Curious about the experience of RRF members.

[just_bassics]

Great Thread!

I learned guitar mostly by ear and thought that was good enough, until I heard "Julian Bream plays Albeniz & Granados" and realized I would have to learn to read music if I ever wanted to play like that... so I started taking lessons from a renowned Classical Guitar teacher in Chicago, just enough lessons to get the ball rolling. For popular and rock music guitar and bass parts, I realized that my ear training had caused many problems, i.e., never having learned them properly. So, my daily practice now involves light sight reading on guitar and bass in many styles and improvising along with lots of recordings. There are so many tabs available now that I use them to go back and "properly" re-learn many of the classic songs and solos, but since I was mainly self taught, everything still gets twisted back to my style of playing it. So, at the end of the day, I still feel pretty much like I'm hacking my way through but it is still all fun!

[bitzerguy]

I caught the bug from a very, very young age when my Mom sang with this guy named Buddy Knox (Party Doll). I took guitar from the age of 6 at the Canadian Conservatory of Music, until I was 14. I USED to be able to sight read quite well, however, lack of practice has made my skills quite a bit slower. I won a first place award in my age group (12) in Classical guitar at the Ontario Music Festical in Ottawa in 1972 and posted a 98 final mark, the highest recorded until then. Then I discovered High School rock, and relied more on my ear than reading and theory.

My first band was in grade 8, I was 13 and our first song learned together was I Me Mine off Let It Be. Whew!! From there, a full set list was pretty easy. Mostly Ventures, Beatles, Deep Purple, Steppenqwolf, etc. I played a 1966 Riviera Les Paul copy that my parents had bought me for starting the lessons. I still have it and still play it. Played in several high school bands in the 70's. In the mid 80's, I played in a hair metal bar band doing Journey, Foreigner, Loverboy and Cars covers (ok ok those were not particularly bright years, but my Billy Preston afro did look cool...) Again 100% ear learning, no reading.

Now I have started to refresh my reading skills, and thanks to several forumites (Peter, Jdog, John B and everyone who participates in Being for the Benefit of Musicianship), at 47 I am studying theory again.

[shamustwin]

My parents hated the music, the nuns kicked me out of class for having hair that touched the top of my ears, jocks in high school would harass me for having an earring, construction workers would whistle at my mid-back length hair. El Kabong taught me proper guitar swinging techniques. Hendrix taught me proper guitar BBQ methods. Neil Young taught me you didn't have to be technically proficient to play an exquisite solo. I don't golf (can't stand the pants), so I still play guitar.

[sloop_john_b]

This thread would be a good time to let everyone know that JDog and myself are on hand to answer all your theory-related questions in the Being For The Benefit Of Musicianship forum.

[tamborineman]

AMEN ! Jerry.
Let your freek flag fly

[rickosound]

In our living room, we have a nightly "reconciliation" of this very subject.
I'm 55. I grabbed a guitar when the Beatles hit the U.S. I took some lessons but my teacher just taught me chords, so I went from there. Previously, I had taken piano lessons, so I can still kinda, sorta read music but, on the guitar, it's all pretty much what I can figure out by ear.
My son, who is now 14, has been taking lessons for almost 5 years. Same teacher. Almost from day one, he was taught to read music and is now comfortable with it. We sometimes work from ear, but the option is always there to work from sheet music.
Over the years, I've noticed that many guitarists, amateur or professional, often speak of their inability to read music with a certain pride. It may be the musician's equivalent of a "bootstraps" mentality. Fair enough. I'm in the same boat, but watching the difference it makes every night to be able to read music and UNDERSTAND what music is all about leaves me deeply envious. I wish I had followed my son's path.
There have been many studies from respected universities worldwide which have shown that learning to play a musical instrument, and gaining the ability to read music, translate into better grades at school, particularly in math and sciences. It's multi-factorial, I'm sure, but I think what this underscores is that music is not just an art or an instinct, it's also a math and a science. What is the difference between C aug and Cm 9? Talk about a brain teaser!
For us dinosaurs, we are what we are. Many of the members here appear to be parents, however, and my comment from all of this is simply: If you're arranging a teacher for your child, on guitar or any other instrument, absolutely find someone who reads
and teaches to read music. There are other qualities to look for, certainly, but this should be a prerequisite.

[rickboy88]

I am mainly a trombone player, but got into bass guitar back in high school (late teens) in the late 1970's. Who didn't want to be a rock star? I learned trombone and bass clef starting when I was around 11 years old but learned very little theory. I played bass guitar initially with music (as it is the same as trombone music) but I enjoyed playing more by ear and simply learning lines from recordings and making up my own. I've never played out on bass, but am in a couple of 17 piece rehearsal jazz bands on bass trombone (with occasional gigs). I've played with other amateur groups on bass and tenor trombone. I'd love to get better at reading with bass to sub in one of those jazz bands. You not only need to read the notes up the neck, but also be good at the chords, as that is all some jazz band charts have.
I also have gotten into banjo lately as well, but I remained the most schooled on trombone, even taking lessons for a couple of years around 8 years ago. I quit playing for 17 years after I was 18, and it wasn't easy to come back as you sound and play like ****. You remember how you used to sound, but you get through it.

I'd love to become a better soloist on trombone (and even bass guitar) and improve my "ear training" and theory knowledge. Still, when I was a kid I always heard bass lines in my head when I heard songs, so it is probably my first love. It still happens today.

[ajish4]

Great thread!

I was HOPING to keep it short, but no such luck!

I have ALWAYS loved bass. The furthest back my memory will take me is to 1967 when I first heard the Moody Blues, Nights in White Satin at the ripe old age of 5 or 6. I just LOVED the way those low notes rumbled through my mom's old Magnavox console stereo. It was the FIRST album I asked for as a Christmas gift. I'll never forget the SOUND of that bass!

Fast forward to the third grade, I took up playing double bass in the school orchestra. I stayed with it until the 9th or 10th grade. That was where I leaned to read music. To this day, I'd prefer to sight read, my ear training still sucks. I WISH I had that gift!

Shortly after, I picked up my first bass, a used Carlo Robelli Ripper, and a Kustom Tuck & Roll 2x15 200 watt stack for $175.00. THOSE WERE THE DAYS!

For some reason, I always struggled with the electric bass. I never took a lesson, and couldn't make the transition well, I preferred the fretless better, none of this fret ****. This was some time in the 70's.

During this time, I was introduced to YES, ELP, FLOYD, Nektar, Genesis & other PROG. bands from a friend who sold me my first rig. He liked the Ripper because it had a knob with 4 positions on it and could get a cool Rickenbacker sound out of it. He then sold it to me when he got his first RIC. SO, the FIRST time I got the RIC bug was at the age of about 13 or 14. I listened and listened to the music of that era for countless hours. I fell in love with Squire's style & tone....and my friend Dane's 4001 MG RIC.

I married at age 18, so that was the end of my playing, never getting a RIC or going any further in my playing. I just gave my bass & amp away. NO WAY would it fit in our one BR apartment!

Sometime in mid 80's, a guy at my job gave me a beautiful Mahogany GIBSON RIPPER/G3, I can't remember which. He said it was just sitting in his attic, it needed a bridge and gave it to me for free! It sat for years just looking at me from across the room. Around 1996, some goof made an announcement "we're putting together a praise team band, if you play OR HAVE EVER PLAYED an instrument, we're signing up people after this service". My darling wife, Janey elbowed me and said, "you have that old bass, you played years ago, why don't you sign up"? I thought she was OUT OF HER MIND! I couldn't play, I never could play electric bass, and ME? Playing in a CHURCH?

In 1994, I sold the Gibson, took the $500.00 bucks, bought a Washburn Lyon for $170.00 bucks, bought a Crate Amp and off I went, TRYING to teach myself how the hell to play in church! NO MUSIC, only chord sheets. I remember bringing a cassette recorder to practice, recording the practice, then going home and making notes on the chord charts! "Ok, here is a "C" chord, (with Mel Bay's Bass book #1 in hand) that is the 3rd fret on the A string....and I would mark the chord sheets "A/3"...oh, a "G"chord? E/3...and did all 20 or 30 songs this way. Then I'd show up on Sunday, and the dirty #!!(*31! would change songs, and HAND ME NEW ONES that I couldn't play!

I managed to get better, struggling every step of the way. Playing three times a week for about 8 years. I never took it further, I stayed in the first 5 frets and just did what I had to do to get through. In 1995, Janey bought me my 4001CS for Christmas. She said, you've stuck with it for a while, I think you need a better bass.

We moved in 2001 to Florida and my bass playing stopped again. Somewhere in late 2004, I started up again. This time, much more serious, trying to improve my limited abilities.

THEN, sometime in 2005, I found this forum, and that as they say is history.

This year, I had the epiphany to go back to basics, starting with scales and looking to become a much better player.

I'm filling in the gaps, practicing a few hours a day and I'm now comfortable up and down the neck, and LOVING MY 4003FL, it just feels SO NATURAL for me.

[squirefan01]

Great thread.

While I always loved music & the bass, I never played seriously until 2 years ago (2 years coming this March). I got my first Rick at that time and have been pretty dedicated in my practice ever since. 2007 was a year of learning theory for me, working with a local guy on a well-designed program. I actually have my final lesson with him this week. Two parts that I am skipping with his teaching is reading and ear training. I will probably return to him later for this, but he is a keyboardist first, guitarist second, and bassist around 4th or 5th I think.

I barely touched my bass while in a lesson with him for the 6 months of lessons that I have taken, so I feel the need to work with a true bassist next. So, I have found a really good jazz bassist that teaches and will start with him next month. I hope that to build on "2007 - The Theory Year" I can have success with "2008 - The Technique year". I hope to get very good at walking, progressions, how to play with other musicians and general controlled improv this year. Maybe the ear training will come as a part of this phase, but probably not the reading.

I do have some Carol Kaye materials on jazz bass playing and reading as well, so I can always work with those on the side.

As far as the 2 -year marker, I remember reading a comment in my initial threads in this forum about taking 2 years to really know what you are doing. Well, here I am on the verge of that and still a lot to learn. I have still never played with a band but have found a few folks on Craigslist that seem to have similar tastes and backgrounds as me. That will help to move forward, and hopefully this new teacher will get me ready for that.

My wife, kids and friends say I am getting a lot better and I really love playing and I'm having a blast, so bass playing is definitely a part of my life that offers great balance to the general stress of my professional life. For me, it's hard _not_ to go way overboard on a hobby and end up getting burned out (as I have with homebrewing and golf in the past), so I am being careful to keep it mellow and enjoy the process.

-Greg

[squirefan01]

Oh yeah, I meant to address the comment above about getting kids to read music. My kids both have learned this well from their piano teacher. They are so good at it, and I stink. I guess the younger you start the better! I am very proud of them for that (and many other things).

[woodyng]

hello,interesting thread! i read a comment that sort of sums up my approach-i had 2 years of piano when i was 11-13,and my instructor noted that once i knew what the tune was,i was playing by memory,rather than actively reading. i never actually became proficient on keyboards,but still have a synth that i try to play sometimes. as for my main instrument,bass guitar,i had a couple of lessons from a guitar instructor for playing scales,fingering,etc,but never got into reading/tabs,etc. so,to this day,i still can't read. i am not particularly proud of that,but find that i can pick out bass parts on most songs pretty well by ear. most of what i play is not of a seriously complex nature,but evidently i have a good grasp on the basics, and once i know my song structure,can even improvise a bit. i have mostly just played with songwriters,and tend to base my playing on vocal cues to learn the songs. i will play along to records,usually trying to see if i can figure out what is being played-sometimes i surprise myself that i can! i have gotten quite a few compliments on my playing,but as far as i am concerned,i have a lot to be humble about!

[chucksimms]

Well, my dad was a professional drummer- jazz, big band, show tunes. He was always trying to get us to learn drums but we had to read first. I wasn't interested. I saw Yellow Submarine on TV in 1975 when I was 13 and that was it; I wanted to be a Beatle. But it wasn't until I was in my last year of high school that a friend suggested I learn bass so I could play in his band. I took a few lessons for about two months and have pretty much been on my own ever since. I got a Rick within two years (it was ALWAYS going to be a Rick) and though the collection has had its lean years (sold almost everthing during university) I have everything I've ever really lusted after for bass, guitar and amps. I never learned to read and having played a number of musicals as a bassist and guitarist I sure wish I had. I'm 45 and I play professionally 2-3 times a week on average, more than I ever thought possible and I LOVE IT.

[rickenbrother]

Great stories all around.

Whatever became of the old Firebird, Joey?

John, although I answered you in a previous post, I didn't have a good picture of it in any of my computers.
Here is a pic of it that I took this morning.

'66 Gibson Firebird

[captsandwich]

I guess I missed this thread originally.
I took piano for 3 months in Grade 3, but then I changed schools and piano lessons were not available. I attribute it to the lack of nuns at my new school.
In grade 8, my sister's best friend was going to teach me how to play guitar. We were stringing up a ****** old acoustic when one of the strings broke. The next week, my father got a job 3000 km away, I moved a couple of months later, the guitar never got a new string.
A few years later, as a bored teenager, I was throwing a penny at the afore-mentioned acoustic to hear it go 'thwang-ang-ang' when I hit it. My mother said 'Stop making that racket. Maybe you should learn how to play that thing'. I had recently discovered punk rock, so I was not about to play an acoustic. Instead, I got $75 from my dad for painting the fence in the back yard, and bought an old Sears guitar & amp from my best friend's (bass player) aunt (a nun, what is it with me, music & nuns), got another friend to show me barre chords and formed a band with the three of us and the guitar player's brother on drums. About a month later, I made my debut as rhythm guitar/vocalist for Post Mortem at a house party thrown by a guy we knew. Or maybe we were Wreckless Abandon at that point, I don't recall. All I know is we were loud & I loved it. That was 1983, & I've been doing it ever since.

I did take a non-credit Intro to Music Theory course in second year university (I was, nominally, a chemistry major). It was the only course I attended regularly, and thus the only course I passed that semester.

[jingle_jangle]

Sounds like a normal, "nun-musical" background for a Good Catholic Boy. Mine was similar. See my keyboard post in "The Others".