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Welcome! Now what?
Hey low-enders! I'm absolutely thrilled you're here. Knowing where to start when you decide to jump into bass can be daunting. I've been there and let me assure you, mastering your craft is a life long pursuit, very enjoyable if you let it be and very rewarding. I've prepared a little list below of some things to start doing right away to help you jump start your bass development. Enjoy and again, welcome.
1) Start Playing! It's become far too common these days for new players to want to wait to enjoy music until they know what they're doing. This is backwards. Grab your bass, put on your favorite song, smile and start playing. It doesn't matter if you hit the right notes or not, if you don't enjoy playing, you won't do it. Find the fun in music first and never let go. 2) Set a course I'll be the first to admit, when you're getting started, all of the charts and lingo looks like a collection of egyptian hieroglyphics. No matter, take a deep breath and make a specific decision. "I would like to learn to play this song" or "I would like to learn how to slap like the pros". After you've determined what you would like to do, you can quickly discover exactly what you need to learn. Seek out materials to help like this site, youtube, the library, private lessons or books. Don't be afraid to ask questions, just ask someone. You'll be surprised how resourceful the world is! 3) Small sections After you've decided on your course, you'll be able to understand the elements of bass that you need to learn, some technique, maybe some theory, some examples and a little woodshed time. Everyone is different, but I always enjoyed being able to see what I've learned. I created what I call the "progress tracker". It's in the charts. Take a look at that and pick something small to learn. A myriad of things will happen, you'll learn something, you'll begin to discover how it relates to something else and you'll begin to accelerate your learning. Although music is very "big", the navigation through it is actually quite easy, it's simply a long winding road with plenty of "scenic views" along the way. 4) Go back to step one Don't forget to play and have fun. Soon, you'll become very proficient at self teaching, very musical and loving every minute of it. Avoid ruts by enjoying your playing not beating yourself up over what you can't do. It'll all work itself out. There are a ton of "theories" and opinions out there. "Sing while you play, study the music for hours, it takes 10,000 hours to master something, do interval training, arpeggios are the "secret", no... modes are the "secret", don't use a metronome, wait, use a metronome, to heck with the nome, just groove man!" The answer to all of this is "yes". Do all of them, do anything, but make sure you're having fun, playing and loving making music. You'll develop quickly, find your "rhythm" and what practice methods work best for you and your goals and from start to infinity......see results. |
This is a Big SiteTake your time. There's a ton of information on this site for bass. Charts, books, videos, jam tracks, rhythm sheets, and much much more! Don't let it be overwhelming, take the info in small doses and enjoy the learning. It's very rewarding to begin measuring your results and with some practice, some passion and commitment, you'll be able to achieve your bass goals. We're here to help. Enjoy!
Spend Some Time in the Shed
Welcome to the Woodshed. Grab your bass, charts, ebooks and maybe a cup of coffee and let's get to work. From chops to blues to modes, you can grow and exercise a lot of your bass routine right here, for free, all the time.
woodshedding - present participle of wood·shed Verb: Practice a musical instrument. History of Bass! |
