First lesson, first spark [long]

[effclef]

I gave my niece, seventeen, my old Aria Pro II bass which I bought new in 1984 for $209.00. She made noises about wanting to play bass, so I found her a practice amp at a flea market, and passed on the Aria and associated stuff to get her going.  
 
She got a few bass books for Christmas. One of the ones I gave her which impressed me so much I bought my own copy was BASS GUITAR FOR DUMMIES. I like the layout and readability and the way things are grouped together. And it comes with a CD of the tracks.  
 
Anyway - I am still a beginner because I have always had bass as a second, third, fourth priority hobby compared to things which were easier or more immediately gratifying. I took a few lessons, back in the old days, with a boring teacher and some awful Mel Bay books. So I never stuck with it, but yet I always loved the sound of the bass, and want to make it more of a prime hobby for me now.  
 
So I set my niece up for lessons with the son of a coworker of mine. He is a great young man, educated at music school and in his own band. He plays a four string Zon.  
 
My niece was so excited about getting lessons. Her first was the other evening, and because her rich uncle (NOT) is going to foot the bill for them for a while, I was allowed to sit in on the lesson. I figure I can learn as much as she can, though hopefully her young brain can absorb it quicker than I can...
 
Well let me tell you - it was an amazing experience seeing a young lady learn from a great teacher. He began by showing her how to tune it, how to hold it, how to pluck with two fingers...the basics.  
 
I could tell right away that the guy is a great, patient teacher. At the same time, my niece impressed me because she retained what he was telling her.  
 
She was concerned about the fret buzz she was getting...we told her that it goes away with practice and as your hands get stronger. About twenty minutes later, he had her running a C scale up and down and I pointed out that the buzz was gone. She was shocked, because she thought she would never get it.  
 
One of her school friends (self taught guitarist...you can imagine) taught her to play Smoke on the Water. Yesterday the teacher taught her how to play it the RIGHT way, and she was more and more excited about how things were progressing. It seemed to be real JOY on her face, as she did things that began to sound musical.  
 
She's got her second lesson in a couple of weeks, and I will be sitting in again. We both can't wait. He left her with some written notes for practicing and told her to work on some finger exercises (four fingers/four frets, across the neck) to start building strength.
 
I guess my point of the post is to convince those of you who may be like me - a permanent beginner - to have hope and realize that with practice, things can begin to happen. And for anyone who is trying to encourage a young kid, especially one on bass, that you should help them find the kind of teacher who can light that spark.  
 
EffClef

[hollis]

Thanks for the very nice story. It brought a smile to my face.  
 
One thing though...forget the spark.......FLAME ON!
 
Not really, I know that without the spark, there can be no flame.
 
I guess what I'm trying to get across is once the spark is there, fan it with every fiber of your being!  
 
Here's to hopes that the flame stays lit always.
 
I'm sure it has something to do with becoming teachable.... There's balance in the learning.
The more I learn, the more I find out there is to learn.....etc.
 
Anyhow, thanks for the story!
 
-Hollis

[keavin]

hey cool kid!,sounds like shes got it,(what it takes to be a good player.) theres nothing like the birth of a brandnew bassplayer!

[bassman10096]

Really nice tale.  Lots to learn in it too.  Hope you continue to enjoy your neice's learning for a long while.
 
Bill

[bob]

Great story, effclef - thanks for taking the time to pass it on.
 
Maybe it will encourage me to post some of my own thoughts on learning...
 
-Bob

[effclef]

Thanks for the comments, everyone.  
 
I hope she sticks with it. She definitely loves the sound, and I have given her lots of classic-rock-reggae-bass-oriented CDs to listen to over the past year. Of course, being a fossil, I haven't heard/heard of many of the bands she now likes, but it's nice that she thinks Pink Floyd is cool anyway. ;-)
 
Kind of reminds me of a story I heard. Guy was in a record store and some teenage girls were looking at CDs. One of them, looking through Wings discs, exclaimed, Oh wow! Paul McCartney used to be in a BAND!!!!
 
As for my own past, the frustration was being told to learn from the horrible Mel Bay Vol 1 bass book - probably has the same contents as when it was first done in 1959. On Top of Old Smokey is not a great bassline.
 
But what eluded me for years, years and years, up until last year in fact, was that I never knew why the different keys had the sharps and flats they did. I never understood WHY. It wasn't until I started thinking in terms of whole and half steps and visualizing a piano keyboard that it made sense. OH!!!!! So you keep the same steps between notes, but if you start on A, then you need to shift whole-whole-half-whole-whole-whole-half just like you had on the C scale (white notes) and therefore that's where the steps make the sharps and flats to go with the starting note.
 
I don't think ANY of the dozen bass guitar books I have bought have ever explained that. Ever! They just show the staff and off you go, memorize it.  
 
As a rank beginner, I am still trying to stretch my hands and build up strength. It's getting easier. Sometimes - does anyone else do this? - I find myself playing a few tones, chordal or not, and getting a little mesmerized by the sound, and just enjoy repeating them. It is almost like meditation at times. (I do wake up, imagine Dino's postings here, and get back to my scale practice.)
 
I picked my username for a reason - it's been my stumbling block for 20 years and I want to master it.  
 
EffClef

[bassman10096]

On Top of old Smokey brings back some verrrrry distant and not too inspiring memories.  
 
Down in the Valley anyone? (i.e. How could my interest in continuing guitar lessons with this teacher, SINK SO LOW? (sung to the classic tune))

[palembic]

Eff I tried to master that clef in formal upright studies.
A moment comes that you start thinking of music as being Sheetmusic (shut up Dannobasso). I know at least 4 highly trained virtuoso classical trained musicians ...who admire me. Because I was able to sit in with bass and small Danelectro practice amp and join the rambling and joy of a pianoplayer and a guitarplayer.
They said YOU can play music ...we can play notes in the first place. IFF it's music is to others to decide. We just perform what is written. You play on the coordination of mind, hart and hands.
 
I was embarrassed.
They exagerated but ...there is a small thruth in it.
BTW my Brother Paul the Fake one (theartist you all used to call Dino) will agree on this I think.
If you can finf the perfect groove in 1-5,1-5, 1-5, ...that will be heaven for ALL the others (soloing) artists with you.
Imagine this: what would happen if I would NOT 1-5, 1-5, 1-5 ...
 
oh-oh
 
 
Paul the bad one

[hollis]

Let us not forget the ever unenlightening Far Far Away......
 
One of my closest friends is a concert pianist, it took him years to perfect his craft......It has taken him longer to play music that's not written down for him (or by him for that matter).
 
He really had a lot of trouble improvising...He has gotten over that bump in the musical road, but it required a concentrated effort (and a lot of prodding) before he was able to sit down at the piano and just play.....
 
Please don't misunderstand my meaning here.  I believe learning to read music and as much theory as you can stand is a very good thing, I guess what I'm trying to say is;  Don't get hung up on it.  Not being able to play without music in front of you is tantamount to not being able to speak without reading aloud from a book.
 
I live for the free flow of musical interchange. It's my passion.  It renews my spirit.
 
Etc.
 
-Hollis
 
 
 

[keavin]

the universal vibe of freeflow is a spiritual gift,(its a plant that has to be watered early),and the end result is full throttle chops and improvisaion!(of course along with studying along the way)

[bracheen]

My biggest problem with sheet music is I have the hardest time getting a rhythm from looking at the page.  I have to hear it for it to make sense.  I have that Bass for Dummies book.  It is easy to follow.
 
Paul, I like that thought, coordination of the mind, heart, and hands.  That's what it's about.
 
Sam

[effclef]

Hollis, some great thoughts. I feel that the importance in learning to read is not that it teaches you how to speak, but it teaches you the LANGUAGE that you can then piece together to speak.
 
I would buy a bass DVD instruction video in an instant if it taught me how to LISTEN to bass theory. In other words...play for me the 1-5, 1-5, 1-5, and let me get that in my head. Play mixolydian mode and let me hear the difference between it and dorian mode, etc. etc.  
 
I swear that musical notation is as complicated as it is because back in 1622 we had to save on ink.
 
Sam, I agree with you also - it is hard to hear, in your mind (as a beginner) the rhythm of a piece by seeing the notes. My niece's instructor encouraged her to get a metronome and be vigilant in that part of her practice should be along with measured beats.  
 
I found the CD in the back of BASS GUITAR FOR DUMMIES handy for that - the rhythm becomes more clear when you hear it and follow along in the page. One negative on that CD, though, is that they don't split each separate bassline exercise into a separate track, so you can simply put the CD player on loop. (It groups four or five small exercises together in a CD track. I think my CD burning software can separate tracks by the silence between them so maybe I'll try making a copy and splitting all of them...and labelling the book exercises accordingly.)
 
My niece had the old Aria at the dinner table the other night and my mother said, Gee, that guitar has a really long handle!  (i.e. the neck)
 
All those years growing up listening to rock and roll through a monophonic AM (mediumwave to Paul TBO!) radio meant that I never really knew what an electric bass guitar sounded like. I too laughed at American Bandstand or whatever, when I saw the guy with that huge guitar and pointed it out to my brother, who was savvy enough to tell me that it was a BASS guitar... Was that my spark? Probably not -- I think it was more likely hearing Aston Family Man Barrett on Bob Marley LPs.
 
Well anyway - I am glad this has stirred up some inspirational discussion. I am sure the instructor will have my niece doing the 1/5 1/5 1/5 routine very quickly!
 
EffClef

[palembic]

I saw Victor Wooten once just playing 1/5 1/5 1/5 1/5 ...man ...it GROOVED!

[keavin]

speaking of victor(wooten),,did you know stanley (clarke) gave him the very alembic that he recorded school days with.victor explains this his web site,thats somthing aint it? victor also owns one of stanley,s upright basses ,the one he recorded desert song with,... just in case any one didnt know.

[effclef]

Well I talked to my niece and she claims she has been diligent about practicing. I said, so now you will never forget that the C scale starts on the 8th fret on the E string and goes 2-4, 1-2-4, 1-3-4, right? She said yes...funny how she thought a simple scale would be daunting at her first lesson.
 
You know what's funny? Now _I_ will always remember that pattern, too! I've been trying to run the scale and sing the notes as I go, to drill them in. Maybe Dino would be proud (brother Paul the Fake One, not Dino the Martin one). hee
 
Her second lesson is this week. I'll let you folks know how she progresses. At any rate, my old $209 Aria couldn't be in happier hands!
 
EffClef