Playing in non-classical/traditional ensembles

[DouglasJB]

After graduating from college a few weeks ago and moving back home I have realized that playing opportunities are few and far between. For those who play in the non-classical ensembles what advice do you have for adapting? Where I am living now there is 1 community band that I plan on Joining back as soon as I can, but after playing in multiple groups in college, i want to expand my opportunities. I have a few questions for some guys who have experience with this.

1. What different groups did you guys join?
2. What were some obstacles you had to overcome?
3. General advice?

Thank you guys!

[Donn]

Everyone else is looking around for a group to join, too, but you (tuba player) are the most serious about it (because tuba is by far the most fun to play.) I think this means, you have to get it started yourself. Not that I've done it. It helps to know a lot of people, because despite all the competent players who graduate each year from the local high school, the adults who are up for playing trumpet or whatever are exceedingly rare. Especially if it calls for traditional music skills like playing without written music in front of you, which will be almost beyond the comprehension of band instrument players.

[Mark E. Chachich]

From my days playing in German bands, small jazz bands and other types of groups that paid:

Obstacles: having been trained "classically" I had to come up to speed on playing without music.

Advice (very generic):
Remember what you learned in music theory (what usually goes next in the bass line).
Do not overstep the level of your ability or of good taste with your bass line. Chances are you will not be the star, you are support.
Play in context with the group, again chances are you are not the star.
Enjoy what you are doing.
Look like you are enjoying playing in the group.
Have a positive attitude (with your fellow musicians and the audience).
You are not a guest, you are an employee (I have fired people for not understanding this).
When an experienced musician makes a suggestion take it to heart.
Listen to all kinds of music, you never know what you will be asked to play.
My double on string bass helped my cause (being hired).
Learn from all musical experiences.

I no longer play professionally but the advice applies to the playing that I still do (mostly community band).

best and have fun,
Mark

[DouglasJB]

For those who normally play with sheet music, What are some ways to learn how/practice playing without it?

[Heliconer]

For those who normally play with sheet music, What are some ways to learn how/practice playing without it?

The biggest breakthrough for me, was learning the melodies. Learn ALL of the melodies you can. Your ears will follow what you hear in your head.

I have several large fakebooks, and when I first tried to play traditional jazz I thought I would be better for being a "reading" musician; and way too much time trying to memorize each tune note for note and value for value. It's just too much work, and it makes you a much stiffer player.

TLDR: Just listen, memorize melodies through listening.

[Donn]

Note that there are different kinds of playing without written music.

You can memorize notes until you can play them "off book". There's no shame in that, in an ensemble that works that way.

You can play something you haven't seen written down, but you know (the tune "happy birthday", for example, which I believe has somehow ridiculously been copyrighted.) This skill is really two - your very important ability to play what's in your head, and also your ability to listen to stuff and learn it.

You can play something you haven't preconceived at all - improvisation, which the melody players leave until later but as a bass player you will start in on early.

I don't have any great qualifications to instruct anyone, but I think if you want to be a good ear player, it's a sure thing that you must listen to good music and take your inspiration from it. You might seek out the stuff that really sounds extra good, and try to vocalize the bass line, like bum bum bum, then get something like that to come out of the tuba. And when you get to play with others, as bloke said, listen real hard. Even if they aren't as good as he said they were going to be (you probably don't sound as good as you think you do either (but don't let that slow you down!))

Some people manage to put music theory to a lot of use in improvising a bass line. Not me, so I'm not at my best with charts, much better if I know the tune. I'm pretty sure it's possible, in principle, for most people to improvise a bass line without a chart or any theory, and I would encourage you to try it once in a while. But of course it's also very useful to be able to get through a chart of a previously unknown piece, and you need at least some basic principles of chords and bass lines for that. If chords are kind of a novelty, you might pick up a cheap guitar and spend a little time with it now and then.

It takes time. I think some people give up right away on ear playing, when it doesn't come easy right away, and that's too bad. It's easy, but not right away.

[TubaSteve]

I must admit that I have not done a lot of playing by ear in groups, but I have done quite a bit of it solo. This time of year is a great time to practice playing by ear with Christmas tunes. These are well seated in your head, and just start to play them. You will find that the more you relax and just try to "sing" through the horn, that the notes just fall under the fingers. Then when you have a song down, change the key and do it again. This really helps in playing different keys, and you would be shocked to realize you are playing 4 sharps on your BBb. Like I said, I have not done much group music on the fly, so base lines are something I could work on, but I have done a lot of Christmas music this way. I take a Sousaphone into work for the last dozen or more years and play through out the plant every year for Christmas. It has become kind of a ridiculous tradition where people look forward to it every year. I do this on all three shifts too, after a while, just find the starting note, and start to play. Other times, classic folk songs are good to practice on, if you can sing it, you can play it.

Steve