Techniques Bass Guitar

Walking Bass lines are used in rock, blues, jazz, gospel and many other genres.

I would like to share the basic idea of building walking bass lines using chord tones.

Let's try playing a 4 chords progression in the key of G.

The chords are - Am7|D7 |Gmaj7| Cmaj7|.

We need to identify the notes in these chords.

Am7 - A C E G
D7 - D F# A C
Gmaj7 - G B D F#
Cmaj7 - C E G B

Now, each note is a quarter note (1/4).
The timing is like this - 1234|1234|1234|1234 (one note each).
The basic idea is always to play the root notes on the "1".
You can try different arrangement of the notes,
the exercise below is an example of what you can play.

e.g. ACEC|DCAF#|GBDG|CBDG

Get a guitarist to play along with you and experiment which notes sound better.

More complicated walking bass lines can be formed using modes,passing notes and need not start with the root note.

Have fun.

To be a good slapper on the bass, one need to have a good sense of rhythm and know what notes to hit (Ghost notes play a big part in funk slap style).

Would like to name a few good bass players whom we can study.

1) Stanley Clarke
2) Victor Wooten
3) Stu Hamm
4) Abraham Laboriel
5) Louis Johnson
6) Larry Graham
7) Mark King
8) Marcus Miller
9) Vail Johnson
10) Flea

There are many others in the world but these 10 listed are some of my favourites.

Play around with your amp settings, pickup selection, frequency cuts to get the tone you like.

Cheers

Hi,

For those who are familiar with Stanley Clarke, will surely know this song "School Day".

There is this part at his lastest DVD titled Night School, where many popular bass players improvise School Day with their style.

Some of the bass players include Stu Hamm, Brian Bromberg, Jimmy Johnson, Marcus Miller, Wayman Tisdale and etc.

Grab a copy now. :)

Recently I was sharing with some friends how to improve their playing.

I figure that most people these days just want to play but not learn the theory.

One reason I feel that theory is important - You will know what notes you can and cannot play.

Below are 5 steps to give self taught beginners a kick start.

1) Memorise the fretboard - Start with the first 5 frets (all strings) and slowly move up.

2) Learn the Major Chords and Scales ( Major Chord = 135, Major scale = 221 2221)

3) Practice plucking the strings alternating with 2 fingers (right hand)

4) Practice with a metronome / drum machine ( Start with 1 note per click)

5) Choose a song that you love and hear how the bassist play (Ask a friend or teacher to guide you)

Techniques like slapping, popping, tapping, chords, harmonics and etc are to help produce music.Learning to apply the techniques to your music is the challenge.

Internet resources, videos and books are your friends.
We are constantly learning new stuffs so don't feel pressure if you need more time. Email me if you need any elaboration.

Cheers

Dear all,

Was great to see Stu Hamm performance live at the art house on 23rd August 07.

I think some who came were just accompanying their friends but nevertheless, I still enjoy myself.

For those who listen to Stu's music, you realize that he compose quite a lot of songs in minor key.

Let's refresh on the chords in the major key.

In the key of C - C Dm7 Em7 F G7 Am Bm7(b5) C

Try tapping that and you can play the Prelude in C.

Next the minor chord in key of A (based on A natural minor) - Am Bm7(b5) C Dm7 Em7 F G7 Am.

Do check out the minor chord family for Harmonic Minor and Melodic Minor.

Cheers,

Ben

Hi,

One way to make the bass sound more melodic is by playing chords.

Tapping can achieve a guitar plucking/piano playing type of sound.

The motion is similar as hammer on.

We will try a G chord for this explanation.
The 4 notes that you are going to tap are G (root) D (5th) G (octave) B (10th).
The fingering is similar as playing bar chord on the guitar.
Now your left hand fore finger on the root, followed by right hand fore finger on 5th , middle on octave and left ring finger on the 10th.

Give it a try :)

Former NBA Star, Wayman Tisdale is one of the better and few bassists that play melodic lead lines throughout the whole song. Wayman Tisdale is a left handed player. If you like smooth jazz and sweet bass lines, than check him out.

The album "Way Up" is what he consider one of his most fulfill title so far.
For more information and sample of the album, please visit www.waymantisdale.com