experience before joining a band

cloptrop · 24-12-2011 1:46am #1

how many years do you reckon you should have before auditioning for a band?
i dont want if your good enough your ready answers
im wondering how long the average player takes to be ready

noideaforaname · 24-12-2011 10:02am

5 minutes

Rigsby · 24-12-2011 11:16am

IMO there is no definitive answer to this. There is no such thing as an "average" player. People differ, so they learn and develop at a different pace to one another. It would also depend on how often they practiced, the type of pactice, and the type of music to be played. Obviously it would take a lot longer to be ready for say, a jazz band, then another type of band. Ironically, one of the best methods for speeding up development and gaining experience is to play with others, preferably with people better than yourself. It does not have to be a band, just jamming. So, with a general question such as this, I would be reluctant to put a time on it.

Rigsby · 24-12-2011 11:18am

noideaforaname wrote: »

5 minutes

With some bands I have seen, I doubt if they put in that much time !!!

Sky King · 24-12-2011 2:08pm

I think it depends on your instrument.

A drummer with any kind of natural ability could provide beats after a few months i would say, if they practiced daily.

They wouldn't be anything spectacular, but lots of music genres don;t really call for snazzy drumming, as long as they can play on time.

Malice · 24-12-2011 6:33pm

It depends on quite a few factors. As others have already said, natural ability of the musician, the technicality of the target genre(s) and the ability of the target band are all important factors.

Herb Powell · 24-12-2011 9:49pm

Whenever the feck you want really

Rigsby · 24-12-2011 10:56pm

Herb Powell wrote: »

Whenever the feck you want really

Unfortunately that seems to be too often the case !

cloptrop · 25-12-2011 1:28am

as a bass player what would i need to join a standard gigging rock n roll band
including equiptment

Herb Powell · 25-12-2011 1:58am

Rigsby wrote: »

Unfortunately that seems to be too often the case !

yeah lol, but it's kind of true. There's no real set time.

cloptrop wrote: »

as a bass player what would i need to join a standard gigging rock n roll band
including equiptment

Any amp smaller than 100W is a waste of time

Rigsby · 25-12-2011 11:22am

cloptrop wrote: »

as a bass player what would i need to join a standard gigging rock n roll band
including equiptment

While we all know that these guidelines are unfortunately, often not adhered to, this is what I' recommend :

1. An excellent sense of timing and groove.

2. About a year's experience of playing (not gigging) with others.

3. Be fairly adept on your instrument.

4. Have all the material to be played at a gig, well rehearsed.

5. A professional attitude, i.e. dependable, always turning up for rehearsals, getting on with band mates, not drinking too much before a gig, etc

6. Depending on the venue, an amp with a minimum of 300 watts.

unclebill98 · 25-12-2011 7:25pm

Rigsby wrote: »

While we all know that these guidelines are unfortunately, often not adhered to, this is what I' recommend :

1. An excellent sense of timing and groove.

2. About a year's experience of playing (not gigging) with others.

3. Be fairly adept on your instrument.

4. Have all the material to be played at a gig, well rehearsed.

5. A professional attitude, i.e. dependable, always turning up for rehearsals, getting on with band mates, not drinking too much before a gig, etc

6. Depending on the venue, an amp with a minimum of 300 watts.

+1

And a tuner......

Rigsby · 25-12-2011 10:48pm

unclebill98 wrote: »

+1

And a tuner......

How could I forget the tuner ? !!!

guitarzero · 26-12-2011 5:43pm

After listening to a lot of bands, seriously, the answer, if any, is zero.

cloptrop · 26-12-2011 7:57pm

a 3 hundred watt amp? **** better start saving and hoping that i can find a band that gets payed lol

unclebill98 · 26-12-2011 8:00pm

A 150w amp would be grand for a start however if you had the cash to save a little extra a 300w would be better for the long run.

Just stay away from b*heringer.

fenderfreak91 · 26-12-2011 9:13pm

You cant really put a time or date on that you can be as bad as humanly possible and still get an audition for a band it kinda depends on how much balls you have also there are some people who are amazing but probly wouldnt feel comfortable auditioning for a band again all about confidence!

BigBadDom · 26-12-2011 10:32pm

You could spend years practicing, but still have no experience playing with other musicians. Just get in an audition, see how it goes. You'll know what work you will have to do once you audition. I played my first gig after 4 months playing. I had two days practice to get it together. The first rehearsal, I was nervous and played badly. I spent the next two days practicing and I was on it for the next rehearsal. The gig itself was great. Just get out and do it. Meet other musicians and you'll get an idea of how much work you will have to do to get to a standard you are happy with.

benestoria2 · 27-12-2011 2:10am

Have you ever actually played a bass? or is it just an idea you have for the new year get a bass and join a band?....If you have played at all you will know yourself when your ready but take it from me there are alot of bass players out there in bands that learn the root notes to the basic chords which takes about 4 minutes and they join terrible mickey mouse bands just ploding along playing the 3 notes of the 3 chord song..a proper bass player will create the groove in the song think outside the box any worry more about what the drummer is doing rather that the guitarist..but this my friend takes years to perfect and will only happen with years of playing in bands so there no real answer just know your instument learn the notes and keys then practice practice practice

Herb Powell · 27-12-2011 3:21pm

benestoria2 wrote: »

Have you ever actually played a bass? or is it just an idea you have for the new year get a bass and join a band?....If you have played at all you will know yourself when your ready but take it from me there are alot of bass players out there in bands that learn the root notes to the basic chords which takes about 4 minutes and they join terrible mickey mouse bands just ploding along playing the 3 notes of the 3 chord song..a proper bass player will create the groove in the song think outside the box any worry more about what the drummer is doing rather that the guitarist..but this my friend takes years to perfect and will only happen with years of playing in bands so there no real answer just know your instument learn the notes and keys then practice practice practice

This is what I did for the first month or two of playing, but you really can't learn otherwise til you play for a while with a band.
And you're dead right, it IS more about paying attention to the drummer than the guitarist

experience before joining a band

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