El Bajo Posted June 13, 2012 Share Posted June 13, 2012 Figured I need some direction as I've plateued for years now. Waiting for a tutor to call me back. What kind of things should I be asking? I wanted to find a bass only tutor ather than a guitarist tutor who only teached bass. This guy plays guitar, bass and double bass. I figured if he can play double bass then he's actually taken the time to study our role. He also teached at a pretty good school in Bolton and has Uni degrees in music. All sounds promising but when I sit down with him what should I be asking and looking out for? When he ask me to play somthing, should I make HIM play something to hehe Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero9 Posted June 13, 2012 Share Posted June 13, 2012 (edited) I suggest you ask your teacher just that: "Figured I need some direction as I've plateued..." A good teacher will establish where you are now and come up with suggestions how to move you forward, that's why they're teachers. It also depends what you want to achieve. Do you want to be able to solo over various chord shapes / changes or simply to learn better technique / scales / play along to songs. Only you can answer that. A good teacher will be invaluable and be much more helpful than me trying to answer your question Good luck with getting a teacher. Edited June 13, 2012 by zero9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Son of the Wear Posted June 13, 2012 Share Posted June 13, 2012 zero9 gets it exactly right: any good tutor will follow basic, sound principles: after that it is more about whether you and your tutor are a good 'fit' and you enjoy their approach. First - and most importantly - they should establish where you are now: work with you to understand what progress you have made to date, what your strengths and weaknesses are and what gaps there are in your knowledge and skills. Then they can start to plan your development appropriately and set out what you need to do to make progress. Pretty basic really, but being aware of this helps to spot those who are actually good teachers/tutors as opposed to those who may know their stuff but haven't really got the teaching skills needed to help others develop. I started out as a teacher and my current work involves developing and delivering a lot of training (not music!), but it still surprises me how often you see so called teachers/tutors/trainers who miss out this vital first step. How can you begin to help someone develop if you don't have a good understanding of where they are starting from? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bass-Thing Posted June 13, 2012 Share Posted June 13, 2012 I honestly believe having a good teacher is as essential as having a good bass and a good amp (and possibly a regular gig). You will know after one lesson if it's going to work or not. You know if you have hit the jackpot if the lesson seems to go quickly and you can't wait until the next one. In the same way you will know if it's not working if you are bored and can't wait for it to end. It is not worth persevering with a bad teacher so if it doesn't go well you should move on straight away. It's only happened to me a couple of times. If it's awkward not to book another lesson at the time, you can always call or text and cancel the next day. Bad teachers can be very good players but being able to teach is something special. I've been very lucky with teachers. If this one doesn't work out (fingers crossed he does), I recommend asking your nearest music college if any of their bass faculty teach privately. I asked BIMM Brighton about this and I got referred to their head of bass who has been my teacher now for the last 3 years and become a good friend too. Very best of luck with this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BottomE Posted June 13, 2012 Share Posted June 13, 2012 A lot depends where you live, how much you are prepared to pay and what level you are at. The better [b]you[/b] are the harder it is to find a decent teacher who is a bass player in your locality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seashell Posted June 13, 2012 Share Posted June 13, 2012 [quote name='Bass-Thing' timestamp='1339596379' post='1691156'] [b]I honestly believe having a good teacher is as essential as having a good bass and a good amp [/b](and possibly a regular gig). [b]You will know after one lesson if it's going to work or not[/b]. You know if you have hit the jackpot if the lesson seems to go quickly and you can't wait until the next one. In the same way you will know if it's not working if you are bored and can't wait for it to end. It is not worth persevering with a bad teacher so if it doesn't go well you should move on straight away. It's only happened to me a couple of times. If it's awkward not to book another lesson at the time, you can always call or text and cancel the next day. Bad teachers can be very good players but being able to teach is something special. I've been very lucky with teachers. If this one doesn't work out (fingers crossed he does), [b]I recommend asking your nearest music college if any of their bass faculty teach privately. I[/b] asked BIMM Brighton about this and I got referred to their head of bass who has been my teacher now for the last 3 years and become a good friend too. Very best of luck with this [/quote] I agree with all of this, especially the bits I've put in bold. I was so lucky I 'clicked' with my teacher straight away. I found him through a local college that does private lessons on the premesis, which is even better as you get to use the studio for your lesson. I can't foresee ever stopping lessons unless I fall on hard times financially. There is always something new to learn and I'm never going to 'catch up' with my teacher! I also agree with what BottomE says about location. I'm lucky I live in a big city where there is a lot going on. I hope you find a good teacher, as with the right person lessons are a real joy and not a slog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seashell Posted June 13, 2012 Share Posted June 13, 2012 (edited) [quote name='El Bajo' timestamp='1339589011' post='1690965'] When he ask me to play somthing, should I make HIM play something to hehe Thanks [/quote] Oh, and another thing! I think the above is a really good question. In my experience, you don't want your teacher to be playing too much in your valuable lesson time. My teacher really stretches me by making me do most of the playing on my own. If he sees I'm struggling he'll say 'Would you like me to play it with you?' which is a real help in the appropriate place. Only very occasionally have I seen him really 'take flight' and demonstrate something quite jaw dropping! But mostly he makes me do all the work! Edited June 13, 2012 by seashell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alstocko Posted June 13, 2012 Share Posted June 13, 2012 If he doesn't work out I have a very good teacher in the Warrington area. Pro guy so sometimes there's a month or two without a lesson, but a top notch teacher. Think I'm seeing him myself while I back from uni! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve-soar Posted June 13, 2012 Share Posted June 13, 2012 [quote name='BottomE' timestamp='1339598349' post='1691214'] A lot depends where you live, how much you are prepared to pay and what level you are at. The better [b]you[/b] are the harder it is to find a decent teacher who is a bass player in your locality. [/quote]Totally spot on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Bajo Posted June 14, 2012 Author Share Posted June 14, 2012 Thanks all for the responses so far very helpful. I left a message with his um...dad!?! (or elderly lover) as he was teaching at a school during the day. In any case he hasn't called back yet so perhaps he isn't taking on students, i'll try him again later. However... [quote name='alstocko' timestamp='1339619818' post='1691732'] If he doesn't work out I have a very good teacher in the Warrington area. Pro guy so sometimes there's a month or two without a lesson, but a top notch teacher. Think I'm seeing him myself while I back from uni! [/quote] I may be interested, Warringtons a bit of a treck but I do have some family nearby that I need to vist more regularly so it might work out for the best. Where abouts is he based and how much does he charge? thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bass-Thing Posted June 19, 2012 Share Posted June 19, 2012 [quote name='seashell' timestamp='1339607994' post='1691452'] Oh, and another thing! I think the above is a really good question. In my experience, you don't want your teacher to be playing too much in your valuable lesson time. My teacher really stretches me by making me do most of the playing on my own. If he sees I'm struggling he'll say 'Would you like me to play it with you?' which is a real help in the appropriate place. Only very occasionally have I seen him really 'take flight' and demonstrate something quite jaw dropping! But mostly he makes me do all the work! [/quote] Definitely. The truly awful teacher I once had, apart from popping outside for at least 4 cigarette breaks during the hours lesson, would randomly start playing tunes that had no relevance to what we were doing. He was a very good player but couldn't teach or even put a lesson together properly. My teacher will sometimes have me laying down the groove along to a drum machine and he'll play over it and it feels like I'm the bass player in a band. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Fretbuzz Posted June 19, 2012 Share Posted June 19, 2012 My first guy was Mr Thrash..... Heavy metal guitarist.. Learned a little bit of stuff but started to get hacked off when either he was texting during my half hour or soloing to my scales etc :-( bombed him out and started learning myself.. Learned a lot more and cheaper too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfinbernard Posted June 24, 2012 Share Posted June 24, 2012 Be aware that some music shops who offer tuition sometimes have dreadful teachers. The shops make a lot of money renting the rooms to teachers and can become desperate to have a full house and if a good teacher isn't forthcoming they will take almost anyone. I'm sure some have standards but I have experience of two music shops and both had teachers who were unable to offer good solid tuition, bedroom shredders being the usual, only able to play the one style they've learned, only able to pass on what they know which is relatively little, and in some cases disinterested, I hd one guitar teachertrying to stretch things out to fill the time slot and insisting on teaching me classical style shredding techniques a la Yngwie Malmsteen which I can't stand, . after I had asked to learn more blues-based lead work an help to get a better overall solidness to my guitar playing. I literally felt that my money may as well have been stolen from my purse. Be warned! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bass-Thing Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 [quote name='surfinbernard' timestamp='1340561086' post='1706268'] Be aware that some music shops who offer tuition sometimes have dreadful teachers. The shops make a lot of money renting the rooms to teachers and can become desperate to have a full house and if a good teacher isn't forthcoming they will take almost anyone. I'm sure some have standards but I have experience of two music shops and both had teachers who were unable to offer good solid tuition, bedroom shredders being the usual, only able to play the one style they've learned, only able to pass on what they know which is relatively little, and in some cases disinterested, I hd one guitar teachertrying to stretch things out to fill the time slot and insisting on teaching me classical style shredding techniques a la Yngwie Malmsteen which I can't stand, . after I had asked to learn more blues-based lead work an help to get a better overall solidness to my guitar playing. I literally felt that my money may as well have been stolen from my purse. Be warned! [/quote] Yes my disaster was based at a local Music Shop with a rehearsal space. He was used to teaching children very rudimentary stuff and was totally fazed by having somebody who could already play. Still think the nearest music college faculty is your best option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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