Coilte

[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]