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Thread: Hello. I am new to the scene.

  1. Default Hello. I am new to the scene.

    My name is keith, I live in columbus in, and I've been playing bass for about 5 months now. It's been a struggle. I started taking lessons from a local musician and felt as if I just wasn't learning much, after months of taking lessons from this guy I decided to fire him and pick up TMBG. I am hoping that this will give me a solid ground and start. As of now, I think my biggest struggle is learning the notes on the fretboard. Even after playing for 5 months, I am still struggling w/ this. Any advice on how to make this easier? Any info will help.

    I currently play on a fender standard j bass and a fender jazz bass special (duff mckagan signature). Both great basses w/ different sounds.

  2. #2

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    Welcome, Keith! Glad to have you with us!


    - low life -

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Whitehouse, Texas
    Posts
    173

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    Welcome to The Row, Keith! I believe this course will surely give you a solid foundation in bass. As far as learning the notes of the fretboard, there will be as many ideas as there are notes. I had the advantage of learning a little guitar first. In that, I had to learn first the sixth string barre chords then fifth string chords. They are the same as the third and fourth string of the bass, so I was half way there to begin with.
    I would suggest slow and steady; there is no rush. Break it down into small chunks so it's not too overwhelming. Only learn the natural notes (C, D, E, F, G, A, B)- the rest will fall into place. Just learn to the twelfth fret, after that it is just a repeat. Begin with a single string. Start on the E string and learn the first three naturals (F, G, A). Once you are comfortable, move to the next three until you make it to the twelfth. Next work on the A string the same way. From there you can continue to D and G strings and/or learn the association method that I believe Roy mentions in the course. It is simply moving two frets over and two strings up to find the octave. Before you know it, you will have that fretboard down. Then you can periodically quiz yourself by picking a single note and trying to find it in all positions of the fretboard. It won't be long before you are doing with little conscious thought.
    Good luck on the course and don't be a stranger around here.

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    thanks alot that helps

  5. #5

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    Hi Keith -

    Great to have you with us. Here's a big chart you can print out that might help you learn the notes on the fretboard. The main thing to remember is that you're just dealing with 12 notes (including sharps and flats) that repeat over and over. This chart shows the names and positions of all the notes, but I personally found it easier to learn where all the 'A's are (you'll find a chart for that under the 'Charts and Graphs' tab under the 'Resources' folder above. Once you learn those, you start branching out; one note up from A is A#. Then do the same thing with all the A#s; i.e. one note up from A# is B, etc., etc.
    Hope that helps. There's lots of helpful info under Resources - especially charts and graphs. Check 'em out! And WELCOME!

  6. #6

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    - low life -

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    west central Florida
    Posts
    74

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    howdy,

    welcome!

    As stated before, there are some very helpful people here and a lot of good info in the Resources section. After you register your TMBG course, you will have access to the members only areas of the forum. Just don't drink the last beer in the fridge if you didn't buy them.

    Elmeaux has some good charts she has cooked up to help with the fretboard, my personal favorite is the "phone number" list, or words to that effect. Just a list of what fret (up to 12th) on each string for each note. Sounds simple, and it is, but a great idea that never occurred to me. Thanks Elmeaux!

    It takes a while to do things right, but you want to build on a firm foundation, not one of sand. You can, and will, still have fun, but the school work remains. No one was born knowing this stuff. NO one.

    Practice does not make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect. I have played incorrectly for a long time, and am having to undo a lot of bad habits. Perfect practice...saves time

    Once again, very good support group here. Everyone joined at a different time, so we are all at different lessons and have varied abilities. Kinda like the gym or karate class. As such, there are people in the same boat, and people who just got out of the boat. Most are more than willing to chime in.

    Slow and steady wins every time. You are developing muscle memory, and that is sheer repetition. When is the last time you paid attention to tying your shoes, or chewing food? Took a while to get to that stage, eh? Someone asks how you did something, and you have to slow down and think "hmm, how do I do that?". That is the memory you are hoping to instill.

    Don't make the mistake of not asking questions. Or, if you have no questions, great! Stop in and help others that don't have it down yet. But, never forget rule 1... Have Fun!

    pan
    Last edited by panhead; 10-10-2013 at 12:16 PM.

  8. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by panhead View Post
    Elmeaux has some good charts she has cooked up to help with the fretboard, my personal favorite is the "phone number" list, or words to that effect. Just a list of what fret (up to 12th) on each string for each note. Sounds simple, and it is, but a great idea that never occurred to me. Thanks Elmeaux!

    That would be this one. Assign each note a "combination" or "phone number".


    Click image for larger version. 

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    You commit each set of four numbers to memory - almost as if it was a telephone number.

    What's the phone number for E? 0-7-2-9.

    0 (or open) on the E string, 7th place on the A, 2nd on the D and 9th place on the G.


    No sharps or flats for this one - it's based on the KISS theory. (keep it simple, stupid)

    If you have a five-string bass, slide all the strings over, add your B string placements, and one extra number at the beginning of each "phone number".


    - low life -

  9. #9

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    Welcome aboard, Keith. Glad to have you with us!!!
    Always remember to enjoy where you're at on the way to where you're going!!!

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    New Liskeard, Ontario
    Posts
    528

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    Welcome, Keith.

    Panhead has already given you a great rundown, so I have just one thing to add. As one of the other members pointed out, practice does not make perfect, practice makes permanent. As a result, pay attention to what panhead says about perfect practice. I wish I had known that last March.

    Take care.

    Brian

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