Doddy

I've not been on Basschat for ages,other than to look for gear, but I was having a nose around, saw this thread ,and decided to comment on this bit. I've heard a lot of people say that they have never been asked to read on a gig. There is a reason for this. It's because you are not a reader, so nobody will call you for those types of gigs. You will only get offered reading gigs if you put yourself out there as someone who can read. You say that rhythm is not hard for you, in which case you are over halfway there. There are far more variations in rhythm than there are notes. Without sounding like an arrogant jerk or anything, I reckon that I could have you reading some basics within a couple of hours, as probably any decent teacher could.

[quote name='timmo' timestamp='1413911600' post='2583529'] I know exactly what you are saying. The point is, if you had 5 mates who wanted to form an AC/DC tribute band, and that is all they ever want o do, is there any reason for them to learn to read music? If you want to be the best you can possibly be, then reading music is probably the best thing for you to do. I am not arguing with you on the merits of reading music, as i have a lot of respect for your answers on the theory side, but there must be some reasons why you just don`t need to read anything but tab [/quote] If you want to play in a band like that, then no you don't need to read at all.In those situations I would always recommend learning the music by ear. It's the best way of doing it. I'd still recommend to read though,if only to a basic level. Not even for gigging reasons. It just opens up a whole new world of information that was previously unavailable. I've got tons of books and magazines and I can only think of one that has any form of rhythmic notation in the tab,yet every single one has complete notation.My favourite books to study are all notation only.

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1413908095' post='2583467'] ...but this is patently not true, or only for Western music. There are many Oriental virtuosi who have only ever learnt and played by ear; it's their musical tradition. All is not Mozart; there are other idioms. [/quote] Of course that's their tradition.There is nothing wrong with that, I've never said their is.There are great players all over that play by ear. What i pointed out was that the guys who have a good ear and can read will get more work opportunities than having just one or the other. That's why guys like Nathan East and Will Lee and Steve Pearce are so busy.

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1413907860' post='2583462'] But I don't want to do theatre or cruise ship work. Therefore I don't need both. [/quote] Neither did I.....but I get them because I can do both.

[quote name='TheSiberian' timestamp='1413875846' post='2582906'] However, playing with a flat eq needs first the bass guitar to be well balanced and set up. [/quote] Its a good job that all my instruments are, then.

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1413907338' post='2583453'] You don't 'need' both unless you're likely to do a gig where it's essential that you read. [/quote] But you'll never get offered those gigs if you can't do both.

The question is, why would you not play by ear? It's an important skill to have.I'm pretty sure everyone here has learnt songs just by listening. The more you do it, the easier it becomes. I used to sit with the radio on and play along to everything that came on. When you are transcribing stuff you are basically doing the same thing, only you are putting the notes down on paper. If you can combine playing by ear with knowledge of harmony, you can pretty much play along to anything first time.

I don't think that's what Bilbo was getting at. Of course their is nothing to stop anyone from learning to read, but generally if someones thought is 'I don't need to read for my situation' they often won't feel the need to learn. What I think is interesting in this situation is that when people say that they have never had to read, I find that it's because they can't to begin with so they aren't going to get called for those gigs. If you are a good reader you will get reading gigs because people will know that you can do it.

I think there is always new things to learn. It's easy to say you don't need to practice because of this reason or that reason, but I don't think like that. Maybe I'm on a gig and didn't execute something as well as I would have liked-I now what I need to practice next day.Maybe I got thrown by reading a difficult passage, so I'll go away and practice my reading. Maybe I wasn't happy with my soloing one night. There are always things to brush up on and improve. The other thing is just learning new things for the sake of it.I'm currently working Damian Erskines excellent books.I may not need to use the 3 finger technique or some of the concepts and ideas right now, but there will be times when I will, and I want to be prepared.I also want to be better today than I was yesterday.

[quote name='timmo' timestamp='1413884394' post='2583029'] If i wanted to join a covers band and get out live, then i probably would go down the tab route [/quote] Even then, I wouldn't recommend that route. Every band (cover or otherwise) that I've worked with that uses any form of chart, uses either chord charts or notation.

I play 5 strings 90% of the time, and there are times when I don't touch the B string all night. There are other times when I might play further up the neck to give my shoulder a bit of a rest. I really don't like it when people camp out on the low B just because it's there, especially in a trio setting-it doesn't add weight, it often sound emptier.

I set up my EQ for pick playing in the same way I EQ for everything else-everything flat. The only time I EQ anything is if I have to notch out a certain frequency because if the room. I change things up by moving my right hand position. With a pick, I like to play with a more palm muted sound rather than wide open-it's a great sound. I like to use heavy picks too-the Ibanez Steve Vai ones are my favourite.

To be fair, I really like my Fender Jazz Deluxe 5 (Mexican). It plays and sounds great, and i got it for a bargain price.. I think a lot of the negativity towards Fenders five strings is unfair.

It's not easy to say if one bass would suit you because I don't know how,or what, play. The thing is, you could spend a fortune on a fancy instrument that has all the bells and whistles, but then you get a call that requires a Precision, or a fretless or something, and all of a sudden your one bass to rule them all isn't ruling anymore.

[quote name='Coilte' timestamp='1413725934' post='2581231'] http://www.gruvgear.com/duostrap Perhaps one of these is worth considering. A bit on the expensive side, but what price your health and comfort ? [size=4] [/size] [/quote] Without a doubt, the Duo Strap is the best strap I've ever used. It makes it really easy to play long nights without any shoulder ache because it balances the bass over both shoulders. I was using the Comfort Strapp before, but the Duo Strap is far superior. If you didn't want the Duo Strap, Gruv Gear also make the Solo Strap which is the same great quality but only for one shoulder.