practice primer · 2019-06-29 · peace into the practice room, because i could silence the voice...

PRACTICE PRIMER

KILL THE BASS: PRACTICE PRIMER

Introduction

Welcome to the Kill the Bass Practice Primer. This guide is inten e to help you shar en your bass skills an strengthen your self discipline ou are going to analy e the attributes of your favorite bassists in or er to adopt and develop those attributes into your own playing. You’ve just taken the right steps to assist your transformation into a killer bassist. (Not that you aren’t one already ;)

Since you are here reading this, please let me make a few assumptions about you.

You want to get more gigs, right? As bass players, we dream of having our calendar being full of gigs. But not just any gigs. We want to play good gigs. No, we want to play great gigs, the best gigs…with the best musicians. I’m sure you are probably ready to start playing in theaters and concert halls, or even go on a tour where your travel expenses are paid for, and you actually make money…a lot of money!

I remember many, many years ago I asked a friend and more experienced Philadelphia bass player, Mike Taylor, what it was that separated the great world class bassists from where I was with my occasional “gig”. I always thought these guys were just born with “Bass Player Genes” and I was just not as gifted as they were, nor would I ever be. Mike simply replied “It’s no secret, these guys just practice!” I was literally stunned by his answer! It was as if I had never realized that practice was the solution to becoming a great musician! I was at once filled with hope followed by stifling dread: Hope that there was a way for me to reach my dreams, but terror when I realized that I’d have to spend the rest of my life in the practice room!

The Drunk Monkey

At this point in my life, I was unconsciously battling what author/musician Matthew Ferry labels “The Drunk Monkey”. In his book “Creating Sales Velocity”, the drunk monkey is the term he uses in regard to the Limbic System, what we all know as the fight or flight reflex. Ferry suggests that most humans are driven unconsciously by the drunk monkey. The drunk monkey is that voice in your head that stops you from doing the things in your life that you know will help you to reach your dreams, goals, and maximum potential. The paradox with success is that we know what actions to take to be successful and fulfilled, we just don’t do them! Let’s say you are headed out the door to go out to a jam session that you know the heavy players you want to befriend will be at. As you’re leaving, the drunk monkey chimes in “you re better o ust stay ho e an having so e ice crea on the couch . Having awareness of the


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drunk monkey’s influence leads to a flexibility which reveals new options in life. Knowing you have options empowers you.

Success paradox= we resist what it takes to be successful

The way to break free from the influence of the drunk monkey is to recognize it’s influence on your life.

AWARENESS > FLEXABILITY > OPTIONS > POWER

The 12 Unconscious Reflexes of The Drunk Monkey: 1. Forecasting the Negative

2. Protecting Yourself from the Unknown3. Avoiding Making the Same Mistake Twice

4. Avoiding Failure5. Avoiding Embarrassment

6. Following Rules that Don’t Exist in Reality7. Holding Others Accountable to Rules that Don’t Exist in

Reality8. Illogical Opinions which Hold No Basis in Reality

9. The Desire to be Right10. The Desire to Fit In

11. The Desire to be Better than Other People

Without learning to tame the drunk monkey, you may not be able to take control of your current situation and make the progress you desire to become a world class bass player. Personally, I’d struggled for years with learning to how to deal with the drunk monkey’s persistent interference of my desire for growth. Awareness plus discipline has been the catalyst that completely turned my life around. It brought peace into the practice room, because I could silence the voice telling me “I’m not good enough”. It’s not about being good enough, or living up to other people’s standards of what is good or bad, it’s about reaching your maximum potential and having as much fun as you can while you discover new parts of your self.

Discipline never came natural to me. It was something that I needed to cultivate. My hope is that if you are looking for more discipline in your practice routine, this short and simple blueprint will help you do just that.

Now it’s time to get serious and devise your personal blueprint for bass domination! First, complete the ction te s below to determine what it is that you think makes your favorite bass players great. This will help you to discover exactly what qualities you want to develop and strengthen. Then, set up your practice sessions in a way that allows you to focus on everything you personally want to see grow in your playing and style.



Action Items

1. i o o o i i . T oo o i . Yo o o i o . i

o i o o o o .

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. D i o o i . o I i i i i i i o i i . i

i i o i o i o

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3. o o i i i i i o i . i o i o o

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4. Ho o o i i i o o i

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5. I i o o i o o i . Ho o i o oo o o o io o o o

o i o i_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The best way to maximize your practice sessions is with a specific practice routine. I’m sure you’ve heard about Malcolm Gladwell’s book “Outliers”. ladwell s main focus is the 10,000 hours of investment and practice it takes to master any skill. To truly master any skill, yes it takes years of dedication, but your practice must be focused and intentional. Basically, practice what you suck at, not what you’re good at! Set up your practice routine around your problems and the solutions to those problems.

Just like a weightlifter has certain days where he/she works on particular body parts, we should focus on certain aspects of our playing in the same manner.

We are going to use classic the A/B/C split. I recommend practicing 6 days in a row each week. I recommended that you play your instrument every day, but it might not hurt to take one day a week to only warm up and play for only 30 minutes. You might find your self anticipating your next days practice session with greater enthusiasm.



n y ractice sche ule hich is inclu e at the en of this ocu ent observe that I’ve scheduled exactly how long each phase and break should be. When I put a time limit on what I’m working on, it help’s cut out the distractions from my drunk monkey. I time all of my practice sessions because I know that if I don’t, I will totally lose my focus. This time management technique is called the Pomodoro Technique. Wikipedia defines the Pomodoro technique as “ …a time management method developed by Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s. The technique uses a timer to break down work into intervals, traditionally 25 minutes in length, separated by short breaks. These intervals are named pomodoros, the plural in English of the Italian word pomodoro (tomato), after the tomato-shaped kitchen timer that Cirillo used as a university student.”

Personally, I only have a limited attention span. If I don’t use the timer, then the drunk monkey will convince me to stop practicing, eat a bowl of cereal and watch Youtube videos. You will have days where you can’t complete every phase of your daily practice routine. The most important thing to do is to practice every day, even if you only have time for your warm up session.

Usually, when I’m finished phases 1-4 I’ll want to keep practicing. Phase 5 is a good time to start doing something new that hasn’t been practiced yet on that day. Phase 5 is also a good place to call it a day if you just don't have enough time to continue. If you want to keep practicing, I say go for it. It’s when I persevere with my focus and motivation that I make the most music gains. You can continue to use the pomodoro method if you feel it will help you stay focused.

After a few months, you should review the progress you've had since starting. I’m sure you’ll notice a dramatic improvement in your overall musicianship. You can change your phases at any time so that you work on things that are congruent with what your new musical goals are.

Food For Thought

What if you were to spend some time each day imagining your self playing the gigs that you want to get. Imagine yourself getting calls from world class musicians with offers to play theaters and concert halls! Imagine getting offered tours playing with the best musicians, making great money, and being totally comfortable, relaxed, and excited on stage while playing. Imagining these things fuels my motivation for improvement. I enjoy my time in the practice room. Time flies by, and I usually can’t believe how much time I’d spent practicing!

Become “unstoppable” in the practice room, and you’ll kill it on stage. If you work on the areas that need improvement every day, you’ll be well on your way to becoming the musician you know you're capable of being. You’ve got this, Killer!



Justin’s Practice Primer

List your top favorite all time bass players:

Ray BrownPaul ChambersChristian McBrideDave HollandCharnett Moffett

Ron CarterJohn PattitucciCharles MingusJimmy GarrisonCharlie Haden

List what about these bass players you like:

Ray Brown:Big, commanding soundFingerboard masteryGreat intonation Definitive note choices

Trusting in his abilities, willing to take chances, carefree Beauty, precision, and leadership on ballads

Paul Chambers: Super creative/original melodic walking linesLeads rhythm Solo’s w/ are strong and melodicGreat feel and accompanist

Christian McBride: Plays everything with clarityBreathtaking acro/pizzacato solosHuge commanding sound, similar to Ray Brown

Dave Holland: Great in odd time signaturesHas a modern soundMelodic but based in rhythmic displacement

Charnett Moffett: Propulsive sound Has a lot of energy Dialogue with the other members of bandGreat dark tone

Great time Rhythmically daringLots of Blues feel

very bass oriented-doesn’t sound like he’s trying to emulate other instrumentsVery Creative/ Risk Takersounds classical on bow

ccents on the up beatsnthuastic aring creative uni ue

an swinging!



Ron Carter:Great sense of timeInnovative note/rhythm choices legato/ smooth slides consistent feel

John Patitucci:A+ intonation Kills RhythmBasically Kills everythingCreative note choices

Charles Mingus:Soulful-like lester young/louis armstrong/sentimentalGreat classic bass soundNotes easily up and down the fretboard

Jimmy Garrison:Groove was so goodnever rushedalways right in the pocket

Charlie Haden:SensitiveInventive/CreativeWilling to take risks/explore

great walking notessmooth up-tempoAlways chill, even when music is intense

Beautiful Solosall around consistentgreat at up tempo

Strong full up tempoAll notes take on character especiallyBluesy

always authentic, never over playedcreative laye like a ru


Compile the similarities that these bassists have:

Great Bass Players have: Good time/feel when soloing and when walkingConsistency walking and reading and playing chartsIntonation Strong part playing/sight readingGreat Solos strong beginnings and logical clear endingsKnows lots of tunesStrong rhythm propulsion on and off the beatUP TEMPOS!Bluesy, sentimental melodies and feelGreat Groove/Time

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How can you strengthen these qualities in your own playing?

Problem/Solution: Good Time & Feel: Johannes Weidenmueller Video/ Various Metronome Studies

Intonation: Hans Glawischnig Video/Scales

Good Sight Reading: Simandl, The Latin Bass Book, CP + JC Omnibook

Great Solo’s: Transcriptions w/ personal analysis, Omnibook’s

Know lots of tunes: Real Book, other fake books, Library, Spotify, Youtube

Strong Up Tempo: Learn Bebop tunes

Set up you practice routine around your problems/solutions:

Warm up:Finger Slides up the strings.Pulling finger off string at middleAlternating patterns with right hand pizzicato.

Intonation: Using Hans’ Chords with a bow and chord in the backgroundDo 6 scales with the bow, 6 scales with arpeggios. Alternate

Time-rhythm Accuracy:Spend time with Johannes Video and continuously progress through all exercises. Especially the rhythm displacement. That is super hip!

Vocabulary:Must transcribe for 30 mins every day! No matter what! Produce ! full transcription a week! Learn to play the transcriptions.

Learn Songs: Practice this first. Find good balance between standards and bebop/postbop tunes.

Arco: Parker solos, Simandl

Reading: Afro Cuban Book!

Uptempo: when learning songs, work on this



Practice Session A Vocabulary_: Must transcribe for 30 mins every day! No matter what! Produce 1 full transcription a week!(30 min)

Warm up_: Finger Slides up the strings.Pulling finger off string at middleAlternating patterns with right hand pizzicato. (20 Minutes 5 min Break)

Intonation_: Using Hans’ Chords with a bow and chord in the backgroundDo 6 scales with the bow, 6 scales with arpeggios. Alternate the scale.(50 Minutes 10min Break)

Reading+Arco_: Simandl-(25 min 5min Break) 2x

Practice Session B Vocabulary_: Must transcribe for 30 mins every day! No matter what! Produce 1 full transcription a week!(30 min)


Time-rhythm Accuracy_: Spend time with Johannes Video and continuously progress through all exercises. Especially the rhythm displacement.(50 Minutes 10min Break)

Reading_: Afro Cuban Book! (25 min 5min Break) 2x



Practice Session C Vocabulary_: Must transcribe for 30 mins every day! No matter what! Produce 1 full transcription a week!(30 min)


Learn Songs_: Find good balance between standards and bebop/postbop tunes. Keep track of songs from gigs.(50 Minutes 10min Break)

Transcriptions_: Play what you’ve transcribed(25 min 5min Break) 2x



Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday SundaySession2A Session2B Session2C Session2A Session2B2 Session2C

Phase21

Time

Phase22

Time

Phase23

Time

Phase24

Time

Phase25

Time

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Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday SundaySession2A Session2B Session2C Session2A Session2B2 Session2C

Phase21VOCABULARY

Must%transcribe%for%30%mins%every%day!%No%matter%what!%Produce%1%full%transcription%a%week!






Time 302min 302min 302min 302min 302min 302min

Phase22WARMBUP

Finger%Slides%up%the%strings.Pulling%finger%off%string%at%middleAlternating%patterns%with%right%hand%pizzicato.






Time 202min52min2break

202min52min2break

202min52min2break

202min52min2break

202min52min2break

202min52min2break

Phase23MEAT

Intonation:2Using%Hans’%Chords%with%a%bow%and%chord%in%the%backgroundDo%6%scales%with%the%bow,%6%scales%with%arpeggios.%Alternate%the%scale%next%time.

TimeBrhythm2Accuracy:Spend%time%with%Johannes%Video%and%continuously%progress%through%all%exercises.%Especially%the%rhythm%displacement.

Learn2Songs:2Find%good%balance%between%standards%and%bebop/postbop%tunes.%Keep%track%of%songs%from%gigs.

Intonation:2Using%Hans’%Chords%with%a%bow%and%chord%in%the%backgroundDo%6%scales%with%the%bow,%6%scales%with%arpeggios.%Alternate%the%scale%next%time.

TimeBrhythm2Accuracy:Spend%time%with%Johannes%Video%and%continuously%progress%through%all%exercises.%Especially%the%rhythm%displacement.

Learn2Songs:2Find%good%balance%between%standards%and%bebop/postbop%tunes.%Keep%track%of%songs%from%gigs.

Time 502min102min2break

502min102min2break

502min102min2break

502min102min2break

502min102min2break

502min102min2break

Phase24POTATOES

Reading+Arco:Simandl

Reading:Afro%Cuban%Book!%

Transcriptions:Practice%what%you’ve%transcribed

Reading+Arco:SimandlR

Reading:Afro%Cuban%Book!

Transcriptions:Practice%what%you’ve%transcribed

Time 202min52min2break2X2

202min52min2break2X2





Phase25FREE2PLAY

Work%from%workbooks,%time%or%tunes






Time

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practice primer · 2019-06-29 · peace into the practice room, because i could silence the voice...

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