hi everybody
I am from Malaysia, been playing the guitar (acoustic and electric, off and on) for about 20 years. Just bought a 4-string fretless a couple of months ago, lined fretboard. I realized, from the onset, that I got to get my intonation down. So right now thats all thats happening, I am afraid. Mostly embaressing, I have to admit but I believe the atitude must be that it is a completely different musical instrument, like what has been said in other threads in this forum. I practice without looking at the fretboard, only referencing the first note and when I think I hear a bum note. Any suggestions on how to make it more interesting coz its bloody boring I tell ya! Thanks.
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FretLessSince68
- Posts:307
- Joined:Tue Dec 19, 2006 2:29 am
- Location:On an Island, WA, USA
Welcome TokioRain...
Yeah, I know what you mean about doing endless scales and exercises.
It should not be boring unless you are perfect, as long as my intonation needs refinement, I find it fascinating to work on it until I achieve better control. The time you invest in these exercises will pay off later. There are things you can do to make boring exercises more interesting, even beautiful.
In the mean time, go ahead and look at the fingerboard, there is no requirement to be an instant master of the instrument, you just need to be able to play.
Looking at your fingering hand gives you instant feedback about position and nearness to the lines. Later when you have played a few million notes work toward moving your eyes away from the fingerboard. In a real band situation you will need to keep an eye on the other players but you should still have plenty of microseconds to steal a quick glance at your fingering hand.
The first thing to do is get in a band as a bassist. Your musical instincts as a bassist are very different than as a guitarist. First, your job is to support the other players, so when they get lost, or are otherwise unsure, they can rely on you to point the musical direction and be on the beat.
You need to be able to count and play at the same time. It's not as easy as it sounds.
Playing bass is closely related to playing drums, with the added dimension of understanding the chordal structure of the songs you play. Drummers are time specialists, so are bassists. We (bassists and drummers) often joke about how few players have good time. You need to cultivate an authoritative time sense. This means more exercises, this time playing with a metronome. Every tempo has a feel, it's not all cerebral or intellectual. One needs to make the body time connection as with dancing.
One hour of actual band playing, either in rehearsal or doing a gig, is worth many more hours of at home shedding.
Good luck and keep the questions coming.
Yeah, I know what you mean about doing endless scales and exercises.
It should not be boring unless you are perfect, as long as my intonation needs refinement, I find it fascinating to work on it until I achieve better control. The time you invest in these exercises will pay off later. There are things you can do to make boring exercises more interesting, even beautiful.
In the mean time, go ahead and look at the fingerboard, there is no requirement to be an instant master of the instrument, you just need to be able to play.
Looking at your fingering hand gives you instant feedback about position and nearness to the lines. Later when you have played a few million notes work toward moving your eyes away from the fingerboard. In a real band situation you will need to keep an eye on the other players but you should still have plenty of microseconds to steal a quick glance at your fingering hand.
The first thing to do is get in a band as a bassist. Your musical instincts as a bassist are very different than as a guitarist. First, your job is to support the other players, so when they get lost, or are otherwise unsure, they can rely on you to point the musical direction and be on the beat.
You need to be able to count and play at the same time. It's not as easy as it sounds.
Playing bass is closely related to playing drums, with the added dimension of understanding the chordal structure of the songs you play. Drummers are time specialists, so are bassists. We (bassists and drummers) often joke about how few players have good time. You need to cultivate an authoritative time sense. This means more exercises, this time playing with a metronome. Every tempo has a feel, it's not all cerebral or intellectual. One needs to make the body time connection as with dancing.
One hour of actual band playing, either in rehearsal or doing a gig, is worth many more hours of at home shedding.
Good luck and keep the questions coming.
One good note makes my day.