If you know how to create a walking bass line, you can be more creative in your jazz playing. It is designed to develop strong harmonic skills, rhythm, phrasing and note choice. In this 5 minute masterclass, were going create a bass line over a blues in f. The bass lines are good and one simple addition to know is that just about any chordwalking bass line, you can always use a leading tone that is, 12 step below to whatever is the next chord. How to play a simple left hand walking bass jazz improv free. Bass guitar exercises for dummies cheat sheet dummies. How to play walking bass lines at the piano cocktail. The symbol of the bass clef is derived from the old german way of writing f. R 3 5 6 7 walking bass line theory basics chris fitzgerald. Walking bass line piano tutorial walking bass jazz piano.
Students and readers of constructing walking jazz bass lines. Under each phrase i wrote the logic behind it and how i came up with it. Improvise jazz piano with walking bass line piano with jonny. The two dots on the right of the bass clef symbol surround the line on which f pitch is written. Walking bass for jazz and blues is a complete method to help beginners master each element of blues and jazz walking bass. When creating walking bass lines, its important to outline the root and 5th of the chord. Walking bass line theory basics pdf file chris fitzgerald. All halfdiminished chords found in the major diatonic system on vii are what arnold. How to play a simple walking bass left hand pattern on the piano using a 12 bar. Obviously the sound of the contrabass is warmer and softer than the percussive sound of the piano and some shadings are impossible with the piano, for example glissando or bender.
The reader agrees to take full responsibility for herhis. Simple walking bass line for jazz beginners talkingbass. Using the following figures and lots of practice, you can play a perfectly authentic groove in just about any of the main musical genres. This is a a way of playing that i use really a lot in situations where theres no bass player, so mostly duo settings with a guitar player, singer or horn player. The term walking is used lescribe the moving feeling that quarter notes create in the bass part. It is common for the harmonic rhythm to vary within most chord progressions. The cycle of 5ths is just an organized way to travel through the keys so you hit every one. And walking basslines are a continuous sequence of quarter notes, generally played on the beat 4 notes per bar in 44 time walking basslines. In this example, the bass line consists of simple arpeggiations of each chord, giving the overall effect of a simple blues bass line. This is an important concept to remember, the walking bass line is. And yet at the same time, he believed that all human beings have an innate. A slightly embellished version of this kind of line would also be typical of a basic boogie woogie type bass line, as in the following example. We are going to go move around the cycle counter clockwise.
The collection of material of this book is, in our opinion, the basics to playing bass guitar for some event. This technique resumes in a direct way the style of a bass instrument. This is a solo i wrote for the jazz standard autumn leaves using a variety of thecniques that i have learned over my years of playing jazz. And walking bass lines are a continuous sequence of quarter notes, generally played on the beat 4 notes per bar in 44 time walking bass lines. Pickups are also mounted to the body and work like little microphones that pick up the sound from the strings. Build a walking bass line from scales the jazz piano left hand.
Playing a walking jazz guitar bass line is a captivating method of comping for other musicians, and yourself. Accordion bass 101 so many accordionists have come to the instrument from. Jazz bass line construction thelonious monk institute of. In other words, sing a short melody mentally, or sing with your mouth, and then play those exact pitches and rhythms on your instrument. As bass players we can create strong sounding walking bass lines by playing them one by one. They walk great bass lines, and they create great grooves. Walking bass mascari piano studios piano lessons, music. Parts of the bass a bass is made up of three main sections. Beginners guide to walking bass lines bass tabs bass. Walking bass for jazz and blues fundamental changes. Therefore, the bass is played by the left hand on the lower part of the keyboard of the piano. You can easily learn how to play walking bass lines. Like any form of physical activity, they carry an element of risk. Walking bass on the piano can be one of the coolest things ever.
Even though our intent is to spice up the a to c change just by walking up the bass notes from a to b to c, were able to do a lot more than that in this case. Walking bass for piano tutorial no 1 by michael gundlach. Walking bass lines are a very specific and classic jazz piano sound and generally considered an advanced concept. Playing the bass guitar well means playing grooves. The walking bass technique with the piano left hand has great effect. Piano technique by paul white ma cantab arcm lgsm mt mtc first published 2007 revised edition 2020 this guide contains numerous technical exercises which require careful use. The pianomethod walking bass for piano can be downloaded at. The notes above are all natural however any of this notes can be raised or lowered a half. A bassline is a melody line played in the bass by a lowpitched instrument such as the piano, double bass, electric bass, tuba, etc. All of the other parts of the bass are mounted on these three sections.
The bridge is the assembly that anchors the strings to the body. Bass arpeggios are a great resource for both practicing finger exercises as well as learning the fundamental components of chords every practice routine should include some kind of incorporation of finger exercise both for developing dexterity and finger independence as well as understanding chords from a fundamental perspective and how they relate to one another musically. Heres what you get a complete guide to walking bass lines so you learn how to play on the most common chord changes in blues and. Bill evans was a visionary artist who made an enormous personal contribution to our modern concept of jazz piano. Walking bass lines are a fascinating part of jazz, as they support and mark the harmony underneath the chords and melody. Chords and walking bass part 1 in this lesson ill demonstrate how i approach playing walking bass lines and chords at the same time. The goal of a walking bassline is to outline the chord progression but with an interesting. Walking bass blues without iv in bar 2 19870506 download pdf. In this lesson well take a look at scale style and intervalic bass lines, and even mix them up a bit. Bass line exercises level 2 shelia lees accordion blog. A walking bass line is the most common approach to jazz bass playing.
A bass line is a melody line played in the bass by a lowpitched instrument such as the piano, double bass, electric bass, tuba, etc. Piano players and guitarists will generally create chords by playing all the chord tones together. Join my online ear training workshop in april, 2020. Nothing too difficult, just make sure you are stamping your foot two times per second and that you are counting from 1 to 4 in time with your foot beat. Just like walking with your feet, tyjwalking bass line is one step after the other that takes you somewhere. Practice all exercises chromatically and in a circle of 5ths. For when you have to learn to play the bass right now. The possible noterange of a walking bass can reach from subcontra a to middle c. Bass lessons beginners guide to walking bass lines bass tab standard string tuning g,d,a,e recommended 1. Amazing jazz improvisation exercise jazz piano concepts. But the truth is that walking bass lines are fairly easy to practice and, like everything in music and life, the more you practice the more comfortable you will become when playing in this style. Autumn leaves solo improvisation guide and walking bass. Fundamental concepts for walking bass is a systematic method, written by george urbaszek, bass player and longtime jazz. The bass provides the rhythmic and harmonic foundation for the rest of the band, so its imperative that theres no hesitation when walking a bass line.
Notice the eight measure progression is now sixteen and the use of sycopation preceding beat two of each measure creates a very jazzy feel. How to play walking bass lines jazz piano lesson left hand lines. Bass lines part one for all of these exercises, we are going to use the cycle of 4ths. How to play walking bass lines jazz piano lesson download the exercises for this lesson here. Print and download in pdf or midi autumn leaves solo. Michael gundlach download pdf file walking bass for piano an easy.
Play that funky music sheet music wild cherry pdf for piano sheet music. We think if we hit the correct bass and chord yeah we are done. Dave found a way to incorporate walking bass lines into his solo piano style in a unique way. Once you have some basic rules down, youll be able to make bass lines over any chord progression.
The bass lines are good and one simple addition to know is that just about any chord walking bass line, you can always use a leading tone that is, 12 step below to whatever is the next chord. Best of all, you can do so using the same set of notes for each of the grooves. In essence, were using the b note in our walking bass line, plus the guitars standard tuning to create a very cool sounding chord change. Incorporating the 3rd of the chord will also give your bass line a stronger harmonic foundation.
Walking bass workshop constructing walking jazz bass lines. Additional components of convincing bass lines are note choice and forward motion. I have worked with literally over twenty different method books and steven mooneys approach is definitely the best of the best that i. Intro to playing basses on the accordion shelia lees. As soon as possible, try playing what you hear mentally in your head. Practice bass scale exercises and if you are walking the bass into the next measure walk the scale tones of the next measures chord key signature. Ifr blog instrument blogs bass blog walking bass line exercise 2 5 1 progression. Pay attention, burn through this as fast as you can, and you.
Walking bass noterange usually the bass lies in the lower sound range of the music. Youll learn the turnaround progression, the blues scale, and 3 exercises to practice improvisation. When the harmonic rhythm of a progression of a song is two chords per bar, the bass. The goal of a walking bass line is to outline the chord progression but with an interesting. It is found most commonly in blues and jazz, but as you learn bass guitar, you will hear its influence in almost any style of music.
How to create bass lines 2 3 play in four quarters. In this lesson well take a look at scale style and. Intro to accordion bass playing so many of us totally neglect the basses or left hand. Listen to his cd called giant strides and youll see what i mean. A walking bass line is a more creative form of bass playing than the other swing styles because you choose new notes each time you play the same song. Michael gundlach download pdf file walking bass for. Walking bass lines are used in blues gospel, country, rock, ska, rockabilly, rhythm and blues, latin, and many other musical genres. The left hand on the piano chords arpeggios and bass. Stevens method provides numerous exercises to keep each and every aspiring bassist enthuse about learning and creating walking bass lines. The function of the bass is to provide the foundation.
Take two different chords and you want to move as stepwise as possible between the roots of the two chords. Walking bass with the piano left hand classic jazz piano. A walking bass is a bass accompaniment consisting of notes of equal value, usually quarter notes. Here is a bass line constructed using ascending chord tones in the first 3 bars and descending in the 4th. Play the root note of the chord as if it was a bass and the remaining notes like a guitar. The best way to introduce walking bass lines into your playing is to start with one short common chord progression. Walking bass lines are really useful in jazz piano they give you a cool, pro sound and a. Walking bass line theory basicspart 1by chris fitzgerald.
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