DavidMcKay Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 Guys 'n' Gals Thinking of taking a 12 month subscription to Scott Devine's online bass lessons. I like his presentational style, he obviously knows his stuff, and I feel I'd get my money's worth. Any current subscribers who would care to comment/offer feedback? Any pointers to other alternative online learning resources? Simply looking for the best source of learning - not looking to start a slanging match. Cheers, David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kev Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 Watching his left hand makes my hand ache, I just don't know how he does his fingering like that. I am sure many pro's do too, but when I try to mimic those kind of shapes I can't do it at all. But that's probably just me. Some informative videos, but i'v not been persuaded to join. What do you get for your money? Are the videos and the other free stuff not enough as it is? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve-soar Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 Scott sems like a lovely guy, family man, great chops, great presentation.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heket Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 (edited) I'm a subscriber. I subscribed primarily to access the workbooks for the lessons and the structured courses. Now I've joined I've barely even touched those because I'm having too much fun with the other masses of content! Obviously it'll depend whereabouts on your bass journey you are. I'm a beginner so I'm getting an absolutely huge amount out of it for the money, however there are many pros and people who have been playing for donkeys years on there, and actually I find most of the content geared towards intermediate and beyond players. This an example of the things I'm doing right now: [b]The monthly challenge[/b] - this is where you are given a task with a theme to work on and at the end a winner will be announced. This month's is slap bass, which runs until the end of December. [b]Bass Hangs[/b] - these are live sessions where you can submit questions to Scott (and Geoff Chalmers, the community manager and double bass demon) and get a reply. They generally run from 1hr30 to 2hrs long. They are recorded so you can watch them at your own leisure. Lots of useful questions being asked by members. [b]Beginners course[/b] - this is one of the 4 main courses that can be accessed by subscribers. Scott's nearly finished a [b]"Harmonic Layering" course[/b], which covers scales, arpeggios and chord tones and how they work together that's over 10 hours long. [b]Campus[/b] - this is the forum where there's lots of cool stuff including [b]member-created lessons, transcriptions, and "Feedback Friday"[/b], which is where you can submit a video of your playing for Scott to critique on Fridays. Of course there's also general chat and support from your fellow bassists. Starting Monday there are going to be [b]live Q&A sessions[/b] with various professionals, hopefully once a week with a varying list including Ed Friedland, Danny Mo Morris and Evan Brewer. I can't remember who the others were, but I think there was a list of 5 with more to come. These will also be recorded. All this doesn't even count all the free lessons and the advantage of having the [b]workbooks and downloadable audio[/b], plus backing tracks if available. Lessons get released at least once a week. You also have access to several interviews with professional bassists. If you want to join, in December Scott is aiming to release a video every day up until Christmas! I hope this helps There are other sources, places that do free videos such as Marlowedk on Youtube and a couple of other sites I can't remember off the top of my head. Then there's Jamplay, which is also subscription based; I haven't tried the bass version of this as I didn't get along with the guitar version. Look around because learning from videos is very teacher-dependent. Edited November 22, 2014 by Heket Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 I'm a subscriber too. The Academy lessons are a good bit better than the free stuff. The newer lessons have a fair bit more structure and follow a more logical line of progression. There is a good level of encouragement to actually progress in your learning, which it's hard to replicate here or if you're self taught. If you think it sounds expensive, equate the 10s of hours of lessons on SBL to what that would cost you for 1-to-1 tuition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machines Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Am I the only one who finds his videos annoying ? I think it's the repetition at the start telling me to go to the website for more lessons on every one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drax Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 David you should at least get your money's worth, especially compared the cost/benefit of face-to-face lessons. Echoing Grangur, it's the structured approach that helps. Don't be put off by the more simplistic areas. I forced myself to sit through the lessons in order and found something in most of them. The theory approach is the most logical I've seen, and there's technical stuff in there that will stretch you for years (if that route is your thing..). There's also the motivation that 'I've paid for it - I'm going to damn well make sure I get my moneys worth' (just like you said when you joined the gym:) ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidMcKay Posted November 23, 2014 Author Share Posted November 23, 2014 (edited) Machines, Dan R Thanks for the comments. Your freebie: Do you want to buy a broken barometer? No pressure.. David Edited November 23, 2014 by DavidMcKay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darren Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 TalkingBass guy on YouTube delivers some interesting stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skej21 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 [quote name='Machines' timestamp='1416717428' post='2612879'] Am I the only one who finds his videos annoying ? I think it's the repetition at the start telling me to go to the website for more lessons on every one. [/quote] Nope, I'm with you! Scott mumbles and stumbles through what he is saying far too much for me. I understand the advertising bits as he needs to let people know what he is doing to keep them subscribing but I never found Scott's stuff that useful, engaging or professionally presented (particularly the earlier stuff!). He is a great player but he always seems like he is just recording a lesson 'on the fly' without having thought about what it will involve or having a structured lesson plan. This means I very quickly get the urge to want to skip through the video to the bit where the actual content is. Obviously this is just my opinion but I went and picked up Janek Gwizdala's online courses and feel like it has progressed my playing massively (although I imagine Janeks style will not be to everyone's taste either). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 (edited) [quote name='skej21' timestamp='1416732154' post='2612910'] Nope, I'm with you! Scott mumbles and stumbles through what he is saying far too much for me. I understand the advertising bits as he needs to let people know what he is doing to keep them subscribing but I never found Scott's stuff that useful, engaging or professionally presented (particularly the earlier stuff!). He is a great player but he always seems like he is just recording a lesson 'on the fly' without having thought about what it will involve or having a structured lesson plan. This means I very quickly get the urge to want to skip through the video to the bit where the actual content is. Obviously this is just my opinion but I went and picked up Janek Gwizdala's online courses and feel like it has progressed my playing massively (although I imagine Janeks style will not be to everyone's taste either). [/quote] You're right, the free stuff is like that. Also it annoyed me when he'd be explaining a "simple" thing for beginners, and leap straight to expecting you to know about. Dominant 7th chords, for example. The signature tune sequence at the beginning of the free stuff also pi$$es me off. It goes on far too long. You really can't judge the paid-for material from looking at the free stuff. The format is very different. The free stuff was Scotts learning period on the build up to starting the academy. Edited November 23, 2014 by Grangur Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drax Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 (edited) [quote name='skej21' timestamp='1416732154' post='2612910'] Nope, I'm with you! Scott mumbles and stumbles through what he is saying far too much for me. I understand the advertising bits as he needs to let people know what he is doing to keep them subscribing but I never found Scott's stuff that useful, engaging or professionally presented (particularly the earlier stuff!). He is a great player but he always seems like he is just recording a lesson 'on the fly' without having thought about what it will involve or having a structured lesson plan. This means I very quickly get the urge to want to skip through the video to the bit where the actual content is. Obviously this is just my opinion but I went and picked up Janek Gwizdala's online courses and feel like it has progressed my playing massively (although I imagine Janeks style will not be to everyone's taste either). [/quote] Fair point. I do find myself skipping a bit, but put this down to it being a slower paced lesson (ie not everyone will pick it up as quick). Thanks for the Janek tip - just watching his Chords and Reharmonisation, seems excellent Edited November 23, 2014 by DanR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh971 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 I'm a subscriber to his premium site and it's worth every penny. His teaching style is great, I never find myself confused after his lessons. Most importantly my playing has rocketed ahead since I joined. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drax Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Cheers Hugh. Is this the $87 / 3 month sub ( www.videobasslessons.tv ) - Which courses have you done here and found useful? And what are the other teachers like? Considering taking the plunge on the strength of his free stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tuco Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 One question : whats with the glove??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbayne Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 [quote name='Tuco' timestamp='1416739922' post='2612991'] One question : whats with the glove??? [/quote] I think he has problems with the nerves in his hand. The glove seems to help in some way to alleviate the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh971 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 [quote name='Hugh971' timestamp='1416738510' post='2612977'] I'm a subscriber to his premium site and it's worth every penny. His teaching style is great, I never find myself confused after his lessons. Most importantly my playing has rocketed ahead since I joined. [/quote] It's SBL that I'm signed up to, not the other one. I signed up to the bass academy which includes a load of premium courses amongst other stuff. He's recently released a harmonic layering course which breaks down arpeggios and scales and how to use them in your playing. This new course is over 10 hours long! https://www.scottsbasslessons.com/bass-academy It's not just the lessons that are great though, the online community is excellent too, it's great to be able to communicate with others who are also eager to learn. I find it motivates me more. You can actually sign up for 14 days for $1 to try it out if you want to look around. [quote name='Tuco' timestamp='1416739922' post='2612991'] One question : whats with the glove??? [/quote] He wears gloves because he has a medical condition (focal dystonia) which causes him big problems with his hands, the gloves help this. There's actually a page on his website about it. https://www.scottsbasslessons.com/odds-and-sods/the-gloves Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbayne Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Focal Dystonia. Apparently Keith Emerson of ELP is a sufferer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drax Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 (edited) [quote name='Hugh971' timestamp='1416741419' post='2613012'] It's SBL that I'm signed up to, not the other one.. [/quote] Cheers. Yep I'm also a paid up member of SBL. After working through 2 Janek lessons I think this might be more my bag.. Edited November 23, 2014 by DanR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidMcKay Posted November 23, 2014 Author Share Posted November 23, 2014 Thanks folks Now looking like a choice between SBL Academy and the [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Janek Gwizdala offerings. I'm still leaning towards SBL though.[/font][/color] Cheers, [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]David[/font][/color] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh971 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Cool, you can sign up to SBL for 14 days for $1, why not do that to get a feel for it? I don't know if the Janek Gwizdala offerings have any kind of trial basis, but if they do why not trial both? Hope to see you soon on the campus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heket Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 One thing I forgot to mention that I really like about Scott, is that when he says that he's going to show something slowly he actually does do it properly slow. I don't get lost with his videos like I do with some others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arthurhenry Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Regarding the glove: Does the condition only affect his left hand? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh971 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 [quote name='arthurhenry' timestamp='1416748437' post='2613111'] Regarding the glove: Does the condition only affect his left hand? [/quote] No, it's a neurological condition to do with nerve signals getting confused and being sent to the wrong destination. The glove on his left hand seems to offset the condition but it still affects him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Count Bassy Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 [quote name='DanR' timestamp='1416725406' post='2612888'] David you should at least get your money's worth, especially compared the cost/benefit of face-to-face lessons. [/quote] I've never see his lessons, so can't comment on that side of it, but I can't see how one can make that comparison. [size=4]It's a bit like saying buying a Ford Ka will get you money's worth compared to buying a Galaxy. Both cars, both work, but not quite the same thing.[/size] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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