simonmcc

On 09/10/2023 at 20:39, Richard R said:

Welcome aboard!

 

Yep, accuracy! I know the feeling when for no apparent reason you stretch too far and hit Eb instead of E and that C chord run suddenly becomes Cm. Most annoying. 

I have recently gone right back to basics on technique. I practice chords arpeggios and scale runs slowly, and have found this made a big difference.  Slowly means really slowly, one note per second max,  and really thinking about the finger positioning. 

 

As someone who also plays almost exclusively in church, I  find that "If in doubt, simplify" is a great moto. The congregation aren't there to listen,  they're there to sing, and most of them genuinely don't notice the bass unless it stops altogether,  so if you find yourself making mistakes you can really dial back. 

 

Check out the techniques pages, and do hop over to the Playing in Church thread too. But don't stop playing.

 

Yes! Exactly. And I find once you make that initial mistake, it can be hard to recover your state of mind. 

Yeah, I get what you're saying about simplify. I suppose I think I've been playing long enough that I *should* be able to play more notes, but maybe I do need to play less. I've a few encouraging "fans" in the congregation who frequently tell me the bass adds so much to the sound, which is really nice. It appears they dont hear all the mistakes I can hear

Thanks for the recommendations, will check out those threads and pages.

On 09/10/2023 at 18:05, Huge Hands said:

Welcome Simon - I am taking my first trip to Belfast next month for work, looking forward to it! 

 

I would probably say I am a similar level to you - have been playing for just over 30 years - mainly by ear until about 12 years ago when I started in a reading band and had to learn to read sharpish!  

 

I struggle with reading quaver and semi-quaver runs in that I panic and usually either play them too fast or two slow! 

 

I think the issue is not regular playing of the same stuff so you don't get to take it all in and think about it so much.    When I was younger I dipped in and out of playing in some soft rock style church bands reading the bass notes of chord charts (Mission Praise type stuff)  and week in, week out it was different songs so you played through once that morning and never got to perfect anything.   In my personal experience reading tends to use a different part of my brain and as soon as the notes are passed, they are forgotten.  I would struggle to play some pieces from memory as I don't store them as I read.   

 

In terms of playing by ear or memory my biggest enemy is my wandering attention span, which has gotten worse since my bad covid experience in 2020.   The times when I play my best are when I'm in a regular gigging band and we play the same set repeatedly, so it locks into my memory and I can start playing without thinking about it too much a lot of the time. 

 

I think the guys that I am jealous of on bass that can just get up and play along with perfect runs and changes by ear or read note perfect probably have a much more complete music theory knowledge than me, play more regularly and have practiced things like scales and runs in their bedrooms much more than me.

 

I guess what I am saying is practice makes perfect, but I am no angel myself, so full solidarity from me!  Don't give up, just enjoy it!

 

Note - this is only my experience - I assume some more learned members will read this and say I am full of it!

 

Cool - hope the trip goes well for you! I'm right up on the North Coast, so about 60 miles from there.

Yes! I identify with what you're saying, constant change isn't helpful. I'd love to find a group of people to play with recreationally, not interested in gigging etc, that feels like a young mans game, but I feel if I could find some like minded people to jam/practice with, that would help me along.

Yeah, the attention span thing - I've been hit by that a bit too, or the "woohoo I havent made a mistake yet.." then BAM - I've forgot where I was

Thanks for the encouragement, it's appreciated.

Hi, I'm from Northern Ireland, and have been "playing" bass for 25+ years - it's been on and off for me, some years not playing much at all. I played a bit in (unsuccessful) bands when I was young and now play only really for church each Sunday. I'm currently playing every week, and actually doing some practice during the week, and seeing good improvement.

However I'm still struggling with accuracy, and that's why I signed up here, hoping for some pointers from fellow struggling amateurs.

I sometimes read music, my sight reading is not great, and also play by ear, but I struggle sometimes to land on the right notes, like in runs where there is a c I sometimes go for c#, errors like that.

The other thing I struggle with regarding accuracy is playing quite well during the practice, but when it comes to the real thing, making all sorts of silly mistakes. 

Any tips welcome! (please don't say "give up" - I really enjoy playing!!)