Need some free bass lessons!

[alexclaber]

It's tough enough earning a good living as a fulltime musician without people going around offering a valuable service for nothing! A good teacher is worth paying for.

Alex

[steve-soar]

[quote name='alexclaber' post='485621' date='May 12 2009, 09:24 AM']It's tough enough earning a good living as a fulltime musician without people going around offering a valuable service for nothing! A good teacher is worth paying for.

Alex[/quote]I certainly don't teach for free, I charge a very resonable rate to my pupils and I love doing it.
I use the years of hard work, resarch and knoweledge that I have accumulated over the years and then try to impart this in a relaxed friendly manner to my pupils.
Nothing is free in life and anything worthwhile should carry a premium.

I'm certain Alex loves the research and construction of his speaker builds but I certainly wouldn't have the gall to ask for a freebie.

[OutToPlayJazz]

I'm feeling charitable today, so anytime you're around Leeds/Doncaster area or further Eastwards, drop in I live about 2 miles from the Humber Bridge.

[AM1]

[quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='485629' date='May 12 2009, 09:34 AM']I'm feeling charitable today, so anytime you're around Leeds/Doncaster area or further Eastwards, drop in I live about 2 miles from the Humber Bridge.[/quote]

Thanks mate - it's much appreciated. I'll possible be in that area later in the month, if not early next month, will take you up on it!

Likewise, my offer to come and try the P-Bass still stands, anytime. EDIT - Jazz is banned though

For all this holier than thou nonsense here about not giving free lessons - I've taught plenty of people plenty of skills that I'm qualified to teach, over the years, at no charge.

What I got out of that was helping persons, who would otherwise not be in a position to avail of that kind of tuition and would possibly give up without a bit of help. That's worth far more to me than what I would have earned from it.

The world is not all about money.

Edited May 12, 2009 by AM1

[steve-soar]

I totally agree that the world should not only be about money but if you are trying to pay bills and make ends meet....

[alexclaber]

I suppose my thinking is that there is a difference between really wanting lessons yet being unable to pay for them and really wanting lessons and not wanting to pay for them. Hard to know which of those you are though your past posts unfortunately suggest the latter.

Alex

[51m0n]

Look, what you are talking about (strings ringing, slowness when switching strings) is normal.

This is precisely where what I've been talking about (slow right down, concentrate on one tiny aspect and work super hard on that) is what you need to do.

You dont need lessons, you dont need someone there to point out what is wrong.

You need to be patient.

You need to find the exact issue, using the technique I mentioned previously.

You need to work slowly but with absolute precision and very gradually speed up.

In this way you will find exercises that you target at exactly your weaknesses. You will build 'muscle memory' and familiarity with a way of doing these things that works for you and solves your problems. There is NO quick fix. No teacher will have a magic bullet or actually tell you anything else other than what I have said. They may have some stock exercises - thats all.

Lastly remember that proper damping is always a function of both left and right hand technique. One without the other is never as good.

DO NOT TRY AND RUSH THIS!!!!!

Can you play the classic one finger per fret exercise at 120 bpm 16th notes cleanly. I bet you cant. I find it damned hard personally. Can you play 1 single note 16th notes cleanly at 120bpm? Can you alternate legato/staccato 16th notes at 120 bpm?
How fast can you play 16th notes swung hard? 100bpm? 90bpm? Perfectly?? For a full minute?

If you want to concentrate on technique, buy an exercise book to record your progress in and a metronome, and treat it like weight training. It will take you about 6 to 9 months in all likelihood, of careful managed exercise to get up to 140bpm swung staccato 16th notes for a full minute. Now try string skipping fifths, now octaves, now ascending scales in thirds, now scales on one string. Blah blah blah blah. You dont need a teacher to come up with exercises like this. They are obvious. You need to start slow. Record you progress in a book, get serious about commiting the time and effort. Dont do more than 15 minutes a day. Stop if you hands hurt or feel uncomfortable.

Warning, the reason so few people get that fast and precise is because it is very hard work, takes a very long time and is incredibly tedious. The reason I mentioned Michael Manring's vid is he ignores music theory in his hand exercises and instead works all the permutations of one finger followed by another. Hence he can play anything in any position.

If you arent getting anywhere in a year then you need some one on one guidance. Save £10 a week and you'll have enough for 10 lesson of an hour each with a top teacher. If that happens you didnt do it right......

Good Luck!

[AM1]

[quote name='alexclaber' post='485646' date='May 12 2009, 09:48 AM']I suppose my thinking is that there is a difference between really wanting lessons yet being unable to pay for them and really wanting lessons and not wanting to pay for them. Hard to know which of those you are though your past posts unfortunately suggest the latter.

Alex[/quote]

Where did I state, explicitly, that I am asking for free lessons because I simply don't want to pay for them? That is utter nonsense.

Why don't you try finding things out instead of making assumptions.

[steve-soar]

[quote name='AM1' post='484711' date='May 11 2009, 12:02 AM']In true cheapskate style, I'm looking for some freebie bass lessons.

Last time I checked my pockets, there were dead flies in there haha, so no chance of any coinage appearing for anyone mad enough to offer me some free bass lessons, but I might stretch to a beer. In some cheap rathole. HAHA.

I'm crap, but ultra enthusiastic and hardworking.[/quote]


.....errr, first line of your post, dim wit.

[OutToPlayJazz]

No problem, after all, even though I do earn my living from music, I've found over the years that a bit of goodwill in the music world goes a long way.

[AM1]

[quote name='steve-soar' post='485653' date='May 12 2009, 09:54 AM'].....errr, first line of your post, dim wit.[/quote]

Yeah - cheapskate = work out the euphemisms here.

Edited May 15, 2009 by AM1

[AM1]

[quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='485656' date='May 12 2009, 09:57 AM']No problem, after all, even though I do earn my living from music, I've found over the years that a bit of goodwill in the music world goes a long way.[/quote]

Thank you, it's very decent of you.

Nice to know there are some decent people in the world still.

A few pricks too.

[steve-soar]

That hurt.

[steve-soar]

[quote name='AM1' post='485658' date='May 12 2009, 09:58 AM']Yeah - cheapskate = work out the euphemisms here, redundant, broke, f*cked - whatever else you can think of.

Knob.[/quote]That's 2 knobs and a prick so far, any advance?

[AM1]

[quote name='steve-soar' post='485663' date='May 12 2009, 10:02 AM']That's 2 knobs and a prick so far, any advance?[/quote]

Well, you did leap into my polite thread, asking for a bit of help, to accuse me of being a troll and then a dimwit.

What did you expect, hugs and cookies?

[cheddatom]

[quote name='AM1' post='485664' date='May 12 2009, 10:04 AM']Well, you did leap into my polite thread, asking for a bit of help, to accuse me of being a troll and then a dimwit.

What did you expect, hugs and cookies?[/quote]

You're really rude sometimes. He called you a troll after you were rude.

[AM1]

[quote name='cheddatom' post='485665' date='May 12 2009, 10:05 AM']You're really rude sometimes. He called you a troll after you were rude.[/quote]

Complete and utter bollocks.

Where was I rude to him (or indeed anyone) before that in this thread - his first post in my thread was to accuse me of being a troll, then have a go at me for asking for help.

[jakenewmanbass]

[quote name='AM1' post='485638' date='May 12 2009, 09:42 AM']For all this holier than thou nonsense here about not giving free lessons - I've taught plenty of people plenty of skills that I'm qualified to teach, over the years, at no charge.[/quote]

I hope you're not including me in that....
I think asking a favour should carry with it a perfectly reasonable acceptance of refusal. You're hardly ingratiating yourself by calling people knobs, and if you're going to take umbrage ("holier than thou?") at refusal then I don't really think you have a place asking. I get the feeling OTPJ knows you as, lucky for you because if your language and attitude here was all that you were being judged on I would be doubtful you'd get anyone to talk to let alone give you tuition. You note that I refer to your online persona. I don't know you and don't wish to judge your daily countenance, I hope you understand that I'm trying to let you know how (I, at least) feel you come across. If you don't care about that then you're certainly not deserving of favour.

[steve-soar]

[quote name='steve-soar' post='485546' date='May 12 2009, 07:41 AM']Stop spending money on beer and save for some lessons.[/quote]Wrong, this was my first reply.

[lowdown]

If you are strapped for cash because you are unemployed,
What about approaching a teacher and asking if they do concession days?
I know of a few [top teachers]who devote one day a week to concession days.
Children, jobless, etc.


Garry

Edited May 12, 2009 by lowdown

[ARGH]

[quote name='lowdown' post='485678' date='May 12 2009, 10:13 AM']If you are strapped for cash because you are unemployed,
What about approaching a teacher and asking if they do concession days?
I know of a few [top teachers]who devote one day a week to concession days.
Children, jobless etc.


Garry[/quote]
+1

Nice distracting thread this.

[alexclaber]

[quote name='AM1' post='485651' date='May 12 2009, 09:52 AM']Where did I state, explicitly, that I am asking for free lessons because I simply don't want to pay for them? That is utter nonsense.

Why don't you try finding things out instead of making assumptions.[/quote]

Being a car enthusiast I tend to remember things like this:

[url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=34763&st=20&p=360545&#entry360545"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=...mp;#entry360545[/url]

You can understand my confusion.

Alex

[steve-soar]

[quote name='ARGH' post='485680' date='May 12 2009, 10:15 AM']+1

Nice distracting thread this.[/quote]I know, I've got the morning off, so I really should be playing my bass, or working on the arrangement of the song we were doing at rehearsals last night instaed of troll baiting.

[AM1]

Hi again Simon

Nice to see some great advice in amongst the noise!

Answers below:

[quote name='51m0n' post='485648' date='May 12 2009, 09:49 AM']Look, what you are talking about (strings ringing, slowness when switching strings) is normal.

This is precisely where what I've been talking about (slow right down, concentrate on one tiny aspect and work super hard on that) is what you need to do.

You dont need lessons, you dont need someone there to point out what is wrong.

You need to be patient.

You need to find the exact issue, using the technique I mentioned previously.

You need to work slowly but with absolute precision and very gradually speed up.[/quote]

OK - I take your point...lessons are not the substitute for me identifying what is going wrong here.

[quote name='51m0n' post='485648' date='May 12 2009, 09:49 AM']In this way you will find exercises that you target at exactly your weaknesses. You will build 'muscle memory' and familiarity with a way of doing these things that works for you and solves your problems. There is NO quick fix. No teacher will have a magic bullet or actually tell you anything else other than what I have said. They may have some stock exercises - thats all.

Lastly remember that proper damping is always a function of both left and right hand technique. One without the other is never as good.

DO NOT TRY AND RUSH THIS!!!!![/quote]

OK - I understand. But when I slow down, I hear that ringing..but I just don't know exactly what damping methods to use to kill it. That's the fundamental part of the problem. That's why I thought lessons would help. But I take your point absolutely, there's no magic solution. You deal in hard truths, that's a good thing!

[quote name='51m0n' post='485648' date='May 12 2009, 09:49 AM']Can you play the classic one finger per fret exercise at 120 bpm 16th notes cleanly. I bet you cant. I find it damned hard personally. Can you play 1 single note 16th notes cleanly at 120bpm? Can you alternate legato/staccato 16th notes at 120 bpm?
How fast can you play 16th notes swung hard? 100bpm? 90bpm? Perfectly?? For a full minute?[/quote]

No, you are right...and logic says if I can't do it cleanly at speed, then I need to slow it right down to the point where I can play it totally cleanly. I just need to figure out the best damping technique, because even doing it really slowly, I can still hear resonance from other strings..particularly on recording. It sounds like crap and I need to fix it before I go any further.

[quote name='51m0n' post='485648' date='May 12 2009, 09:49 AM']If you want to concentrate on technique, buy an exercise book to record your progress in and a metronome, and treat it like weight training. It will take you about 6 to 9 months in all likelihood, of careful managed exercise to get up to 140bpm swung staccato 16th notes for a full minute. Now try string skipping fifths, now octaves, now ascending scales in thirds, now scales on one string. Blah blah blah blah. You dont need a teacher to come up with exercises like this. They are obvious. You need to start slow. Record you progress in a book, get serious about commiting the time and effort. Dont do more than 15 minutes a day. Stop if you hands hurt or feel uncomfortable.[/quote]

Ok, yes, octaves are a particular issue! When you use thumb anchored technique..what is the proper way to cross the strings? What about coming back down? I know about raking but when I rake the strings, how do I stop the one above from ringing??? Even if I try to damp with my left hand, I don't get full damping.

[quote name='51m0n' post='485648' date='May 12 2009, 09:49 AM']Warning, the reason so few people get that fast and precise is because it is very hard work, takes a very long time and is incredibly tedious. The reason I mentioned Michael Manring's vid is he ignores music theory in his hand exercises and instead works all the permutations of one finger followed by another. Hence he can play anything in any position.[/quote]

No - you're absolutely right. Spot on. I needed to hear this from someone who has teaching experience (which I believe you have). But it's the same with most things, the pursuit of excellence is truly tedious much of the time, but always worth the reward! I suppose I was expecting a tutor to impart some magic wisdom but I now realise the error of my ways! That Michael Manring vid though, have you only ever seen VHS or is there a DVD? I can't find anything that resembles what you described.

[quote name='51m0n' post='485648' date='May 12 2009, 09:49 AM']If you arent getting anywhere in a year then you need some one on one guidance. Save £10 a week and you'll have enough for 10 lesson of an hour each with a top teacher. If that happens you didnt do it right......
Good Luck![/quote]

OK, I will start again with scales and the metronome. Thanks very much for taking the time and effort to help me with this, it's appreciated!

[AM1]

[quote name='steve-soar' post='485675' date='May 12 2009, 10:13 AM']Wrong, this was my first reply.[/quote]


Oh yes that's right, your constructive advice that permeates all the way through the thread.

You're clearly bored.

I'm not a troll.

If you can't offer something of value in the thread, then please disengage yourself from it.

I apologise for calling you a knob.