Giving up playing instruments.

[JTUK]

[quote name='xgsjx' timestamp='1402469283' post='2473729']
I know many of you wont understand the reasons fully, but thanks for the encouraging words.

After spending quite some time praying that I'm doing the right thing, I've found it's because music has always been an idol to me. One of the first things I do in the morning & last things I do at night is read about music & come on here (still doing it too!). Every spare minute if I'm not on here, I'm playing my bass or playing about with something related to music.
It needs to be broken so that I have no idols. Once this has been done, then maybe music can be part of my life & not be idolised by me.

Doing this has a strange feeling with it, very similar to when I quit smoking. I feel like I'm breaking free, but there's a part that is sad that the good parts shall be missed.
It's not about the playing of an instrument, but my relationship with instruments.

If I'm to be a musician, I'm sure it will be. I can always buy another bass/pedalboard/rig, I might come back to keys or to an instrument I've never played before like cello or sax.
If it's my calling to praise God in worship songs, then most churches have their own instruments.

Maybe God is just like the rest of you & hates it when I play a bit of slap bass & he's had enough.
[/quote]

Idols...???
A bit too intense for me to understand.
Stop playing if you don't enjoy it... keep playing if you do.
Just because you have put lots of time in doesn't mean you have to keep going
if you don't feel like it, but I'd stick with what makes you happy.

You are looking for signs and you end up thinking that you should follow a path because that is what your state of mind
and perceived purpose wants you to do..???
That doesn't make any sense... you have no 'directive' one way or the other as far as I can see...
just a desire to play or not...and you desire to play but think you shouldn't..

Confused.com and the default action is the withdraw from playing...???

[Adrenochrome]

If you're saying, in a roundabout way, that you are too immersed in music/bass and spending far too much time doing it then you probably do need to address that. I had to do that when I started a family. But I'm sure you could find a place for music that doesn't involve spending most of your waking moments thinking about it - it's good to switch off when you're not gigging or rehearsing.

[madshadows]

Good luck in what ever you decide but I would at least keep one bass and stick under the bed or in a wardrobe in case you want to play again in the future

The main thing is to be happy with your choice.

John

[steve-bbb]

[quote name='JapanAxe' timestamp='1402436352' post='2473592']
I am an ex-Christian (the whole evangelical 9 yards) and this sounds horribly familiar. Something that you really enjoy, not 'sinful' as such but takes up a lot of your time and commitment: serious competition for the big G. So you pack it in, you've made a sacrifice, bit of kudos from your fellowship, but the warm glow won't take away the sick feeling that tells you you've made a mistake that's difficult to reverse.

I'm not going to try to convince you that Christianity is a crock, you need to find your own way on that one, but the at the end of your post says it all.
[/quote]

this

you could apply your reasoning and argument to any facet of your daily activities - why pick on music? have all those years of practice and performance really been so fruitless and futile?

edit - why not pick on basschat? look at the amount of time we all fritter away on here!

Edited June 11, 2014 by steve-bbb

[ubit]

[quote name='Prosebass' timestamp='1402436987' post='2473604']
Don't understand? but being an athesist I do not need any guidance other than my own.

Sorry for your loss, which if you stop playing it will be...
[/quote]

Amen to that brother !

[LukeFRC]

The problem isn't bass or music its your attitude to them and how it works with your faith.
First of all my advice - lighten up, us Scots do specialise in the more dour end of Christianity - you might have an unhealthy relationship to it now but any talent you've got also comes from God... So I doubt you'll give music up forever - my advice, take a holiday from it. Declutter things you don't need, give all your bass stuff to a friend to store in their atic - and have a break till after Christmas.... And see how you feel about it then

[planer]

[quote name='xgsjx' timestamp='1402469283' post='2473729']One of the first things I do in the morning & last things I do at night is read about music & come on here (still doing it too!). Every spare minute if I'm not on here, I'm playing my bass or playing about with something related to music.[/quote]

Now doesn't that just sound like the rest of us? It's ok to do those things, but if you feel maybe that it's taking over your life or distracting you from something more important then stop, or at least back off a bit.

Religion aside, you must follow your heart and do what makes you happy. And as posted above, it's not like you can't pick it up again. When (if?) you stop playing, try not to attach too much negativity to stopping, then at least you'll have the fond memories to look back on, and those memories may be the spark that makes you take it up again in the future.

I wish you the best, whatever your choice.

[DogHammer]

You have been playing bass for 30 years?

Gigging, receiving praise for your musical creations and bringing joy to others with your playing while they watch from the crowd or listen through their CD/digital player. All for 30 years so far.

Your bass has always been there for you. You can see it. You can touch it. Its definitely there and always will be. It may change form when you buy a new one or modify it, but its still your bass and wont ask you for a thing, but will give you everything.

So your Bass lets you bring happiness to people, happiness to yourself. Have faith in your bass my friend, because that bolted together piece of wood is your God. Its definitely mine.

[fretmeister]

[quote name='xgsjx' timestamp='1402469283' post='2473729']
I know many of you wont understand the reasons fully, but thanks for the encouraging words.

After spending quite some time praying that I'm doing the right thing, I've found it's because music has always been an idol to me. One of the first things I do in the morning & last things I do at night is read about music & come on here (still doing it too!). Every spare minute if I'm not on here, I'm playing my bass or playing about with something related to music.
It needs to be broken so that I have no idols. Once this has been done, then maybe music can be part of my life & not be idolised by me.

Doing this has a strange feeling with it, very similar to when I quit smoking. I feel like I'm breaking free, but there's a part that is sad that the good parts shall be missed.
It's not about the playing of an instrument, but my relationship with instruments.

If I'm to be a musician, I'm sure it will be. I can always buy another bass/pedalboard/rig, I might come back to keys or to an instrument I've never played before like cello or sax.
If it's my calling to praise God in worship songs, then most churches have their own instruments.

Maybe God is just like the rest of you & hates it when I play a bit of slap bass & he's had enough.
[/quote]

How is it idolatry to want to learn and improve your knowledge of a subject?

If you genuinely believe that music is a gift from God then in learning more about it and becoming better at it are you not respecting the gift given to you? Surely rejecting the gift is more of a problem?

Your own posts show that you do not put music above God in any way.

Your devoutness is not in question here - but your thought process is.


So I'm going to be slightly cynical I'm afraid - I think you want to quit and you are looking for justification and justifications don't come any bigger than divine instruction.

[humapuma]

Mr OP,

I think I can understand your reasons to some degree and in the end it's a personal decision that only you can make (and that you will have to live with).

I'll say this though: please don't sell all your gear. Keep a favourite bass, an amp you could gig with and whatever other bits and pieces you would need.

I've taken a complete break from playing myself a couple of times - though not for such profound reasons - but I've always come back to it, and there's been a bass there waiting for me.


What about Gospel BTW? Are there any places you could go to join or start a band playing praise music?


Best wishes.

[HowieBass]

To the OP - have you come to the conclusion that what you currently do with your bass playing is self-serving, that it's become an indulgence for which you've developed a guilty conscience? Rather than giving up playing you could turn the entire thing on its head and offer your services to other young aspiring bass players and become a TEACHER. What was once an indulgence then becomes a service to others. It's a bit like spreading the good word isn't it?

[SubsonicSimpleton]

[quote name='xgsjx' timestamp='1402469283' post='2473729']
I know many of you wont understand the reasons fully, but thanks for the encouraging words.

After spending quite some time praying that I'm doing the right thing, I've found it's because music has always been an idol to me. One of the first things I do in the morning & last things I do at night is read about music & come on here (still doing it too!). Every spare minute if I'm not on here, I'm playing my bass or playing about with something related to music.
It needs to be broken so that I have no idols. Once this has been done, then maybe music can be part of my life & not be idolised by me.

Doing this has a strange feeling with it, very similar to when I quit smoking. I feel like I'm breaking free, but there's a part that is sad that the good parts shall be missed.
It's not about the playing of an instrument, but my relationship with instruments.

If I'm to be a musician, I'm sure it will be. I can always buy another bass/pedalboard/rig, I might come back to keys or to an instrument I've never played before like cello or sax.
If it's my calling to praise God in worship songs, then most churches have their own instruments.

Maybe God is just like the rest of you & hates it when I play a bit of slap bass & he's had enough.
[/quote]
This sounds to me like talking to a professional counsellor and getting some perspective on what is going on in your life emotionally and psychologically would be a good idea.

Are you unhappy about your behaviour, or about music?

I suspect that maybe the root cause if this is that obsessing about bass is eating too much time, and as a result other aspects of your life are being neglected and this is causing you to feel unhappy, and reach for the nearest thing you like to try to fill the void which is making a feedback loop.

My advice would be not to quit, but dedicate some time for family/friends and other activities that enrich your life other than playing bass.

And maybe playing "donald where's your trousers"(or whatever they can relate to) down the local old folks home and getting them to join in is a suitably positive contribution to humanity to be worthy of consideration in addition to playing worship songs in church.

[Weststarx]

[quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1402484163' post='2473952']
To the OP - have you come to the conclusion that what you currently do with your bass playing is self-serving, that it's become an indulgence for which you've developed a guilty conscience? Rather than giving up playing you could turn the entire thing on its head and offer your services to other young aspiring bass players and become a TEACHER. What was once an indulgence then becomes a service to others. It's a bit like spreading the good word isn't it?
[/quote]

I was going to say something similar that maybe what you're feeling is guilt for spending too much time playing etc.

If so its no reason to give it all up and sell all your gear, if this is the case I think you should maybe just moderate how much time you spend playing music and spend more time with whoever it is that you feel you should be spending more time with.

If god created man, he (IMO) created music as well. Therefore there should be no reason for you to completely quit music altogether.

It might well be worth having a break, because I myself have to put down the bass once in a while and I always come back excited to play and refreshed.

I hope you find the answers you are looking for pal.

Edited June 11, 2014 by Weststarx

[Bassassin]

[quote name='fretmeister' timestamp='1402480565' post='2473903']
If you genuinely believe that music is a gift from God then in learning more about it and becoming better at it are you not respecting the gift given to you? Surely rejecting the gift is more of a problem?

Your own posts show that you do not put music above God in any way.

[/quote]

Been trying to think of a way to phrase my thoughts, and this comes pretty close. Personally I'm agnostic, leaning heavily towards atheism, but I've been through some serious stuff recently which led to a lot of soul-searching & and I'd say a much closer relationship with spirituality - which I don't as yet fully understand.

However - your music is a part of you, it's part of the person God, as I'm sure you see Him, created, and as such surely your faith underpins your music. I think you should try and see the two things as part of a whole, and not seperate entities.

It concerns me that you're making a decision that might have deeper implications than you presently realise in other areas of your life, including your relationship with God. I can't accept that your God would want you to abandon something so integral to you as a person, and to make yourself desperately unhappy as a result.

Jon.

[Jus Lukin]

[quote name='JapanAxe' timestamp='1402436352' post='2473592']
I am an ex-Christian (the whole evangelical 9 yards) and this sounds horribly familiar. Something that you really enjoy, not 'sinful' as such but takes up a lot of your time and commitment: serious competition for the big G. So you pack it in, you've made a sacrifice, bit of kudos from your fellowship, but the warm glow won't take away the sick feeling that tells you you've made a mistake that's difficult to reverse.

I'm not going to try to convince you that Christianity is a crock, you need to find your own way on that one, but the at the end of your post says it all.
[/quote]

I'm afraid I have to agree. I have made, and have seen people make, decisions they really didn't want to because they thought it was somehow God's will. Personal beliefs aside, Christianity, and probably most other religions too, have a very strong tendency to make us over-think things and to look for drama where there is none. You're having fun and really getting into a hobby- and church turns that into a bad thing!

My advice would be to do what you want- if you believe God made you and loves you, and you love playing bass, then surely it was his idea anyway. It doesn't make sense that a powerful creative force should fill a world with such diversity and interest, and then condemn everyone in it to conforming to a very small window of existence. Check out all the bits in the bible about praising god with music. You can't do that well without putting in lots of time beforehand, and someone's got to be the one playing. But I've probably already broken forum rules posting this far...

Anyway, my answer to all this was to give up the religion instead. Life continued much the same, except that I no longer have to beat myself up over every flipping thing I do, and I have more time and good energy to devote to things I do actually believe in. So, YMMV.

[Grangur]

[quote name='xgsjx' timestamp='1402469283' post='2473729']
I know many of you wont understand the reasons fully, but thanks for the encouraging words.

After spending quite some time praying that I'm doing the right thing, I've found it's because music has always been an idol to me. One of the first things I do in the morning & last things I do at night is read about music & come on here (still doing it too!). Every spare minute if I'm not on here, I'm playing my bass or playing about with something related to music.
It needs to be broken so that I have no idols. Once this has been done, then maybe music can be part of my life & not be idolised by me.

Doing this has a strange feeling with it, very similar to when I quit smoking. I feel like I'm breaking free, but there's a part that is sad that the good parts shall be missed.
It's not about the playing of an instrument, but my relationship with instruments.

If I'm to be a musician, I'm sure it will be. I can always buy another bass/pedalboard/rig, I might come back to keys or to an instrument I've never played before like cello or sax.
If it's my calling to praise God in worship songs, then most churches have their own instruments.

Maybe God is just like the rest of you & hates it when I play a bit of slap bass & he's had enough.
[/quote]

it sounds to me like your reasons for quitting is your realisation that you have become increasingly obsessive with aspects of the activity.

You should take a good look at it though before selling up. Basschat is possibly your problem, not bass. I've been there too. Cut back on your computer use. Get back to life in the real world and THEN make a choice on the music. The 2 are NOT the same thing. Don't confuse them. We would miss you, but God gave you a talent for music. Would it not be wrong to not give pleasure to others through God's gift?

Good luck

[Skol303]

Lots of good and honest opinions here. I've sent you a message with mine

[Fitz666]

As a militant athiest nothing I can say would be of any consructive help.

I just hope you dont regret your decision for too long....

[lemmywinks]

I would say just do what makes you genuinely happy. Life is far too short to overthink things, as long as you and those around you aren't affected negatively then do what you want, music is one of those things that tends to make everyone enjoy themselves so cutting back on it (or giving it up entirely) may not be the best solution.

Although it might not be what you want to hear JapanAxe and Jus Lukin seem to be the "been there done that" guys on this thread.

[throwoff]

My opinion to the OP is simple.

Regardless of whether this decision is due to your faith, your spare time, your interests etc it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks.

I agree with some other posters, don't sell your gear and cut something out you have so much love for but do take a break, take the time to reconcile your feelings and emotions and make a decision when you are good and ready.

I fall in and out of love with bass and want to sell all my gear twice a year and I have no faith to speak of that effects my decision further.

You will make the right choice for you, and it's not a damn one of our business what that decision is.

(unless you sell your gear cheap, in which case, dibs.)

[skankdelvar]

xgsjx - I completely understand where you're coming from.

There's something you feel you have to do at this point in your life but something else is standing in the way of doing it. The obstacle - in this case, playing music - is not an activity you feel you can simply cut down on, so it's your conclusion that you've got to park it.

Fair enough. It is not simply a question of how much time you devote to music but the space it occupies in your mind and the energy it may draw from you in pursuit of objectives that may (or may not) run counter to other goals.

Getting shot of your gear is a practical response and - realistically - it's not much of a problem as everything you have is replaceable at a later stage if circumstances change. The practicalities of the decision will sort themselves out.

I would counsel you against the danger of seeing your relinquishment of music as a 'necessary sacrifice'. Self-abnegation is a tool, not a panacea. Try instead to view the divestment process as being in the nature of a gift from one part of yourself to another part.

If it later comes to pass that music can (without self-interest) support your primary endeavour then so much the better.

[Bilbo]

Not read the whole thread but I always think that religion is best when it informs how you live your life rather than it becoming the reason you live you life. i.e. A Christian baker, a Christian plumber. Why not a Christian musician. You serve your God by being the best person you can be not by being all pious and worthy!!

NB I am a Humanist if I am anything, so don't listen to me.

[RhysP]

[quote name='DogHammer' timestamp='1402479706' post='2473887']
Have faith in your bass my friend, because that bolted together piece of wood is your God.....
[/quote]

I could be wrong but I think regarding the bass as his "God" is exactly what the OP is trying to avoid.

[cupples]

Hi, interesting thread - your situation mirrors my own in a number of ways. PM sent.
Andrew

[xgsjx]

It's not playing music that's the main issue, it's my relationship with it. Everything I do, I put music first. If I go to church I think about how the music/sound could be improved, when I go to bed I put music on, when I get spare time I play an instrument. This is put before anything else that should be on my list.

It's not been a sudden or rash decision, I've spent a lot of time thinking about it. [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]I searched for answers, mostly for answers to say "Yes, continue in the band" to put my mind at ease & let me just carry on, but everywhere I looked, I got the opposite. I scoured the web, I read my bible & still got the same. Me being selfish.[/font][/color]
[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]It's not a vice like smoking, but it has become an addiction & to be addicted to something is to idolise it, to rely on it & to worship it.[/font][/color]
[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Once I've broken the addiction, then I'll consider going back to music.[/font][/color]

[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]I may keep just my bass (pack it away somewhere), but not the rest of the gear.[/font][/color]

[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]I know there's plenty of Christian musicians. There's a lot of good Christian bands & there's also a lot of good bands with Christian members, Fieldy from Korn, Nicko McBrain from Iron Maiden, Alice Cooper (OK, I don't know any electronica Christians ).[/font][/color]

Edited June 11, 2014 by xgsjx