A bass guitar is in charge of the drive, rhythm, and groove in almost all music genres; it plays a very important role as it gives the music a solid foundation. So once starting and attempting to master the art of a bass guitar it will require a reasonable amount of time and dedication towards the instrument.
Should you take the bass guitar lessons? Is it necessary? Both beginners and experienced bass players wonder whether they should or should not take bass lessons. Beginners want to excel as quickly as possible and become perfect, experienced or mature players are looking for an extra bit of knowledge that will help make them even better than they already are.
Now here are six tips to help you master learning the bass guitar in simplified steps:
- Set a schedule
Once starting the bass guitar, everyone’s first concern is how often should they be practicing for and how long, the answer is very simple; you should practice as much as you as often as you can. The more practice, the better it would it be to show signs of progressing in the instrument, but the importance is not to force yourself to play as it could lead to you begin hating it and start feeling more like a daily chore you want to get out of the way. Start with possibly 2-3 times a week which I would say is a comfortable amount of time, to begin with.
Everyone has their personalities and mindsets with schedules as for some people they strictly stick to their tasks of the day, but others don’t have the time or patience to go forward with a schedule. Just remember music is a passion you can try scheduling it in during small breaks you have within the day, or even before you go to bed.
2. Tool up
Although it is difficult financially to have all the necessary tools and equipment needed for practicing and having to use on a daily basis, you don’t have to go directly for the most famous and expensive ones if you find them unaffordable, there are cheaper ones with a decent amount of quality to them that can be used as a substitute.
Some of the must needs would be the bass guitar itself, guitar cable, amplifier that would be either big or small depending on whether you want it to be portable or not and one additional not fully a priority is a guitar stand.
Finally, it would also be best to invest some money into some home recording setup, though it may be a little pricey this will help you with future recording sessions as well as using it as a practice tool while listening to your progression after each use.
3.Tips and Tricks
“Walking Bass” is a term that refers to a specific way of playing bass, it’s upon how the bass line stays in the permanent motion instead of repeating and staying on the same note. It “walks” from a chord root up and down moving on to the next.
Though it was originated through jazz and blue, the term “walking bass” through the years has been adopted in many other styles and genres. What could lead you achieving this would be using “transition notes” that smoothly connects the dots and would close the gap between different roots and chord changes.
To learn more about “Walking Bass,” you can find specified articles based on the term. Also, any other tips and tricks that would lead you to become a pro can all be found online, or even finding a simple step by step book.
4. Practicing Possibilities
A basic practice with you and your guitar isn’t the only way to enhance your knowledge and skill, just listening to music that specifically has many bass parts in songs it will help you have a better understanding and feel the difference in styles of music.
This is just a simple possible way that instead of forcing the physical practice to happen you can do all the practicing with your ear- it would result in you being less tired.
5. Stay Strong
Growing your skills can get frustrating sometimes when you realize you’re not improving as much as you had wished for. Instead of getting angry at yourself and everyone around you, think of a solution that may help you through these tough times you can even ask for advice from professional guitarists that you may or may not know.
Those small things that may have bothered you a lot as your part may have been to fast, and your fingers can’t keep up or something general that you don’t understand. Stay strong both mentally and physically.
If all else fails, using a metronome may help you get right on track and keep you on beat throughout the session, going through the different tempos until you feel you have somewhat improved and getting closer to your goal.
6. Enjoy!
When going through the process of becoming professional and overall mastering the guitar, it is very important to have fun and enjoy what you are doing. You shouldn’t forget why you started learning and play, beginning with, stay positive with all the outcomes and through time you may achieve what you desire.
So, cut it all short, the key ingredients to mastering bass guitars is consistency, staying strong in the face of failure, the right tools, and tips and start enjoying what you do rather than force yourself to do it.
