Hector Posted September 29, 2011 Share Posted September 29, 2011 ....turns out it can be a bloody good thing! Over the summer, I went travelling for almost 2 months (dordogne, cornwall, mexico, tuscany and isle of wight, ooh la la!) and was without a bass for the entirety. I did some ear training exercises (some boring ones, but some fun ones as well, like harmonising tunes by ear, and singing along to stuff and scatting my own melodies), and some work with a metronome to keep myself fresh. Coming back to reality and picking up a bass again feels [b]fantastic. [/b]I'm falling in love with it all over again! My ideas are much less samey and to me it's become once more a total joy to play, rather than me being preoccupied with trying to play as well as possible and stagnating into the same old practice routines and playing the same old ideas. I'm making much better progress than I ever have with my playing, and I'm loving every minute! Life is being a little hard on me at the moment, but as soon as I have the bass in my arms, there's a smile on my face and everything else melts away. I'm also really getting a buzz out of my technique improving that little bit every day, as I get used to the physicality of the instrument. Just to say really, that I've reaffirmed my love for the bass with some time out, absence definitely makes the heart grow fonder. I wanted to tell someone, and only you would understand - most people go cross-eyed when I try to talk bass. Looking forward to becoming a more active presence on these forums again! H Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPJ Posted September 29, 2011 Share Posted September 29, 2011 What a great time you must have had. I agree that time away can help the head and you come back fresh with a new perspective. As the song goes, "Falling in love again...." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassace Posted September 29, 2011 Share Posted September 29, 2011 Welcome back , Hector. Whatever happens in our journey through life we never lose our love of the bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steeve85 Posted September 29, 2011 Share Posted September 29, 2011 [quote name='bassace' timestamp='1317300819' post='1389231'] Whatever happens in our journey through life we never lose our love of the bass. [/quote] ...but, speaking as someone who's returning to the upright after a couple of decades playing guitar, what we do lose.....is technique. And stamina. And the willingness to cart around ******** big instruments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
algmusic Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 Do you think it was the new experiences or the time away from the bass that re kindled your love for bass..? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hector Posted October 22, 2011 Author Share Posted October 22, 2011 [quote name='algmusic' timestamp='1319212342' post='1411444'] Do you think it was the new experiences or the time away from the bass that re kindled your love for bass..? [/quote] Complicated question! Short answer: both. Long answer: I think absence makes the heart grow fonder of course, but a lot of that was to do with feeling a little stagnant on the instrument and taking a bit of time to relax - I was getting really worked up about trying to be skilled and lost sight on enjoying it. But I also think nothing exists in isolation and it isn't just about me and the bass - a lot of seismic shifts have happened in my life during and around that gap, some really great and some really terrible, and for me the bass became a constant. All the changing about led me to think about what I really enjoyed in my life and convinced me to hold onto it. Playing the bass became about more than than just technique and getting it "right". It became about expression and simple joy and escapism and a hundred and one other things that it never used to be. I guess as we grow and change as people, our relationship with the instrument develops too, and the last 6 months has been an interesting time to be me. I pick it up for different reasons now. Am I totally nuts? Quite possibly. It's just a piece of wood, right? I find it quite hard to properly explain how I feel, but there's something new between me and that piece of wood, and it feels great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoffbassist Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I always worry about being away from my upright for more than a week and am always suprised how quickly it comes back. That said my hands always suffer on the first few gigs. Time aways from the bass can really help my creativity. Intresting topic. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I am always fearful that all of this is just asn illusion caused by the different perspective created by the absence. Would it be better just to find ways to prevent/address stagnation that don't involve 'time out'? Learning a new genre, some new songs, transcribing something really hard or really easy, trying some classical etudes instead of jazz solos (or the other way around' etc. Just thoughts. Still, it is always good to remember its not all about music. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hector Posted October 22, 2011 Author Share Posted October 22, 2011 [quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1319306672' post='1412604'] I am always fearful that all of this is just asn illusion caused by the different perspective created by the absence. Would it be better just to find ways to prevent/address stagnation that don't involve 'time out'? Learning a new genre, some new songs, transcribing something really hard or really easy, trying some classical etudes instead of jazz solos (or the other way around' etc. Just thoughts. Still, it is always good to remember its not all about music. [/quote] Not really an issue of how to address stagnation and not really an issue of what I "ought" to have done to get out of my former plateau - just extra enjoying picking the bass up again and feeling a new approach! There are lots of ways to not stagnate on the instrument ( I actually do all those things you listed). I'm not suggesting anyone should stop playing for two months every time they go through an off period, which every musician does once in a while. It was just interesting to note how refreshing it is to come back to playing after a break, and wanted to share how happy I was to be playing bass again. Doesn't feel particularly very illusory to me, but at the end of the day that's between me and the bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Of course. Just thinking out loud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hector Posted October 23, 2011 Author Share Posted October 23, 2011 (edited) Hah, that wasn't supposed to sound quite so narky from me there, sorry Rob! Your thoughts on changing it up are of course spot on. EDIT - Just looking the jazz thread, and it totally fits with your mention of the joy of seriousness. It's really finding that, finding the pleasure in being diligent . Edited October 23, 2011 by Hector Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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