Forum Replies Created
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timolnz – Awesome job! Very consistent over all, I like how you kept the timing through most of the song! I’d recommend picking lighter on the right hand to keep consist volume with each finger, but you are close! Being able to gradually swell the volume during the opening part might add a cool touch! The only other part to watch out for is the transition to the strummed chord in measure 17. I would isolate measure 15 through 17 and practice voicing the chord just a touch faster. Everything else was wonderful!
mweir1 – SUPER!!! You nailed this!!! The one spot I would say to spend just a touch more time is from measure 45 to 47. If you spent 10 minutes practicing accurately eye-balling and executing the jump up the neck in measure 46 with a metronome, you would be very close to perfect on this! Great job and thank you for participating!
willymac – I like the low G string! In measure 10, I’d recommend keeping the open A string instead of bringing it down the octave, as it is the melody note. Have you tried hitting both notes together? You have a very relaxed feel that is perfect for the song. The change to the ending is very much a way blues songs end, I like it, too…although I miss the harmonic. Great playing, thanks for being a part of the challenge!
ukulelethemes – Wow, I like that you played it at full speed! Very clean playing! My only advice is the same as for timolnz: spend just a bit longer on measure 15 through 17 to get the chord transition in time. It works even with the slight pause, though. Great work, and thanks for your first video here!
rickeymike – I enjoyed the dirge version! I’m impressed that you got all the chord shapes and the notes to come out cleanly! I would recommend working on the finger picking pattern and get the consistent rhythm of the picking hand even at a slow tempo. I would also recommend picking lightly by relaxing that hand as well. Dirge on 🙂
felixpitterling – Great job, it sounds like you worked very hard on this! The hardest part of this song is keeping the relaxed swing feel consistent through all of the hard sections! I’d recommend playing the song to a swing drum backing track like this one:
You can increase the tempo by changing the speed to 1.25 on youtube. The goal is to lock in with the relaxed ride cymbal pattern the drummer has. The notes sound great, and the majority of the rhythm is awesome, too… it’s just on the tough spots that the groove wavers. Thank you for joining the challenge!
laurasil – Wow! You are flying through this one! Very great playing and very consistent! The only spot that seems to be tricky for everyone is the strum at measure 17. Practice 15-17 with a metronome and build the speed up, then you’ll have it perfect! I know, it’s a super small detail…but there’s not much else to say, since you rocked it! Very well played!
ryzeonly – That was very fast! Great work! I would recommend working on it a touch slower to get the transitions between sections in time, but overall you have it down! Measure 15-17 is the main thing to practice, but also the transition from measure 8 to 9. Your fingerpicking sounds great and very consistent! Thank you for participating!
lisadmh – I like that you challenged yourself! I think the best thing that comes out of these challenges is the improvement you get from going through it! Your take was really good! I would recommend playing it slowly…try the backing track I recommended for felixpitterling. Playing with the drums might help you stay relaxed even through the tough spots! It’s all about that bluesy-laid-back vibe! Great work, and thanks for challenging yourself and being part of the challenge 🙂
sprintingyogini – I like the way you varied the speed with the volume, a very cool take! Also, I love the Ukulele! The finish and tone are lovely! Practice the song to a metronome to get the transitions smoother, but then take it away again and play it freely like this. The benefit will be that the transitions will flow, then you can keep the rest free. Very cool take, and congrats on incorporating the left hand pinky! Thank you for participating!
cncamacho Great job on the finger picking! That second pattern is tough! One thing that might help you get to the chord shape easier is to place the fretting hand thumb on the back of the neck and curving your fingers more. This will allow you to reach the notes on the C string easier. Thank you for participating!
pauvaliente Great job! Very consistent playing! I enjoyed your version of it! My only suggestion would be to work it slowly up to full speed. I hope to hear more from you in future challenges!
hafeez3115 Great playing on Walking Dead! Your timing was great, and the finger picking was spot on! On the note before the final chord, I’d recommend plucking just a little bit lighter next time so that it doesn’t stand out too much from the notes before it, and gradually slow down into that note. It’s a minor detail, but it can make a big difference from a performance standpoint. Very well played! …also, fantastic work on St. James Infirmary!
leahwoosley You’re doing a great job on this! I like the dynamics and how you gradually speed up and slow down a tiny bit to make the song really flow. I really like the filter you have on the video, too! I see that you’re assigning one finger per string for picking, and while this can make it easier, it’s causing the fast notes in a row on the A string and the G string to sound a bit choppy. To play those notes smoother, I would use more than one finger to pick those notes. Watch the lesson from 7:05 to see how Andrew accomplishes this with two fingers and practice very slowly to work it up to speed. You’re doing very well, this will just add to the flowing/haunting sound. Thank you for being part of the challenge!
brettboy What a spooky video! I can’t get over how creepy and awesome your video editing is! Great playing, wonderful work on being expressive and consistent! The only advice I can give you is to slow down the pull-off spots to make them evenly spaced to fit the rhythm Andrew wrote. It still sounds cool to do them fast, but I like hearing the individual notes sing. Wonderful job on this! I’ll have to take video editing lessons from you!
andracass, Great playing! I like the tone you get out of the Ukulele! The two finger picking approach works and sounds great, but you can benefit from using three if you spend the time slowly going through the lesson focusing on the right hand. It sounds like you have the main melody under control, but I recommend focusing on the part at measure 7 (starting on the A9 chord) and working through it slowly until it feels more comfortable. Transitioning between sections is also a bit tough, so isolate them by playing the measure before a new section through the measure after the new section starts so that you don’t pause between sections.
poopsies, That sounded great! Your tone is excellent, and you played fairly consistently even at the fast tempo! If you played just a tiny bit slower, I bet you could have played it with zero mistakes! My only recommendation would be to practice with a metronome at a slower speed and work up to the tempo you played it a bit more gradually. Thank you for participating!
suzums, Wow! Very impressive! Very consistent tempo, technique sounds awesome! The only advice I have is practicing slowly to make sure every note is at a consistent volume as well…but honestly they almost are already. Great performance!
wongbrown, My favorite part was the chord at the end: all the notes rang out clearly and the thumb played through each string with finesse! The only advice I have for you is to play along with a metronome to get the spacing of the finger picked notes right in time. Practicing slowly with one note per click will help your accuracy and tempo. The notes sound great! Thank you!
benjamin, Excellent job on learning the notes! I like the rhythm you are playing, and think it’s very cool like that, but it is a different rhythm than written. If you want to learn it with the correct rhythm, I would recommend playing along with the tab player slowly and gradually speed it up (50%, then 75%, then full speed), matching the notes in time. Thank you for playing my song!
ellbo99, I love the idea of swinging this etude! It sounds great! You did an awesome job, not really much to say to add to it. Thank you for participating!
twizzler, You sound good! I would recommend working on measure 9 and 10 a little bit slowly, just to get it more consistent. Slow practice helps. Have you tried the finger picking pattern Andrew does on this section? Yours works great, too (one finger assigned to one string only), but try using the thumb for the G and C string. My only other advice is to play the chord at the very end of the song lighter, maybe strum lightly with the thumb instead of plucking? Great work!
Kayleighhb
nggnmm, Great playing, great job on the finger picking pattern! You’ve got it down! I would work on relaxing your right hand and playing more fluidly. Pick lighter and hold each fretted note a little bit longer before the next one (leave less space between notes). This will make your playing sound more flowing. If you feel like you are already doing this…it may be that your long sleeve is muting the notes a bit! Maybe roll it back? 🙂 Awesome job! Thanks for participating in the challenge!
Great job, Lisa! On Shadowland, I would recommend practicing the hammer-on/pull off section much slower, and make sure you are getting the combo on the A-string with only one right hand pluck, then using only the left hand to get the other two notes. You might have to practice building up finger strength and get the muscle memory down by working on it super slowly. Andrew made a video reply to hafeez3115 (on this thread) where he breaks down this passage with some excellent advice as well. Thank you for playing my song 🙂
Hi wavydavy,
The U-bass’s rubber strings sound a little bit more muted on their own, so the harmonic resonance will be a little less than the electric bass. However, due to the piezo pickup, there is a bit more string noise (clicky, scratchy sounds). This can be lessened with proper technique, but it is a bit of a learning curve. Soon I’ll be making a course that will address some of these issues. I hope this helps a bit! Let me know if you have any more questions.Thank you,
StephenKaizendon, you play very well! You have more musical talent than you think – and your sense of rhythm is good! You have the right idea with both questions: fretless are typically designed to play on the fret markers. Hammer ons and pull offs take a little more work on fretless, but as you demonstrated with the trill at the end of Canon, both work. Thank you for learning my arrangement and taking part in the challenge!
-Stephen
Hey Deb, so sorry for the late reply! My thumb typically stays behind my index and middle fingers, halfway down the neck on the back, sliding with the rest of the hand, but occasionally it ends up further to the left than that. This happens when I’m playing higher frets past where the body of the u-bass starts. I hope this helps!
Thank you,
StephenHey guys, in addition to the U-bass videos on Rock Class 101, I’ll be posting my own arrangements at http://youtube.com/stephencoxbass
Tabs and guitar pro files will be available on my patreonThank you, and I hope this helps any people embarking on a U-Bass journey.
–Stephen
I’m glad you like it, Lisa! Let me know if you have any questions about Green Tea.
Thank you,
StephenHi Lisa,
I actually have both an easier bossa nova line and the transcription of the bass part from this lesson available on my patreon: https://www.patreon.com/stephencoxbass. If you have any questions about how to play any of it, please don’t hesitate to ask!Thank you,
Stephen
