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Teach Yourself Bass Guitar
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| Bass guitar is one of the simpler instruments to learn to play, yet is an
extremely difficult instrument to master. For a beginning player, you only have
to learn to play one note at a time, unlike multiple notes with a piano or
guitar player, and you only have your arms to worry about, unlike a brass or
woodwind player.
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This page is meant for beginning bass guitarists, with all of the instructions directed to right-handed fretted bass guitar players. For you left-handed players, just switch the hands around. Fortunately bass guitar makers make the left handed versions of the instruments in such a way that it's possible to just switch hands. I don't suggest learning to play a fretless bass guitar until you've mastered a fretted instrument, but if you insist on learning to play on a fretless instrument, all I can say is get a chromatic tuner to check your tuning for every note that you play.
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| The first step does not involve the instrument at all. Hold your right
straight out (so that it is parallel to the ground) and release all of the
muscles in your hand. Now take a look at your hand and notice the position your
fingers are in. Now bring your hand to a flat, hard surface keeping your forearm
parallel to the ground. Place your index and middle fingers on the flat, hard
surface so that only the fingertips of you index and middle fingers are on the
tabletop and both fingertips are touching each other. Now, raise your index
finger to a comfortable height and bring it back down on the table. As you bring
your index finger down, raise your middle finger to a comfortable height and
then bring it back down, raising your index finger when your middle finger hits
the table. Make sure that when one finger is in the air, the other finger is on
the table. Start this process slowly and then increase speed while decreasing
the distance between the tabletop and your fingers.
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| After you can accomplish that previous excersize, we're ready to pick up an
instrument. Sit down with your feet flat on the floor and place the instrument
on your right thigh so that the instrument rests and the strings are facing away
from your body. There should be a slope on the body of the instrument that
easily allows for this. Now with your right forearm, position the instrument so
that it is resting on both your right thigh and against your body. You'll want
to hold the neck of the instrument at first to provide stability, but you should
be able to comfortably hold the instrument with only your right forearm, right
thigh, and body. Get used to the feeling of holding the instrument without using
the left hand, because as we start to play, you won't be able to depend on the
left hand to support the instrument.
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| Now we're ready to start to play. Place your right thumb on the E string (the
fat string that is closest to you) midway between the end of the fingerboard and
the pickups. If your instrument does not have pickups, place your thumb
approximately two inches beyond the end of the fingerboard so that the string
lies across the "meaty" part of the finger. You should create about a
30º angle between your thumb and the E string. Now place your index and middle
fingers on the D string (two strings away from the E string, the string that is
the second farthest away from you). Hold your fingers together as we did on the
tabletop. Your fingers should be situated in such a way so that the fleshy part
of each finger is on the string your fingernails are facing away from you, and
approximately 1/2" of each finger will lie below the string. Also, your
palm should be facing the strings. Now, pick up your index finger and place it
on the G string (one string above the D string, the farthest string away from
you)in the same matter that you had it on the D string and move it back to the D
string, plucking the G string in the process. (Note: do not try to force the G
string to come back to the D string, there should be little in the way of
pressure that you're putting on the G string). After plucking the G string, let
your index finger rest on the D string again, and move you middle finger in the
same process. Repeat this pattern incresing speed, but make sure you do not
loose accuracy with each pluck.
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| Now we're ready for the left hand. Now place your left index finger (first
finger for future refrence) just to the left of the first fret on the D string
(so that it's touching the fret, but not on it). Place your left middle finger
(second finger for future refrence) just to the left of the second fret, your
left ring finger (third finger for future refrence) just to the left of the
third fret, and your left pinky finger (fourth finger for future refrence) just
to the left of the fourth fret. Place your left thumb on the back of the neck,
opposite of your second finger, so that it lies perpendicular to the neck. Make
sure you're using your fingertips to hold down the string. Hold that position
for a while. It may be uncomfortable, but it's something that you have to get
used to.
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| Now we're going to
combine left hand technique along with right hand technique. On the G
string, play the open string, then place your first finger on the first
fret and play the string again (this will produce the pitch of A), then
play the open string again (G). Continue this process until you feel
comfortable with it, increasing speed each time you do it. After you feel
comfortable with that, place the first finger on the first fret, play the
note, and then place the second finger on the second fret play the note
(Bb), then play the G again. Continue this process with all four fingers
(open-1-open, 1-2-1, 2-3-2, 3-4-3). Then go onto new pattern: open-1-open,
open-2-open, open-3-open, open-4-open, 1-2-1, 1-3-1, etc . . . Practice
this pattern on each string. After you've mastered that, start with your
first finger on the second fret and repeat the pattern, then with your
first finger on the third fret, etc. . . .
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| Now we're ready to shift. Start with your left hand in the first position I
taught you (first finger on first fret) and move your entire hand so that your
first hand is on the second fret and your fingers are placed so that there is
one per fret (your pinky or fourth finger is on the 5th fret). Now go back to
the first position I taught you and shift your hand so that your hand remains in
position but your first finger is on the third fret, etc. After you've gone all
of the way up the fingerboard, start at the second fret and repeat the process
and travel all of the way up the fingerboard. Then position your hand so that
your fourth finger is at the uppermost fret (because of differences in bass
design, there is no specific fret number or pitch of the uppermost fret) and
re-position your hand so that your fourth finger now lies on the second-to-last
fret. Replace your hand at the top of the fingerboard and repeat the last step
so that you end with your pinky finger on the third-to-last fret. Repeat this
all the way down the fingerboard. Then, start with your pinky finger on the
second-to-last fret and repeat the previous procedure. Repeat this on each
string until you feel completely comfortable with these procedures.
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| Now you're ready to begin reading music and playing some "real"
bass guitar. Unfortunately I know that there are MANY sources
availible that are more useful than I can be. I'd suggest purchasing some books
(Mel Bay is great for beginning bass), and remember to always have fun!
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