Bass Guitar Techniques Lessons

bass techniques you need to know

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If you have a wide variety of understanding for a bass guitar, you can be confident enough to play it on your own. However, even newbie bassist with a good grasp of their instrument fail to recognize the need for technicality. In the world of music, you need to stand out.

A bassist can only do this with a good understanding of bass guitar techniques. To know just how to play the bass is not enough, since every other bassist knows it. For you to get a better shot to bass supremacy, you must master the techniques in playing the bass.

If you have knowledge already on the parts of a bass guitar, understanding the techniques will be a lot easier for you. Since you know already how each part works in unison, you can easily adapt to the techniques posted. However, simply the understanding of how a bass guitar runs is not enough. You would need detailed descriptions on how a technique is played.

Resources Available That You Can Use to Further Your Skills

To start it off, it would be a lot easier to research online. The advent of the Internet made everything accessible, and for a bassist, it would include the bass techniques. However, if you are researching online, be wary of unauthorized ideas or unchecked articles. You have to understand that the Internet holds information for everyone, and the articles that you might find might not be designed to help you out.

Aside from the Internet, you can always find good inputs from books. Your local library might hold enough musical books about bass, and many of them might tackle the techniques. In that case, it would be beneficial to get your library card and start reading.

Look for authors who have already been successful in the bass field. If an author experienced playing the bass in a wider scope, the content of is book can be very helpful for you. This is especially true if the book tackles the technique you are looking for.

Besides, there is no better way to get your advice than from those who have excelled in the field. One of the highly recommend bass playing courses is Teach Me Bass Guitar and this course does cover the essential techniques with step by step videos.

Finding a Good Teacher Who Can Inspire You

skills and tricks in bass playing

The last resource that you can get is from a professional bassist himself or herself. If you know a friend in this status, or if you know anyone around you with excellent bass skills, give them a visit. Be ready with a pen a paper so that you can list the inputs they can provide. For on-hand experience of those techniques, bring your bass too. If your friend is kind enough, he or she can even teach how to do it.

Your knowledge with bass guitar techniques can spell your success or your failure. In that case, do your best to grab enough inputs for your own bass mastery.

Here at BassGuitarPlayerWorld.com, this section was created as an easy reference for to obtain lessons in various bass techniques. Although I am not proclaiming to be a professional bass guitar player, I do posses enough knowledge on several techniques which I am willing to share with you to give you a headstart to learning how to play the bass guitar. Have fun!

Master Beginner and Advanced Bass Guitar Playing Techniques:

Visit Jamplay.com to learn bass techniques directly from legends like Billy Sheehan and David Ellefson. Jamplay’s teaching philosophy utilizes a structure that is progressional and easy to follow. Every single lesson has well organized content for easy reference and is complete with printable materials. This means that you can use them even if you are away from your PC.

1 – Open String Muting to Help Get Rid of Unwanted Noises
Learning to mute strings is extremely important when it comes to performing live or playing in a band. After putting in tons of hard work in practicing, you wouldn’t want the fuzz and buzz to ruin your music.

2 – Alternate Picking That Allows You to Play Faster With Fluency
With an alternating motion of up and downs, alternate picking is one of the most basic picking techniques that you can apply to your playing to gain fluency and speed. We have included videos and exercises to help you get faster results.

3 – Down Picking Tips to Placing Emphasis On Your Notes
Why would you want to learn down picking? Well, this bass guitar technique can help you place emphasis on your notes that alternate picking can give you. In a nutshell, it also allows you to add dynamics and better control to your playing.

4 – Hammer Ons And Pull Offs Legato Techniques You Need to Learn
This legato technique employs the motion of the fretting hand with hammer ons and pull offs on the bass string. As a result, it creates a fluid sound and enables the musician to achieve faster note playing speeds.

5 – Staccato Playing for Note Dynamics And Music
A staccato is basically a technique that applies a sudden stop to a played musical note. This cuts off the sound of the string completely and when used correctly, enables you to control the dynamics of your sound.

6 – Bass Guitar Tapping Technique For Fast Shredding And Speed
The bass guitar tapping technique is actually originated from the guitar. Back in the 80’s, Eddie Van Halen popularized this technique in his slick sounding solos. It has since been evolved and used in other instruments too.

7 – Correct Techniques And Methods of Using Your Fingers
Many bassists do not realize that the use of the fingers for playing notes on the bass actually requires more effort and coordination than using a pick. In this lesson, we dive into this topic to help you build a strong foundation.

8 – Using the Pick to Play Bass With Ease
Aside from using your fingers, the other method of playing the bass is typically done with using the pick. Between the 2, which do you choose? Personally, it really depends on the style of music you are playing in and when things get fast and furious, the pick is definitely the better choice.

9 – Learn How to Create Natural Harmonics For Multi-Layered Sounds
Natural harmonics on bass guitar basically notes that are created without the overtone of a full note. When done right, it produces a nice high pitch chime that many bass players like to use to add color to their playing.

10 – Master the Bass Guitar Popping Style for Funk And More
The popping and slapping technique is used to add dynamics to a song. Typically, they are found in jazz and funk playing and adds a whole new kind of sound texture into the song.

11 – Bass Guitar Slapping Technique for Groovy Beats
In bass slapping, you will be using your thumb to ‘slap’ down onto the strings to create a twangy sound. As you pull away with your finger, you hook onto the string and snap it against the fretboard to ‘pop’ the string.

12 – Great Methods to Teach You How to Slap Bass with Precision
Slapping a bass can be learnt with some patience. However, doing it well and accurately requires an eye for detail. A good sense of timing is also mandatory to eliminate any sloppiness. We show you how to practice slapping here.

13 – Vibrato Techniques to Put Emotions Into Your Notes
In the world of bass playing, there are tons of techniques that you can use to add dynamics to your music. One of the easiest method that you can learn and apply instantaneously is the vibrato.

14 – Sliding From One Note to Another to Add Smoothness to Your Dynamics
The essence of the sliding technique is to add smoothness and fluid texture in your legato playing. Check out this article for more details of learning how to slide up/down notes.

15 – Sweep Picking Techniques to Playing Fast & Economically
Like tapping, sweep picking is usually applied by guitarists during a solo to play notes across strings in a fluid manner. As a bassist, you can pick up this technique and use it in your own runs and solos.

16 – Bass Guitar String Skipping to Jump Across Huge Intervals
String skipping involves playing notes from one string across to another. Theoretically it may sound easy, but the truth is, executing this technique with precision requires lots of hard work and practice.

17 – Three-Finger Bass Slapping – Taking It to a Higher Level
Besides the usual 2 fingers that are involved in bass slapping, adding a third finger enables you to create a variety of sounds and opens up the fretboard for your creativity. Some people even go up to as far as using 4 fingers.

18 – Palm Muting Technique to Create Chunky Sounds
Palm muting can serve a useful trick to curb unwanted noises and also be modified to creating percussive sounds when a string is struck. Best of it all, it isn’t tough to master or pick up.

19 – Hybrid Picking – A Great Style to Learn For Intermediate Bassists
Hybrid picking is techniques that revolves around the use of both your fingers and pick simultaneously. This enables you to hit notes and play with more depth. For country and blues players, this is a signature move you need to know.

See Huge Improvements In Your Playing Immediately

If you are serious about learning to play the bass, check out JamPlay. They offer the best online instructional content to help you achieve short term and long term goals. With lessons taught by some of the most famous bassists in the world and new content being added on a weekly basis, you can learn whatever you want at your own convenience!

Jamplay is absolutely fantastic and is highly recommended. Check them out today!

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