Inconsistent shoulder pain

(To preface no, I dont use a strap and I always practice sitting) when I started playing I would rest my wrist on my bass and that always shortened my practice time since it would start hurting

I sort of fixed that problem by angling my bass slightly upward instead of perpendicular and using my shoulder to hold up my hand instead of resting it. The current problem comes in when now whenever i try to palm mute or pick I get more shoulder pain. I THINK i might’ve fixed it by pointing the flatside of the bass towards my chest and resting my arm on it but I’m not sure if there’s anything else I should be doing

3 Likes

I use the little classical guitar step on my right foot to raise the thigh a bit. This Hepworth balance point and the need to unnecessarily hold the bass up with your arm.

5 Likes

Try turning your torso more towards the leg your bass is resting on, getting the headstock angled out farther away from your body. I think the problem, at least for me, was that you have bring your elbow back, constantly activating your shoulder muscles, to get your forearm in line to pick the strings.

1 Like

I would try to do some light resistance training for your shoulders to build some strength or at least warm them up to promote a more comfortable bass session.

I do these exercises almost every day.

1 Like

Try using a strap, as Josh recommends. It cures many ills as it stabilizes the instrument, removes ergonomic variables, and makes playing easier overall.

4 Likes

I was going to suggest a strap as well; it improves things a lot when sitting.

3 Likes

Well I’m glad to see I’m not the only one in favor of a good wide strap, something in the range of 4".
To me that would seem to be step one to alleviate lot of problems. With a properly adjusted strap you may even be able to fret notes without pressing with your thumb. I find the only reason for having my thumb on the back of the neck is to stop the fretting fingers from pushing the bass towards my body :slightly_smiling_face: :slightly_smiling_face: :slightly_smiling_face:

2 Likes

I do exactly the same.

Straps is definitely a great tool to use while sitting especially if you are not the type of player who play the bass really low.

That said this does not work for everyone. Definitely dory work for me because of the number of bass I have and how I like to play by switch between basses on the same song. I just happen to have a few more basses than an average gearbeads, so straps and/or strap locks alone would bankrupt me and most importantly the economy of efforts is preventing me to strap on and off each time, lol.

1 Like

Yeah but with strap locks it’s only one strap for all the basses, and about $10-$15 per bass to add the peg. At least with Schaller, where you can buy the pegs by themselves (from either Schaller or AllParts).

1 Like