BP Project Summary...
I thought I'd start a new thread for your final thoughts and comments on the recording project. I'd like to see us try this again and perhaps get a few more participants from among our online friends. To that end it would be worth reading your comments, good and bad.
I found that I did learn a lot about both creating a bass line and recording one. That alone was worth the exercise for me. But I also got a glimpse of the creative process in others. That's an invaluble tool to me. I think I will be able to create better bass lines as a direct result.
I think the use of the mp3's for the backing tracks worked out better than I expected. My track was output from the masters while the others were from the mp3's and I couldn't tell the difference. So I'd say that using the mp3's would be fine for any future project.
The commentary after we posted our recordings was valuble. The equipment used, the recording techniques and the bass lines themselves are all useful in my own musical ventures.
One thing I'd do a little differently is to try for a simpler chord structure. I did find CS a little challenging. Still, pushing myself was a good thing.
Anyway, I'd like to hear your final comments on the project and any suggestions for future efforts. Thanks again for your help and participation.
Great idea Paul but I will
Great idea Paul but I will have to chime in a bit latter. We are on our way to the eye of the storm. Heading out to Chicago and then on to DC.
If ya do not mind, I was thinking of putting the tune up for a collab on a couple of the sites I use, would ya mind? Might be interesting to see how it turns out with all the instruments done by "real" players.
HAZ
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Musicians Collabaration Studio / a place for musicians to get to gether and create music on-line
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"Carburetors man!! That's what life is all about."
Musicians Collaboration Studio
Wouldn't mind at all Haz. If
Wouldn't mind at all Haz. If you get some real tracks we could re-mix our lines. That might be cool.
Anyway, have a good and safe trip. See you soon.
I thought it was a real
I thought it was a real success. We had enough people involved to get a taste of the different ways different players might approach this song. No real technical problems materialized. Everyone was able to work with the mp3 file of the backing track and produce a recording good enough for the project. The commentary was as fun as the tracks themselves. Everyone listened closely and offered real feedback.
For me personally, it was a useful exercise in that it forced me to play against a style an instrumentation that I don't normally play. It was also great for me because I decided to force myself to record it using Ableton Live. And every bit of experience I get with that new (to me) app will benefit me on my other projects. I did feel a little guilty working on this instead of James, Not Jim. But it was a nice change of pace to play bass in the more traditional support-only role, rather than trying to do lots of layers and upper-register work along with the more traditional stuff.
I'd say it was definitely a hit and we'll probably have even more participants next time. Even if we don't, and it's just the four of us, it'll still be fun.
I wouldn't want to do it too often, as that would take the fun out of it and take away from my other recording project. But we should make it a regular feature around here. Maybe quarterly? Any ideas?
Wheat
bassplaying.com
I'm glad you enjoyed the
I'm glad you enjoyed the project too. I sure did. I sure wish I had the chops the rest of you have but that'll come with time.
As for future projects; here's my thoughts.
Quarterly seems fine to me.
Maybe try to start March 1st?
Do we want to hash out a genre on the forums or would you be happy if I surprise everyone with a tune? I could also do genre requests or turn your favorite chord prog into a tune.
If you can make a space available via ftp I'll upload the song and start a thread.
We leave the song up for three months and let people record and upload anytime they wish.
Maybe suggest a new thread for each upload so the comments can be focused to the specific recording.
We'd probably need an instruction page to give newcomers the info.
Advertise the feature on FretBuzz over at AB. That'd probably get a few more people involved.
Anyway, there's a few ideas to mull over. I'm pretty happy to do whatever works for you. Just let me know. Thanks again Wheat, I really enjoyed this little project.
Re: I'm glad you enjoyed the
[quote=Paul Warren]
Quarterly seems fine to me.
[/quote]
Done.
[quote=Paul Warren]
Maybe try to start March 1st?
[/quote]
I suggest we start April 1, so we'll be on a typical quarterly schedule: Q1 = Jan+Feb+March, Q2 = April+May+June, Q3 = July+Aug+Sept, Q4 = Oct+Nov+Dec.
[quote=Paul Warren]
Do we want to hash out a genre on the forums or would you be happy if I surprise everyone with a tune? I could also do genre requests or turn your favorite chord prog into a tune.
[/quote]
I'll leave that one open to debate. I'm undecided, at the moment.
[quote=Paul Warren]
If you can make a space available via ftp I'll upload the song and start a thread.
We leave the song up for three months and let people record and upload anytime they wish.
Maybe suggest a new thread for each upload so the comments can be focused to the specific recording.
We'd probably need an instruction page to give newcomers the info.
Advertise the feature on FretBuzz over at AB. That'd probably get a few more people involved.
[/quote]
All the rest of this is solid and I agree with all of it.
Wheat
bassplaying.com
Aprils fine with me Wheat.
April's fine with me Wheat. I'm pretty busy at work right now anyway. I'll keep my ears open for a great tune. If I find one I'll audition it with you guys for April, otherwise we'll see what everyone wants to do nearer the time.
Do I have your permission to talk about this project at AB in the meanwhile? You know, if it comes up in conversation etc.? I'd like to start getting some more interest in the whole idea.
Sure man. Let's build a
Sure man. Let's build a fire.
Wheat
bassplaying.com
Re: I'm glad you enjoyed the
[quote=Paul Warren]
. . .
Advertise the feature on FretBuzz over at AB. That'd probably get a few more people involved.
Anyway, there's a few ideas to mull over. I'm pretty happy to do whatever works for you. Just let me know. Thanks again Wheat, I really enjoyed this little project.[/quote]
One thing that needs to be made very clear though if we post this out their on onther sites is that it is in no way a competition to see who is the better player and that this is for helping players, hopefully new players seeing as this is an "instructional" site, to understand how and why certian lines make it into a tune and how the musicain got to that point.
As for how often we do this, what ever ya'll decide.
HAZZ
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"Carburetors man!! That's what life is all about."
Musicians Collaboration Studio
Good point, HAZ. And that
Good point, HAZ. And that may well be a hard one to drive home. But we should make it as clear as we can in the post (I'm picturing a site news item) that launches the next BP Project.
Wheat
bassplaying.com
One thing I noticed while
One thing I noticed while working with this project is just how valuable having a five string is. Of course, that's not a dig on four bangers, but I don't think my line would have executed as well without being able to drop down and play beneath the low E to get a deeper feel on the groove.
The song was a challenging one. I think that forced us outside of our comfort zones quite a bit and made us think hard about what we would play. For me, trying to come up with a danceable line was challenging since I've never played any real dance music. I don't even consider myself a raging funk disciple either, even though I won't shut off a good funky piece when I hear it.
So yeah, I think we should do this again. I agree that we shouldn't do it too much--maybe quarterly--to keep it fresh and exciting.
So here'a to Paul, Haz, and Wheat for a job well done! I had a blast and am already thinking about the next one.
BoH
Bo
You don't love me, you just love my FINGERSTYLE!
Peavey T40; SX/Squier P-bass; Spector Legend 5
Roland Bass 30 Cube
I second that statement on
I second that statement on using a 5'er. Yeah we could do drop"D" or whatever but if most of the playing ya do is in standard tuning then it is a pain unless ya have two basses.
Good job to you as well Bo.
HAZZ
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Musicians Collabaration Studio / a place for musicians to get to gether and create music on-line
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Carburetors man!! That's what life is all about."
Musicians Collaboration Studio
I enjoyed this for two main
I enjoyed this for two main reasons, it showed how different each musician hears and plays a piece of music and it gave me a chance to work on technique and not have to think about weather or not the composer will use the line I come up with. Also, when I compare the different lines to one another, there are aspects of each of the different techniques that I hear and think, "I like the way that sounded/felt, I think I will try and incorporate that into some of the tunes I use".
I also liked how it shows how different all our basses sound even though they are the same type of instrument. If some one wanted a bass with a certain tone they could listen to the different mixes and get a good idea of each bass used.
HAZZ
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Musicians Collabaration Studio / a place for musicians to get to gether and create music on-line
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Carburetors man!! That's what life is all about."
Musicians Collaboration Studio
Re: I enjoyed this for two main
[quote=HAZ]..and it gave me a chance to work on technique and not have to think about weather or not the composer will use the line I come up with...[/quote]
I had never thought about that before. Now that you mention it it must be nice not having to work within the framework of what the composer wants.
[quote=HAZ]I also liked how it shows how different all our basses sound even though they are the same type of instrument. If someone wanted a bass with a certain tone they could listen to the different mixes and get a good idea of each bass used.[/quote]
I found that pretty cool too. I liked hearing the different tones and how they worked within the tune. I also liked hearing the differences between 4 and 5 stringers. The 5s are nice but you have to admit the 4s were effective as well. It depends more on how you play than what you play.
4 stringers are definitly
4 stringers are definitly effective. If you think about it, the only difference between 4 and 5 (standard tuning) are the first four frets of the B string and if you need to hit a lower note on the E string you can just go up to the B and hit them reducing the amont of movement over the fret board and yer hand stays in the same area most of the time reducing the chance of miss-fretin'.
Hazz
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Musicians Collabaration Studio / a place for musicians to get to gether and create music on-line
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Carburetors man!! That's what life is all about."
Musicians Collaboration Studio
I just re-tuned my Gretsch
I just re-tuned my Gretsch to DGCF. It didn't require new strings or a truss rod adjustment. One of the benefits of a tree trunk for a neck.
Anyway, I had expected that the only advantage would be access to the lower D. Boy was I wrong.
First, it sounds great. The looser strings make it sound evil. Second, it's way easier to play. The pressure needed to fret a note is substantially reduced making it a real light touch. I'm lovin' it. I'm going to try and use it next time I record something. I'm also going to detune the Ric. I'll see if I can get C# tuning with it. If it's good for Geezer Butler it's good for me. hahahaha
I never miss the low B unless ...
I never miss the low B string unless I'm playing in Eb. A fiver would have been nice for this one. I sometimes start lusting five string basses and then convince myself that if I'd just practice my four a little more, I wouldn't need one.
I tried the tune in drop-D, but I hate playing in drop-D as that ruins the beautiful symmetry of the fretboard, one of the things that I like most about the way the bass is tuned.
Guess I need to set aside some money for that Lakland or the MusicMan I've been playing down at the Guitar Center. :)
Wheat
bassplaying.com