This is a song written for the Sound of Music.. it turned in a song for Christmas song. This is my very first time putting myself into the video with myself. One playing one part while the other 'me' playing the first part.
December 24 2023 

When I first started learning the bass, like the first week, I joined SBL and did this song. It was a challenge, and I wish I would have recorded myself. 

I decided to revisit some of the song levels that I did and I was really proud that
1) not only did I play a lot better and with more confidence. but
2) I understood the theory behind the whole song. That is thanks to my Cohort days with Ariane Cap, but also my persistence :)                                                    December 23, 2023

There is a challenge at Scott's Bass Lessons called "the bassless challenge".  So I experimented using my mind to think of the notes in thirds of the D major scale. If you look in the comments, I have links to videos that go with this challenge.

While doing the challenge, I realised something that happened, and this was about the metronome.

If you watch the video, I comment through out, and you can read my thoughts at the end of the video

Sometimes it is the review of watching yourself that a lightbulb moment lights up. I knew about how I needed to change my right hand/fingers playing, but didn't understand why until I tried playing 16th notes

Nov 10 2023

Mamacita is a bit of Jazz, RnB, Blues, Bossa.  Joe Henderson's tune of Mamacita was recorded in one take which is why some of the song is swing, and other times it's not. Horn players have a hard time with some of their rhythm.

My video is about practicing the off beat- my journey- and a first attempt of playing this tune using iReal Pro.
Listen to the original tune and you'll get it.
Oct 23 2023

There are 6 ways that I practiced, and I'm showing short snippets of my practice.
I was inspired to learn this scale as I'm learning to read music and one of the scores is from an inspiration from The Beatles.

October 9, 2023

Part of the challenge for this song is that the bass is an integral  part of this beautiful song. The practice is cut up in bits- intro, chorus, pre-chorus, bass solo. I used Moises.ai to take the bass part out of the song.
September 23 2023

What happens when you take a picture of yourself instead of a video.

My practice is up on my Groove Challenge page. I'm doing 10 short grooves and recording how I practiced.

I'll will focus on songs next....during my overseas trip!

This is a great song to learn as it has a simple groove and it repeats itself. You can learn the A major scale and it's intervals and find them in all part of the neck-- which I demonstrate on the video. 

May 9 2023

I concentrated on Song For My Father · Horace Silver. Listen to the beginning of the song to get what I'm practicing .

First thing that I learnt from Ariane Cap was that my timing for the whole bossa was off. I show you what I learned.

Next, I learned the melody on the bass.. pull off, and hammer ons... yipee!  This was part of my finger exercise for the week!

Can I keep the beat with a rhythm WITH MY FOOT that is off beat. 

I am also practiced some grooves with Dan Hawkins. I've got 20 of them so... one at a time, thank you very much! 

Of course, the last bit in 'the boy' riff... guess what song it might be from.
April 22, 2023

These are snippets of bass practice that I've done over 2 weeks. Pinball Wizard, the jazz tune Autumn Leaves and learning a short rhythm (oh, my head hurts- a day later! )

This practice video was supposed to be me playing Pinball Wizard, the song, but... well, you are getting snippets of my practice instead. The part that I'm playing for the song is actually not how I really play it (which makes me wonder why I included it...)

I thought that I'd share -- especially the Rhythm practice that I got mixed up in. That's what happens when you start watching teaching lessons that grip you and test you and you think to yourself " how hard can that be"   Ouch!  I went down a rabbit hole.
April 6 2023

Posted: March 24 2023

Commitment for this week: (video posted before April 7 '23)

* Permutations:

131313 over three strings

242424 over three strings

Theory

* Dmajor/ Bminor -- Play diatonic triads in D major & B minor (diatonic cycle, then in order of scale, backwards, say intervals)

3 Songs

* Continue with Autumn Leaves

* Practice with The Who's  Pinball Wizard song

* In Hell Ill Be In Good Company Bass by The Dead South

NOTICE who's photo is on the computer

I explain at the beginning of the video how I learned how to fold the Circle of Fifth to make a scale. Then practicing A major scale in its form, down 4th, using part of Dizzy Gillspie's song as a little two bar rhythm, and starting to learn Autumn Leaves without the page!

March 16,2023

Using part of this song to practice riffs, fingering, permutations, circle of fourths/descending fourths. I explain what I do at the beginning of the video

March 2 2023

Using a riff of a song to practice finger exercises, your knowledge of the descending fourths, the ability of thinking fast, using this exercise to help understand and/or remember the minor scales.

I'm not finished with this exercise, this is just the beginning!
February 19, 2023

This week I continued with my Blues Practice, but this video is concentrating on my F Major Practice. 

1. I learned which fingering to use when playing on each string.

2. I learned the fourths on the G and D string, then the 3rds on those strings. 

3. I made chords on the G and D strings-- COOL sounds

In this video I start with explaining what I learned about how to use the Circle of Fifth , or as Ariane Cap says, the descending fourths. A few brainwaves happened.

Today, I watch a band live on stage, and I watched the bass player, and I saw the frets she was using on the G and D string and knew the song was in F major !! Yahoo for me!
February 11, 2023

It's weird how life brings you full circle. Read on...

I'm taking a Blues Course with the Aussie Luke from Becoming a Bassist.

For our homework, we have to pick a blues band and listen to one of their albums -- really listen to it, and describe the groove, the bass language, etc.

I get emails from A Blues Magazine, and one band caught my eye. The Ghost Town Blues Band.

I go on Spotify and start listening... and they are good. I learn that their new album “Shine” hits #1 on Billboards Blues Charts, #26 Billboard Rock Charts, and so on... 

BUT, GUESS what?!

I check their website, and check out where they are playing in 2023-- and they are on tour. But guess where they'll be where I'll be in July 2023... Ottawa! (UPDATE: They played on the weekend that I wasn't in Ottawa. I was seeing family in Quebec City.)

How coincidental is THAT?

This is my second week on this course (only last 4), and I've been trying to ram 'lots in.
The first module went over the 12 bar blues form, learning the language -- how to play (Roots, 3rd 5th), or the Basic Boogie, Rock & Roll Boogie, Blues Rock Box, Falling Box, Willie Dixon Box... and at the end, play like it is a simulated jam session. Basically, knowing the key, and that's about it. 

In this video, there's a bit of everything. I've put how long the mini-videos are, what I'm playing (at least as much as I remember) 

A lot of learning, and heaps of 'repeat, repeat' and it's getting in my body.
February 2, 2023