Davemarks

[quote name='Golchen' post='513000' date='Jun 13 2009, 09:17 PM']You guys did a brilliant job backing again Dave! I really love the guitar idol competition. I'd be interested who you liked playing with best. There was some great stuff going down. Personally I really like the rock n roll vibe of the brazillian guy with the white strat who was in the final last year as well, he just owns the stage like no one else! My favourite overall was Daniele Gottardo, but I don't know who won yet as I couldn't stay till 4.15. I hung around for 5 hours and could have stayed longer, but I was irked by the excessive parking fees. For bass playing only I guess the show isn't so great, but as a multi-instrumentalist it was heaven! Got to meet and chat with one of my biggest guitar heroes again - Guthrie Govan. Also I really liked Nick d'virgilio's drum session on the main stage. All in all a great day out![/quote] Nice one dude - we had an absolute blast, although it's a bit early in the morning to be doing stuff like that. My favourite to play with was definitely Gustavo du padua! That guy's vibe is like a mile wide! Jack Tharramat from Thailand won - admittedly, he was awesome, so it was good work. I'll post ablog on my website soon that has more info.... d

I'll be handling the bass duties at the Guitar Idol show on Saturday morning. Some scary players on this year and some wicked tunes. You can see me getting a full on roasting.. 12 different guys, 12 different tunes... full on.

I made a video discussing this very topic... perhaps it may help a little. [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=df0sFG7FqSQ"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=df0sFG7FqSQ[/url] d

I finally got it all fixed. People have hacked my site. WTF????

some thoughts on pick related issues. I get some mad comments back on youtube. 'picks are for chicks.' that's a favourite.... [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ogkw-uR_wIs"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ogkw-uR_wIs[/url]

Hey Guys (and gurls) I'm gearing up to record a whole new bunch of Youtube bass goodies over the xmas period, but in a slightly unusual twist, my band (in which I play the most traitorous of tricks... guitar!) has just released a free downloadable ep. It has quite an unusual twist involved in the songs and it also has a crest as the ep cover. Not enough bands out there with crests. Heck, we may even give ourselves a motto in Latin... In the lead up to our album release in February we will be getting up to all sorts of shenanigans much of which will find its way onto my youtube channel. In the meantime, if you'd like to check it out (it's free!! I mean why wouldn't you?) just click on this link and you'll be able to download the tunes as a zip folder or as a free podcast on iTunes.. [url="http://www.jowebb.com/greatesthits/"]http://www.jowebb.com/greatesthits/[/url]

Hey guys - I just wanted to add a big shout out to Gary Pris and Stevie. UK bass day is a phenomenal event and events like this are so important for developing a sense of community among the musicians in this country. It has a great range of gear and a top shelf line-up of artists - I went as a performer but also as a fan and had such a fun day. It was great to see Janek play again and cool to hang with him. I was gutted that I couldn't get there early enough to see Yolanda. Richard Bona is a beautiful human being and for me, a musician with few equals. Awe inspiring. Also, a big thank you to all the people that came and watched my trio perform - you were a great audience - there was such a fantastic energy coming from the crowd and I really can't describe how vibed up I was. It was a bit mad. It definitely goes in the book as one of my most enjoyable playing experiences ever. Honestly. I noticed a chap in the audience was recording it on a video camera... I'd love to get a copy for the college website and for my own Youtube. If anyone knows that man... hook me up!! roll on Bass day 2009... d

[quote name='bubinga5' post='247137' date='Jul 24 2008, 06:36 PM']Thanks Dave enjoyed that, oohhh that Sei tone!!! Any thoughts on your next set of tutorials? Andy.[/quote] Sacrilege - I'm gonna put up a few guitar vids...!!! I'll be posting some more tutorials for bass soon though - just been mad busy gigging and producing... Dave

I've just put up a few new clips from some gigs I did in Monaco recently... [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-YFBzEHFiM"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-YFBzEHFiM[/url] [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsEhK9QHgP4"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsEhK9QHgP4[/url] Some great playing happening on this thread.... Dave

I believe its all happening between 10:30 - 1 pm on Sat Morning.... Would be cool to see you guys there - some of the music were playing is real good straightahead rock stuff and some of it is quite mad... Balkan folk and Dream Theater type stuff... Come along and say hi if you get a chance... Dave

Hey guys - I'll be playing at the LIMS - I'm in the house band for the Ernie Ball Guitar Idol competition, so if you'd like to see me getting roasted, come on over. 6 days to go, 12 mad instrumental tracks to learn in my spare time (of which I have about 20 mins... fun.) Dave

get yourself a nice Compressor pedal - the EBS multicomp is awesome. It'll help give you that boost to hep the slap stuff cut through.... Dave

[quote name='thedonutman' post='205930' date='May 25 2008, 12:51 PM']I have a feeling my pinky sticks out when I'm playing, better watch out for that...... As a side note, what amp are you using? You're Jazz sounds awesome.[/quote] It's straight into the sound card - a Digidesign MBox with a little compression from the Massey CT 4 plugin and a little eq from the pro tools 4 band eq. The rest is just that lovely bass... Dave

Hey y'all - I've just started posting a new series of vids on my Youtube page. This one deals with bad habits - mostly technique-related that I've seen in many students and lots of players on the net. Feel free to have a watch... [url="http://youtube.com/profile_play_list?user=davemarks"]http://youtube.com/profile_play_list?user=davemarks[/url] Dave

Hey y'all - I just pinched this off the Institute website. Thought there might be some monster bassists here who'd like a free years worth of studying: Monday, April 07, 2008 2008 Institute Scholarships are launched! Every year, in conjunction with our key industry partners, the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance awards a range of full and partial scholarships for study on the Higher Diploma. Again, this year we will be awarding a full scholarship and one partial scholarship on each of the four instruments; Bass Scholarship (worth £4,950) Sponsored by Musicman and supported by Bass Guitar Magazine Guitar Scholarship (worth £4,950) Sponsored by Yamaha and supported by Musicradar.com Drum Scholarship (worth £4,950) Sponsored by Mapex/Paiste and supported by Drummer Magazine Vocal Scholarship (worth £4,950) Each partial scholarship, with one for each programme, is worth £2,500 What you have to do To apply for the scholarship award you must video record and submit a solo performance of yourself. You may use a backing track, but if you do please make sure that you are clearly audible above it. Your submission must be a MAXIMUM of three minutes in length (please note we will not view the submission for longer than three minutes). The performance must be submitted either on a DVD or sent electronically as either a ’.mov’ file or a ’.wmv’ file. Any other format will not be considered a valid application. If you are unsure, please contact our admissions team for advice on the submission methods. The entire performance must be one continuous and static shot with no editing or post-production. For your guidance, please try to demonstrate a range of styles and an ability to improvise. Alongside the video submission, you must complete the "Higher Diploma Scholarship Application Form." This will record basic contact information as well as include a 300-word essay detailing the reasons why you believe yourself worthy of consideration. You will be judged on your playing abilities, which must be clearly demonstrated in the recording, and your 300 word personal statement. The quality of the ACTUAL recording will not be judged. The eight best applicants in each category will be chosen and invited to perform at the grand final, no later than two weeks before the event. At the grand final, you will have to perform live in front of a panel of judges and undergo a short interview. Your performance should be no longer than five minutes in length and again you can use backing tracks. Finalists must use the backline provided by the Institute, although FX pedals and bass drum pedals are permitted. If you have any special technical requirements please contact the Institute for further information. The final prizes will be awarded based on the live performance and candidate’s suitability for study at the Institute. GOOD LUCK! The closing date for your application is Friday 18th July

Hey chaps - The institute have asked me to spread the word about a clinic we have coming up this week...rock-tastic, to say the least... Places are limited, so give them a call asap! Oh yeah and it's free.... [b]STOP PRESS! MARCO MENDOZA & TOMMY ALDRIDGE LAST-MINUTE VISIT TO INSTITUTE ON WEDNESDAY 19TH MARCH![/b] When Marco Mendoza calls up and says that he and Tommy Aldrige, his drum partner-in-crime with Whitesnake and Thin Lizzy are in town, and can they drop in to play exclusively for your students, you don’t say no! Marco is an extremely versatile and gifted musician who commands the highest respect from the bass community. His forte is definitely within the Rock genre, as his playing credits with Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy and Ted Nugent indicate, but he is a far more versatile musician than that. For example, when he’s not touring he can often be found playing local LA jazz clubs with Joey Heredia and Renato Neto! On Wednesday 19th March from 7:00pm to 9:00pm Marco and drum legend Tommy Aldridge will be gracing the Institute with their presence to host an extremely exclusive Whitesnake/Thin Lizzy rhythm section masterclass. This is a rare and very special opportunity and to celebrate we are making limited seats available to the public; call us now to reserve your place! UPCOMING EVENTS: • OPEN DAY Come and see for yourself why the Institute is rated as one of the world’s finest schools of modern music, on Saturday 17th May from 1pm to 4pm. • MAKE MODEL SECRET GIG Recently signed to EMI, Make Model will be making their way to the Institute to headline an exclusive gig at the Luminaire on Tuesday 8th April. Doors open at 8pm and entry is free. Contact us to place your name on to the guest list. If you are interested in attending these events, to enrol on a course or for further information, contact the Institute team directly on: ? 020 7328 0222 ? [email protected] ? www.icmp.uk.com

To add to all that's been said, i feel it is essential to understand how the industry has changed - people like to buy sh*t. They buy rubbish magazines full of celebrity gossip, watch big brother and generally popularise and promote the value of soul-less rubbish. Gone are the days when bands can take 6 months or a year to make an album, where a lukewarm second album could lead to an awesome 3rd... a lukewarm 2nd album will get you dropped. Rec companies will fund you for a couple of weeks of recording... With all of the technology that we have today, very poor musicians can be bolstered and supported into making good albums while genuinely good musicians struggle to be heard unless they wish to play pumping quarter notes on a Kylie record. Gone are the days of Pino, Chuck Rainey, Steve Gadd et al playing awesome parts on pop albums. The music industry is in a bad place these days. I wonder if there was ever a time when it wasn't this hard... If anyone watched the Xmas special of Extras - this is so true to life it's heartbreaking. Don't hate the player, hate the game... :-)

This topic is awesome and has turned into something of a monster. I would LOVE to meet up and engage some people for a roundtable discussion that we could throw at the mag... A chat about the importance of technique and theory in playing and the benefits / drawbacks of different educational approaches. I live in West London. I'm sure I could get a free, quiet room to chat in the Institute in kilburn. Anyone game for it? Dave

Great players, performers, writers, engineers, producers etc etc will make it with or without music college. The reason they are singularly brilliant places is because it gives those individuals time to get their sh*t together, un-molested by the ravages of commerce, mortgage, bills etc and removes them from the distractions of "real job" needs and wants. Everybody else will be rewarded to the appropriate standard of their personal achievement, musically or otherwise. Jake [/quote] Beautifully put.

[quote name='composer' post='117628' date='Jan 10 2008, 09:17 AM']perhaps alternatives to the education were talking about may be the answer. like bassmasterclass.com[/quote] Are we plugging something? Looks v cool though.... Dave

[quote name='silverfoxnik' post='116706' date='Jan 9 2008, 12:49 AM']Some very well expressed and quite profound thoughts that I have to agree with you on Dave and it's obvious you believe strongly in teaching as a good thing and, I definitely agree with you on that. I also agree with you that having guidance and help is good too - doesn't matter whether you're Mozart or McCartney; you had to be guided and inspired from someone or somewhere in the beginning. And certainly one of the most recurring and depressing scenarios I used to encounter when I was an artist manager for 7 years, was that many very talented musicians/artists just weren't honest with themselves or willing to listen to other talented/experienced/supportive people in order to develop themselves and their talent. Usually, that led to them not fulfilling their potential, which was such a waste of talent.. But equally, as Jebo1 says: [i]"The idea of musical tuition is something everyone here agrees with, I certainly benefited from being taught, and I'm sure everyone on here has had positive, illuminating and downright life-changing (in a musical sense) revelations from lessons. No-one denies this. The problem is when music colleges try and sell to influential youngsters the idea that they can obtain all of the musical experience and skills they require to become a well paid (or at least financially solvent) professional musician from a college course taught by (in some cases at least) unsuccessful musicians. I think this is disingenous."[/i] And maybe that Jebos1's point has hit the nail on the head because I suspect that neither the majority of musicians attending these courses nor the people who run them are really interested in the 'art' of it all - what they are really more interested in is the 'business' and the 'means to an end' of it all??[/quote] one of the sad aspects of modern society. Everyone has a myspace. Everyone can get on TV. Everyone can play an instrument and become a musician... oops. No they can't. Unfortunately lots of people have been raised to feel that they can be whatever they want, because no-one is allowed to write a bad reference or tell you what you can't do well. The power of bullshit mass media. I want it now. I don't want to have to work or wait. Make me awesome. In education establishments all over the world they churn out millions of graduates. Some are passable. Most are good. A few are great. Very few will make a difference to their chosen trade / profession / artform. I think in most cases the best a teacher can do is hope to make you 'good.' To educe (the word we get educate from) means 'to bring out that which is within.' If you are not an artist (most people aren't - even good performers.. pop Idol anyone?) with an internal passion and drive to express something, then there is little a teacher can do, other than train you to be 'good' and hope that you find your way to that glorious lightbulb moment.... P.S - sorry if I appear to be ranting a lot on this topic. I'm thinking a lot these days about teaching and the processes that it entails. Been reading up and trying to improve and this debate has got my wheels turning....

[quote name='Jebo1' post='116685' date='Jan 9 2008, 12:06 AM']"By studying with BIMM/ACM (delete as applicable) we will supply you with the skills you need to go out and become a professional musician" This is a lie.[/quote] This isn't a lie. It's a very slippery use of wording. We will supply you with skills (reading, technique, styles etc) you must [b]go out and become[/b] a pro musician. the onus is on the student to commit to a certain (i.e. huge) amount of the task. Most students don't. In any school or college, in any subject. 'The nature of the rain is the same but it produces grass in the meadow and thorns in the swamp.' A great eastern proverb. And whoever wrote 'there are no bad students, only bad teachers' was obviously an awful student who needed someone else to blame. The problem here really, is when it's sold like a weight loss pill, or nicorette. They write in tiny letters: 'requires willpower' Hopefully, people will shop around, look for what's on offer, consider their options very carefully and choose a path that is good for them, with eyes wide open. If someone just signs up to a course and expects the moon on a stick, then they are getting an expensive lesson in reality.

Ooops. It's a bit naughty to name and shame like that, although I feel relieved that no one is trashing the Institute. It's important to recognise that these different schools are each entirely unique and have very different philosophies. It bothers me somewhat that we are talking about 'those schools' like they are all the same. I really cannot attest to the quality of the other establishments or the level of their graduating students each year. I have seen so many students from my classes go on to work in the music industry. Maybe as a player, a tech, a teacher, a programmer in a studio, a manager, a gig / event organiser - these are all viable jobs and they don't need to be at the top level to earn someone money and make them happy in their life. In some cases these are jobs that somone developed a passion for while studying and in some cases they fell into an opportunity that presented itself. In many cases, they were good people and good players who improved during the time I knew them. On day one of term one, there are very few students I have ever seen (probably none) that I would refer for work. A couple of sobering thoughts that I present to expand on this topic: 1. It's important to contemplate - in an industry that is shrinking, that has less and less money to pay to musicians, don't we think that being properly trained will boost our chances of winning a place? I don't mean having a degree or diploma. I mean being trained. For at least one year. Hardcore. 2. One of the last sessions I did for a 'breaking artist' I was given the pay sheet breakdown from Universal records. They pay the Monitor tech more money than the musicians. 3. If everyone has a degree these days and we think that makes them meaningless, surely then not having a degree sets you a rung below the expected standard?

[quote name='ARGH' post='114915' date='Jan 6 2008, 07:51 PM']Im in a rock and a hard place on this one... Im being interviewed for Bristol Bimm on Tuesday,and I think Im going to cancel. Bar learning to read to a better standard,I think its a waste of money,you can learn just as much ,if not more ,real experience in a Covers/functions band... I did,that last 4 years have been a drag,but I did get paid.[/quote] Here...

I'd love to get Jeff Berlin in on this thread. I remember him saying something along the lines of: 'most people who want to teach themselves don't know what they need to learn.' it's like trying to use a map that you are drawing as you drive the route. It's much easier to have someone with you who knows the way and can direct you to your goal, whatever that may be. (whether that be a private tutor, a friend or a school) To imply that we'd all be better off just locking ourselves away in a practice room bashing away at Brown eyed girl and mustang sally (possibly at the wrong tempo, with bass fills in the wrong key and a few notes in the groove the wrong length) is madness to me. Often, one's goals in an artform are determined by their understanding of the art. i.e - when we start playing, if we can play something that sounds remotely like a bassline we love, it creates a feeling of incredible uplifting success. For some, that concept progresses, for others... it doesn't really change. I also find it strange that some of us seem to have a predetermined notion of what it means to 'succeed' as a musician. Personally I feel that if you truly love music, studying it would only make you more objective about your playing, help you to really 'hear' what you sound like, give you more heartfelt experiences and bring you a greater understanding of the art. Regardless of the gigs you play and whether you're a 'big name' in the music world, to play music well in an honest and heartfelt way is a beautiful thing in itself. Art is an outward expression of an inner emotion and some people are more tied up with the feeling it gives them than the feeling it gives others. I can't teach someone how to emote but I can be honest with them when they are not giving me anything and try to help them get past that lack of objectivity. Explain to them that they don't have to slap so fast or play all those fills, that their tone is important, that every note has a purpose with in a riff and that slapping in a ballad or soloing bebop in a reggae tune is inappropriate and selfish. The sad fact is, most people aren't honest enough with themselves. That's why being taught is a beautiful thing. P.S. Every week I have a wing chun instructor who's 4 inches shorter than me and 2 stone lighter teach me that being bigger or stronger doesn't win a fight. That's a fact that I'm happy to now realise. I'm not as tough as I thought I was. But I'm getting a little better every week....