What sort of bassist are you?

[Jase]

I was a bass player in a previous life.....I [i]think [/i]

[jezzaboy]

Why isn`t there a "bit of a talentless chancer who has mananged to bluff his way through it and has got away with it" option? That would fit me down to the ground!

Jez

[discreet]

[quote name='jezzaboy' timestamp='1330869117' post='1564026']
Why isn`t there a "bit of a talentless chancer who has mananged to bluff his way through it and has got away with it" option? That would fit me down to the ground!
[/quote]

Kudos! Probably quite a common situation that none are prepared to admit!
Apart from you, obviously.

[BILL POSTERS]

[quote name='redstriper' timestamp='1330867554' post='1563978']
I don't believe in natural ability - nobody is born able to play bass.
It's like anything else, the more you do it, the better you get - simple as that.
[/quote]

You know what I mean though.

So if I practice enough I will be as good as.............Just about anybody ?

Some people have a natural feel for it though ?

How about natural inability ? Some people will never get it, no matter how much they practice.[i] can think of one or two famous people that would fit in that category, but that would be way outside the thread.[/i]

[BILL POSTERS]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1330869286' post='1564031']
Kudos! Probably [b]quite a common situation that none are prepared to admit![/b]
Apart from you, obviously.
[/quote]

Can I be the first then ? I been getting away with it for years, still keep expecting somebody to point it out at a gig sometime.

[redstriper]

[quote name='BRANCINI' timestamp='1330869524' post='1564044']
You know what I mean though.

So if I practice enough I will be as good as.............Just about anybody ?

Some people have a natural feel for it though ?

How about natural inability ? Some people will never get it, no matter how much they practice.[i] can think of one or two famous people that would fit in that category, but that would be way outside the thread.[/i]
[/quote]

I do know what you mean - some people seem more naturally inclined to be musical and they are usually the ones who play more and get better faster.
If you practise enough, you can be as good as anybody and you can overcome any perceived lack of natural ability.
I don't believe in natural inability either (unless caused by physical or mental disability) - which famous players that will 'never get it' do you mean?

[discreet]

[quote name='BRANCINI' timestamp='1330869524' post='1564044']
...So if I practice enough I will be as good as ...just about anybody?[/quote]

Yes! Get off the internets and start doing your 10,000 hours now!

[Jase]

Practise is such a drag though isn't it? I also hate band practise/rehearsals!

[BottomE]

[quote name='BRANCINI' timestamp='1330862456' post='1563847']
I see nobody has clicked the used to be a professional box, pity you cant click on more than one, think you’ll find there might be a few who have now got ‘real jobs’ or just got too old, but still play cos they enjoy it,
[/quote]
The "pro" distinction is a bit muddy. I tend to think a "pro" is someone who earns their dosh purely from music, be it lessons, gigs and session work.

Age vs practise? Don't get that. Yes, there is a lot more material around to learn from but it isn't only for young'ens. Practicing bass has never been more fun and thats after 28 yeaars of playing. I've probably learnt more in the last few years than over the whole previous 25.

[lee4]

I'm in the writing stage with a new band.We aim to do 6-10 gigs a year,with decent original material at good venues.
Or we will just end up drinking beer and telling obscene jokes.

[Conan]

[quote name='TRBboy' timestamp='1330849078' post='1563624']Wish there had been an option for "I don't practice a lot, but I'm in a band that plays live, and I get involved in various other live and studio projects, although I don't get time to practice as much as I would like to and I'm too lazy to learn to sightread properly"
[/quote]

Me too!

[BILL POSTERS]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1330870992' post='1564096']
Yes! Get off the internets and start doing your 10,000 hours now!
[/quote]

Just worked it out, roughly 38 years, average of say 5 hours a week = 9880. According to the 10k rule, only 24 weeks to go and I'll be good as McCartney was in 1962 !!!!

[Doddy]

[quote name='TRBboy' timestamp='1330867208' post='1563962']
I guess that because he's not actually "earning" hos dole money, you could say that he's a pro.
[/quote]
I had a mate who was in this situation a few months ago....he wasn't a pro-he was unemployed.
There's a big difference.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1330868651' post='1564008']
Absolutely agree with this. Anyone familiar with the '10,000 Hours' rule?
[url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outliers_(book)"]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outliers_(book)[/url]
[/quote]
I always find this interesting because I believe that it's not just a case of 'how long',but 'what' you practice.
If you play the same songs and licks every day for hours(like many people do),your progression will be a
lot slower than someone who learns new material for an hour a day.

[quote name='BRANCINI' timestamp='1330873498' post='1564139']
Just worked it out, roughly 38 years, average of say 5 hours a week = 9880. According to the 10k rule, only 24 weeks to go and I'll be good as McCartney was in 1962 !!!!
[/quote]
5 hours a week is nothing....I know a lot of people where that wouldn't equal one days worth of
practice.
Also,McCartney was nothing special in '62......it wasn't until a few years later that he started doing interesting things
on the bass.

[BILL POSTERS]

[quote name='Doddy' timestamp='1330876593' post='1564197']
I had a mate who was in this situation a few months ago....he wasn't a pro-he was unemployed.
There's a big difference.


I always find this interesting because I believe that it's not just a case of 'how long',but 'what' you practice.
If you play the same songs and licks every day for hours(like many people do),your progression will be a
lot slower than someone who learns new material for an hour a day.


5 hours a week is nothing....I know a lot of people where that wouldn't equal one days worth of
practice.
Also,McCartney was nothing special in '62......it wasn't until a few years later that he started doing interesting things
on the bass.
[/quote]

Average, including the years when I didnt play at all, and the ones where I gigged for more than twice that. and it wasnt meant seriously. Never did aspire to be like McCarney anyway,

10,000 hr rule has dsomething to do with how many hours the Beatles had played before they made it I think, Something like that anyway.Hence the McCarney bit.

[discreet]

[quote name='BRANCINI' timestamp='1330873498' post='1564139']
Just worked it out, roughly 38 years, average of say 5 hours a week = 9880. According to the 10k rule, only 24 weeks to go and I'll be good as McCartney was in 1962 !!!!
[/quote]

Er... it might save a few years if you were to do 5 hours [i]a day[/i].

[lurksalot]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1330867246' post='1563966']
...... But I like to get into it more than is probably necessary, or more exactly, more than the rest of the band think is necessary! Another point is, when learning someone else's bass line, you may find yourself playing note combinations and phrases you would never play if left to your own devices... which is very interesting, and an education in itself.
[/quote]

This is kind of my take, I also find that having learnt different phrases, runs and note combinations, that it helps when learning by ear as you can relate easier to the line , and thus visualise playing when listening . you can ID phrases from stuff you already know and just put them together in many cases ,

[BigRedX]

A couple of definitions wouldn't go amiss.

By practice do you mean band rehearsals, learning how to play a specific piece, or playing abstract scales/exercises/techniques?

And at what point do you count as being semi pro? Is it the point at which your earnings from playing exceed your expenditure in order to play - if you are in a band the money that you get back is more than what it costs you specifically to be in that band as opposed to what you would be spending on musical equipment whether you were in a band or not.

[BILL POSTERS]

As I see it. Practicing is playing with just yourself there, or maybe practicing with a partner ..

Rehearsing is with a band, unless your a solo artiste, not many of those on a Bass forum I dont think.

Semi Pro is when you get paid, but dont earn enough to make a living.

Pro is when you do, or at least, when its pretty well all the money that you have coming in. Whether its a
living wage or not.

I wonder if theres an official view, like an inland revenue or passport office or insurance companies one.

Edited March 4, 2012 by BRANCINI

[Doddy]

[quote name='BRANCINI' timestamp='1330886674' post='1564397']
Semi Pro is when you get paid, but dont earn enough to make a living.

Pro is when you do, or at least, when its pretty well all the money that you have coming in. Whether its a
living wage or not.
[/quote]

I'd say Professional is when it's your profession....if you have a day job I'd say you're semi pro (although
I really don't like that term).

Edit...As far as rehearsing/practicing-for me,I see practice as learning something new that you
can't already do and rehearing as playing through familiar material (usually songs) either solo or with a band.

Edited March 4, 2012 by Doddy

[xilddx]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1330885672' post='1564380']
A couple of definitions wouldn't go amiss.

By practice do you mean band rehearsals, learning how to play a specific piece, or playing abstract scales/exercises/techniques?

And at what point do you count as being semi pro? Is it the point at which your earnings from playing exceed your expenditure in order to play - if you are in a band the money that you get back is more than what it costs you specifically to be in that band as opposed to what you would be spending on musical equipment whether you were in a band or not.
[/quote]

It's what you consider yourself to be that matters really. Use your own best judgement.

[Gust0o]

I practice a lot and am in one band. A career outside of music pays the bills and gives me the collateral to have this as an amazing hobby.

[Lfalex v1.1]

[b]I practice a lot and only play or record at home for my own pleasure.[/b]

However, I have practised a lot in the past and rehearsed weekly / played live 3 times or more a month.
Sadly, work and family commitments and the sheer cost (primarily of fuel) now preclude me from being able to rehearse or gig, so I continue to play for my own enjoyment.
Unfortunately, by the time the kids are old enough to look after themselves, petrol will be non-existent, and the few live music venues that have survived so far will have closed.
Still, I find playing relaxing, and it's not unheard of for me to play into the wee small hours (having started at about 10pm)
I play through headphones, so no-one gets disturbed.

[redstriper]

[quote name='Lfalex v1.1' timestamp='1330888528' post='1564445']
Unfortunately, by the time the kids are old enough to look after themselves, petrol will be non-existent, and the few live music venues that have survived so far will have closed.
[/quote]

I remember people saying that in the '70s - think positive man, we'll all be dead soon

[icastle]

I chose [i]'I used to be a professional bassist' [/i]only to find I'm in a majority of one!

I did reasonably well in the 80's through to the early 90's but woke up in yet another typical hotel room one morning during a three week tour and realised I didn't even know what town I was in.

Doesn't sound that devastating perhaps, but it was enough to persuade myself that a new career with some stability was needed.

[BigRedX]

[quote name='silddx' timestamp='1330887733' post='1564425']
It's what you consider yourself to be that matters really. Use your own best judgement.
[/quote]

OK then...

I play in two bands.

My covers band plays less than a handful of gigs a year and rehearses only slightly more often. until I joined this band a couple of years ago, I'd never played covers since I stopped strumming through The Beatles complete songbook and started writing my own songs so everything we do is "new" to me. Occasionally some of the basslines to the songs we play are so alien to my way of playing that I have to spend some time training my fingers to do things that they wouldn't do normally. That's the closest I ever get to "practising" in this band. If we're not rehearsing as a band, I do have to play through all the songs every six weeks or so or I'll forget how to play them.

My originals band rehearses as a band at least once a week. We also have a writing rehearsal at least every two weeks, and currently we're gigging on average 3 times a month. Quite often when I'm writing songs I'll have an idea that is currently beyond my ability to play and then I will practice until I can.

Since I reached the point where I could do chord changes fairly easily on the guitar I don't think I've ever done any practising that didn't have being able to play a specific piece of music either for recording or live in front of an audience as the end result. I certainly don't think I've ever played a scale in my life...

I earn more money playing in the bands than I spend specifically on being in the bands, but not enough to cover what I spend on playing music in general and certainly not enough to not need an alternative source of income to live on.

To sum up: I consider myself to be semi-professional (my band activities turn a small profit) but I never practice unless it is to play something specific that I need in order to be able to perform a piece of music for one of the bands I'm in. There doesn't seem to be a category for that...