Scott Henderson Discussion

[Guest]

Hi John,
Everybody keeps asking Scott questions, I didn't want you to feel left out. I just bought my very first electric bass, now I can move with it and look like I can play it ( I think it might help if I had a strap?ha). But other then that I'm clueless!!! SO my question is can you recommend a book, CD-ROM, or anything to get me started with?? Your help would be most appreciated. Thank-You ((((Scott ))))

[johnh]

Hey LC,
Thanks for thinking of me ;-)
Honestly I'm not familiar enough with what's out there to be able to recommend a start up bass book or dvd. But I would recommend asking around- friends, music stores etc. about a bass teacher. It's worth the money. A good teacher can save you a lot of time. As a teacher myself I feel my forte is getting a grasp of the way my student's minds like to work. Then I tailor the information for their particular mode of understanding. It varies greatly. Some people hate to work off a piece of paper. Some like a little pressure- with homework assignments and lots of challenges. Others seem to be going very slow and then suddenly have assimilated a large amount. A book or dvd won't be able to adjust to suit your style of learning.
I would highly recommend a website for you though- http://www.musictheory.net Great Flash-based exercises (especially the musical ear trainers). You can download the entire trainers package. Ricci Adams certainly deserves a few ducats for his labor, so if you find yourself, as I do, firing up that ear trainer again and again, please consider making a donation.
As for straps- it's funny you should mention it. I have to nag my students to wear one when they're sitting down. Your left hand should not have to carry the weight of your bass. Have a strap setting for sitting and another for standing. Pick a strap that makes that adjustment easy to do.
And lastly- play with people. You might not know it but you're only a few months away from playing in a band if you find the right people. Guitar players love to solo- they are thrilled to find someone who will play the same riff over and over again ;-) while they do their thing. So you can end up playing with musicians quite a bit above your head- learning all the time.
Hope that helps.
Best,
JohnH