You've heard it a million times: practice, practice, practice, and more practice. It's the only way to get better, whether you play the standard six-string guitar, a banjo, a mandolin, drums, or the bass. The professional musicians of today didn't achieve their status without sweating through hours and hours of grueling practice time. And you're not going to come close to making a career out of playing music unless you do the same.
Since we promised a week's worth of bass lessons, we're ending this shortened Fourth of July holiday week with a brief—but very important—lesson on how to set up an effective practice schedule to sharpen your bass playing skills.
Today's lesson is from master bass instructor John Falstrom of Mel Bay Bass Sessions, and his advice is to try and divide your practice time into several categories so that you concentrate on one aspect at a time instead of trying to learn everything in one shot.
Falstrom's tips are well worth the time, and to some may even seem a bit basic in nature. But Falstrom's been playing and teaching the bass for over 30 years now, so he's got to be doing something right. You'll even be somewhat surprised at a few of this tips, one of which is to stay away from tablature, which "takes you south when you should be heading north."
Click here for today's killer week-ending bass lesson.
And please don't forget to check back next Monday for another killer lesson from Gibson Lifestyle!