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Warming Up

by Bill Koggenhop (14)

Pages: 1 Suggested Tempo: 120

Warming up on electric bass (no pick) requires exercising each hand in a unique way, while maintaining a relaxed but deliberate pace. The fingers used for picking need to gain coordination with each other, and the fingers used for fingering must be limbered to reach and effectively grip each note quickly. Much of this should be done slowly at first, and of course make each hand work together so that musical sounds are produced. I know that explanation is painfully obvious, but if you think about what each hand is doing on its own, what it uniquely requires in warm up to effectively work at full tilt (with hands feeling relaxed and loose), AND you may not have tons of time to warm up, this strategy may help.

This strategy utilizes scales. Play a scale at 60-120 by plucking two eighth notes for each note of the scale (three eighth notes if you use three plucking fingers, four if using four). When you begin to practice, this loosens your picking hand while emphasizing coordination between each finger, while working the fingering hand at tempo so that emphasis can be placed on gripping the note without being rushed. After working thru the cycle of fifths (or any other sequence of scales you choose), switch to plucking one eighth note for each note of the scale. Now the fingers on your plucking hand should be warmed up and ready to move at double or below the tempo you are at while your fingering hand is ready to move at double the tempo you are at. If you keep your hands relaxed throughout each sequence, the skies the limit from there. This also helps to get around quicker at slower tempos as well.

As a variation, utilize each of the modes of the scale of choice, and also throughout your scale sequence of choice. This sets up different hand to hand coordination problems to conquer, all eventually leading to better mind-to-hand synergy.