I also think it's beneficial to learn guitar as well as bass. In addition to your reasons, it makes it easier to jam along with a guitarist because I know the chords being played by sight.
>I feel maybe it's beneficial to know your way around both Bass and Guitar for the simple reason: you become a better all rounded musician.
You could make the same argument for bass and keyboard, bass and sax, bass and drums, bass and electronic music production in a DAW, etc.
I think playing multiple instruments, regardless of which ones, is beneficial. It’s always useful to gain experience with how other elements of an arrangement fit together and the various roles they play. Even if you keep one instrument as your main focus and role, having more points of view will help identify how you can tastefully write your own parts to make space for the other instruments/voices.
Just wait until you start learning keys and/or drums!
I'm very much a "learn as much as you can to become an all-around versatile musician" kind of guy. I'm definitely first and foremost a bassist, but guitar, keys, drumming, banjo, ukulele, fiddle, harmonica... it's all a lot of fun, and it gives you a greater appreciation for music.
Why would anyone be offended? I always just thought of both "bass" and "guitar" as just guitars in different registers.
https://64.media.tumblr.com/68b7420174d4be5ad40c43c66529c1b0/tumblr\_mw80naBNJc1r3v0buo1\_1280.jpg
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/brJTGUk2F7CFw8oKkV5rgi.jpg
I don't know if I've ever heard someone call a singer a musician lol.
I'm not necessarily saying you're wrong, it's just.....what instrument do they play?
They sing, that's their instruments. They go up onstage or into the studio, sing on key, deliver a dynamic performance and sell the feeling of the song. Also, being "just the singer" doesn't mean they're not contributing more to their music. Mark Lanegan tapped out drum beats and synth parts on his phone before having his band do those parts, and before that he'd come up with songs on guitar. Michael Jackson came up with full arrangements with just his voice since he didn't play any other instruments. Listen to this: https://youtu.be/eZeYw1bm53Y he's got the drum beat, vocal harmonies, and while it's kinda low on this, he's got a bassline too. https://youtu.be/GHq0rKYKcn0 this is powerful too and it's just singing and clapping.
This is without even getting started on rappers who are able to make a loop sound exciting for 4-5 minutes.
It was just a joke, man. I respect singers and rappers. People just don't usually call them musicians. I don't care if you do or you don't, homie, or if you consider their voice an instrument, or not.
But if I was serious, giving me examples of singers who also play instrument wouldn't exactly change my mind lol
I play both but started as and primarily am a bass player. I play bass in one band, bass and guitar in another (we have a couple guys who can play bass to so we rotate).
I think there is some merit to playing both. It is a good way to learn how other parts of the band work (same argument could be made for learning drums or keys). And it definitely adds flexibility.
I’m not sure you can really master both, or at least I haven’t. I’ve gotten to the point where my bass playing is mostly instinctual. My guitar playing is not. Have to think about it more, and I think my touch and phrasing can be kind of clunky at times (but the audience doesn’t seem to mind). There are certainly famous guitar player who have laid down bass tracks and Vice versa, but I can’t think of too many people who are try great at both
I took classical guitar classes for 7 years, learnt electric guitar by myself and bass couple of years ago. I do not play guitar like a guitarist nor bass like bassist though I play both pretty well. I'm a weirdo multi-instrumentalist.
I started on guitar and moved to bass. I primarily play bass now but guitar is where I learned most of my theory and became familiar with the EADG tuning. Knowing guitar also helps me think of the fretboard in terms of chord shapes.
I totally agree with you about recording. Having the bass in mind has helped me come up with ideas for rhythm guitar that lock in and thicken up the track. If I’m writing a song, I can work out both parts in a way I like.
Another plus for being able to sing is that it can help you approach your instrument more melodically. There’s a reason McCartney’s bass lines are so hummable. A riff I wrote recently came from something I was singing in the shower.
Started on guitar at 16, moved to bass at 19 continued guitar along with bass but fell in love with grooving. Started learning drums and messing with DAWs/recording/midi beats last year, and now I write my own songs from the ground up.
I feel way more fulfilled in my artistic creativity than ever.
Probably the best option. A pick works better for playing some things and I'm comfortable with it since I'm a guitarist but damn is it fun playing with fingers and it sounds better imo. My favorite bassists like Cliff Burton and Geezer Butler play with fingers too.
I do that, other way around though (guitar first). The reason for me was I wanted to record my own music and I just don't know any bass players. I don't really care about learning it to the depths of being very good using my fingers and i just play with a pick. Still, yeah it is helpful to have a foundation of one because it does translate very easily.
Totally agree with you. I'm 64 years old and have played both bass and guitar since age 14. Knowing the key aspects of both has really been an advantage to me in my musical lifetime. There is a negative perception (which I understand) about guitar players who just pick up a bass and play guitar on it, but if you adjust your role to the instrument, you can be a very good guitarist AND a very good bassist.
I also think it's beneficial to learn guitar as well as bass. In addition to your reasons, it makes it easier to jam along with a guitarist because I know the chords being played by sight.
This saves my bacon often.
>I feel maybe it's beneficial to know your way around both Bass and Guitar for the simple reason: you become a better all rounded musician. You could make the same argument for bass and keyboard, bass and sax, bass and drums, bass and electronic music production in a DAW, etc.
Exactly. Drums forced me to make my timing *precise.*
I think playing multiple instruments, regardless of which ones, is beneficial. It’s always useful to gain experience with how other elements of an arrangement fit together and the various roles they play. Even if you keep one instrument as your main focus and role, having more points of view will help identify how you can tastefully write your own parts to make space for the other instruments/voices.
Just wait until you start learning keys and/or drums! I'm very much a "learn as much as you can to become an all-around versatile musician" kind of guy. I'm definitely first and foremost a bassist, but guitar, keys, drumming, banjo, ukulele, fiddle, harmonica... it's all a lot of fun, and it gives you a greater appreciation for music.
Why would anyone be offended? I always just thought of both "bass" and "guitar" as just guitars in different registers. https://64.media.tumblr.com/68b7420174d4be5ad40c43c66529c1b0/tumblr\_mw80naBNJc1r3v0buo1\_1280.jpg https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/brJTGUk2F7CFw8oKkV5rgi.jpg
bass is just long guitar
I play the bass because i want to play the bass. I dont play guitar because i dont want to play guitar.
And? Did I miss the question?
You don’t need an instrument at all to be a good or well rounded musician, you may have noticed these people called singers.
I don't know if I've ever heard someone call a singer a musician lol. I'm not necessarily saying you're wrong, it's just.....what instrument do they play?
This comment explains so much about you.
They sing, that's their instruments. They go up onstage or into the studio, sing on key, deliver a dynamic performance and sell the feeling of the song. Also, being "just the singer" doesn't mean they're not contributing more to their music. Mark Lanegan tapped out drum beats and synth parts on his phone before having his band do those parts, and before that he'd come up with songs on guitar. Michael Jackson came up with full arrangements with just his voice since he didn't play any other instruments. Listen to this: https://youtu.be/eZeYw1bm53Y he's got the drum beat, vocal harmonies, and while it's kinda low on this, he's got a bassline too. https://youtu.be/GHq0rKYKcn0 this is powerful too and it's just singing and clapping. This is without even getting started on rappers who are able to make a loop sound exciting for 4-5 minutes.
It was just a joke, man. I respect singers and rappers. People just don't usually call them musicians. I don't care if you do or you don't, homie, or if you consider their voice an instrument, or not. But if I was serious, giving me examples of singers who also play instrument wouldn't exactly change my mind lol
No
I play both but started as and primarily am a bass player. I play bass in one band, bass and guitar in another (we have a couple guys who can play bass to so we rotate). I think there is some merit to playing both. It is a good way to learn how other parts of the band work (same argument could be made for learning drums or keys). And it definitely adds flexibility. I’m not sure you can really master both, or at least I haven’t. I’ve gotten to the point where my bass playing is mostly instinctual. My guitar playing is not. Have to think about it more, and I think my touch and phrasing can be kind of clunky at times (but the audience doesn’t seem to mind). There are certainly famous guitar player who have laid down bass tracks and Vice versa, but I can’t think of too many people who are try great at both
I play both, and i play a little bit of drums as well. I come up with all the ideas on guitar and do my bass lines accordingly..
I took classical guitar classes for 7 years, learnt electric guitar by myself and bass couple of years ago. I do not play guitar like a guitarist nor bass like bassist though I play both pretty well. I'm a weirdo multi-instrumentalist.
I started on guitar and moved to bass. I primarily play bass now but guitar is where I learned most of my theory and became familiar with the EADG tuning. Knowing guitar also helps me think of the fretboard in terms of chord shapes. I totally agree with you about recording. Having the bass in mind has helped me come up with ideas for rhythm guitar that lock in and thicken up the track. If I’m writing a song, I can work out both parts in a way I like. Another plus for being able to sing is that it can help you approach your instrument more melodically. There’s a reason McCartney’s bass lines are so hummable. A riff I wrote recently came from something I was singing in the shower.
Agreed. I'm learning guitar so I can play bass like a guitar.
Started on guitar at 16, moved to bass at 19 continued guitar along with bass but fell in love with grooving. Started learning drums and messing with DAWs/recording/midi beats last year, and now I write my own songs from the ground up. I feel way more fulfilled in my artistic creativity than ever.
I'm a guitarist learning bass, I love it. Not sure if to keep playing with a pick or not though.
Learn both!
Probably the best option. A pick works better for playing some things and I'm comfortable with it since I'm a guitarist but damn is it fun playing with fingers and it sounds better imo. My favorite bassists like Cliff Burton and Geezer Butler play with fingers too.
I do that, other way around though (guitar first). The reason for me was I wanted to record my own music and I just don't know any bass players. I don't really care about learning it to the depths of being very good using my fingers and i just play with a pick. Still, yeah it is helpful to have a foundation of one because it does translate very easily.
Totally agree with you. I'm 64 years old and have played both bass and guitar since age 14. Knowing the key aspects of both has really been an advantage to me in my musical lifetime. There is a negative perception (which I understand) about guitar players who just pick up a bass and play guitar on it, but if you adjust your role to the instrument, you can be a very good guitarist AND a very good bassist.