is how the notes move from one chord to the next.

Voicing and voice leading can vary by genre, so it's a lot to learn.