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Bass Played By Only 5% Of Kids


HowieBass
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[quote name='spongebob' timestamp='1410783196' post='2553011']
Perhaps it's because on most modern recordings, it's been reduced to a dull, lifeless thump with no definition.

Maybe less are taking it up, as they probably can't hear it, and don't know what it actually does!
[/quote]

Probably true. I remember starting out and being inspired by The Jam, The Stranglers, The Clash, bands with great basslines, plus the two-tone stuff. Forward a few years, and even though at the time I hated the new romantic stuff and early 80s pop, the bass was a prominent instrument in many of the songs back then. You could hear what the bass was capable of and it drove you on to be better.

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My boy is 9 now, got him started on his 8th birthday.....
At first he was just happy to be like dad, but quite soon into it he became interested off his own back.... Really meant a lot to me...
[URL=http://s296.photobucket.com/user/myzeneye/media/20e171d0-50b0-413b-bd40-65a22cbc6c93.jpg.html][IMG]http://i296.photobucket.com/albums/mm189/myzeneye/20e171d0-50b0-413b-bd40-65a22cbc6c93.jpg[/IMG][/URL]


The trick is to make it fun I guess..... There are plenty of ipad apps which will teach you fret positions and notes in a game format ....also got him a sense of timing and left hand right hand coordination with an Xbox game call rock smith, its much the same as guitar hero on you plug in a real guitar or bass.... Kind of tricked him into coordination both hands, worked a treat and great. Fun too. In the early days he loved playing along to the pixies track -where is my mind....
Then moved on to playing along with tracks on utube, on to some of the more simple jamoroquai tracks, which i simplified for him down to root notes only ( no octave pops as his hands were too small)
I have a video of this but I'm not sure how to upload ?


He's happy sat with a scale book and has a better eye for sight reading tab and notation then I have...
They learn so easily and so quickly, like a sponge he has taken it all in. His physical playing and technique is improving as at first, even with a 3/4 scale p bass it was quite a hand full for his little mits.
He's doing great and if he keeps on with it he will become a great bass player....

Another trick..... He likes me to play him a game of FIFA football on the Xbox, each game last 10 mins.... After tea each night he does 10 minutes bass practice in exchange for a game with dad....... It's worked wonders as little and often is the key....
I ask him to play any note, he'll show me instantly where he can find several up and down the neck, I ask him to play various scales,no problem...... What ever i ask he does ! Just like a sponge. He just needs to let his hands grow so he can develop control and learn how to be gentle :) it will come ....

When he gets fed up Of dad nagging him to use all his fingers, i try to explain to him that he has a lot of potential and if he wants to be good he just has to work at it.... " it takes some people a long time to learn what you just waltzed through" , it took me a long time.....
Don't get me wrong, he ain't no jaco but he just amazes me how he soaks it in like its just another spelling test from school....
If you have a kid who want to play, do them a favour and start them young, its so easy to them...
I can't tell you how good it feels to jam along with my boy....



Edited by Wonky2
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5% marvellous!!

That means there will be plenty of potential buyers for my kit when I need to pack it all in and use the funds to pay my nursing home fees. I can just see the conversations with the carers now.

"I used to be a bass player in several rocks bands you know"
"Of course you did old dear, now take your meds and get into bed" (turns to another staff member) "she's really losing her marbles now"

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[quote name='SpaceChick' timestamp='1410847122' post='2553720']
I can just see the conversations with the carers now.

"I used to be a bass player in several rocks bands you know"
"Of course you did old dear, now take your meds and get into bed" (turns to another staff member) "she's really losing her marbles now"
[/quote]

There's a film in there somewhere - your older self could be played by Merryl Streep, I can just see her playing bass in the tearful reunion closing scene with a bunch of BCers ... :)

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[quote name='SpaceChick' timestamp='1410847122' post='2553720']'I used to be a bass player in several rocks bands you know'
'Of course you did old dear, now take your meds and get into bed'...
[/quote]

The above is a typical exchange between myself and the current mrs discreet...

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[quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1410779698' post='2552930']
According to this BBC News story [url="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-29117849"]http://www.bbc.co.uk...cation-29117849[/url] only 5% of children are playing electric bass, bottom of the list of instruments; even less popular than percussion at 6%, electric guitar at 13% and drums at 14%!
[/quote]

I'm not sure that's too bad a thing. Better supply/demand ratio. Is that 5% of all kids, or 5% of all kids who play instruments?

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[quote name='Wonky2' timestamp='1410821497' post='2553668']
My boy is 9 now, got him started on his 8th birthday.....
At first he was just happy to be like dad, but quite soon into it he became interested off his own back.... Really meant a lot to me...
[url="http://s296.photobucket.com/user/myzeneye/media/20e171d0-50b0-413b-bd40-65a22cbc6c93.jpg.html"][/url]


[/quote]

That's great ... when are you going to start him on the frets?

;)

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Working in a music shop, I've noticed this trend. Fewer young people want to play bass. It's not the cool instrument it used to be. My theory is that there isn't a bass hero for the kids. The players in the current bands are faceless, with little technique to fire people up. We need another Mark King or Flea. For example, when Give It Away by the Chilis was in the charts, loads of kids were coming into our shop and playing the riff. Saying that, people are talking about the guy in Royal Blood, so interest in bass should hopefully take off again.

Edited by Pete Academy
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