Thinking of quitting bass. Opinions please

[Daz39]

[quote name='White Cloud' timestamp='1455138762' post='2976430']
Life is short and it is precious. The meaning of life is to do the things that give your life meaning.

It may help the OP to be happy and stop worrying about worrying.
[/quote]

I hope your second line was earnest and not flippant... That's quite a lot easier to say than do for a lot of people.

But I agree that you should pursue what you enjoy. I am not amazing but enjoy playing. And yes: family/friends don't think much of it
- but then when they say 'can you play something we know?' and you play anything except THAT bit from The Chain by Fleetwood Mac,
they will just think you clunked out a few notes that sort of sound familiar.

[Twincam]

I'm feeling slightly better.

I need to stop worrying and rethink my goals. When I started I would of been really pleased with my current ability. And only started as a bit of a laugh really.

One thing I am pleased with is I taught my gf to play as I'm pretty good with the basic techniques, I also know through trial and error what does not work and what does. So within a year she is almost as good as me. If she put in another couple of months solid practice she should take lessons as she has more potential than me. I'm really pleased with this as at first she couldn't even hold a bass.
Also her dad has just started learning from me, I don't think I've seen someone struggle so much to hold a bass let alone pluck it, but I do think I can teach him and he would be over the moon if he reached my level in fact he would love to just be able to play walking on the moon.

I'm not ready to join a band i will be honest here I have some issues and have ptsd so although I would love to I just don't think currently I can. I do think that would help me and much more than musically errm other with a few people I jam with I don't know any other people. So it would take a very brave effort from me.

The people I jam with are I would say at a decent level and have told me I can play but I'm playing such basic stuff nearly anyone could play it.

[White Cloud]

[quote name='Daz39' timestamp='1455138959' post='2976434']
I hope your second line was earnest and not flippant... That's quite a lot easier to say than do for a lot of people.
[/quote]
Absolutely earnest and completely sincere. I don't do flippant.

[White Cloud]

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1455139007' post='2976435']
I'm feeling slightly better.

I need to stop worrying and rethink my goals. When I started I would of been really pleased with my current ability.
[/quote]
That's right!

Its all about perspective. I get the impression that bass playing actually does a lot for you...so do more of it bro and enjoy the journey.

[Guest bassman7755]

3 years or so is often a crunch point when learning an instrument self taught and I reckon its because this is the point where you've exhausted most of the low hanging fruit learning wise. IME only those with either a prodigious natural talent or able to be really disciplined and structured in their practising will continue to make significant progress.

If your not happy with and enjoying playing at your current level then I think you need to up your game in term of practising discipline (or jack it in if this prospect isn't appealing).

[Dad3353]

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1455139007' post='2976435']...
The people I jam with are I would say at a decent level and have told me I can play but I'm playing such basic stuff [b]nearly anyone could play it.[/b]
[/quote]

[Robert Robinson] Ah, but they're [i]not[/i], [i]are [/i]they..? [i]You [/i]are..! [/Robert Robertson]
If you can play, even (in your opinion...) modestly, then you're good for most local bands, at least (maybe more..!). If it's personality problems or confidence worries, I'd say that going for it could be a help, as long as you've enough 'bottle' to put up with the initial hassle. Only you can know that, of course, so I'll not pursue. There are so many advantages, though, and very few musicians get hurt playing music together, at whatever 'level', so what's to lose..?

Edited February 10, 2016 by Dad3353

[Subbeh]

It sounds like you get enough out of playing that you shouldn't give in. If you can't take formal lessons then maybe consider subbing to something like Scottsbasslessons?

It also sounds like you've plateaued and are getting frustrated, don't doubt that we've all been there, some days I pickup the bass and for whatever reason I just don't feel it and it can be best to know when to take a break and not keep banging your head against a wall.

Try stepping outside of your musical comfort zone, I was in a similar rut and made an effort to really broaden my musical horizons and go where the good bass lines were, be it pop, reggae, ska, punk, metal, just trying to grow as a player. I had been stuck in a bubble of stuff I was familiar with for so long that I stopped progressing and started to get fed up. Best thing I ever did as a bass player.

Edited February 10, 2016 by Subbeh

[RockfordStone]

ive been playing nearly 15 years and learning songs for me is a painful experience. we all suffer low points but the sticking by it and punching through is what makes us better players imo

who cares if you are playing basic stuff, if you are enjoying basic stuff screw everyone else.

[JoeEvans]

[quote][color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]I'm playing such basic stuff nearly anyone could play it.[/font][/color][/quote]
Yes, but that also covers the basslines on a good half of the best songs ever written... That's the beauty of being a bass player, you don't need to play too many notes - and I sometimes think that too much technique doesn't always make for the best baselines [*cough*MarkKing*cough*]...

[mike 110]

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1455139007' post='2976435']
I'm feeling slightly better.



One thing I am pleased with is I taught my gf to play as I'm pretty good with the basic techniques, I also know through trial and error what does not work and what does. So within a year she is almost as good as me. If she put in another couple of months solid practice she should take lessons as she has more potential than me. I'm really pleased with this as at first she couldn't even hold a bass.
Also her dad has just started learning from me, I don't think I've seen someone struggle so much to hold a bass let alone pluck it, but I do think I can teach him and he would be over the moon if he reached my level in fact he would love to just be able to play walking on the moon.


The people I jam with are I would say at a decent level and have told me I can play but I'm playing such basic stuff nearly anyone could play it.
[/quote]

Its a massive buzz to help people get better at something isn't it ? To see them progress from their uncoordinated beginnings to wherever they get , is life affirming as far as I'm concerned .

I jam with 4 mates , once a week , we write our own stuff and have recorded 8 songs so far , we often struggle , but we love and enjoy what we do and just keep trying to get better .

Just step by step mate

[alyctes]

It sounds to me as if you are beating yourself up too much. Apart from anything else, you've demonstrated that you're good enough to teach at least at a basic level, otherwise your GF and her father wouldn't be learning from you. Keep going, and bear in mind that you've come a long way - on your own! - in three years.

[grandad]

Hope you get over this blip. I've had a bit of jolt myself lately. About 3 or 4 weeks ago I was asked to play with a jazz quintet, (amateur retirees), as their regular bassman was unable to make practice/gigs for the time being. What a baptism of fire that was. I felt like a passenger, desperately trying to pick out the root notes on the beat mostly in the strange keys of Bb or Eb. I couldn't believe it when they asked me back & I've since done 3 gigs with them.

So, after 10 years in a covers band I feel I'm back to square 1, in as much as the bar has been raised a fair few notches. I've had a couple of helpful tips from fellow BCers & can only have a go & hopefully get to a passable level of competence.

What a dent to my perceived ability! I sometimes get compliments at the music club I help run & often get up & jam with members on pop & rock stuff given the key & an idea of how the tune goes. But I've certainly got some hard work in front of me.

Anyway just to let you know that there are other poor souls out there that have doubts from time to time. As luck would have it, the other band members are great & are helping me get up to speed. Best wishes for you.

Edited February 10, 2016 by grandad

[Number6]

The other night i practiced Lydian, Ionian, Mixolydian, Dorian, Aeolian, Phrygian and Locrian scales for around 3 hours. I have learned the note positions and i got the scales smooth and quite tight.

Tonight i tried the same exercises again and my fingers tripped over themselves all the way through. My remedy for this was to put the bass down and make a cuppa then chillout.

As has been said above it's not a race. Set reasonable goals and reasonable time limits but don't beat yourself up if you miss a few deadlines.

[Naetharu]

Have you come across the game/program Rocksmith? I ask as I find it is a wonderful tool for helping with practice and having fun with your bass.

For those who might not be aware of it, the program is basically a 'game' where you connect your bass (or guitar) to your PC/PS3/XB360 via an audio interface, and the game teaches you to play songs. While some might be turned off by the appearance, which is similar to the old 'Guitar Hero' games, it is in fact a very effective way to learn new tracks, and is rather good fun.

The basic Rocksmith 2014 game comes with loads of tracks (I'd guess around 100) and there are tones more you can get for a very reasonable price (packs of 4-6 songs sell for £6 or so). You learn these songs by playing along with the original recordings, and following a kind of real-time tab on screen. The game is also smart enough to scale the song to your ability. So if you are totally new then it will pick out just root notes at the start of bars, for example. As your playing becomes better it adds in more complexity a bit at a time until you end up with the full song.

I honestly think it is fantastic. Not only is it great practice it is also fun to play right from the outset because you are playing full songs right away along with the full original tracks. It's also great to get the clear feedback as to where you are doing well and where you need to work on your playing.

Anyhow, I hope that might help a little and at least give you something to consider as an alternative to just quitting.

All the best

James

PS: here is a link to the steam page with the details of Rocksmith 2014 which is also on sale right now for the crazy price of £5.99 - http://store.steampowered.com/app/221680/

[Mykesbass]

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1455139007' post='2976435']
but I'm playing such basic stuff nearly anyone could play it.
[/quote]

But they're not, (and actually probably can't) and you are (and can). Keep it up, and enjoy it.

[Twincam]

Gave it some thought and I'm going to carry on. Until my next wobble lol.

Going to take a few things from this thread. It has reminded me that even though I get frustrated I'm actually happy with many aspects of playing and I had forgot I'm happy making my own little bass lines up too which I can play (mostly).

I am also going to look into lessons again and try pluck up the courage to go at least once!
Because as someone said at three years playing to get to the next level probably needs a bit more commitment and some help.

Also too not be too hard on myself. And accept my limitations. There's been some great players who have worked around there own limitations and even injuries to make great things, i probably won't but who knows.

Thank you for the nice words and advice.

[Twincam]

[quote name='Naetharu' timestamp='1455147402' post='2976549']
Have you come across the game/program Rocksmith? I ask as I find it is a wonderful tool for helping with practice and having fun with your bass.

For those who might not be aware of it, the program is basically a 'game' where you connect your bass (or guitar) to your PC/PS3/XB360 via an audio interface, and the game teaches you to play songs. While some might be turned off by the appearance, which is similar to the old 'Guitar Hero' games, it is in fact a very effective way to learn new tracks, and is rather good fun.

The basic Rocksmith 2014 game comes with loads of tracks (I'd guess around 100) and there are tones more you can get for a very reasonable price (packs of 4-6 songs sell for £6 or so). You learn these songs by playing along with the original recordings, and following a kind of real-time tab on screen. The game is also smart enough to scale the song to your ability. So if you are totally new then it will pick out just root notes at the start of bars, for example. As your playing becomes better it adds in more complexity a bit at a time until you end up with the full song.

I honestly think it is fantastic. Not only is it great practice it is also fun to play right from the outset because you are playing full songs right away along with the full original tracks. It's also great to get the clear feedback as to where you are doing well and where you need to work on your playing.

Anyhow, I hope that might help a little and at least give you something to consider as an alternative to just quitting.

All the best

James

PS: here is a link to the steam page with the details of Rocksmith 2014 which is also on sale right now for the crazy price of £5.99 - http://store.steampowered.com/app/221680/
[/quote]

This might be a cool idea shame I sold my console and gaming PC last year too concentrate more on playing bass haha.

[mcnach]

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1455130787' post='2976299']
Ok so I've came close to stopping playing before and I carried on but once again I'm having a bit of a wobble for much the same reasons.

Today I tried to learn a few tunes and it was a horrible experience I won't say what they are through embarrassment I suppose they would be considered beginner to intermediate level.
I'm not very good to put it bluntly for various reasons and I don't think I'm going to get anywhere near the standard I want and my standards are actually pretty low. I've been playing/learning for nearly 3 years and apart from a few weeks here and there I've always practiced at least an hour a day.
I'm really really not a natural that and an old forearm/hand injury probably means my left hand will always struggle and it may not get much better than it is now.
I can't get past a fairly basic level of playing although my basic playing and technique are alright I'm really struggling to do many songs and I won't be happy at my current level. I could go for lessons but there are a few reasons why I can't.
My girlfriend thinks I should quit and said I'm clearly not enjoying it, when that's not true I do find it frustrating but I think I'm happy learning I think. And she also said bluntly at times I am not very good, which really got to me, it wasn't meant to but it basically really hurt and depressed me.

I'm worried if I quit it will actually effect me, as learning to play, working on basses and so on is my main hobby now, what else will i do. Not to mention I've invested a bit of money and a lot of time learning all the aspects of fret work and replacement. General bass setup. I feel if I quit playing there is no way I would want anything to do with working on them as I would feel like I failed. And I did have plans this year to further my skills with the goal of maybe in the future doing it as a profession, that would be down the drain.

At the end of last year I taken 5-6 or so weeks off playing and while I came back really enthusiastic I'm not sure if taking another break will work.

I feel equally trapped between wanting to continue learning and quitting. I could argue it both ways! Someone once said maybe bass isn't for me, I don't want to hear that but maybe it isn't. It is my fav instrument and I can't see me learning anything else so if I quit it would be me quitting learning to play any instrument. Maybe I'm making to big a deal about what is a hobby but I really feel I don't have anything else going for me currently
[/quote]


It sounds to me like you do love bass and don't want to quit...

I'd quit if it stopped being fun. I'd ask that question to myself: has it stopped being fun? At times I've felt less interested, and like I could not play anything even if it weren't true, and I may have temporarily spent less time playing (guitar/bass)... but I always came back because I love it. If you quit because you feel you'll never get to level X or your girlfriend says you're not very good, I think that would be a sad thing to do
Maybe you're not very good. So what? As long as you enjoy it... and if you enjoy it chances are you'll get much better than you expect. I hope you can remove the pressure factor from playing bass. I mean, it's not like you depend on it for a living or you plan to, right?
When I started playing guitar my aim was very low. Then I reached that goal and I thought "ah, ok... maybe I can stretch to this other thing" and set another low aim. Then I reached it, and so on. And I never tried particularly hard. No, I was not a natural, I just enjoyed it, so I spent time on it, having fun... and little by little things stick.

If you feel your bass playing is not going anywhere, I think it's normal to feel a bit down, and if you have someone you love putting you down, I understand the temptation to quit. But I think you'd regret it, from what you say. I may be wrong but that's the feeling I get. Join a band! Being in a band will do a lot for your motivation and your progress, I am sure. Playing by yourself can be cool, but it's nothing like playing in a band and the feeling you get from playing music, live, with others.

If you really really really want to become a good bass player, then you need to work hard at it. Talent helps, but even the most talented player only got there through putting the hours. There's no substitute for hours and effort. If you want to be very good... then that's what you have to do. However, you don't need to be very good to enjoy bass, I think. A lot of great bass lines don't require much dexterity, and with a little bit of work anybody an get to a level that they can sound decent and play along to their favourite songs, or play their own... and if you enjoy that, then there;s nothing wrong with not becoming a top class player!

If you quit, let it be your decision, based on your level of enjoyment... not because someone tells you you are not very good (nice support, by the way :/)

[ambient]

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1455132340' post='2976321']
A few remarks and a couple of questions, if you would..?

There are not many folks that get through life in general totally on their own; if there are any at all, I don't know them. Many tasks and skills are so much more assimilable given either good tutoring or good support. Practise is one thing; quality practise is another. Maybe you're trying to run before walking..? Three years is not that long to become proficient in any instrument, more especially if you're on your own. Whatever the reasons for not taking up regular, costly lessons, is there really no way at all of putting in the effort of taking, say, a monthly lesson for three months, or similar..?
Do you get to play bass with other folks..? Whatever the (perceived...) level, there is certainly someone not too far away that would appreciate your contribution, however modest. It may not be in your favourite style or context, but playing bass is playing bass, for whatever formation, when cut down to the very basics. Often, that is exactly what's required. This would not preclude the continued self-improvement you're striving for, but meanwhile you're playing something useful.
Turn your bass around, and play it 'lefty'. Do you find that difficult and uncomfortable..? Well, that's how you started out originally, the very first time you picked up the instrument. The difference in sensation is a modest measure of the improvement already found in those short three years.
It matters little enough what others think of your passion (as long as no-one is really hurt, of course..!), and not everyone will understand the pleasure to be derived from small successes and victories after weeks or months of stagnation. When it starts to go right, it may not be apparent to others, but you'll know. Persist, as long as the effort involved brings pleasure, but be patient and not so hard on yourself. It's true, some folks take up tasks with more ease than others, but they are not [i]you[/i].
In a 'worst-case' scenario, there is more to music than bass guitar, but that would involve adopting a totally different mind-set. There would still be effort and frustration, anyway.
Not sure if this helps, of course; others will surely have other views.
[/quote]

Some very good points here.

Place an ad on Bumtree for others to play and jam with, and see how you get on. Maybe that will give you the desire to carry on.

[CamdenRob]

Interests come and go over the course of a lifetime There is nothing to say that just because your losing interest now you'll feel the same a few years down the line. There is no point in forcing yourself to play, it's not compulsory... if it's no fun don;t do it I'd keep a bass under the bed and get on with other stuff in your life.

I got my first bass for my 13th birthday and played relentlessly until I was about 21. Gigging, recording etc. even had a number of students in the latter years, teaching a few nights a week... Then I got a full time job (totally none music related) and stopped playing completely for ten years until a couple of years back when I thought I'd give it a go again. Couldn't be happier playing bass now it's a hobby for me and the gigs, jams, rehearsals, recordings etc are a welcome distraction from work.

[Twigman]

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1455139007' post='2976435']


I'm not ready to join a band
[/quote]

Yes you are.
I formed a band BEFORE I'd ever picked up a bass or guitar,,,ability is not required.

[CamdenRob]

[quote name='Twigman' timestamp='1455177687' post='2976617']
I formed a band BEFORE I'd ever picked up a bass or guitar,,,ability is not required.
[/quote]

Me too... I got a bass to be in a band with some mates at school because all the cool instruments had already been taken...

[FuNkShUi]

If you're a little worried about joining a band because of your skill level, make an ad and be totally honest in your advert about where you feel your at?
Include in it that you just want to get in a band for the enjoyment first and see where it goes. Say the types of songs you want to play, or can already play.
This way you're going to get people who are thinking along similar lines to yourself.
Practice can be tedious when it has no purpose. Arrange to meet people to play through a few songs, and you got yourself a purpose!
For me, there is no feeling like hearning your bass in the context of a full band. Beats solitary practice hands down.

[CHW]

It's a difficult thing to know exactly what to say as I've no idea what it is you're struggling with. Is it being able to play all modes in all positions in every key? Is it remembering the chord changes to Blitzkreig Bop?

[leftybassman392]

I used to teach for a living. If you want to PM me I'll be happy to offer a bit of free advice about practice techniques, routines and schedules. No agenda, no pressure, no charge.