Talking myself into learning a new instrument

It's always fun to get, and begin to learn a new instrument....and with some of them, a challenge as well.

I think trying the guitar out gave me a new confidence in learning an instrument. I'd had a keyboard since '93 and ditched it a few years ago, just thinking 'I just don't have right mindset required develop any skill with it'. After following Justin Sandercoe's lessons on youtube, I surprised myself with how I progressed. For a bit I thought this just confirmed my feelings about a keyboard, but in hindsight I think it's just having a good structured practice, no matter the instrument. Some people seem better adept or talented for progressing, or more suited to an instrument, but I do believe now that with structured application, the basics can be picked up by anyone. 
 
I enjoy the differences in learning the sax to the flute, though I guess they are closer related in the result, than the guitar with the bass, which are more similar in construction, but played more differently. I'm not expecting a breeze, but I'm hoping some time with the guitar has already covered some of the obstacles.
 
Something I found frustrating with a wind instrument, is not being able to play and practice in the early or late hours. It's just too loud. There was a thread the other week about amps as loud as trumpets. From playing a Baritone Sax, I wish it could have been as a loud as an acoustic guitar sometimes (especially when I was playing badly). The Guitar, allows me to practice music at any hour, even when I think the acoustic is too loud, I can plug the Epiphone Dot into TH2 and chuck the headphones on. This has helped making picking up the guitar easier. So the same with the bass (though I am tempted by an Acoustic Bass guitar over the J-Bazz a bit, which would probably travel to the neighbours easier) 

I'm still struggling to play the guitar (the only instrument I've played somewhat decently).
 
I hadn't played my electric in quite some time and played it last night.......when soloing, seemed like my fingers were in a locked mode and were very weak.  

Every guitar player should own a bass and every bass player should own a guitar. The theory is similar enough that one can be easily translated to the other but they are dissimilar enough that it is extremely helpful (and interesting) to learn how both work together and compliment each other without outright aping each other.
 
ook ook

The best way, IMO, to look at bass playing from a guitar player's perspective is to use the steps of a chord's arpeggio and use those on the downbeats. So I, III or V on the 1 and 3 of 4/4 if you are playing over a basic triad. Then you "walk" in between those notes and beats using the other scale steps and/or chromatic runs.
 
That is a very simplistic way to look at it (I'm not a bass player but play a lot of bass) but it seems to be the general idea behind "playing like a bass player".
 
I like using the arse end of guitar chords as my foundation to do this. Like the 1st position G chord formation makes for an easy I, III, V on bass. Drop the third by a semitone and you have a G minor. Both formations can then be moved up the fretboard on the E string or moved to the A string (for C and C minor) and again moved up the fretboard. Much more flavorful than just using the Power Chord/5th chord formation like I used to always use (like a dumb guitar player).

Playing bass certainly takes me into a different place/state of mind - even my physical posture is affected. It's all about groove. I feel like I can slip into that fairly easily. I don't know whether the results are that convincing, but I love playing bass, especially stuff that swings a bit, not necessarily complicated, even though I love melodic runs. 
 
I heard James Brown's Living in America the other day and realized just how much I loved that type of bass line - melodically, it's pretty simple but it's so solid. 

Beepster
I was ever so disappointed when I learned, after thinking I had been being completely original all my life, that I'm just another mathematical curiosity... AND I could have been being more original if I hadn't been trying to be so original.

Right On Bro.

Thanks for you input guys, it's made even more open to the idea. Rather than being a guitarist learning bass, I'm more a flautist learning both Bass and Guitar. I guess I may find one dominating the over naturaly over time, and discover a real preference. To get my mind out of being stuck in modal melodies, and to give a different structure and progression to things, I wanted to try the guitar, to give a chordal framework. As such I've tended to practice playing chords than riffs or melodies. Strumming or playing jazz style fingered chords, but mainly folk finger picking style. Seeing playing scales is key to getting the grips of bass, I think this may encourage me to expand my directions on the guitar. 
 
So far I am only seeing the positives of the idea, the only negative being that time will be split from focusing on one. But so far I've found having more instrument choices has meant I have been practising more overall. 
 

I'm in such agreement Kenny. My Flute is a Yamaha Solid silver headed flute, a higher end student flute. But I much prefer playing my cheap Chinese Alto flute, which has the unfortunate name of Parrot. My old sax repair guy hated Parrots. If read on the internet how bad they are and many complaints of how it's not possible to play low C (which is actually G) because the metal is too soft for the key work to hold it's shape. This is rubbish, I've had it years now, and it's fine. They just need to get theirs sorted, it's more likely they just had some small leaks that mounted up. 
 
When I came travelling, I took the cheap Alto, despite being bigger, because I new if somesthing happened to it, it's replacement would be be better, simply because I am playing the worse alto flute. However the yamaha would get replaced with the same and would cost more to get the same.
 
I sold my Baritone, it just wasn't practical, I loved the experience of playing it. But again if I would replace it, I would get better, so maybe something to return to in years to come.
 
My Soprano sax is probably the most expensive instrument I own. Yanagisawa make great sopranos, are renowned for it, and even though it's the bottom of their range, they do not make student flutes. My ex (the one I get the name Scoot from) paid about 2/3rds of the price 10 years ago as a thank you for taking time off work, and renovating her house in Manchester, that she then sold for  big profit. I can't sell this, it has a story that is personal to me. When I looked into having this shipped or taking as hand luggage, I looked up the weight on the shop I bought it from and was stunned to see its now new value. It's twice what we paid.
 
So I have a Flute in C, a Flute in G and Soprano in Bb. So when I learn a melody, I learn iit to play all three keys on all three instruments. I have really noticed how my ability to transpose has come along. Once I have the initial melody learnt, and the phrasing down, I can work out the rest.
 
My new steps into playing the guitar are really having  positive effect on my confidence to tackle chord progression. I get the theory, I just afraid of it. I'm stuck in modal playing of my winds. I am hoping this will break me out of it.
 
Having bought an Epiphone, I am assured that they make a good enough standard of instrument for me, I don't need to kid myself I need more. So looking at Fender's Squier J and P basses, I don't have any hesitation in investing in one. I'm living in a Hotel at the moment, waiting for Work Permits, Apostilles and Document to be legalised, and my probation period to end, so It will be a few months at least before I buy anything. In the meantime I can work on scales in a few positions and arpeggios, something that will transfer over to the bass. So when I finally get it, it will feel more familiar, and I can just focus on my getting my right had to catch up with my left.
 
The acoustic guitar I picked up in Vietnam is Japanese, funnily a Suzuki. So I play a Yamaha Flute and a Suzuki Guitar. It's a good enough quality it plays pretty nice from what I can tell, and from when other more adept have picked it up.
 
With a Bass I think I'll be completing my set up, Being able to bass, chords on the guitars, melody and harmonizing lines on the winds. Before I have to suppliment with anything from within Sonar. I'm just glad for things like TH2 and Markbass, so I don't have to get Amp envy.
 
Sorry all my posts seem quite long in this thread
 

dubdisciple
True story...I had a gf once who's ass made different pitches depending on where you hit it.  With a little practice, i once played the nutcrarcker suite theme well enough to where she recognized the tune instantly.  I have no idea if that violates CoC, but it is musically related and almost prompted me to create a VSTi.

Clearly I have misjudged you.
 
I had no idea you were into classical music.

Beepster
@Kenny... I have a buddy/ex-bandmate who owned mandos, bangos and all sots of weird hybrids he'd whip out on stage. I used to try to noodle around on all of them when he brought them over for practice.
 
The mandolin was such weird beast to play. Not because it was hard to figure out but they are so TINY with itty bitty little frets. I've got rather skinny (but loooong) fingers and those tiny little frets just seemed impossible to work with. My fingers would trip all over each other trying to do simple runs and stuff. The tiny body didn't help much either. I could never really hold the thing properly. At 6'4" I felt like some gigantor monster playing a smurf guitar. lulz...
 
He however could fly on the little bugger. Great sounding instrument. I'd love to own one so I could spend some time learning how it is ACTUALLY played. I'm assuming the trick is to stop trying to cram your fingers into one fret at a time and approaching runs differently.
 
Banjo is another weird one with all that circular picking mayhem but at least the frets are normal sized. I think I'd like one of the really long scale ones.
 
/big Dubliners fan

Hello Beepster , 
 
+1 on having a hard time on the mandolin….w those skinny frets on such a tiny neck …
I think I run 4 notes a string as far as the fingering goes ….it seems to be tuned that way …
I would love to be able to play some  Bach unaccompanied violin concertos , also some of the more popular Traditional Celtic tunes  …..Yeah, that's the type of music I would love to be able to play on the mandolin ….. 
 
Kenny
 

slartabartfast

dubdisciple
True story...I had a gf once who's ass made different pitches depending on where you hit it.  With a little practice, i once played the nutcrarcker suite theme well enough to where she recognized the tune instantly.  I have no idea if that violates CoC, but it is musically related and almost prompted me to create a VSTi.

Clearly I have misjudged you.
 
I had no idea you were into classical music.

I actually love classical, especially when played on a nice...

So I did it, as you can see form my signature. I ordered from Germany (Thomann) a lovely Squire Amber Jazz Bass (identical to this picture)

and I love it. It was decision made at the end of December, not a thought but a decision, and a month later order and arrived about a month ago. I have played with it nearly everyday, and with the help of Overlouds Mark Studio and some post processing from Sonar, found I love the sound I can get from it. I have approached it in a methodical way, playing scales (in three positions), learning to rake. It was quite intimidating at first, but it's becoming more an more intuitive. I have 3 songs that I base my practice on; Stand by me - focuses on moving the fingers around a fixed position, Come together - works on sliding up and down the neck, Good times - open strings and muting.
 
It's helping me re-think basslines, having relied on monosynths before. It will be interesting after the dust settles how I then produce mono synth basslines, and think about what exactly is a the bass range. I need to focus next on playing chord tones.
 
If you have ever had thoughts about learning a bass guitar, the answer is quite simple. Do it!
 

"Slappin' killed the bass guitar" - Bob Babbitt