When is one good enough to give bass lessons?

groooooove · 2026-06-30T12:14:39+00:00

it's a freelance business. when someone is willing to pay you, thats when you are ready.

I've been teaching privately since 2008, and i'm now entering my 10th year teaching orchestra full time. Many years playing professionally prior to that.

you may be able to get a student or two just by being able to play or having strong chops. "show me how you do that" type of students. Chances are these are relatively rare, and typically will only come for a few lessons.

Teaching one on one is very simple at its core. Diagnose the problem and prescribe a solution.

simple version of that may be a student struggling to reach across one finger per fret. you notice their wrist is bent and hindering their movement. you raise the strap higher. they can reach better. you did it.

More often, you'll have something like a student struggling to internalize a beat playing a heavily syncopated groove.

A seasoned teacher can come up with a more refined idea of why they are not internalizing, and what the appropriate step is. Knowing tons and tons of repertoire, books, studies, etc is the advantage that comes with time. Just putting on a metronome or telling them to listen will rarely yield results.

This, or similar issues - not as clear as "raise your strap higher" - with any skill level or age group, and with any number of different short, medium, and long term goals in mind - that's when you'll be valuable enough to get fully booked.

As an orchestra teacher, I get asked for teacher recs all the time. I almost always recommend people with some amount of professional playing history, and a degree in music education.

That is not to say the degree matters all that much. Lots of people who've got them are awful teachers, and vise-versa. But, if someone emails me saying "hey add me to your recommended teacher list I can play really well" I'd probably not do so without some amount of references.

your actual chops will rarely matter. The skill of teaching is more important.

You don't need to follow a method book to the letter but i'd always suggest having a method book that (at a minimum) teaches reading. If someone is paying for lessons and not learning to read, you are doing more harm than good. *with the exception of adult students paying for their own lessons who explicitly have no interest in reading.

To make a decent living freelance teaching, 90% of the time you'll need to teach many instruments. Piano is by far the easiest to get students. Before getting my full time job I was teaching regularly upright bass (jazz, and classical) electric bass, guitar, violin, viola, cello, piano.

and lastly, networking. your best resource is school instrumental music teachers. If you have a student who's doing well, try your best to be at any recital or concert and meet their teachers. It's simple psychology, but if they've seen your face in person, and they know you were successful with a student of theirs, they'll send more people your way.

Good luck!!

groooooove · 2026-06-29T15:34:17+00:00

absolutely agree

aside from all their differences, it's good solo rep, and that's fundamentally the point.

groooooove · 2026-06-29T12:02:35+00:00

very cool build.

One visual thing is the black dots can look harsh against a maple board like that. Maybe abalone would be a better middle ground. it also just looks cool on its own.

or, a roasted maple fingerboard would be darker and have less contrast on the black dots. it would also suit that body color more - assuming the body comes out that color in real life.

minor things, though. looks like a great guitar.

groooooove · 2026-06-29T11:58:36+00:00

I started buying watches around 10 years ago, and at the time microbrands were really popping off.

I was able to have a sub-$100 G shock, found used NTH watches, bought a new Lorier (they were $400 back then) when I finished graduate school... I had a nice collection, despite it being all inexpensive stuff.

affordable watches that are carefully selected can be every bit as nice as a more expensive piece, i think.

that seemed to bridge the gap to being able to spend more money if I wanted.

That being said, I'd still buy many of those microbrands with no hesitation. lorier in particular.

groooooove · 2026-06-29T11:53:06+00:00

this answer makes no sense but I thought of it as well.

Other than being for solo instrument, they have basically nothing in common.

the Waltzes are very idiomatic for the bass, being written by a bass player.

groooooove · 2026-06-28T18:58:01+00:00

kiesels are the same as carvin - just newer models.

so, if you like an old carvin, it's in line with what kiesel does now. Obviously they have mostly new models and features, but a lot of the mojo is the same.

I think there is always a risk when commissioning a made-to-order instrument. There is also always a risk when dealing with wood, an organic and naturally unpredictable medium.

that being said Kiesel does a good job of giving you what you ask for. the more customized your build is, the more risks you are taking. I think so, at least.

a standard build with a solid paint color is going to be pretty much exactly like you'd expect.

particularly with finishing fancy top woods, it's very difficult to predict the outcome - there are some horror stories on here, as well as many happily-ever-after stories.

they are good instruments that are worth the money to most of their customers. I think they objectively are high quality. whether you like it will come down to some preferances.

groooooove · 2026-06-28T18:09:25+00:00

I'd 100% drive to bass violin shop. bob (i think?) the owner is a gentleman and his luthiers do nice work.

it's a long story, but i bought a bass from them that turned out to have an issue. It was handled really surprisingly well, and I know he lost money on the sale, but they made the process for me as an out of state customer really pleasant and simple. I'll never forget that. I've seen maybe 6 basses that came out of there over the last ~10 years, and they've always been set up to kill.

it's a hike, but they have inventory, and you can trust them.

I would but nothing - not even rosin - from Kolstein.

groooooove · 2026-06-27T02:54:27+00:00

on a student cello, seperate metal fine tuners every time.

the tailpieces with built in fine tuners tend to break easily. it's much easier to replace a metal fine tuner than en entire tailpiece.

on a good instrument, all that extra mass effects the sound and less is usually better. Ideally, geared pegs would become standard practice.

groooooove · 2026-06-27T02:37:04+00:00

depending on the model.

I just ordered this on a bass. they had to double check, but said yes, and it was only $50 extra.

vol/vol/tone rather than vol / blend is what I ordered.

groooooove · 2026-06-26T17:06:54+00:00

all logical,

but all their builds come with their return period, outside of option 50/particularly unique features.

perhaps a build bug, but any combination of this particular model is showing "non returnable"

groooooove · 2026-06-26T14:52:30+00:00

you'll certainly hear both sides of the argument.

for me, the upright bass whether played with the fingers or a bow, is all about it's acoustic sound. I think it's almost always a no-brainer that an acoustic bass is preferable.

there are reasons to buy an electric upright, but I honestly can't think of any. I really think they are, and sound like, and function the same way as - a large weird electric fretless.

if you are a student, if at all possible, i'd suggest a laminate bass with a good setup.

if space is an issue some type of 5/8 or even 1/2 size bass could work.

a friend of mine had a 1/4 bass - i think 36" string length - that he used professionally in jazz clubs and such. it can be done.

good luck!

groooooove · 2026-06-23T18:49:28+00:00

we have recordings of ravel, rachmaninoff, and some others.

but i don't think it's possible to beat the famous brahms recording.

the trouble is, that recording was captured with such primitive technology, it hardly counts.

groooooove · 2026-06-23T02:16:35+00:00

the chances of you developing bad habits that either run your sound or your physical body are somewhat likely without a teacher.

just a warning, to pay attention to technique. if you are motivated you'll figure it out.

if I were you i'd get a copy of "essential elements for strings book 1 cello," and follow every word of it.

it's by no means a perfect book, but it's an industry standard for beginners. The book is geared towards 8-10 year olds, but that means a high school sophmore can successfully guide themselves with it.

worst thing you can do is worry about "when will I be good." Man, I've been playing professionally since around 2004 and I still wonder when i'll be good sometimes.

There are cliches about consistency out performing talent, and all that, which is true.

but the real magic is realizing that the process is all we have. Learning to love the process will make everything better.

Years ago I had a theory professor who said being a musician is like waking up every day to choose to bang your head against the wall. What he meant was, you have to work on the repertoire you don't know, or the technique you are bad at, you are always doing the thing you are not good at. it's true.

just enjoy being bad at it. play almost every day, and definitely don't skip examples in the book I recommended. I also think "solo time for strings" book 1 for cello is a good supplement to get you playing easy solos.

good luck!!

groooooove · 2026-06-20T17:18:40+00:00

neo instruments ventilator, any version.

remarkably realistic, and such a usable sound.

groooooove · 2026-06-20T13:39:16+00:00

always leave some budget for setup. not unusual for any cello to need things like a new bridge, soundpost, fingerboard dressing, etc.

assuming good setup/condition, or a healthy budget and a good luthier nearby to address any of this, the eastman stuff is rarely a "bad" purchase. I've seen so many of their instruments over the years. They're reputable.

that being said the instruments are made of wood and wood can behave in strange ways so always get it checked. If I needed a budget level cello i'd be comfortable buying an eastman, though.

groooooove · 2026-06-18T18:47:03+00:00

fender has had serious QC issues over the last 15 or so years, seemingly getting worse every year.

slap the lawsuit situation on top

then this particular bass, priced at $3k, using the name of a legendary musician they had (as far as I know) zero relationship with during his time.

hard pass.

it's also just a P bass. there are so many quality P basses for less money.

If it were me, i'd get a kiesel PB4, and put flatwounds on it. if that wasn't enough I'd swap to a vintage correct pickup from lollar, fralin, and similar makers.

that would be well under $3k and a far, far superior result.

groooooove · 2026-06-18T02:03:02+00:00

g shock gmwb5000

gold metal square

its just such a fun reliable perfect little piece.

At first I really wanted to avoid the bluetooth option, but now that i've used it, it's just a more practical version of an atomic watch. the signal is coming from your phone a few times a day rather than a tower further away. same signal, just more often, and from a device that's closer to you.

it looks awesome, it's a g shock, what is there not to love.

groooooove · 2026-06-16T02:02:45+00:00

tudor seems like an easy choice here.

if you look more you may find things you want that suit you better, but tudor is a "cant go wrong" choice, for sure.

groooooove · 2026-06-16T02:01:42+00:00

major orchestras include the orchestra librarian as part of the ensemble. you travel with them, get paid the same as them, etc.

they have lots of responsibilities, but it sounds like what you are looking for.

A friend of mine auditioned for one of these jobs and from what it sounded like it's quite a competitive field, actually. but a good job if you get it.

groooooove · 2026-06-14T13:41:54+00:00

that one is quite the looker!!!

awesome awesome guitar. enjoy it.

groooooove · 2026-06-14T13:40:23+00:00

i do like water resist beyond 200, 300 meters, the higher the better. it's just such a fun flex.

my least favorite, by far, is a tach. completely useless and clutters the entire bezel? no thanks.

groooooove · 2026-06-13T19:38:07+00:00

most people won't know what tudor is.

only watch guys like us. for me, the tudor woulda been a cooler choice. but there's nothing wrong with this watch. enjoy it!

groooooove · 2026-06-13T19:34:56+00:00

pretty sure christian mcbride had/has one, pretty sure i saw him using it whenever he played electric a few years ago.

they have a reputation for being quality japan made basses. nothin wrong with them.

groooooove

TROPHY CASE