Learning Bass. A couple Questions!

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    B-Bass
    Hi! I'm loving playing on my B-155. But I have some questions about my bass's behaviors and what my playing technique should be. 1. I have to put my finger on the string right behind the fret in order to keep the instrument from buzzing. Is this normal? I am under the impression that I should be able to press down on the string anywhere between the frets to get a good sound. But unless I snuggle my finger up next to the fret, there's that buzzing. Do I need to have the truss adjusted again, or maybe the string action? 2. When playing other string instruments (guitar, violin), I learned to hold one finger down, and put the other finger on a fret above it. For example, on the A string: I will finger Bb, or B (like if I play it), then if climbing up to C, I keep the 1 finger on Bb and press down on C with my 3 finger. So I'd be holding the string down in two places. To play Bb again, I'd just lift the 3 finger and pluck the string again. Is this correct? I suspect that it may not be correct for playing bass, because my hands are starting to hurt, trying to keep hold of the strings at such wide distances. It's worse if I am making a jump from 1 finger to 4 finger, or from 2 finger on a string to 4 finger on a different string (still holding 2 finger down and then attempting to reach the next note with 4 finger). Thanks in advance!
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    B1ackD3at4
    B1ackD3at4 wrote

    1. I have to put my finger on the string right behind the fret in order to keep the instrument from buzzing.

    Thats pretty much how it should be done. If you just press down anywhere it can cause it to buzz. The best way to go is right behind the fret, or invest some money in a fretless bass so you don't have to worry about it.

    2. When playing other string instruments (guitar, violin), I learned to hold one finger down, and put the other finger on a fret above it. For example, on the A string: I will finger Bb, or B (like if I play it), then if climbing up to C, I keep the 1 finger on Bb and press down on C with my 3 finger. So I'd be holding the string down in two places. To play Bb again, I'd just lift the 3 finger and pluck the string again.

    You can play bass like that, but it will probably take a while getting use to the fret spacing.

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      B-Bass
      B-Bass wrote

      Thanks for sharing, much appreciated.

      As to the second question, what is most common? Do people generally lift their finger and play only one finger at a time? I'd rather learn the best way and not take a chance on getting some sort of repetitive motion disorder.

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        B1ackD3at4
        B1ackD3at4 wrote

        It really depends on what's most comfortable to you. If you have smaller hands I suggest just doing one note at a time. If you don't need to hold that note down all the time then don't. If it hurts I'd suggest just playing with one finger at a time until it gets more comfortable to do the wider stretches.

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          Skin N. Bones
          Skin N. Bones wrote

          Your hand is going to hurt for a while. You are building new muscles in your hand just like going to the gym to work out. The difference with the bass is the string size. It takes more effort to hold down a bass string than a guitar string. This is probably why your hand is hurting. Their really isn't a right or wrong way to play bass. It's what ever you feel comfortable with. Just make sure you practice with and without a pick to. You may find it easier one way or the other.

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            B-Bass
            B-Bass wrote

            Great suggestions, thanks to all.

            I will try playing one finger at a time and see if that reduces the hand stress.

            And, SNB, I have not been practicing with a pick, but I think that's a good suggestion; to play both ways. I'll try it out.

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              Skin N. Bones
              Skin N. Bones wrote

              I'm here to help.

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