Members Shikyo2 Posted January 21, 2008 Members Share Posted January 21, 2008 I'm having trouble with my fretting hand when I try to play standing up, especially my pinky.What can I do to remedy this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bnyswonger Posted January 21, 2008 Members Share Posted January 21, 2008 Just keep doing it. It's a change, and human beings tend to resist change. If you plan on playing standing up, practice standing up and you will become proficient at it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members PaulyWally Posted January 21, 2008 Members Share Posted January 21, 2008 I'm having trouble with my fretting hand when I try to play standing up, especially my pinky.What can I do to remedy this? Be more specific. Pain? If so, where? Agility or Flexibility issues? If so, how? Also, how do you wear the bass standing up? High? Medium? Low? What kind of an angle is the neck at? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Shikyo2 Posted January 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted January 21, 2008 It's flexibility.I guess I wear it at medium. It's also a medium angle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Optimus Prime Posted January 21, 2008 Members Share Posted January 21, 2008 Buy a nice wide strap, I have the Levys 4 1/2" leather strap. Make sure it's the same height when your sitting or standing. Buy one of those finger exercisers, it really helped my pinky. And just keep practicing standing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Shikyo2 Posted January 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted January 21, 2008 Thanks, I'll do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members PaulyWally Posted January 21, 2008 Members Share Posted January 21, 2008 Buy a nice wide strap, I have the Levys 4 1/2" leather strap. Make sure it's the same height when your sitting or standing. Buy one of those finger exercisers, it really helped my pinky. And just keep practicing standing. Yeah. Try to play around with the bass in different positions. See what works. As long as you're not experiencing any pain... you're pretty safe. Keep in mind that your pinky is the weakest finger. It takes a lot of work to make that little guy strong. Just keep working at it, and trying different things to see what works the best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lug Posted January 21, 2008 Members Share Posted January 21, 2008 Raise your bass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bassdudeguy Posted January 21, 2008 Members Share Posted January 21, 2008 Keep your bass at the same hight on your body when your standing as when your sitting, it might not look as "cool" but you cant put a price on your hands health. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SelenaBassGirl Posted January 22, 2008 Members Share Posted January 22, 2008 Yeah. Keep in mind that your pinky is the weakest finger. It takes a lot of work to make that little guy strong. Just keep working at it, and trying different things to see what works the best. yeah tell me about it. I seem to rattle alot when I use my pinky finger. I was doing a lot better with out rattling on my p-bass then when I got my j-bass, it is back to tha rattling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rpsands Posted January 22, 2008 Members Share Posted January 22, 2008 Raise that damn thing to bellybutton level at least People will think you're a Beatle and you'll play better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Brother Mango Posted January 22, 2008 Members Share Posted January 22, 2008 Something is horribly wrong if you're more comfortable playing sitting down instead of standing--unless you're an octagenarian. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rowka Posted January 22, 2008 Members Share Posted January 22, 2008 No pain, no gain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BoundandBlocked Posted January 22, 2008 Members Share Posted January 22, 2008 Keep your bass at the same hight on your body when your standing as when your sitting, it might not look as "cool" but you cant put a price on your hands health. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WynnD Posted January 22, 2008 Members Share Posted January 22, 2008 Have you checked the action on your bass? if it's high or the neck isn't straight because the truss rod isn't properly adjusted, it will be much harder to play. All the other advice is good, but don't forget the instrument has lots of adjusters for a reason. Straight neck, lowered action, good strap adjusted for a good height. It all adds up. You might want to get some local professional help making sure that your not doing something that works against you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bnyswonger Posted January 22, 2008 Members Share Posted January 22, 2008 I'm really struggling to not post the obvious parody on this one... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Brother Mango Posted January 23, 2008 Members Share Posted January 23, 2008 How does a person learn to take responsibility for the groove while sitting down? How does the groove get inside your body while sitting down? God gave everyone a neck so that we can watch musicians move around and entertain us. Shikyo2, stand up right now! Take all of the chairs, stools, couches, crates, everything ... take them all into the yard and glue them together in a big chair ball. And Ix-nay that itting-say it-shay!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DevilRaysFan Posted January 23, 2008 Members Share Posted January 23, 2008 Don'y drink so much nyuk nyuk nyuk nyuk ....actually, one consideration is that your bass may be too heavy for you. ....One of the things you can do is sit down with your bass, but straighten your back and sit up straight. Then adjust the strap so that when you stand up, the bass will be in the same position as sitting down (as pointed out by your favorite Autobot leader) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Richy Posted January 23, 2008 Members Share Posted January 23, 2008 I wouldn't bother. Sometimes, playing sitting down can look much, much cooler. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WynnD Posted January 24, 2008 Members Share Posted January 24, 2008 I started playing bass standing up. I'm a keyboard player who is always sitting down. Thought it would be easier to perform standing up. (Got to move a lot if you're sitting down.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jasper383 Posted January 24, 2008 Members Share Posted January 24, 2008 Keep your bass at the same hight on your body when your standing as when your sitting, it might not look as "cool" but you cant put a price on your hands health. +1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Gruntollio Bass Posted January 24, 2008 Members Share Posted January 24, 2008 + 1 to buying a good adjustable strap and raise the bass to a level you feel comfortable with. These little happy-punk kids with their green hair and their guitars down round their ankles are just doing it to look cool but unfortunately for them they just look retarded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fastlikeninja Posted January 24, 2008 Members Share Posted January 24, 2008 yeah what they said.. if you're finding it hard to move your fretting hand/fingers around you should raise your bass up. but just look how cool those two dudes are sitting down. you could always just invest in a really comfortable chair Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BB5000 Posted January 24, 2008 Members Share Posted January 24, 2008 The physical part of playing is often overlooked. Like Wynn said, if your bass is not adjusted to a comfortable action, get that done soon. It's less work on your fret hand and that will help using your pinkie. Past that, practice your scales or preferred exercises including your pinkie. The more you include it, the sooner you'll use it without thinking about it. Get a new / better strap if need be. Nothing like a heavy axe wearing a groove in your shoulder on a skinny strap. Wide ones work better, padded even more so. To transition, adjust your strap to where it's hanging on the strap and just lightly touching your thighs when you sit down. It's got to have been in about this spot anyway. Then when you stand up, it's in the same place. You may move it up or down the strap a bit, but this should be your starting point. Besides having an action you don't have to fight, are you comfortable with the size and shape and weight of your bass? I'm 6'1" and 225#, so I can play my long scale ALEMBIC without much drama (it's a VERY long bass), but it would be a real stretch (literally!) for someone 5'6" who doesn't wear a 44 Long like me. I'm amazed to see more than a few players fight a neck-heavy instrument, or a too-heavy instrument, or a perfectly fine bass with rotten action, etc., who come offstage just whipped as their instrument just doesn't suit them physically. I can't tell you how many smaller fellas I've seen just fighting some 35" monster when they really need something compact like an Ibanez Soundgear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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