When you’re first starting out on a bass guitar, learning the ropes and mastering the nuances that come with being a bassist can be intimidating. Learning an instrument takes a lot of time and if you haven’t learned any instruments in the past, it can be tricky to stay in beat and pay attention to your surroundings at the same time.
Even the very best bass players started out knowing nothing- and years of practice is what made them sound so good. So, with dedicated practice and a consistent schedule, you too can become the best bassist you can be.
In this short post, we take a look at some tips that will help you become a bass player and help structure your practice sessions for success.
Table of Contents
Tips To Becoming A Better Bass Player
Metronome
If there is one thing that can instantly make you a better bassist, it’s the ability to lock in with the groove. Most drummers have a click track going on when they play just so they aren’t rushing or dragging behind the beat- similarly, you should also work on your internal metronome so you can play in perfect time with your band.
The easiest way to practice playing along with a metronome is to actually tap or clap along to it. Once you can play along to the beat at a decent speed, you can experiment with playing subdivisions or increasing the tempo gradually. Over time, both your technique and speed will see a huge improvement.
Unlike what some players think, practicing with a metronome won’t make you sound robotic or devoid of feeling. If anything, you will have much more creative freedom when improvising, and the click drill will help you stay in time with the drummer in the band.
The bass and drums are two of the most important instruments in any band- if you cannot stay in time, and are rushing or dragging behind the beat- no matter how many scales you play or how fast you can play, you will be contributing terrible sound to the band.
As for what metronome to get, you can go for one that can be downloaded on your smartphone or a dedicated metronome that you can tuck away in your gig bag. I recommend the latter- the DB-30C Dr Beat Metronome by Boss is a great choice I’ve had this one for years and it still works like a charm.
Practicing Scales
Good bassists can learn parts from tabs and with some practice, nail them down pretty close to the original. This is great for cover bands but there’s an obvious caveat to this technique- you always need to depend on somebody else’s interpretation.
What if you could lay down your own grooves, improvise on existing bass lines, and play all over the fretboard without thinking? That’s exactly where scales come in.
If you think about it, bass scales are simply shapes across the frets that you can connect to play stuff across the fretboard. But a scale is much more than that- it’s a dictionary of notes you can pull from, and if you have the key and the rhythm right, a scale will sound fantastic over pretty much anything.
Even if you don’t want to get nerdy or spend countless hours practicing arpeggios in your room, you can always find value in some basic scale exercises. The major pentatonic and minor pentatonic scales are what I would suggest starting out with, and if you want to learn more, you can check out our post on the bass scales you absolutely need.
Knowing the scales also helps you write your own solo parts, understand chords and harmony better, and even transpose parts in a different key. Needless to say, it can be extremely handy to somebody who wants to improve his skills on the bass guitar.
Joining In-Person Classes
With the advent of technology, there are plenty of ways you can get lessons without ever stepping outside your room. You’ve got sites like JamPlay, Udemy, and countless free instructional material on Youtube and other streaming platforms.
I think Youtube is a great way to learn songs, don’t get me wrong- you can learn a lot by watching other players and trying to imitate them but sadly, you can also learn bad habits that can be very hard to remove. Taking in-person lessons with a teacher is the best fix to correct any mistakes you may have made in your playing or the technique.
It can shave off years off your bass practice, and though the prices tend to be more expensive than online platforms, if you have the budget- it’s certainly worth it.
If you cannot manage to have a certified guitar instructor look at your technique, you can also ask fellow guitarists for advice. Learning from friends can be an invaluable piece of advice as it helps you learn way faster than you would just sitting on your own, in front of a screen.
With online lessons, it’s easy to get distracted and lose focus, and having a guitar teacher would also mean that the instructor would be setting up a structured practice schedule for you to follow which just helps you improve rapidly on the instrument.
Not Limiting Yourself To A Particular Genre Of Music
When you start out playing bass, it’s very easy to stick in a trap of your comfort zone- most players just stick to bass and straight groove and don’t bother learning to play in odd time signatures or with a swing feel.
By opening yourself up to many different varieties of music, you can not only gain an appreciation of the genres that are listened to by people other than the one you are most familiar with- this can also help you recognize new scales, rhythm patterns, ideas and make you a more versatile player.
You may stumble on videos like these, and sometimes, it can be a catalyst for you to practice more. But you should also make a conscious effort to learn different elements from foreign genres.
Personally, listening to Irish and Celtic instrumentals has helped me get a feel for the 7/8 and 6/8 time signatures that are commonly used in jigs. Even while listening to violin music, there are a ton of nuances I pick up that I could incorporate into my own playing- things like mutes and dynamics- these make up the feel of the song, and the more songs you listen to, the more you will learn to emulate stuff.
Having a musical vocabulary based on the songs you enjoy and listen to is what happens even for the most elite players, so if you want to excel at country music, listening to the country will get you there but a couple of influences from jazz, blues and math rock can only help. For instance, if you're diving into the distinct grooves of funk, investing in one of the best bass guitar for funk can make a significant difference to your sound and playing experience. Be careful to incorporate elements though- not everything works with your genre and your ears are your best bet at deciding what sounds best.
I would suggest listening to Autumn Leaves- it’s a jazz standard and will help you learn more about swing and chords like 7ths and 9ths. Once you feel like you have heard the piece enough, try playing that on your instrument. It should be pretty easy if you are a fairly advanced player but for somebody just starting out, it can be very intimidating.
It does take a lot of time but it’s certainly worth the effort.
Listening To Other Musicians
Talking about improving on the bass guitar, one of the reasons why you wanted to learn the bass guitar is probably to play in a band. Learning parts and working with others to perform is one of the best feelings in the world- and it’s something that will help you improve by leaps and bounds in a short period of time.
You can learn scales and arpeggio patterns all you want but if you haven’t mastered jamming, you are in a bad position to play with others or work on originals.
There are many factors that come into play when you are listening to and playing with other musicians- you get to learn from subtle cues, learn from the licks others are playing, try to copy the feeling, try to learn the rhythms being played and you can even try out how another bass feels in your hands. Remember to be respectful while asking for the instruments as most musicians don’t want others laying hands on their gear.
You can also try some open mic events or ask your friends to play along with you if you don’t know any musicians in the area. Learning beginner bass songs is a good idea before you try approaching friends to play with you.
Invest Some Time Into Ear Training
Playing songs can be great and it doesn’t take much time to learn parts for your instrument if you are fluent at reading tabs. If I’m being honest, it takes just a few hours to get acquainted with tabs and it’s something that sticks with you for a long time.
Any time you have spent practicing intervals and scales is something that always pays back in the end. A musician is only as good as his ear- as such, you want to practice hearing intervals and play melodies by ear as often as you can.
Traditionally, all musicians would hear something or they would see somebody playing a tune and they would try to play the same on their instrument till it sounded good. With smartphones and video tutorials, most learners today don’t bother to learn parts by ear- it’s something that just delays their growth on the instrument.
When you hear a song being played, trying to play along with it is a great idea- over time, you will find that you can pick up the bass parts and the harmonies much more quickly. Take it from me, I learned to play by ear in less than a year, and being able gave me an edge over players who cannot play by ear. It also helps you figure out mistakes in transcriptions players may put out on the internet.
You don’t really need to have a bass with you- you can easily practice without a bass guitar if you put your mind to it- so ear training can be a great tool in your arsenal and you will thank me for suggesting to implement it early in your playing.
Poor Technique
Even if you can a couple of songs and scales flawlessly, if you haven’t paid much attention to your picking and plucking hands, you are likely to injure your wrist and muscles in the process. The reason classical guitarists don’t sustain that many injuries compared to rock musicians is that they always stretch their fingers before and after playing.
It may seem like a boring routine but this can help prevent the onset of dreaded arthritis or carpal tunnel.
It is super easy to only work on the picking hand but the right hand is equally as important if you want to progress faster. Things like slapping and tapping take some time to get used to, and playing with a proper technique can make all the difference between a sound that sounds terrible versus a sound that seems to be refined and clean.
If you want to play fast, trying alternate picking and tremolo techniques is also a good idea. Bassists frown upon playing with a pick but if you can get past that, it will help improve your speed and if you intend to play guitar someday, this will be a huge help as well.
Proper technique is something that will get you very far in bass playing, and if you are serious about bass, getting lessons to work on your technique can be a great idea.
Final Thoughts
Becoming a better bass player takes a lot of time and dedication. You need to practice, but above all else, you need to be consistent with learning new things.
It’s easy to be discouraged by how many things you need to learn, but if you’re in for the fun, you will have an easy time getting used to the challenges. Tuning up the bass everytime before you play is also good practice as it helps train your ear.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to become good at bass guitar?
It depends on how much you want to learn, and if you want to be a profession at bass. With regular practice, including online bass lessons, it should take anywhere from between 3 months to a year to play songs along with a band, and 2 – 5 years to become a master of the craft. Learning never stops and even if you have been playing for a decade, you may still find new things every day.
Is slapping bass hard?
Yes, slapping can be pretty tricky for beginners. If you want to play slap riffs by Flea or your favorite players, you should be prepared to spend a significant amount of time honing the technique. Speed comes much later- you just need to make sure that you slapping each note loud and clear.