AM1

[quote name='Mokl' post='360456' date='Dec 21 2008, 08:22 PM']I'd lay right off the playing and get it checked out by a doctor asap. Trying to play through it may just exacerbate the problem and make recovery a much more drawn out process. It may be something very minor, but I would urge you to get it looked at - for peace of mind if nothing else. Good luck![/quote] F_ck that - doctors are C*nts!

[quote name='Josh' post='360448' date='Dec 21 2008, 08:15 PM']A Ganglion cyst maybe?[/quote] Yeah I think so, but it's never caused any pain, now it's f_cking throbbing, I'm not impressed! I had synced loads of tunes into my iPod to play this evening!

Hi, been playing a few weeks now and before this only really picked up a bass less than a handful (haha) of times in the past. I don't play with bent wrists as I physically cannot bend my wrist much or it hurts, there is a small lump there which I've had for ages but never caused any pain til I started playing bass! Right now my hand is in agony and I can't play any more this evening. Regards AM

My wrist (fretting hand) really hurts! It gets progressively sorer when I play, to the point where I can't play any more and this is limiting my practice, it is really frustrating. Haven't even played for that long today, only about two hours and it's throbbing like a mofo. Any ideas what I can do would be much appreciated! Cheers AM

[quote name='Protium' post='360385' date='Dec 21 2008, 06:26 PM']A multitude of effects and a tri-amp system I believe. [url="http://www.musewiki.org/Bass"]http://www.musewiki.org/Bass[/url][/quote] Thanks for that link, I've never seen that before!! I saw Muse at Wembley, it seriously, seriously rocked. Happy days Cheers AM

Aloha How do Muse get that "digital" sound on the bass, is it a bass synth?? If so, how do they work, I haven't seen one. Do you just plug it in then choose a sound??? Rgds AM

[quote name='MacDaddy' post='360164' date='Dec 21 2008, 12:26 PM']A couple of years ago, I wasn't treated too well and was lied to, at the one in Camden. So the following week I spent £2.5K at The Bass Merchant .[/quote] I have to disagree, in the strongest possible terms. I have been in that shop multiple times in recent weeks, just playing different basses while trying to make my mind up. I explained my dilemma between Warwick and Fender jazz bass and the fact that I probably won't buy a new one, but will buy a used one from the shop if they have a decent one I like. So, I have basically walked into a shop, said I won't buy a new bass there right at the moment and still, they could not have been more helpful. I have been able to spend hours in there just playing various basses, which has really helped in making up my mind. So, even though I made it clear I'm not ready to buy a bass, all my questions were still answered, lots of useful info, help and advice given and I even got a cup of Rosie Lee! I could not have had the chance to try loads of basses if a great local music shop, with an excellent and professional attitude, did not exist. It is therefore likely that I will buy from the shop, as opposed to the internet, as and when I am ready to. In fact, they even offered to look out for a decent second hand bass for me. You cannot say fairer than that. A great example of someone going the extra mile. Regards AM

[quote name='BigBeefChief' post='359155' date='Dec 19 2008, 08:52 PM']Alex, I'm sorry, I know I haven't been posting as much recently, but I've not gone anywhere.[/quote] Why, good evening, BBC How nice of you to join the party. You will be delighted to know I have been playing some beautiful Warwicks this week.

Hello Alex I'll make my reply now before I get started on some cheap liquor [quote name='alexclaber' post='359011' date='Dec 19 2008, 05:56 PM']I'm sorry to come over all Jeff Berlin but that is complete rubbish. Everything in music is interconnected and thus during performance should be integrated as a cohesive whole but if you are to have any structure in your learning then you have to divorce the different components to develop an understanding of them.[/quote] With due respect, the context of the discussion is about PLAYING music. Learning is a different ball game. So, my original point stands - when PLAYING music, you can't divorce rhythm and dynamics as fundamental components of expressionism. [quote name='alexclaber' post='359011' date='Dec 19 2008, 05:56 PM']There's no 'just' about it. Most rock bassists I hear don't seem to have the slightest clue when it comes to dynamic control, often a result of spending years struggling to be heard.[/quote] Irrelevant. [quote name='alexclaber' post='359011' date='Dec 19 2008, 05:56 PM']That isn't just dynamics, it's phrasing with the use of timing and dynamics.[/quote] Again, we're back to philosophising over "traditional" and "contemporary" meanings to the word dynamics. If phrasing is used without dynamics (in the traditional sense!), there's no expressionism. You can't divorce the two, if the music is to have any meaning. [quote name='alexclaber' post='359011' date='Dec 19 2008, 05:56 PM']But is it the more contemporary use? It's certainly the more confusing use. To me, and clearly to classically schooled musicians (which I'm not), dynamics refer to control of loudness (not volume technically but that's another can of worms).[/quote] Irrelevant. Since music encapsulates expressionism, all the components which make it expressive are part of the dynamic subset. [quote name='alexclaber' post='359011' date='Dec 19 2008, 05:56 PM']We then have other tools at our disposal - timing (position vs the beat, note length, shuffle/swing), tone, and other phrasing (how you come into and out of a note - e.g. slides, hammer ons and pull offs, vibrato). To learn how to use these tools you have to be able to separate them but obviously once you're playing then you should reintegrate them.[/quote] Yes and classically trained musicians would argue that ornaments, upper and lower mordents. trills and the like are fundamental and integrated. It is the same argument as dynamics and expression. [quote name='alexclaber' post='359011' date='Dec 19 2008, 05:56 PM']Along with dynamics these all work together to give you the groove/vibe/attitude/emotion of a bassline and/or piece of music. To use the word dynamics to refer to that overall vibe seems like asking for confusion when there are so many other words available in English.[/quote] I will concede that arguing over which word describes the overall feel best is pointless. [quote name='alexclaber' post='359011' date='Dec 19 2008, 05:56 PM']The sad thing about all this is that we all clearly agree on the importance of these weapons of choice but as we're discussing them in the backwater of 'theory and technique' everyone else that's oblivious to them is too busy browsing the for sale forum to see what they can buy to get their 'sound'... [/quote] A great sound comes from a great craftsman and all the sonic scientists in the world can disagree, but the player maketh the music. [quote name='alexclaber' post='359011' date='Dec 19 2008, 05:56 PM']P.S. AM, I like your posts even if I don't always agree, nice to have some more intelligent thought on here.[/quote] I look forward to disagreeing some more

[quote name='alexclaber' post='358836' date='Dec 19 2008, 02:32 PM']Dynamics is how loud or soft you play the notes. That's it. Everything else contributes to feel and the dynamic (singular) of the music but dynamics on your instrument is ppp to FFF. Yes you can use effects or other methods (double and triple stops) as part of these dynamics, but that's muddying the issue - if you want to improve your dynamics do that, don't pretend that stomping on a distortion box is the same. Michael Manring wrote a fantastic column about this in one of the earliest issues of BP I read. His recommendation was to find the loudest clean note you could play on your bass. Then to find the quietest clean note. Then to find about half a dozen levels in between. And then practice playing lines at specific levels. If you have a VU type meter and stay within a narrow register you can test yourself to make sure you're consistent. It may seems like semantics but in my opinion these details matter far more in 99% of playing situations than any amount of soloing skills. Alex[/quote] Dynamics is part of expressionism and rhythm is a major part of expressionism. You can't technically divorce the two even in any semantic context. Basic dynamics yes is levels of loudness but that's just up and down in volume, I'm talking about using rhythmic techniques along with variations to volume, for example a one note accent at the start of a bar, where you play the note slightly off the beat (not syncopated) and with an accent, sforzando style. This can be heard in music on other instruments but I don't often hear it on the bass. Regards AM

[quote name='rjb' post='357549' date='Dec 18 2008, 08:53 AM']Nothing he's done since has come close to what he achieved with The Jam. Classic case of a songwriter completely discounting the importance of the band as a whole.[/quote] Complete and utter b*llocks.

[quote name='colin100' post='358262' date='Dec 18 2008, 08:44 PM']I think that the dynamics of playing the bass does include the volume of each note but also a lot more. You can emphasis different notes by playing them louder or softer just like a good singer would emphasis different notes to give the music feeling. Along side this the lenght of note I have found to very important in some types of music. Varying the lengh of different notes in combination with volume can make your instrument groove and sound very musical. I played for years concentrating on keeping my playing tight... but only at the start of each note and not giving much thought to the end of the note. You can stil keep it tight even when varying the lenght of notes. Just be careful when and where. Comming to mind right now would be your note choice and order of notes.... some notes sound better or worse depending on what came before hand....... not to mention complementing the rest of the band.... blah blah blah....[/quote] Hiya - this comes quite close to the lines I was thinking along. Just varying the volume up and down (in line with the band) is only one form of dynamics. There is a technique called rubato, pushing and pulling the notes away from the beat (not syncopation but similar) anyway that in combination with accents on certain notes is subtle but very effective on piano, I just don't hear it very often on the bass and wondered if anyone here uses the more subtle, but funky dynamics techniques. Rubato cannot really be taught, it has to come from the musician in individual expression of music, even written notes have to be played differently to evoke it. Rgds AM

[quote name='iamthewalrus' post='353871' date='Dec 13 2008, 08:49 PM']Hi guys, This article originally appeared in a copy of "Bass Player" in the early 90's & the bulk of it can be found in Ed Friedland's book "The Working Bassists Toolkit" (Backbeat Books) where Ed focuses on different ways of using the major scale & your mentronome in various ways (it's the first chapter in the book). The book itself is a great book as it also takes in ear training, doubling on both acoustic & electric, reading chord charts, & lots of really good advice on function gigs, jazz gigs & loads of other stuff. Cheers, iamthewalrus.[/quote] Excellent thanks.

Hiya Thanks for the explanation. [quote name='Fraktal' post='355533' date='Dec 16 2008, 12:14 AM']There is not much difference between active pickups and passive ones. Active pickups have very tiny electronics preamps embedded inside the epoxy block, so you have the magnets, the coils and the circuitry everything inside a single piece. EMG proudly advertises this technology stating that, since the circuits are so close (inside) the pickup the sound suffers less degradation/interferences/whatever, in theory because the wiring is minimal. Though in my opinion, the most harmful thing to the signal from a pickup is not necessarily the wiring, but going through an integrated circuit. Every time the signal passes through an integrated circuit something is lost, the signal will degrade, even if minimally, and the IC will add noise, distortion, etc so I have never been seduced by active pickups.[/quote] While I can see the logical basis of this argument, I can hear a noticeable difference between active and passive if I listen really carefully. When you say that something is lost every time the signal passes through an IC, what is it technically that causes that loss/adds noise?? [quote name='Fraktal' post='355533' date='Dec 16 2008, 12:14 AM']The principle is the same than passive pickups+preamp, just everything tidier, smaller, more compact. I prefer a signal path with a minimum of integrated circuits on it: Passive pickups and NO built-in preamp (passive bass). We already have an EQ inside our amp/mixing desk/whatever, so there is no need to force the signal through another set of EQ filters and more ICs (the built-in preamp).[/quote] I take your point on the principle, i.e. passive pickups and preamp being the same. I do like the clean sound of passive also but am beginning to open my mind and see the "sound science" possibilities with active pickups and preamp/passive pickups. [quote name='Fraktal' post='355533' date='Dec 16 2008, 12:14 AM']The best, cleanest, purest bass sounds I have ever heard came from 2 passive basses (passive '75 Fender Jazz bass MIA and a passive Warwick) plugged directly into a protools system. Makes sense when you realize the amount of ICs in that signal path are truly minimal. The sound was so in-your-face that we didnt need to process the sound at all, no EQ, no compression, nothing at all. It cut through the mix like a knife, amazing definition, full of detail, low-end, nuances, harmonics... You name it.[/quote] That's really interesting as those are the two basses I am currently struggling to decide between, apart from the pure playability differences and sound, I like the fact that the Warwick can be played both passive and active, but the tone of the Warwick is less versatile than the Fender. Tough call! tBBC of course loves the Warwick and heavily recommended it Probably a long shot but I don't suppose you've got recordings of those sounds??? Regards AM

[quote name='noelk27' post='334359' date='Nov 22 2008, 12:39 PM']With respect to the material up to, and including, Setting Sons, this is a reasonable point - and was the subject of litigation brought by Foxton and Buckler, an action that was settled out of court. For Sound Affects and The Gift, Weller recorded writing demos, where he would play all the parts. It's interesting to compare the different playing approaches of Foxton and Weller on the few commercially available tracks that both recorded bass parts for, and when you realise that Weller's frustration with Foxton's playing concerned feel and looseness. Also, listening to the very early Style Council singles highlights that Weller was a good bass player in his own right - which, given that Foxton was a guitarist before converting to bass with The Jam, makes you wonder if they wouldn't have been happier switching instruments.[/quote] Interesting. Another fan of Foxton here. I also like his work in SLF but saw them recently with Ali McMordie back on bass and on reflection, he does them more justice than Foxton did, although it's a close run thing. The Style Council point is interesting as Weller seemed to record a few things electrically then changed his mind and later recorded acoustic versions, which I truly believe sound better. A classic case in point is A Man of Great Promise, I think it was recorded on The Ones That Got Away but I first heard the acoustic version on Jools Holland when I was at school, I think that was in '95, found it recently on youtube... [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=8oZW0mCkPqw"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=8oZW0mCkPqw[/url] Probably one of Weller's finest pieces of songwriting. On the Jam side, I much prefer the punkier, spikier era, i.e. Billy Hunt, A Bomb in Wardour Street etc and would be interested if anyone knows what bass was used on these. Cheers AM

Aloha How do active pickups actually work??? Regards AM

[quote name='skankdelvar' post='352799' date='Dec 12 2008, 03:30 PM']BTW, I've got that on vinyl. It's a double A-side.[/quote] Another avid fan, I see.

[quote name='Sean' post='354142' date='Dec 14 2008, 11:42 AM']Tutors can inspire more than books for obvious reasons and you might find that if you get the right tutor, he or she will be your mentor for many years or even become your wife/husband. [/quote] Don't be telling the Big Chief that!

[quote name='Dan_Q' post='327135' date='Nov 11 2008, 10:04 PM']I only properly started bass recently when my ex fiancee left me. Lots more time on my hands to do the things i want- and my problems dwindle to oblivion when i'm playing. I mainly work nights and often have a couple of cans and a play at about 7 in the morning for an hour or so before bed- can't get more chilled than that Bass is a great healer (as is a younger bird with larger frontage)[/quote] Hiya In time you'll see this as the best thing that ever happened. Splitting up (regardless of who walks) is a surefire way to see how oppressed your musical freedom can get, not just playing but also listening! The freedom to play music on your own terms, can't be beaten. It is truly my therapy and has saved my sanity on many occasions! Regards AM

[quote name='jakesbass' post='119310' date='Jan 12 2008, 09:48 PM']for those of you who are speaking of problems with time get your hands (if you can) on an article called the metronome as guru. It (imo) solves all time issues and turns you into smug time git Jake[/quote] Hiya Apologies for raking up old threads! Could you please point me towards the source of this article if possible? Many thanks AM

[quote name='charic' post='351944' date='Dec 11 2008, 05:02 PM']Well as this has recently been an issue for me i thought id put in my 2p lol. I recently joined a band and was all going great until it came to learning the originals. We went to learn them and they refused to give me any basic chord structure or anything of the sort. Telling me that if I stuck at it I should easily pick it up at a later point. After 2 days of struggling on and trying to pick it up I asked for a hand and consequently got dropped from the band. Now to explain the situation. Im a bassist of 2 and a bit years and keyboard player of 17+. I originally and have always learnt by notation/tab. Powertab being that which I lean to for bass. I dont usually think this limits me as if someone can tell me what chords or notes or even frets they play then I can easily work out the best bassline I see fit and also hear in my head. My problem is finding "the starting point". I wouldnt say I have a musical ear at all. Atleast for learning by ear. However for picking up rhythm and adding extra notes I can easily hear where it can go to etc. I don't usually think im limited, I just think I need to find slightly more.... patient guitarist/s. Rik[/quote] Heya Ric Those guys sound like a bunch of f***s. It is their loss not yours, don't let the bastards grind you down! You can train your ear but you can't train bad attitudes! Cheers AM

Hi I know I'm a sad loser and it's Friday and I should go out but I enjoyed too much medicinal sherry last night plus I love it here already, loads of info! Anyway - interested in how people create dynamics on the bass. It is instinctive to me to kick it up a notch when other musicians do and obviously this would be the case when switching from obvious quiet to loud, i.e. when going from a quiet verse to an explosive chorus. But what about other times, how can you express dynamics in the music on the bass without it being inappropriate i.e. when a singer is singing? Regards AM

Aloha Interested in general comments about how people learned/are learning to play the bass, i.e. self-teaching or structured lessons. Regards AM