Gruuve Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 Hey comrades: Here's the URL: http://www.solobasscompetition.com Note that it's just a clinic/workshop this year, not a competition. I'm going to hit this...several of the same folks that will be at BPLive in NYC, but much less expensive for me considering it's within driving distance AND hotels in Conway, SC are priced like...well...um...hotels in Conway, SC. Anyone else going? I know Bottomgottem pinged me about it...MightyThumb, you out there? Who else is in the local Southeast area? Dave Old bass players never die, they just buy lighter rigs. - Tom Capasso, 11/9/2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruuve Posted October 12, 2006 Author Share Posted October 12, 2006 OK, I'm headed to this clinic tommorrow and Saturday, and I'm really looking forward to it. I'm going to try to leave here all thoughts of a crisis I've been dealing with involving my elderly parents' housing, and hopefully come back a little less stressed out and (with any luck) maybe even having had a short personal lesson on that Wooten thumb technique from the perpetrator himself. If anyone else is going and wants to meet up while I'm there, post or shoot me a PM and I'll give you my cel number (just like Larry Hartke? NOT! ) Dave Old bass players never die, they just buy lighter rigs. - Tom Capasso, 11/9/2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bottomgottem Posted October 13, 2006 Share Posted October 13, 2006 Wish I could, but alas, it is not to be. (again) My whole trick is to keep the tune well out in front. If I play Tchaikovsky, I play his melodies and skip his spiritual struggle. ~Liberace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruuve Posted October 17, 2006 Author Share Posted October 17, 2006 Hey folks...got back from the workshop and concert Sunday, but haven't had a chance to post anything. So, here's a short review: There were a very small number of people there...39 total participants if I'm not mistaken. Victor Wooten is just awesome, and a super nice guy. Same for Steve Bailey. Same for John Pattituci. Same for Billy Sheehan! There was a lot of talking at this workshop...considerably more talking than demonstrating, in fact. Here's a few of the messages that stuck with me from the clinic: - Bass is about groove, whether it's a simple groove or a complex one, almost no technique or technique out the wazoo, every note in the scale or a single note for a whole song...it's about groove. (I completely agree with this, btw...it's why I took up bass in the first place.) - Rhythm and timing are far more important than what note(s) you play. Surprisingly, all four of these guys seemed to completely agree on that point. Vic even demonstrated this...one of the guys played chords on the piano while Vic solo'ed over the chord changes. He did a simple solo with some space in it that avoided all the scale tones and purposefully hit all the non-scale chromatic notes...harmonically as *wrong* as you can get. He then did another solo that was very busy with no rests or pauses that hit all the scale tones (the *right* notes). Everyone in the room agreed that the solo that hit all the *wrong* notes actually sounded better, and it sounded better because of rhythm, articulation, and everything except the harmony side of the world. This was an eye-opener for me...I have a solid base in rhythm, but my music theory knowledge lags behind (although I'm slowly improving that), so I'm always really thinking a lot about what pitches to use, etc. The thing this drives home to me is to not worry so much about what pitches I use as much as how I play them (within reason, of course). Victor pointed out that "chromatic" comes from the Greek (?) word "chromo", meaning color....essentially, some of those tones are keys to making things (solos, bass lines, whatever) colorful. Vic suggested that it's fine to freely use chromatic tones not matter what key/scale you're playing in...just use your ears to determine if what you're doing "sounds right". This sounds like awefully good advice to me. - Play some rests. A fast riff sounds faster if there's space around it. I already believe in this concept...build contrast by using space. - Always try to play in about the bottom 1/3 of your ability. That way you can play consistently and accurately, execute well, not struggle, make it look easy, gives you a little room to occasionally explode into something more difficult, and you get to actually enjoy what you're doing. Save the pushing yourself for your own private practice, not when you're playing with a group. I definitely agree this, although I don't always do it as consistently as I should. - You have two ears...one ear is for listening to yourself play, the other ear is for listening to everyone else playing. This is great paraphrase...I think that's something that all of us could likely improve: how well we listen to the folks we are playing with. Other observations: John Pattitucci completely loses me. I guess it's his background in jazz, but I don't grasp any of his solo's or any of the scales he uses. I guess I need to study some more scales and make myself listen to more jazz, eh? There's not much you can say about Vic or Steve that hasn't already been said. It was a real pleasure to meet those guys and get to hang out with them a bit. Billy Sheehan kind of caught me by surprise. He's the rock guy out of the other's who are mostly jazz/funk/etc. He admittedly doesn't have the level of music theory knowledge that the others do. But, that man can play. Yes, he's a shredder BUT...the man can really friggin play. His tone was very different from the other's...lows and highs cut and mids boosted, plus max Ampeg grit. He didn't sound louder than everyone else close to the stage, but get about in the middle of the auditorium and he sounded incredibly louder than everyone else. I guess it's a tone that really cuts through anything, probably even brick walls. He did a lot of noodling when they were all playing together that I thought was a bit too much, but the others didn't seem to mind so I guess it was OK with them. Billy has a completely hysterical sense of humor too, btw. Greg Bissonnette was the drummer for the clinic...he's incredibly versatile and a super nice guy. I should mention that Greg is very animated and very comical to be around. He told a great story about how he accidentally got a voice gig with Disney...he's the new voice of Winnie The Pooh! After listening to these guys talk about how they do things and watching them closely when they were demonstrating and/or improvising together, it's completely obvious these guys are just as human as we are. They all make mistakes, they all struggle with different things, etc., and they'll tell you that in a very non-egotistical manner. If that doesn't make you feel like there's hope for you no matter where you are in your musical journey, I don't know what would! In a nutshell, this was a great weekend! If anyone has any specific questions, let me know and I'll try to answer them. Watching Vic do his double-thump technique up-close has inspired me to get off my butt and try to get that technique proficient enough to use in my own playing. Dave Old bass players never die, they just buy lighter rigs. - Tom Capasso, 11/9/2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Capasso Posted October 17, 2006 Share Posted October 17, 2006 Dave, Thanks for the review. Sounds like the messages were received, and I'll bet you got more out of the playing than the review lets on. It's hard to communicate the feelings of watching those great players do their thing. I've seen Pattitucci a few times. On electric, his jazz stuff lost me (not hard since I'm not a jazz guy). I did see him on upright one time, and was very impressed. Glad you got to go!! Tom www.stoneflyrocks.com Acoustic Color Be practical as well as generous in your ideals. Keep your eyes on the stars and keep your feet on the ground. - Theodore Roosevelt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tnb Posted October 17, 2006 Share Posted October 17, 2006 If you want to "get" Pattitucci do an analyze a few of his solos. It always helps to choose a solo you actually like. You will need also need to know what the chords/harmonies are. It will make a lot more sense, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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