This beginner bass lesson will go over the essentials for proper bass posture, hand positioning, and picking technique. No matter what style you want to play, it’s crucial you get these fundamental skills down!
Bass Posture
To learn how to hold your bass when sitting, keep this in mind:
- Stay relaxed! If you’re tensing up, it’s going to be very tough and uncomfortable for you to learn anything properly. Relax your arms and fingers.
- Sit comfortably. Make sure you are in an armless chair that doesn’t hurt your back. Sit up straight with your shoulders at the same height.
- The bass neck should be slightly elevated, with the tuning pegs just at or just under shoulder height.
- Don’t lean forward over your bass, sit up straight (but not rigid).
To stand up and play bass, make sure you use a strap and you attach it correctly (you don’t want your bass falling to the floor!). Strap locks might come in handy if you plan to stand and play a lot.
If you’re in a band (or wanna be soon), it’s a good idea to always practice standing up since this is primarily how you will be playing. While your bass should stay in about the same place when transitioning from sitting to standing, your hands will move a bit, so get used to standing up and playing.
When standing, most all of the tips remain the same, the most important being: stay relaxed!
Hand Positioning
Your hands should be comfortable as well. Don’t grip the neck too tight or hold it with your entire hand. Your thumb should be resting on the back of the neck, with your four fingers on the fretboard
Your picking hand positioning will depend on whether you’re going to play with your fingers or with a pick. Both are good skills to know.
To play with your fingers:
- Rest your thumb on top of the pickup. The key is to just rest it there, don’t push down (this will lead to tension issues later on).
- Only use your first and middle finger to pick the strings, and make sure to alternate! Some players use three fingers, but two is the best place to start.
To play with a pick:
- Use a thick, rigid pick. Flimsy guitar picks will cause a lot of frustration, make sure your pick is good for bass playing!
- Make sure to alternate between up and down picks.
Employ Muting Techniques
It’s essential that you get down both left and right hand muting for your playing to sound good. If you let notes ring out randomly, every thing you play will sound messy.
If you’re playing with your fingers, use your ring and pink to mute lower strings as you play upwards (E-A-D-G). On the way back down, use your left hand to mute the higher strings (G-D-A-E). Don’t put any pressure on the string, just touch it enough to mute it.
When using a pick, the palm of your left hand should be muting the lower strings as you play upwards (E-A-D-G). On the way back down, employ the same left hand muting technique as just mentioned.
When playing bass posture, positioning, and picking are fundamental to everything you’ll be doing, so make it a habit to check yourself each time you sit down. Soon, it will be second nature!
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