(Bass Guitar Lessons) - Berklee - Bass Practice Basics.pdf - PDF(1) - greki

FREE music lessons from

Berklee College of Music

The Bass Player’s Handbook

Greg Mooter

Chapter 10

Creating and Maintaining

an Effective Practice Schedule

Press ESC to cancel sound.

Check out Berkleeshares.com for more lessons

just like this one.

CHAPTER 10

Creating and

Effective Practice Schedule

To learn is to do. Let’s pretend that you want to become a marathon runner. First, you

would identify that you liked to run and seemed to be pretty adept at it. Eventually, you

would need to hire a trainer with the knowledge of how to build your body properly. Next,

you would need a coach to help you prepare for each individual race. You, your trainer, and

your coach would all work in tandem to help you reach your goal. All the while, what would

be your primary activity? Running, doing.

How long would this training, coaching, and doing go on? Well, this is the $64,000 ques-

tion. Professional runners have coaches, trainers, and other hired help aiding them

throughout their careers. Many casual runners seek professional help on a regular or an as-

needed basis. No one in their right mind would attempt running a marathon without some

guidance and rigorous training at a gym and in the field.

There are varying levels of preparation and varying levels of dependency on outside help

needed to guide people to their goals. The keys are the setting of the goal and the doing,

the action of going about attaining the goal. I call this doing gyo (a term I picked up from

of an Eastern philosophy book, years ago). To me, gyo is conscious action, or doing,

through guided force. It is taking the positive steps to gain through action. You might liken

it to positive motivation. In so doing, it becomes easier to understand why some runners are

so natural, such perennial winners, so all inspiring, so talented, so strong, so energetic, and

so on. These runners possess gyo and know how to put it to good use. They have the knowl-

edge of how to do.

And so it is, as a performer. But it is not as easy as I have made it seem to be. It is true that

all you need do is set your goal and go about attaining it, but so much happens in between.

107

Maintaining an

The Bass Player’s Handbook

You teach yourself to read, you join a funk band, someone shows you how to slap, you get

a show gig, you get a double bass for free from your uncle, you buy a bow, you take lessons,

and then . . . you quit. Well, you get the point. We all have dynamic lives that cannot be

predicted. So, how do we hold onto our goals?

The answer is simple. It is not so important to hold on to goals as it is to have goals. People

change, goals change. What is important is gyo! You will need to reevaluate, and oftentimes

change your goals. It is the gyo that causes this.

Think about all of your musician friends, for a minute. Let’s put them into groups. Then you

decide which group you fit into.

Beginners. Enough said. Beginners need to work on every aspect of their musicianship, and

should have a well-rounded practice session, emphasizing technique, but also touching on

ear training and musical development.

Street Players. These players are very adept at one or two styles, which they learned by ear

from CDs or hanging with friends. They probably play casually a lot and might have a gig.

Street players would be well-served to develop their reading skills and to explore styles

beyond what they usually play.

Technically Challenged Players. They can’t really play very well. Technically challenged players

can’t seem to get the feel or the technique down. They just don’t understand what to do, but

they love to play. Regular attention to technical studies, such as scales, arpeggios, and various

fingerboard exercises, will help technically challenged players improve their skills, as will a good

teacher.

Forcers. They read but sound like they are reading. When they play, you sometimes think

you are listening to a machine. Practicing by ear, widening their use of articulations, and

learning to improvise can help these players to develop a more human sound.

Jazzers. The jazzers possess natural talent. They can play almost anything that they hear and

can fake their way through many situations, but they may be style restricted. Jazzers should

broaden their abilities to include other styles into their repertoire.

Rockers. Rockers are limited jazzers. They are often stylistically restricted. Rockers should

also work to bring other styles into their repertoire.

Semi-Pros. Semi-pros are conscientious players who take or took lessons and try to cover all

the bases. Semi-pros are everywhere. They need only conscientious work and time to

develop their abilities.

108

Chapter 10. Creating and Maintaining an Effective Practice Schedule

Pros. The pros seem to do it all with little or no effort and are paid well to do it. They are

not necessarily prepared for any situation, but rather, are willing to prepare for any situation.

Pros are committed to being the best and command respect from the rest. Their practice

time can focus on learning more music and maintaining their chops.

Where do you fit in? Well, I have good news for you. You can fit in anywhere and still be

successful. But it is important to see where you fit in. You must come to an understanding

of where you are, if you are to have any chance at setting goals for your future.

Armed with self-knowledge, a love for music (and of course, for bass playing), and the desire

to improve, you can set some goals.

You should spend a week or so initially thinking about what your goals might be. Jot down

the ideas that come back again and again. Look over your ideas, think about your spot on

the above list, consider your age, and consider your time constraints. Be honest with your-

self, and evaluate your present state of motivation. All of this evaluating will gain you deeper

self-knowledge and will point in positive directions. A goal or several goals will become clear

in time. Then, you must commit to your goals.

It is at this point that the gyo takes over. After identifying goals, you must go about attaining

them. We already know that this is through doing, but the doing must be directed.

Unguided doing is chaos and can only lead to random results, at best.

As with the runner, the musician often seeks help from others more versed in the craft. Much

knowledge and a clearer picture of oneself can be gained through a relationship with an

instructor. I can’t tell you how to find an instructor, but I can suggest some of the attributes

that a qualified instructor will have.

Look for someone who exudes self-knowledge and confidence, someone playing all of the

things that you want to play, someone able to communicate clearly. Find someone who is

busy but can find time for you, someone who can motivate you, someone you can trust,

someone with the patience of Job.

Use your teacher, trust your teacher, and if you must, fire your teacher. For many, the

teacher / student relationship lasts a lifetime. Search until you find your teacher.

Your studies may require weekly lessons. Many teachers have the need to set up a regular

schedule, and a regular schedule is usually the best regime for the student. Some prefer

biweekly or monthly meetings.

109

The Bass Player’s Handbook

Some sacrifices may need to be made to secure your lesson time. I was once on a waiting list

for two years, hoping to study with Charlie Banacos, a noted music guru in the Boston area.

When he finally called me with an opening, it was for 7:30 AM every Saturday! Needless to

say, I made some major adjustments to be prepared for his guidance each Saturday morning.

In time, you may have lessons only as needed. This relationship will be malleable and ever-

changing, but always guided by the teacher with the student’s growth in mind.

So, you like playing the bass, you have done some soul searching, and you know where you

are. You have taken the time to consider setting musical goals, and you have come to know

that study, possibly through a teacher, will help you attain your goal. It’s about time you

learned how to practice.

You know what they say, “practice makes perfect.” I don’t know if it’s true or not, but it sure

can help.

Consider how valuable your time is, and realize that you will be investing your time into your

practice. Don’t waste your time, value it. When you realize that your practice time is a major

means of attaining your goals, it becomes clear how important this time is. Your practice time

must be planned, dynamic, and regular to be most effective. Haphazard practice does achieve

results, but never of the magnitude attainable through the rigors and discipline of regular,

intense practice.

The specific content and duration of your practice will be determined by your individual

circumstances. Your teacher can be a great aid in determining these factors. There are some

general guidelines that will help you create and maintain a good practice schedule.

Humans are creatures of habit, living in a world that repeats itself every day. With this said,

the most important aspect about your practice schedule is that it needs to be regular—prefer-

ably, daily. You will achieve the best results if you can integrate your practice schedule into

your daily life. In so doing, you can actually cause yourself to “need to practice,” which is a

great help for those of us without optimum motivation. One could go further and consider

practicing every day at the same time. For some, this is the optimum, but others need be

careful of burnout or getting into a rut. Self-knowledge and a sense of human nature are the

keys to getting yourself on track to a successful practice schedule.

Always consider your ultimate goal, but now, be ready to set interim, short-term goals that

will ultimately lead you to your final goal. Reevaluate every six months or so to be sure you

are still on track or to decide whether you need to adjust or change your track.

110

(Bass Guitar Lessons) - Berklee - Bass Practice Basics.pdf

Plik z chomika:

Inne pliki z tego folderu:

Inne foldery tego chomika: