Compiled and written by Bass Player and Music Educator George Urbaszek
Creative Bass Website and Creative Bass Lessons Website

Welcome to the new eMag (electronic magazine) version of the Creative Bass Newsletter.

I would like to extend a special welcome to new subscribers to both this eMag as well as to Bass Lessons Online.

From now on you will find this eMag to have more comprehensive lesson segments than previous newsletters. These lessons will still not be as complete as the online bass lessons at http://www.creativebasslessons.com but will nevertheless contain material useful to all subscribers.

Today’s joke
“What's the difference between an electric bass and an upright bass?
The upright burns longer.” Ouch! Hot stuff!

Advice
My private students often ask me how they can get into a band. I usually respond by asking what they have done about it so far. And the answer is usually “Nothing”. Besides putting the word out by talking to friends and like-minded people, a great thing to do is to post notices in music stores. This has invariably led to success and my students often tell me they have been flooded with calls. Some great bands have been formed using this method, so if you have not tried posting notices yet, get to it now!

Personal
Over the past six weeks I have been very busy with various projects including gigs, recordings, coaching bands and teaching bass. One project I have just completed (coordinating and coaching) is a program called Weekend Warriors. Find out more at http://www.weekendwarriors.org.au/default.htm. The program is essentially about getting people together who have either not played in a band for a long time (such as the baby boomer generation) or who have never had band experience before. After an initial jam session, musicians are placed in bands that rehearse and receive coaching for four weeks before their Big Gig. Our Big Gig was lots of fun (which is mainly what the program is about) but it also sounded and looked good.

I am currently teaching the bass students in the Contemporary Music Department at Southern Cross University (http://www.scu.edu.au) in Lismore, NSW, Australia, as well as supervising two ensembles.

Today’s Lesson - Bass Line Development

Often we get bored with what we play. This can be due to the repetitiveness of some bass lines. Here is a simple and systematic way to develop your bass lines while maintaining the all-important groove.

The examples are over the two-chord vamp of C7 and Bb7, such as in the A-section of “Killer Joe”, a jazz standard in 4/4 time. Although the examples below employ the walking bass technique of playing quarter notes, you can and should make up your own variations to suit your style.

Legend:
1 = chord root
3 = the third of the chord (the third note of the chord scale)
5 = the fifth of the chord (the fifth note of the chord scale - can be played below the root)
8 = the chord root an octave higher
CPT = Chromatic Passing Tone

Ex1
1 5 1 CPT 1 5 1 CPT – Repeat this two-measure phrase.
The notes are C G C B Bb F Bb B - Repeat.
Click HERE for audio.

Ex2
Play all notes one octave higher.
Click HERE for audio.

Ex3
1 5 8 CPT 8 5 1 CPT
Click HERE for audio.

Ex4
8 5 1 CPT 1 5 8 CPT – This is an inversion of Ex3
Click HERE for audio.

Ex5
1 3 1 CPT 1 3 1 CPT
Click HERE for audio.

Ex6
Any combination of the above examples PLUS YOUR OWN.

Further suggestion: Before you even attempt to play different examples, write down all possibilities you can think of. I guarantee you will come up with options you will not have found through playing alone.

Bass of Luck!

George Urbaszek
Bass Player and Music Educator
Serving Bass Players Worldwide since 1996