I think this article is going to surprise you. Read it with an open mind. I know what a bass is and I know how far singing can seem from learning how to play the bass.

Learning the bass guitar can definitely help you sing better. The way that bass players are required to think will help singers realize what they can miss in their practice; rhythm. The bass can help realize the gap and keep the practice sessions fun.

There is a decent amount of controversial ideas I have to cover in this article so let’s begin.

Where Bass Players Sit

Bassists sit in a unique position where they’re essentially a rhythmic instrument that plays a support role both rhythmically and harmonically. It’s quite a unique position to sit in. 

Especially in modern times when modern bands are making full use of bass players. The crisp and full-sounding bass guitars in modern songs are quite amazing and they’re not hard to achieve anymore.

So, that’s where it becomes easy for bass players to pick up singing. You see, the bass is such that it can easily provide harmonic ground for someone to start singing. Unlike drums, which are just pure rhythmic instruments with no direct notes to play. Bass players can use this ability to not only improve how they sound but also with learning other things related to music to become better musicians.

Range?

You might think that the range of the bass is something that will hinder its ability to help you sing. Well, actually it won’t. You need a harmonic note. 

So start matching your pitch to start practicing your singing which doesn’t have to be exactly the same octave. You can also sing an octave higher. This also means that it’s going to help you strengthen your vocal abilities by hearing in one octave but singing in another.

That’s the obvious option but however, but there lies one more kind of bass for you to have…

Six String

The six-string will automatically remove the range issues right out of the box, to some extent. It’s going to have a high C string which is going to give you C4 at the 12th fret and if you have a 24-fret bass a C5 at the 24th fret. 

That’s more than enough to start your singing practice with. Additionally, it gives you a nice reason to own a six-string as well. I own a six-string bass and I am not ever going back. In fact, I will need to get some more to my collection.

Artificial Harmonics

If you’re the kind that likes to go off to some beaten path then know that you can always practice artificial harmonics to have whatever octave you want.

So, technically even with a four-string bass, you can start your singing practice. It’s not cheating at all and it gives you something to practice with your bass. Which I assume is going to make you happy because it sounds beautiful.

One of the reasons basses can pull off artificial harmonics with ease is because of their fat strings. There is decent real estate there and unlike guitars, you can keep on playing those artificial harmonics on your G-string all day long.

There’s Something You Should Know

There are some bass players who sing their melodic lines with playing their bass. It’s a fantastic technique. I say this because it does two things. It’s fun to improvise and let your creativity flow while it’s making you aware and predict what you’re going to play.

It happens the same way we talk. You know the words but you don’t think about them. You think about ideas more than your words. A similar thing starts to happen when you are singing along with the bass.

Though, for extra mind-boggling, you can try to play what you sing and then switch it with singing what you’re playing. Either way, your mind will be boggled.

Where Do You Learn Singing From?

Knowing how to play the bass is one thing and being able to sing is another. As stated above, the bass can definitely help you start to sing and you should definitely strive to improve both your singing and your bass-playing chops.

However, I wrote another article that talks about why online courses are better and why you should try to have at least one of them in your library. The cost-saving for mastering something like singing has never been cheaper and not taking advantage of it is kind of a miss.

So, I recommend this page, which I’ve made specifically for you to understand and compare various courses. On this page, you’ll be able to start practicing your singing. Once you know what the exercise is, you can use your bass guitar to practice your singing.

Give yourself a little bit of time though, it’s not always easy to see the progress that you think you should be seeing so give yourself some time and stick with the routine. That’s how I got my singing to a decent level. Practice every day and consistently.

Before We Part Ways

There is some myth-busting that I’d like to do before we can call it a day.

Knowing and having more musical knowledge never hurts. If you’re planning on learning the bass and singing, and then decide to go ahead to do some music production. You’re on the right track. Actually, that’s the most sensible one too. 

All skills in music are interrelated. Use one to jump to the next.

It never hurts. I play bass, and guitar, and sing and I do all of my production myself. Never have I ever thought I ought to have ‘expertise’ or ‘mastery’ in one area of music. It’s all interrelated and it’s all worth putting your time in. 

Also, learning something like this being put in the context of music production is going to help you save tons of money.

Godspeed to your musical journey!