Coilte

All the advice so far is good, though I would not accept the salted crisps advice. Things that help with cramp would be staying well hydrated, eating foods which contain potassium, warming up with gentle stretching before playing, not having a death grip on the neck, not pressing down too hard when fretting, and keeping the hand relaxed. If this troublesome pattern can be played higher on the neck, that might help too, as would playing open strings if possible

[quote name='lonestar' post='1338291' date='Aug 12 2011, 11:19 PM']Hi Jamie, Yoga stretching fingers sounds good. Warm up excercises for your hands wrists and fingers before you start playing are always a good idea especially if you're stretching. I have very small hands too and have found that 1 fret per finger on the left hand can end up being quite painful and tiring but have a pretty good stretch having been playing for years. However best advice I can offer is to keep practising those scales keeping your thumb and hand fairly fluid and mobile on the back of the neck and move around rather than stretch your fingers too hard, especially if you haven't been playing long; a good classical hand position with plenty of air between the neck and he palm is good. Also don't use excessive pressure I read some good advice a few years ago suggesting that if you fret a note and release the pressure to the point where it starts to buzz you'll be surprised to find how little grip is actually needed to hold down a note cleanly. This will enable you to move around more deftly too. Hope this helps.[/quote] The above is all very good advice. When playing on the lower frets (1-5) use the pinkie and the ring finger together. If for example when playing a note on fret 1 and fret 4 on the E string, there is no need to keep the index finger on fret 1, once it has been played. Also instead of stretching between frets, use your thumb as a pivot to sort of "swing" from on fret to another. Gentle stretching before and after playing, is always recommended...no matter what size your hands are.

If you already know the chords to the piece of music, play them on a guitar or piano ( or get someone else to do so), then try to apply some bass lines by singing them. When you think you have come up with a good line, then play it on the bass. Sometimes you limit yourself when trying to invent lines with the bass itself, because your mind may be thinking in patterns. Singing without the bass, frees up the mind in this respect.

[quote name='lanark' post='1330528' date='Aug 7 2011, 12:39 AM']+2[/quote] +3. Apart from it's possible collectible value, from a practical point of view, a G&L SB1 or SB2 would wipe the floor with it in every other way....for about a fifth of the price. Depends on whether you want an investment or a bass.

[quote name='Faithless' post='1328558' date='Aug 5 2011, 12:09 PM']Personally, I'm frustrated about becoming a good player in a long run, and the problem is that even the right practice can't guarantee me that - that's where frustration happens.[/quote] Frustration certainly wont make anyone a good player in the long run, and while there is no guarantee that patient methodical practice will either, my money will always be on the latter.

[quote name='Blademan_98' post='1328133' date='Aug 5 2011, 12:59 AM']I lent my fretless to a friend. He proceeded to take out a pick and play I told him 'NO' and took it off him. It may just be my personal opinion, but on no account should you play fretless with a pick![/quote] You are entitled to, and I respect your opinion. However, I dont understand it. With music, and playing it, nothing is ever written in stone. Before Jaco ripped out the frets on his jazz bass, I'm sure the general consensus of the day was, "on no account should you play fretless". If people want to experiment, and in the process they like what they hear, then what's the problem ????? As I said, you are entitled to [b]your[/b] opinion, but dont force it on others.

[quote name='Doddy' post='1327775' date='Aug 4 2011, 08:55 PM']Even when taking small steps,you see frustration in a player when they struggle with something new. I see it all the time when I'm teaching-you give someone an exercise and if they can't get it right away they get annoyed with it.The difference comes when one person takes that annoyance as an incentive to be able to nail it,while another will just dismiss it.The one who works through it will have a greater degree of satisfaction at the end of it. I'm not arguing about starting with a solid foundation and building your way up but at every level you should get challenged,and it's how you handle that challenge that makes the difference. I've never seen anyone not get at least a little frustrated when they are struggling with something new to them.[/quote] I basically agree with you. I never denied that some frustration is inevitable, or that you must challange yourself. That's part of the learning process. My point is that if a person jumps too far ahead, they may find themselves out of their dept, not overcome or solve the problem, and become so frustrated as to impinge their progress, and their general attitude to learning. The trick IMO, is keeping the frustration to a minimum. You'll learn and progress much more if practice is [b]fun.[/b]

[quote name='Doddy' post='1327407' date='Aug 4 2011, 04:53 PM']I suppose it depends on what kind of person you are. My goal as a player is to be better than I am now,so I naturally practice stuff that is beyond me.If it means I get a feeling of frustration because I'm struggling with it,I can be sure that I'll work on it until I can play it-which is when I get a feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment that is far greater than any amount of frustration I felt a couple of hours earlier.[/quote] I agree that it depends on the type of person. There is not a musician alive who does not strive to be better than they are now. A person wont progress by playing or practicing things they already know. However, you can make better progress in the long term (not to mention avoiding too much frustration) by taking practice in small steps. For example, a new player picking up bass for the first time is unlikely to learn much by diving straight into modes. He/she needs to learn the notes on the fretboard first, then scales and chords ect. The perfect way to practice IMO is to start at the bottom and build on the information learned in the previous session. Otherwise, later on you will discover that you missed something crucial along the way, and have to back track. You have to learn to walk before you can run. As I said in my other post, to do it right is a life time process. Jumping the gun is not the way to go.

[quote name='Bilbo' post='1324354' date='Aug 2 2011, 03:18 PM']If you haven't got a knot of frustration in your stomach when you are practising, you are probably not learning anything new and should find something more challenging/demanding which does produce that visceral effect.[/quote] IMO, frustration is a hindrance. It means you are setting your goals too high, and if this situation does not change, there is a possibility that a person would give up altogether. Learning any instrument to it's full potential is a life time process which never ends. This learning process is best done in small increments, keeping the goals within reason. The idea is to enjoy the ride.

I joined "Basschat" only recently. This is my first post, so a big "Hi"! to all. Back on topic : OP, while it is very important to know your scales inside and out, [b]CHORD TONES[/b] are what a bassist plays 95% of the time. I would recommend learning the different inversions of the major and minor chords for a start. Here are some links that you may find useful. [url="http://www.scribd.com/doc/387695/Jeff-Berlin-A-Comprehensive-Chord-Tone-System-for-Mastering-the-Bass-1987"]http://www.scribd.com/doc/387695/Jeff-Berl...g-the-Bass-1987[/url] [url="http://www.studybass.com/lessons/bass-chord-patterns/chord-tones-are-primary/"]http://www.studybass.com/lessons/bass-chor...es-are-primary/[/url]