Is the bass physically hard to play?

>Dear Mr. Pfaff,
>
>Thanks for answering my question about the bass and for your advice. You're right in not over thinking it. I don't want to do that. I just want to find a bass that is easy to play.
>
>I was told that a bass is hard to play and that if you don't have strong wrists that you shouldn't even bother. What do you say to that? Also, if you were starting to play all over again, which brand or instrument type would you get? Would you reccomend a book to learn from?
>
>Thanks again Mr. Pfaff.
>
>J.

Dear J.,
Your wrists gain strength through practice. A bass that is set up decently should be playable by anyone with normal wrist strength.
I started with a cheap copy of a Fender Precision made by a company called Crestline. I imagine they have long since gone out of business. It was fine for what I needed at the time, and as my playing matured my tastes and preferences matured as well, which led me to the next bass and the next one after that.
If I had it to do over again that bass would still have been fine. Just about any of the inexpensive models you see in music stores today are playable if they have a good truss rod adjustment.
As for beginning bass books, get one that teaches you how to read standard musical notation. It's a far superior system to tablature for many reasons. Most of the books in that category are equally good. Again, I encourage you not to overthink it. Any book you pick out and practice from diligently will give you results.
Hope this helps,
Andy

http://www.andrewpfaff.com

Low Action

>Dear Mr. Pfaff,
>
>My name is J. I've been playing guitar for a few years now, but want to learn the bass.
>
>I have no plans on being a great bassist or anything, I just want to play basic stuff and join a rock band.
>
>I guess my question to you is, do you know of a type of bass that has very low string action (so it's not hard to play and fret notes)? I would need a bass that is set up really well. Also, I'm sure you get e-mails from people like me a lot, but could you give someone like me any advice?
>
>Thank you.
>
>J

Dear J,
All electric basses come with a metal truss rod in the neck, which you adjust to give the amount of "bow" you want. This is primarily what determines the string action. You could make any bass have low action. As long as the neck isn't warped and the frets are level, you can have low action. Don't adjust the truss rod more than a quarter-turn at a time. It's a very sensitive adjustment.
Outside of that, my advice is to get a bass and play. Don't overthink it.
Hope this helps,
Andy

andrewpfaff.com

Sight Reading

>Hi Andrew,
>
>I'm an electric bassist wanting to improve my sight reading skills. I'm
>currently using a trombone book that was transcribed from vocal
>exercises. I can't remember the name of the book but the author is
>Johannes Rochet (in case you know the book).
>
>Can you recommend any other sight reading material in bass clef?
>
>Also, I'm beginning to teach my 15-year old son to play bass. Is your
>book Mode Shapes for Bass a book for beginners or will that be too
>advanced to start?
>
>Thanks for any info you can provide.
>
>D.

Hi D.,
I am not familiar with the Rochet, but another book transcribed from vocal
exercises is called _Rhythmical Articulation_ by Pasquale Bona. You can get a
bass clef edition. It really gets into some complex territory!
For more material in bass clef, I would recommend _String Bass Etudes_ by
Simandl. This will be a lot simpler than the Bona; probably better for actual
sight reading. The harder Bona selections require practice but improve your
reading through practicing the unusual rhythms.
I know quite a few people who have taken a book by Louis Bellson and Gil Breines
called _Modern Reading in 4/4_ and used it for their chosen instrument. It was
written as a drum book, but you could apply scales, apeggios or whatever you
wanted to the written rhythms.
Cello literature might be a good source for reading, too. Just make sure it's
bass clef literature. Some cello music is written in tenor clef.
And of course string bass music in general will always work.
As to your question about my book, I don't consider it a beginning book. My
book assumes at least partial knowledge of the fingerboard and an already
somewhat developed technique. I think most of the beginning bass books I've
seen are equally good. The information is the same in all of them; the
presentation varies some but in most cases not in a huge way.
Hope this helps,
Andy

andrewpfaff.com