rhe Complete ·

BassPlayer
-·
AeW Book+cD course by Phil MulfOf"d.

-·
The Complete
BassPlayer
The new Book+CD cour5e by Phil Mulford.

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Reading
&Rhythms
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Combinations of
~";;~Rests

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lntroduction
Wel«>mc to 1be Complete Sass Gui1ar P1aycr. This book 11áU J'ffi''ide a stcp by $tep
approach m playing the bass guitar. an ins1rument which is fundamemal 10 cootemporary
popularmusic.and isanucitíngvchic!efor expression.Youeanílylikeancagleorplay
themostirresistib!cgroovc-anythingandcvcrydlingispossiblefor"TheComple1cBass
GuitatPla)"et'.
Step By Step
This book will takc you throughall aspcctsofbas.s pl.aying in acarefully lhoughtout.
~tepbystcpfashion.ltstanswithchoosingyourinmumcntandprogrcssesthrough
tuning. basicootatioo,harmonyandreading.Eachofthese subjen~ is important,as
tog<:therit..yprovidcyouwithasurefoundationforyow:playing.Cooccntratcdhard
workoowwillpaydividendsinthefuturc:ifyouareirnpatientandtl)'torushaheadtoo
quickly you may do more Jwm than good. Any fauhy technique you pick 11p now will
c"'""backtoh.aumyou.
Reading Music
hisagreatadvantageforanybassplayertobcablt0toreadmusic - thenmsically
illiteratc bass playcr is eonfronted by many doors which will remain f<>rl.'~cr locked. Hc
wil! only c•·cr be 11$ good as his mcmory allows him to bc. whercas lhe bass playcr who
canreadmusic i,amochmore anractive proposi1ionto01hermusician$.
Undetstandingdiffcrem1101Cvaluesand1hcirnamesisimpor1an1,asisha~i11gakeen
carforimervals(1hcspeçifie 11umberofs1cpsbetwo:nalow noceand a highcrone).
chordsequencesandsongmucturc. Noccvel)'bodywritcsrheirmusicdown-forsome
gigsyou .... illprepaiethemusicbeforchanda1 arehcarsal.probablywilhoutanykindoí
wriuen remindcr Olher than a fcw hasrily scribbled chord symbols. So. il is imponant IO
~vclop)·ourauralskills
Oo lhe ocher lland you may have lo play music you have never he:rrd before. di~~
from a wrilten pan with oo chari~c for a proper reheanal - indttd. sornctimes you'll be
luckyif yoogetapropercoumin' lnsucha•ituationyoowillbcgladyoustudicdlbc
Complete 8an Guitar Player.
Chapter 1
The Basics
Regular Practke
Doa:t betoo h:lsly -Romc wasn't buih in aday, but good regular worlt will help you 10
progJnS quickly andcffidently.Halfanhour ea<:hdayisbcncrlhaníourhr.>urs oocc a
•eei::. Try l ccping a practicc diary - makc a note of your te mpos (the s~ds at which
:-oupla)a p1cccor cxcrcise)andgraduallyincrease thom1 eachda)'JO!lla1)'0UCan sec
llDY>youareprogrusmg.
Your wca l nesses should bc workcd on. Don"t shy away from them. or u y to i " 'CCP
lhrm wMkr th.. c~L Makc an cxcrcise out of anythmg you find diffirnh or awkward
..J ~iSl until you fccl comfonablc. Your naltlral strcngths will always bc lhcrc
Hnc )our CD or casscnc playcr h.mdy. Thc audio cxamplcs are designe<! for you to play
~"'ilh.Tbe purposcofcachcxcrciseisdclaikdi11therele•·antseclionoflhcbook.
lbis series will prepare )'QU for many of the challcnges 10 come on the mad to
mroes.sfolbass playmg. Havc fun.workh:m:landbcforc longyou"'ill be TiieComplctc
S......GuitarPlaycr.
Choosing An lnstrument
Your d>0ice<lf Ín>tn.i=m is an cnlirely personal onc. ~"'are many diffcrem nyles,
cok>urs and mnkes of ban. N>< your fi"'t insuumcnt it it probably bcst to go for a s1mpk.
oo-fu"" modcl from an established manufacturcr. Most ofthc 1argcr manufaclurers
produccinstn.unentsthroughawídcl"flngeofprices.Aninfonnedchoitcl'K)Wwillcnsutt
tlut you havc an insuumcnt that will stay wi\h you for ycaflh nllbcr than onc lhal will
holdyouupaftcrsix months!
SecondHand
!fyou buy a used in.mumeot you will probably get bcncr valuc. bm do cheo;l that lhe
bas.splayswcllandthatilisequippcdwi1hancwsctofstrings.Çhi,çkcachfretfor
buu.cs-iflhcrcaremanythebasswillrequireabasicovcrliaul,or'sct·up':thiswillcost
you moncy. l>'hich you should add rn your budgctcd figure for the oost of lhe in>trument

New
Buying nc"' is m11d1 less rislcy. Again go for the big namcs bc<;au..,, cvcn thoogh you "iD
pay a linlc more for lhe mamifoctun:r's badgc. yoo will almost certainly find your
insuumem casier to scll when you come to tradoe il in for a beucr one. Parts for lhe mott
cstablishednmkes>houldalsobceasiertoFind
Protection
lfyouareusingyourt>Msforpractiecat>d1thearsalonly.1hcn11gigbagísprobablylhe
bcst chokc. lt is a padlkd. webbcd nylon case. h is a ve ry corl\"enicnt means of
1ran>poningyour~becauseitisligh1yct1ooghanddurablc. TI1Cp;1ddingmcans)ou
don't wrcd;: )"OU• bau or your fumirure orcar interior. llowc,cr. if yoo lll"C thro"·in~ )OGI"
bass around with 11 loi of odicr cquipmcm you w1ll nced a llard c:ise. lfyou progn:~ ta a
professionalLe•·cland)'OUdoa!oloftra...,llingyouwillpr<>b.abiyneedaíligluc.._«e
Thcycanbce~pcns"'cbu1.cvcnso.1~y"')Jn:SCnt goodvaluebccausc1heyan:
pro1ec1ingyourin\"estrncn1.Thclas111tingyooncedistoturnupforagigonlytofmd
yourmstrum.-ntdamaged.
Maintenance
Ha,·cavailab!eataUtimesatooJkitforminorrep;.iirs.sornepolishandacooplc of
duSlers. lbis nw:ans !hal ""hen anylhing works loose (the mos\ common complamt) )'OU
canfixi10<1!hespot. Youdon'tnecdlopolishyourbasscveryday.bu1wipinglhe ~
down af1er C\Cry playing SC>SÍOn will prolong thcir uscful life. Rcmembcr- 51.rinp an:-
e•pcns1ve! AI.o "~pc down lhc neck and Fingcrboardtopre,·cntthebuild-upofdtn
The Evolution Of The lnstrument
lbc fourpicturcs belowandovcrgivc usan insigh1intothcp~made in bas.~ guiw
designandconstruclionoverfonyycan. Picturcs land 2 showaJapancse·Squ~r'
Fcndcr Precision D:u.s.Desig.r>cdiothccarly Fifücsbyi..o".IFenderthisbassi•lhc
·c1ass.ic'in;Hrument.11ieconstruction is vcrysimplcandthcy malr:canidealfirstbass
lbcncckisboltcdontothcbody,aiillustralcdin picturc2, by foor~ws which pass
lkoogh the neckplalc.throughthcbody.andarescrcweddi~iyinlothcwoodofthcneck.
Tl1C picl-up configuro.1ionshowninpic1urc 1 isa singlc "sp!it' pickupwhich g ivcs onc
wund. The 1one c1rcuiuy is simpie 100, a singlc volume anda single tone contrul. lbc
10Decomruloffcrs o nly 1reblc cu1 a1a fixcdfrequcncy.ThePrech;ion is thcfa1ti.erofthe
-*"'bassguitar and isstiil vcrypopulartoday.

~3 and 4 show an 01·crwam Custom Bass. mOOe in England by Chris May. la

~issome,.hatdiffcrenl fromlhe fcnder.In picturc4we can.:;eetlwthcwood
forlhcneekutcnd<i all the waylhrough1hebody,thishelpstogívc uslfl0f"C SUStain than
:a boh..on neck. Picturc 3 shows lhe more compkx electronics and picl:ups. Wc can pan
'~ me:i.n.s mix differcnl amoums} bctween cach pickup to gi,·c us any blcnd from the
~bmngedgeofthe bridgepid:up.10 1hesmcxxhroundedtone ofthe1>CCkpickup.
Abn. lhis b.:lss is 'aclive'. which means it has its own battcry powered circuil inside. lbc
-.iutfromthecin:uitislow imp:daocc. "hichminimiseshigh frcqucncylosseswhen
lmcca!Mesan:med.
Combos
A'combo·.or.togivc ititsfulln:une,a
combiBation amplifier, is simply an
amplificr anel speaker combined in one
box.Thercarcmanyontl>onurkct,and
they make an ideal first amplifier for bass
guicar.Lad,ofdioiceisne•·craproblem
astheyareavailableinmanydiffcrcnt
s11.csandforma1s(supk1w=J&6J.
Theobvious drawbatkis oneof
inllexibility;howevcr.for thetimebeing
weare~withsomelhingtogelus
going.Mos1probass sys1emsare
'separates·.sothatyoocanmi~and match
ampswilhi;:abinets.lfthcspeakeroíyour
cornbobreaksdo"-nthewbolethingisout
ofoommisiionwhileyougctitfixed-
wi1hs..para1C'Syouoolyhavc1orcplace
1hespcakcr.
Ifyouarcusingyourromboforpracticc
purposcsonly.thcnanoutputof bctween
30and75w11.usissufficicn1.forband
rc'1car$alsandgigs1hestOl')'isqui1e
differem.Acooslicdrumsarcyour
)'ardstickllcrc. Fmrockmu<ic)'OUWil!
needanoutputoflSOwan.stoenableyoo
IO~withthedn.ill15.:.~=ienns ­
.."lthl:mldi:sl«uoaorm1D--ia'
bass in lhe sarne position. relalivc lo your
OOdy.aswhcuyouarcstanding.
The Strap
Asmrdystr:ipwitharcasonablerani;cof
adjus1mcn1isbcsl.Trytoavoidany1h.ini;
lhinalldrigidastbiswillcutintoyour
shouldcr.Asoftwidcs1r.1prrwdeoflc11her
Ofman-madc fibfeisbcs~.:istbe"idth.
llclpsspread thcloadovcra"iderarca

1 IA 1
handandfingersgainslJ'Cnglh.Don'!
buochyourfingerstogetherinanattempl
ioexcrt thc lll!CCS5111)'prcssureon 1he
strings(picturelJ). Althooghthismay
hc:lpin the short•cnn,bunchlngyour
fingcrst~therinthíswaywiUprcven1
thcdevclopmentoíindividualfingcr
s~ngth,reach.andflexibility.Thcreisno
easywayioacquireagoodtedmique.his
goodpractke10kecpyour'spare' fretting
fingcrs(i.e.thoscwbichan:ootaçnially
fre11ingano1e)inoontrtwi1hthc
fingcrboardatall1imcs.lllisisaclassical
cclloplaycr's1cchnique.lnpicturel4
lamplayinganotewithmylinlcfinger
Noliceho\o.•allthcotherfingersare
pre<singonthefingei-boordtoo.Thiscvens
outthe1ensioninlhcwrist - tbc:sortof
tcnsionthatcancausecrampandfurther
1ensioni111hcwris1muscles.lnpicture 15
youcansee1tw: l.:indof1cehnique 1hatwil1
getyouimo1n:M1ble.
Hand Posffions
Payagreatdcalofanentiontoyoorhand
positions.especiallyduring1hcearly
si.ages.Consi<lcnlhnnl""º'kno"'eansa\'C
alo1oftimea.nd"'astedeffOl'llateron.l1
willalsohclpyourl<'Chnique.makingyoo
abenerplaycr.
The f rettin&: Hand
Asagenerulrukitisgoodpnl'tiutouse
onefingerforeachfre1.a.~pic1uredbelow.
YourfingerssOO..ldbespaccdoutand
relaxed. wilh lhe lhumb bchind lhe middle
and indcx fingcrs.
Fir">lofallrelaxyourfrening hand -
lhis is most imponam as a relaxcd hand
willprcventtension-relruedpain inthc
wristaodfingcrs.Shakcyourhaodand
arm.allowingyourarmtofalldownby
yoor sidc. Your hand will automa1ieally
ass1.1mearela.><edand na1ural,un!>t1essed
position.asshowninpicturc:IO.
MOVC}'ot1Thandtoap!ayingposi1ion
(piCMCS 11&:12).Atfimyoumayfiodit
difficuh1orelHwh1ls1applyingprcssurc
tothcstrings. Thiswillimprovt:asyour
Audio 1: Tuning
Thefust1hing111dowhenyoustrapooyourt>assistotunei1. Nowaday~i1isnormal10
ha•·e an eleclronic tuning do:vke of some kind, bt!c it is still imponanl for you to
unders1aOOhowp:iurbassisluned,andtobcabletotuneitwi11lou1ancxternalrcfercnce.
You11illfindthispart1cularlyuscfulwhenthebancryinyourclectronictunergoesfl.al.!
Tuningis vitallyimponamforallmusicinns,particularlyba.'ISplayen.lfyourbas.~is
ll()lin1uncyouwillfindithanl1ohearintervalswithi11theins1rumentpropcrly;playing
along wuhCDs (a good wayoflCMOing fo.-anyt>ody)will bc:come impossible.
Yoortuningisasimportanttoothermusiciansasicistoyou.Youarelhcfoundationon
wt11chanyrhythmscctionis built,anditiscrucialthatyOtJdon"1disrup10lherplaytrs
with b3d luning - )'OU nught havc lhe meanest ba~ li~ ln lhe tliSIOf)' of mu>ÍC, but if
theyarcou1oftunelhe)· willbttomeanuisaoce.
Earlicr 1 memiQilcd im~r.·als within lhe instrument. Once you master thc an ofhearing
Unes in rclation 10 your insuumem, )'OU will bc uble to pileh accuratdy, and play back
anythingyouhear.
Tuning By Harmonics
Harmo!lies.pUtsimply,areaseriesofovenoneswhicharepresem inanyvibratingstring
Whenfrcningaharmonic.bothponionsofthesuing,bdtindandinfromoflhcfinger.
mustbcfroemvibr.ue. Thercforcthcfingerisnot:l(\uallypressedintothcfingerboard.
OOtsim1>IYremlightlyon thcs1riogasshowninpicture l6.Practise1hisonfre1Sfh·eand
se'e11untilyouge1adearbell·like1one.Th.eharmonicatthefifthfreton1heEs.iring
(thelowestooundings1ring)ísthe.'>a111ehunnonicastha1ar1hei:eventhfre1ontheA
string.lfyouplaylhemtogctheryouwill
. - - - - - - - - ---, h:weSQim:i<kaofwhe1herthe slringsarc
intunewithexhother.
Fin;tofallyoum\ISlehecltlialtheopco
Es1ring(thestringyoustantuningfrom)is

"j:;::=::;t
li
i11tunewilhthcCD.asa.lltuning1akes1his
E as a rcferenee point. Oncc you are
satisfiedlh.at1heEis1nm1>C,youcaoplay
theharmonicatlhefiflhfre1tocht!<.:ktht
nextstring. Leithishannonicring.(asin
audinex'1I1lplel.l)aodplay!he h:umonie
onthe,;e,·emhfrctoflhcAstnng. Thet"·o
honnonicswillnowbcheard«>s:elher.If
lhcycombinetomakeonepurctoneyou'rc
inluck - thcvareintune!
 lf there is an oscillatiQll (a regular beating sound) gomg oo betwccn them lhe A s1ring
willha•·c1obeadjustcduntilthereisapurc1onc.lftheoscill:itioosarcfas1(asinaudio
cxamplc 1.2) the llOlCS are fair!y wide apart. lhe closcr lhe tuning ge1s lhe slowcr the
beating becomcs. Yoo h.ave 10 ju.dge whether lhe harmonic on lhe A string is highcr or
lower than lhe harmonic on thc E string. Listen lo audio examplc 1.3 (lower) and audio
example l.4 (highcr).
Onee1heAslringistuned101hcEs1ringyouha••e1orc~a1•heprocess,tuning1he
D string to tbe A string (audio cxamplc 1.S). Whcn yO\> an: happy with O>e tuning oíthc
DmingyO\>arcn:adyton:peat1hcprocessagam.upano1hcrstring. SonowtheOstring
becomcsyO\>rreferenc:epointas>'ºutune1heGstringtoit(audioexamplel6).When
eachharmo>nicatthefiflhfretringsinlunewithitsadjacenthighcrslringatlhc~•enth
fn:t.your bassisintunc
Tuning By Full Notes
Harmonicsareoncway1otuneyourins1rumem,butn011t.eonly"-ay-youcanuscíull
notesaswell. Fimly,tuneyourEstringtoaudioexarnp!e l.l asbefon~.Onceagamthe
low F. becomcs lhe n:fe..,nci: point from which ali other tuning is done. Having tuncd lhe
low E we can tune lhe A string by playing an A on tbe fif!h fn:t of the E string and
comparing ilS tuning ""ilh lh31 ofthe opcn A string_As befon: wc will hear either apure
toneifthcstrings~intune.oranoscilla1ionif1heyan:no1(chcckaudiocxamplcl.7).
As thc no1es draw clo;;er togethcr lhe oscillations (or ringing) will slow down gradually
until lhcy disappear cornpktely, al w~ich point tt\c strings are in 1une. Audio example 1.8
demonnrates a flat A string. whcre thc pitch of 1he A string is below that ofthe f..,tted
E string. and audio ~x.ample 1.9 shows a shll.!p A string, where the pitch of Lhe A ruia$ is
abovethaiofitsfrencdncíghbour.
Thisproccss isrepeatcdforthcrestof1hestrings.Therdutivetuningfor1heDand
A strings isdemon.strated oo audiocumple 1.lO, while lhe tuning for th<-G and Dsull!J!
b sllo"·n on audlo example l.l l. Now we are ready to pl~y
Methods Of Plucking
Thcrearetwodifferent1cclmiqucsforpluckinglhc:slring.sof1hcbass.Üllcistouscyour
fingcrsandthc01hcristouscaplcc1rum

~::~;:osc1mc1hodforfingcrpluckini:.
~g~.0i~~.s~ac.~~=:l~~;~~:~ ';:~:;:
; .:

•
;u~;.:;:~~g~o;;.a;i:,:;~:; ~l of
effecuvemuscthefin1andsccondfingcrs
altemately. The lhini finger doesn'thave
1hcsame1ndcpcndenceofmove1ncn1as1hc
firsttWQ.and1sbes1av()1dedunullater.
_ Picture17sho1osatypicalnamplcofthe
...._,7 placemen1ofyourpluckinglland. Tryto
~-------- anchoronsomethingrolidlikethesidcofa
pickuporscratchplate. Pni<;tiscplayingthc
A ming (that's lhe~ lowest string)
ahematclywithyourfirstandsccond
fini;ers.Thiswillpre~yooforaudio
uample2.
The Plectrum
The plectrumisash.apedpicceofmaterial.
usuallyplaMicorn1etal,whichisu.edlo
plucklhcstringsofthcbass.ltcomesin
variousthicknesses,orgauges,soyQll
should be able to fiOO onc to sui~ yoor
per:sonaltaste.Becau5etlKpleçU\lmis
madeofamateri..:thardcrthanlheílcsbo(
yoorfingc~thesoonditproducesfrom
thebassismorcsharplydefine.:i_ Thi~i•
especial!ypopularinroctsiyleswherca
hardedged.·ctid:y·soundisneedcdto
kicklhcmusicalong.
 Therc an= t"'º strokes uscd in pla.1rum playing. lhe up stroke and lhe down stroke. You
canplayusmgonlyupsuotcs,oronlydownstrokcs; playcrsusuallyfindthata
combiru1lion ofthc rwo is most flexible, gencr.illy used in al1em:11ing fa5hion. Hold lhe
plecrrum {somctimcs also refcrred 10 as a 'pick') bo:twccn your tlrumb and fordinger as
shown inpicturcl8.Us.ingtheAstring practiseadown stroke.thenanupSlrokc-1ttis
""ill pre~ you for audioenmple2. 111e strokes are notaredoo thc music with a I'". for
thedown stroke.andwirhavfortheupstroke.Thecxercisebclowisdcsignetlrohelp
youdevelopagood.cleanpick1cchnique-tl)'toge1hothyourupanddownstrokC$SO
eventharil'simpossiblctodistinguishbcrweenthcm.

Audio2

J~m

1J • iJ PAI
~
EUil#Ó , '1 ,
<Pbd.ioar._i 1 2 ' 2
2bon<li<kin

Thisaudiouerciscisdcsignetltogetyouplaying assoonaspo;ssible.Tbechoice
bel"'ccnplectrumandfingersisemirclyyours.Forrhisexerciseyouplayonlyonbeat
ooc of uch bar. Make SUK you p!ay a good solid note with plcnty of auack. The rrack is
bcanl twice,onccwithmeplayingandoocew1lhuut,foryou10joinin
Thccxerciseísp!ayedontheopcnAstring(thcsecondlowcsi)with rheemphasison
l:bepluckinghand.lfyouarcusingyourfingersyouwillplaythefirslnotewi1hyourf~t
finger.aodthesecond"·itbyoursccond,inanahematingfashion. Cheekouttheplucking
hand flnger nuznben below the note<
lfyouarcusingaplectrum.orpick.youwil!playthefirstnolewithadownstrolcand
lhcsccoodwi1han11psrrokc.rcpeatingthisdown.11p.altema1ing ac1ionfortheres10fthe
ex=ise. Tiir figures 11bovc tl>e notes rcfcr to lhe pleclrum srrokes. C<>ncenlralc on
beq>ingyourstringplocl:sinthecorrectw<lcr.asp!ayingthcminanahematingfash1on
_.willhclpfaterwhenthing!ógctaliulefaster.
Chapter 2
Reading & Rhythms
Notation

Example l

*li' J

1he stave in cxampte l contains ali lhe information we nero. Worl:ing from lcft to riglu.
wc sre first a bass clef symbol '}. This tdls us we are in tlle bass rcgister. and fixes the
pitchoffon 1heserond linedown,henccit<othernamc,theFclcí (oo1icethatthctwo
dou ofthc elcf are placed eilhef ~ide of the F Jine). This is imponant, bccausc without a
clcf the tines of the stnve mcan nothing. Once the clef is in plocc. and you lnow tha1 lhe
serond line down is F. it follows 1ha111\c ootc ne.~t to it (i.e. in lhe sp:ice below) is E, arwl
theone onthelincbclowthatisD.andsoon.Similarly.thcll()(einthc spaccabo'·eF
will beG.and lhe line abovc tllat is A. NOlcs are narnedafter the fim se~n knersoftru:
alphabc1(A - G) afler which they repeac (hence thc tmn low O. mitldle C. high A etc.).
Nc~t oomes lhe time signa1urc. which tells us how many beats ~ an: in cach bar,
and how long each beal lasts. Musici ~ broken up inlo bars in exactly the sarne way th:u

Languagcsarebrok:cnupinloWOfds.lbctimcsigna1urcsimplytcllsushowthese
divisionsaremao:k,anditiscxprcssedin"·hallookslikcafraction.llieuppernumbcria
lhe ·rractioo' tcllsushow many beats therc are in a bar, whilcthc lower numbcrtclls us
lhedmmionofcachbcat. ln414.forexarnplc,th<"rearefourbcatsinabar.andcachbeal
willbcaquancr-notc,orcnxcbct. ln 3/4therearcthrccbcatsinabar.andagainc:och
bca1.isworthaquaneroote.orcro1che!.
RepeatMarks
Yoom;iyha,·enoticcd1he1hickandthinlincswi1ht"'ºdotsbeside1he4/Jsign.Thisis:a
rcpcatsign-itm;itcheslheoneatthceOOoftheuarnple.lllescsignsal"'ªYSWorl:in
pairs.andtheytellyootorcpea1whatc\'cr musicisplaccdbctwccn1hem.lnttúscascwc
aüoh:wclhewords 'Jtimcs'ovcrlhcrcpcatsign,sothcscfourbarsarcplaycdfour
times(givmJ_a\QU.lofsix1ccobars).
The Metrvnome
Therneuoo()m<'isadevicewhichrnakesaregulardicki11gnoisctoltccpyouintime.Tiie
clicks arç measurcd in bea~~ per minute (b.p.m.), varying from around 4D b.p.m. (bcat<
per minute) to around 220 b.p.m. They are available from most good mu~ic shops. lf you
h:i.ve a liule n~ moncy lO bum you rnay find il more u;.efol in thc long 1erm lO bu) a
drum machine, wluch you can a!so use as a ºdick'. You might also use it for
programming in drum grooves to practi11e wiih, or lS pan of a homc scudio for song
writing." hichwill belpyou tojustify!hccxtraoullay.
The click, along with recorded material. is our best friend fur study. lls consistem
1cmpomak<!$itanidcalaidin!he.U:velopmcntofastroncsenscof111nincandac.'CUr:itc
note p!accmcnl. Ali thc cxemscs in lhi~ book refcr lo thcir tempos in bcats per
minutc(b.p.m.)
Asl""'ntioncd inthcinlroduction,ilísagoodideamkecpadiaryofyourpractice.so
lhat you bave a l>()(e of your tempos and increasc !hem as you improve. A wonl of
".,.,,ing - stick \O slow tempos 10 ~tan wiih. The ~ worl< you do a1 slower tempo!> in
lhe: early stages. lhe bcttcr your 1,,.,,hniqu.. will be. You will also play more ~·cnly. Bas.<
players"hoha~ru~cdlhroughtheirearlytechniqueoftencndupwilhanun•"·cn,or
"lumpy' p!a)ing uyk. MI said before, the hanl work you pm in now will pay olT !ater.
TheStave
1bctraditionalmusicstaq:hasfivelinesandfourspoccs.Ontheselinesandspaces
musicians \ttritenotes1o indicatepi1chand length. Pitch isindicatcdhyanotehead'~
,·ertical JX>Silion - a noce on the 1op line ofthe stave soundl; hig.her tlL:m a llOle on lhe
boltornline.se<:Example2.
Vou wil! quick.ly realise 1ha1, if you follow thc notes up from the bollom line to thc top
(includingthespaces),youhaveonlyninenoces.Thercan:agrt:a1many!JIOff;notes
available on the bass guitar, so how an: they written? The answer i11 with leger lines -
thcse are small extcnsiom of the stave in either dircction ,·ertically. We ,,,,;11 come to these
latcrbut. forthetimebcingtherc'sonlyonclegerline"'·cneedworryaboot.thalisthe
oncforlowE.thelo"·estnoccontheinstn11nent

Exa mp\e 2: TbeStave

Musicforthebassguuaris writtenonthes1.aveoneoctavehigl>cr1hanitsound.~(1h:ifs
twelve semiwnes. or twel•·e frets). Th1s saves us having m reada 10\ of leger tines bclO'o''
the11ave.Thelowestnore.E.canbc foundonthefir.>1legerlim:bclow1/wo s1a\'C
(assuming)ouhaveafoursrringinstrument).Thchighes1nole variesoccording1othe
typeofb3.'ll youu.se.'1Jldlh.enumbcroff,.,t.1ithas.Allthe<>01esandtheirpositionson
thesta•'Careshowninthelingerboarddiagramonp.agc21.
 • •· '.,,11111· ·11111° m11· rn11- =
: ·rnllf ~1111~ ~li~ ~I ~ :
orlllll· •11111° ~111 ° 11111 °
• • • ,,11111· ~1111· ~11~ ~ ~ •
JJllll~ ~111~ 11111· 11~1 o

• ·11111· 11111· 1~11· 11111·

1 i • ~ • 1Jllll~ ~11~ OOli I~ ~ .
i · ~ . ·11111° ~Iliº 11111· Ili~· .
~ ~ . ~1 1 · ~11~ 1~ ll~i.
• 1 • • ~Ili; 11111· 1 ~1° 11111 · .

i 1 1 1 · 1~1 · 11111· 11~~.

·~ ~ ill~ ~1~ 1.; l l l<
: ;: : "' ~< =-
t- e. E- r-...
Tablature
TalJlruure. orTAB nol3lion. ruas in paral!el wi1h the scandard stave. and gi~cs additional
infom13\ionspccific101hcbassguitar.Thinkoficasadr:twingof1hcned:.of)OUrb;lill.
whcrethefourhorizontallinesrcprcscntchestrings.chclo"cs1lincbeingfor1heEsuing.
1tw:h1ghes1bcing thcGs1nng.scecxample3bdow. TI!cnumbers"riucnonthcsclincs
rcpn::sent 1hcfrc1pooitiomon1hefingerboord
NOIK.'1! thal TAB gÍ•-e> us only string and fr1:1 infoml:llion - it 11oem·1 !(li us M)"llúfl& abou1
rhythm. dynanucs (loudness) or pitch as such. S1avc nOUhon gi•·eii usa full mu~u::al
picturc. whereasTAB is only ~naid toplaying thc bass. Ofcoursc. "hcn you run 1he1wo
inta11demyoudogetthecomple1cpic1urc(allmu•icalinforma1ionanda!lfingcnng).bu1.
llS)Ou bet:ome more proficicnl you will find yourselfrdying lcssaOO lcsson thcTAB

ExampleJ: T AB

other Kinds Of Repeat Marks

Thcsecundbarofaudiolincorporaleswhatiskno"nasa "c:moonbar·.Thisische
d1agonallincwi1h1hetwodol.soneilhcr•ide.Whcnevcryouseelh1ssign)·oushould
repcallhepr.:ce.Jingbar.Bars3m1d4showacannonoverlwob.lrs.Thistcllsyoul0
rept:atllle prcccdingi><ohm'l<.
Rhythms
Wc havc seco how lhe su,·e 1ell.< us aboot lhe pitch of a note (how high or low it is). but
how do we lnow how long or ,Won cach nmc should bc"' w~ havc already ~11 ho"' a
ume s1gnaturc worb. Forc.uunplc, wc lmow !hal in a barof 414 there are four quar1er
noies. You.,.,illha~ega1hcredlhatindividualn01cs!U'Cupre.<'<'dasa fractionof1hebar
(riglul1111'"'-'l""'Urrrmr,e!c.).and!ha1aquarrer•wleoccupiesoncquarterofabarof
4/4TI!csc~have01her.moo:1raditiona!riamesaswtll.Aquorrern-01ri>alsocatled
acrotchet. "hilc nnri~/11/rnmt i~ rcferred toas nqua•er. AJif1ttn1h no1r iscall.-d a
scmi<jua....,r. a thin.•~srn>nd n-01r a demi·scmiqua•er. and soon. lt is only "hcn you mÍÃ
andm:uch thoc nocoofdiffemll lengW lha: )W stanlOSd in~mgrtl)thrnic plwbe<.
Audio J :Quarter Notes

Counting Quarter Notes

ln a barof4/4 there fourquar1tr1wtt beats. ln Audio3 ..-eplay aquartanote oo c:ichof
thcsebe:ns. Thisis easy1ocoun1 -kcepuparegularcountof'·1 -2- 3 - 4""asyouplay
tllescen•nlyspaccdbe:it<.
Playina: Quarte r Notes
Audio)isanexcrcisctnimroduccus 1oquartern01cs.For1hiscxcrciscwc 1)layaregular
groovc offou1beatsin abar.Makesureyouuscregular.ahcmatepicking.Bars l-4usc
thcsamcn01c.C.playcdatfretthreeonthcAstring.Loo~atthcfingerboarddiagramto
cllcckthis. lnbar5thcootechangcstoF.playedatthefirstftttonthcE string.Bar6
mo,·esto B•. which is played at the firs1 fret on theAstring. Bar.; 7-12 are all onC,
played asbcfore. Thcrcstoflhcpicceismadcupofn:pctitioasofthcsct\OlCS.
First & Second Time Bars
ln Audio 4 wc mccl a t~pc of rcpeal we have alrcady seen in Audio 2. but lhis time we
havcaddedwha1ar.:knownasfirstandsccond timc bars. ~~ OncJiefin;t
timelhrough "-Cplay lhe music in lhe bar wilh lhe lst Time bracketAI 1heendofthis bar
lhe repcat dol$ iell us 10 go bac\:: to bar l . On the second time lhrough wc omit lhe bar
wilh lhe lst 1ime bnlcket - instcOO we jump straight to thc ·second time bar'. You wiU
D01ice lhat•11hcendoflhis barlhcrcareoorcpeatdou,soweca!T)'Onwitblhercs10f
the music.

Audiu4: EighthNutes

J .~

~
' ''fl: FITI FITI
it.w.drl •

H 3- 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 ' · 1 ' · 1 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3?J

12. .-.........:........-:.---
~I lJJJ J 1 Fil)Fil) ·EtH

l~''''''''*''''''''
ra·
i ff!J? rm rm fIDJ 1 1

l~=t·q,_,_,_,_,_,_,_,4,_,_,_,_,_,_,_:~
Counting Eighth Notes
!naOOroí414thereareeighttigh1hno1u.11.efint,third. fifthandse~·e111hcighthn01es
allfa!lon1hebcat;the01hereigh1/rnot~5areallevenly$pacedbctweenthcl:elts.lllC
acceptcd .. ayofc:ounting thesc i$ .. l & 2 & 3 & 4 &H. Tu.e 'ands' areoommonlyullod
Off·bc31S.

Playing Elghth Notes

AOOio4 is a slowcxcrcise whid1 inll'Oduccs us totighth l'IOIU. Thc tempo is sct at 98 b.p.m.
!l is important to make sure thal lhe ághth notu are tvenly spoced and are of tqUal
Lcngth.1bishclpstokeepthelines11100lh. givingaconsistenttlrivingpulse.For•his
exerciscwedon'thavelO "'' On)'aboutchangingnotes.aslhewholcexcrciseispla)·ed on
aC.ontheAstringaithethirdfrct.ALlwellli,·etoc:loiscount.
Aud io 5 is a faster tigl11h noM excrcise, with sarne movcmcm for us !O think aboul lbc
tempo here is 112 b.p.m. You wi\I no1icc that the lin~ moves OOwn in scmitones (or single
freis). and the TAB will explain the fingcrings. but wa1ch out for the largcr jumps around
bars8-9, andlw'5l6 - l7. Wchllvcn't covcred <hatp11(;)orflat<(~)ye!.butdoo't
11·orry - we'll get 101hcm $OOll enough. fornow,just u~ theTAB as aguidcforyour
fing~ring. k«ping up lhe regularc1gh1h m#~ pulsc.Watch lhe cnd of the pieo:e - it stop~
abrupdyaf!cronly1hrectiah1h1101csinbar23.

AudioS: EighthNoles
J ~111

ti==:lt"3-3-3 3 3-3-3 3±2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 ± 1 1 1 1 1-1 1 ,q

r~mm~rm~
~ : : o 00 . , _ , : : . _.: . : : " "

r~.=J4bJ+±i
l__t_, 1 ' 1 1 1 1 1 '/;
Audio6isancxcrcisc!ogetu<SUtrtedplayingsix1een1hno1u.AgoodwaylOllecp
yoursclf"lockedin"withlhetcmpoisloacccntthcfirslsixlun1hno11: incachgroupof
four.thafsthcfirstsixrun1hno1eofcach bcat. lfyoo li!i!Cnlothcb.i·halcymbal,11>cfirs1
six1ccnthootcofeachbea1i!ia!soaccenledtohclpushcar"·hcrcthcbca1is.

Audio 6:Sixt~nlhNotcs

=
J .~

Counüng Sixteenth Notes

Tlicacccp1edwaytocoon1!iix1ttnthnotcs(semiquavcrs)istodividcthcbarimofOUJ
groupsoffour.So.wccoun1··1-c-an-a,2-c-an-a.3-c-an-a.4·c·un-a.. forcachfullbarof
four beats. lfsdifficult 1okeepthisup withool lying your tonguearound yoortonsil~. hui
it is a uscfu! mctllod of brcaking down the bar into its smallcst pans. This is rcfcm:d to
as'sub·dividing·.
Andio7:SixrttnthNotes
J.u

;::,:==:
~1ª16:~~~~~~~~'~'~'~'~~~,~~~
l~ ~,~ ~ '~'~ ~ ~ ~
:)-33333-3-3:)-3-3-3-3-3-3-

rr tffl tffl mi * 1 tffl tfflSimll

l~3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3g§3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3 J
Audio 7 is ano1herexample of regular sU1un1h nous. though this onc mo,·es around 1 bil:
more. lhe Í011rbars in ll'le middlc are repea~cd. and this is "'hcre lhea<.1.ion 1akcspl3CC'.
Wau:hou1foranothersuddcncndingjus1bcfore bc3lfourinthcl:astbar.lfyoucbú
c:ountcarefully}ou·llpkiughonbcyondthe linalno&c.lbismigblbcOK"beayou-
pbyiag •lllllKCD. bulsec howyou fecl "hm)'Oll . . ._ aA:'
Audioll
J. n

Quarter, Eighth & Si:deenth Notes: A Comparison

Audio 8 is an cxamplc lO show us the relalionship betwccn lhe lhrec ootc l~nglh~ wc
havccovered.playcdatthcsam.tcmpo.Itiswonhrcmomberingthatforeachqun.rtu
1Wle {oocbea1)wehlt•-c!woeigh/hr10/es(qunvers)orfoursú:1u111htu)/es{.'ie01iquavers)
Chapter3
Combinations Of Rhythms & Rests
Rests
Nobodyplayscons1antlythrooghou1apiccc;thcrearetimeswhcnwearerequiredto bc
silcnt. ThcsesilcnC'eSareshownby 'res1s·. Rcs1sneed toha,·ca knglh. jus1asno1esdo.
10 u::ll us for how long to bc quict Wc can havc a bar'! rest. or multlpJc bars' resc. as
shovrn in Ex.4. For more than ooe b.lr'1 rest wc li.ave a numbcr OHT lhe 'H' bar. This
numbcr tells us how man)· bars to count before playing again. A single bar"s =t may
havc an 'H' bar with a numl>er l ovcr 1t, or ;1 may jus\ ha,·c a scmibre•·c rcSI. as in fu:..4.
For1,,.vbcats'w;1wchavcahal/1101c(núnim)rcst(fu:..S):foronebeafsrcs1wcha''Ca
qua1TernQ/eres1(Ex.6);forhalfabea1wcllavcancigh1/rno/eresl(Ex.7).andforaquarta
nfabcatwcha\'casi.r.1umhno1crcs1(Ex.8).

Eu.mp!.4 ~'.umpltS
l'ourbeat(Semibr-r••c)~5\ Ha lfNotc(Minim)....,t
~

t:~awple6 faampl~7
Quartu Note (Crut~het) nsi. Ei~htbNotc(Qua•·rr) rests

Jg
Ku.mple8
Si~tHnthSotc(Semlquirnrr)rests
Quartet- Notes & Quarter Note Rests
!o most music it is vcry ran: to play tht .,.me !hing ai! the way thmugh. Audio 9 taclJes
1hcsubjectnfmixingupq•wr/trno1uandquo.rrerno1e rest<.allonthes.amenote.Wc
just havctocountandkeepup. rvc includedudicklhr()Ughomthecxampletohclpyou
tQ bcar whcn: bcat onc occurs ln cach bar. as il might not bc immediately obvioos 10 )'OU.
8e:11oooisdefinedby a lll:avyclick.Docountforyoursclfthough.asthisacrçiseis
allaboutdcvcloping youreountingandreading>kills.Forthe firsttimethrough. don'1
play. Just get uscd to counting ..1 - 2 - 3 - 4"' a!ong with thc cxamplc. Whcn yw are
confidemwiththlspic\:upyourbass

Audio9
J.,~

tsr::'.~=-'.=~=
[b: :· '::'._'. '.:_:
rr·J ' IJ

l~ ,_,_,J,_ ,_,J , ,_,d,_LJ

 This is wi exercise designed to help you with nocc pl:icemem, reslS and noce ruding-
all on lhe sarne noce. lbe note;, a low F (thac"s thc first frei on lhe E Mring). Note
durationsareirnp<:11tanthcre.Younccdtocounl .. l-2-3 - 4.. ineachbartohclpyouto
playonlheWl1l'Clbea1.lllereisnorilT.orrepealcdpaUemhere.soyouwillhave10
rnncentratc - gucssing will gel you nowhere. Counting thc rcsts is cvery bit as importam
ascountingthenotcsyou;>replaying.Malc""rethatifanotclasis.forenmplc.only
oncbo:at.youdon"tallowiltoringonthroughthebar.
Eighth Notes And Eighth Note Rests
Aiw:ho 10 will help you wilh âg/11/r note5 (quavcrs) and riglr1/r nO/t' re>ls. Again 1hi.1 is a
singlc note citcn:ise - this lime thc oote i< a low G (frei 3 on lhe E Slring). You will nccd
iocoun1onandinbe1wcen c:w:hbc~tthroughouc1hispiece. Todothispraell<ecoun1ing
'"l & 2 & 3 &4 & .. cvcn!yata varicty oficmpoi;. Again chcrc are noriffs in this piccc ~
youwillha•c tocount•·cl)lcarcfully

Audio 10

rt:__·,::_·H-=
I~~

Í@=fe%n R " ' "T' pttj

lJ =========s=====t==~
Sixteenth Notes And Sixteenth Note Rests
Thisisanexen:iS<"tohelplhcplaccmentandnotercadingofsixtccnlhnoces.Tokecp
th.ings rc!ativcly simpk we stick to onc note. this 1ime lhe low A (as in Audio 2) on thc
open Astring.oryou«>11ld play it on írct ~ ofthe Estring.Again we ha'·c to ·sub-divide'
th.cbcat.andtodolhisWf!count ..1-e·an-a.2-e-an-a,3-e-an-a,4-e-an·a"forawholebar.
This migh.t sccm odd at first, and you "·ouldn"t want your friends to catch you doing ii.
bu1it'5reallythconlyway10bcce,,ainofplacingunysixteenthnoce. "hcre•·eritmay
oonw:in1hc.bar.
This exen:ise is thc hardest 10 articulatc act:urntcly. so l've gi•·cn you two specds. Try it
at lhe slower spttd m bcgin with. lhc.n increasc Lhe tempo to lhc fasler spccd whc:n you
fccl comfortablc. You may find th.atyoudon't h.aYe lhe strengthor stamina toplay it
accuratcly initscntircty.butd<.>n"tlet !hatdiscouragcyou.l'rnctiseth.is1,1ntilitbecomcs
secondnaturc-this isagoodwayofacquiringthestaminayouwill""edforthoscall
night gigsyou"l!dolateron!

A1,1dioll

r~·
l*=
,..~-·"'-o-"'-o-~o-~·-~-~·~-0-0-0 1 o-o-o-o 0-0-0 - J
frFO· 5TJ Fffi J7IJ 1 • Fffi Pffi2:IJ%d
~o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o+oho-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o·o

i' 0-0 0 -0-0-0-0 - 0 o-o- o-o

r~fffi 1 5J•Q lí ~
li:-~o-o-o-o-o-o-o-oho-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 00-0-0-0]

Dotted Notes
A dol af"'r a noie (or resi) mcans we :idd h.alf of1u •·alue to rbc: cx~ing note. mahnj il
me IDd 1balflimes i1soriginal nlue. Foreumple.•t-nnnof.tl ~)bcwmc:soocand
11111fbcm(,..);aieiglt1lino1ebecorneilbrttquarttnolabns..Forre!OUtbe-
~appbes..lbc:doc~Ul(rlJdK:cd•-'--...:.C11~:l~
Typical Rock Bass Grooves: Eighth Note Feel
Therearetwobaslcrhythmsinthi•cxercise-thedotledn01cfcdofbarone,and1he
off-bc31 figure ofbars four and twdvc. Once you have mastcrcd lhcsc 1wo rllylhms yoo
canplay1h1sexerci~.
To ooum lhe rhy1hm or bar ooe we ni:o:d 10 >Ub·di,·ide imo cigtuh notes (as lhe cighth
note is 1he sm.allest rllythmic unit in the bar). Pnlclise oouncing ··1 (2) & 3 (4) &'º 10 gc1
1hefcelofthisgroo,·e.1lie'2'and'4'arcint1racke1sasyouareholding1hedoued
quarternotc1hroughlhc:m.Youslillnc.!d10oountthcm in>oorhe\1d1hough.
To oounl lhe rllythm of bars four and 1wdn lhe sul>-division is sull eighth notes, but
lhep.:inem i>diffcrem. Practisc oounting "1 & (2) & 3 & (4) &". Thiscombination mtles
foranimcrcslingrhythmu5ingbasicqum1erandeighthnotts.Goodbass li11csdon'1ha'·e
!O bc rtiythmically complcx - remcmbcr lhe old saying. 'kss is more·. more O!" lcss!

A udiol2

r• k_.i21'.J . º
l~o
Typieal Funk Bass Grooves: Sixteenth Note Feel
Agai11,thercart:twobasicrhy1l11nsin1hisexcrcise.Botharctkri•·edfrom1hesame
rhy111In, bm lhe sewnd one has an extra quaner note on beat Four. Listen to the dnim
lrll(:kalldyouwillhcar1ha1eachbeatissub..JividcdintOJÜlun1/rnoses,n01eiglr1llJ
rracusccoun1ing .. 1(2.....,-an-)a3(4)"forthefirs1bar.and"l(2-e-:m-)a3 4"forthe
secondbarWatchoutfor1helns100r.uthcrclll'Ceigh1hnotcsonbea1sthreeandfour.
Thecoonthcrcis ..1(2-e-an-)a3&4&".

Audio lJ

l l' 1 · &FlSW$%®
• o o o

íFTI ., i D4Jl
ll- 0 0 0 -=:6= 2 2

*
2

r.2· - ;;g+igW 1.
l~3 330:+2
Chapter4
Keys & Scales
Sharps & Flats
As wcll (IS tbe nOlcsA-G therenre a numbcr of 'in-belween' notes. which are refcn'edlO
by tbeir note name (A - G) followcd by 'sharp' or ·na!'. ln music nOlahOn a 5harp is
represenled by thesymbol !•l. while lhe ílal is shuwn by a!~]. Thcsc notes are placedoa
thcscmi-tonesbctwccnthewholcnOles. So.forcxamplc,ifyouplayanfoolhesecond
fretofyourEstring,yoowillfindFsharponthencxtfrc1up(1heso:cond).Gison1hc
thirdfret.
lfyouplaythcGonlhethinifret,youcanplaytheGílatbyslippingdownuncfrctto
lhesccQndfrcL Youdon'thavclobcEinsteintoworkout!hatif F islv•oscmilonesa••,a)"
from G. thcn G flat is the wnc nOlc as F sharp.
[fwe S(an WÍth C and go up lhe se.ale WC find lhat lbere llJC [WO SCITiiLOnes bet...TCD Ç
and D, and two between D and E, and so on. Bu1, before you stan thinking tliat thi> i.1 a
•Írnple and logical arTllllgcmcm, lhere are two very importam facts to know.1ltcrc are no
"in-betwccn' notes betwccn E - For B - C. lf you rcmember this simpk fo.ct >'OU \lilL sa•<e
youri<elfalotof oonfusionlJteron.SoifyouplayCílatyougeiB.notRsharp.lfyou
play EsharpyougetF. ootfílatThesean:thconlypair<of ootcswhcre1hishappe11llSO
itisnotdifficul1 1oremember.
Thereasonfor1hisarrangcmcn1istoconformv.i1hthes1andanlconfigura1iooofnotcs
in lhe major scale as uscd rn mos! Westcm music. The notes in a major scale are not
eYcnlysp;w;:etl:thcre~re•mallcrgapsbetwcen notes3- 4 wid7 - 8oflhescalc. You onl)
have 1olooka1apianokeyboard1oscehowth,.work>. Therean:blacl:llOlcSbetween
cachpair ofwhitcnoiesexC<"p!!wo.E -F andB-C

e D E F G A B e D E
 So,wbenyouplayamajorscalestartingonC(1batis,alltb.,wbi1cno1esuptotbc
ncx tC)tbepianok.,yboardau1omaticallygivesyootheunev.,n\ys~scal.,v•hichyou

""illimmedlatelyrecogniseasthemajorscale.
Key Sipatures
You will of~n bear a musician asl: ,..Wbat key do we play tbis inT Hc's no1 tall:ing aboU1
unlocl:ing doors- be wantS to know how many shatps or flats are to be ur.lr::cn as rcad.
Confused? Well, you ncedn'1 be. Spend some ti me absorbing lhe rie;ot pa~ or so anel you
willundersiaodtbe1beory bchindkeysand 1beir signatures.
Scal~

Mostrocl:.jazzandblucsisorganisedintoatonalsystemof keys. These l:eysare

simply ways of moving lhe pat~m of lhe major or minor scale to diffcren1 le•·ds. So
tl>e scalc of F major has thc sarne dt.apc as the scak of C major, i1'sjust that i1 st:uts on
a diffcrent note. lf yoo lool: ai the major scak you will sec that i1 is made up of two
distinctgroups. Let"slook atCmajor-you'llseethatthetwogroopsfollowthesame
p.auemof1oncsaodsemi1ones

r---- ONEOCTAVE - - - - - - ,

e D E F G A B e
L__J L__J L___J L___Jl__J L__J L__J
tone tone semitone f
tone tone semitorie
L___ ICU"aehord ____1 torie L___ tctrachord ____1
separating
tctracbords

Thisune•·cosbapeiswha1givcslbesi;alcitSpanicularcharac:ter.lbesll:lptofea.ch
ilur!IOXegroupisTONE. TONE.SE...iITONE.soC·FislbesameshapcasG- C.
Thesc four note &:rotJP5 an: called Tetrachords.. To mal<e upa major scak two ICUKhonh
-~by·--
Audio l4:MajorScaleli
C~fajor

fil· I J 1 F '
•r•
~FJ-5
• FI qW
·~·iict.111

2-Jfs

Herc are cwo more major Kales. Nocice l>ow thc placemcm of cones and scmit°""s is
conslanl-only1he~"rtingpoim,·aries

AMap

Í™'H+f'· rrn j 'r r r iJ::::f+I

1

lêb=;. .+, ' ''*'

'I '
Playing The Scale Of C Major
Now th.at wc undcrstand thc structurc of the si:ale wc cansei about playing C major.
Thcdiagrambclow(El.9)&h.ows!hcfingeringfor tke5ealc.Thisoorresponds with thc
numbcringinthch.anddiagram(Ex.10).Picture 19belowshoW$yourllandpo.ition
wtúlstplayingthcscalc.lfyouadherctothc"onefingcrpcrfrct"rulc}ouwillfindlha1
you nccd vcry little hand mo•·cmen11oplay it Listcn toAudio 14 to h.carho\o.• thcscalcof
Cmnjorshouldsound.

Ex1unpl"\I

__ ...__
---
,_
-............____....__
....... ,
Scales ln Sharp (~) & Flat (~) Keys
lbc..:aresevenkeyswhi<:hoomainsharpsandsevenkcyswhicheoni.ainflais. This
II>C'ans lhat if we include C major ·••e ha•·e a tOlal of fifieen .seales whi<.:h adhe..: to the
format desi.:ri~abo,·eCT'·T·S-(T}-T·T·S). Try 10 wri11: the .scales in lhe sia•·csofEx.11
below.lllekeysignaturc:$arealreadywrinenintllcmanuscript.alongwi1habassçkf
N01ehow1heinclusionofsharpsandfla1sahcrstheshapcofthein•erval~wi1hinthe
scalewthattheyoonfonntothcmajorKalefonna1.Useasof1pcnc1lso1hatyoucan
erue any misW:es you may make.
Findlng Sharp Keys
Our starting point is C major, which has no sharps or flats. If wc go up fi'"'
steps ofthe
scale we arrive at G (lhe Dominam). This is lhe ne~t kcy up from C. ao>d it has onc sharp.
You may have wor:ked ou! that, to makc the sca\e conform to lhe ma1or scalc shapc u.-c
nttdto&harpcnthese•"'nlhdegreeF.sotha1i1becomesanFsharp.Spcndsomctime
gening to know your major scalcs - once you know thc shape you can wor:k Ollt lhe
pa1tcmoftonesru>dsemitoncsfn:>manygivens1aningp0int.
finding flat Keys
Again, using the s1aning point of C major. go down thc scale fivc steps to the note F.
lfyoubu1ldupthemajorKalcpaucmstaningfromthisnotcyouwilldisco•cr1hatthc
founh dcgm: ofthe sc~lc nceds to be flauc~ 10 makc ÍI confonn to the major scalc
shapc. Soyouncedtollddoneflilt(B~)tothckcysignatu~therebychangmgthekeytoF.

E:io:amplel l

FMajorscalc

Majorscale
 Majorscale Major scalc

M•jor1calc Majursc.le

[b:'
Major scale

Majorscale

Major!ICalo

19' •••
Keys: An OvefView
Ha~c you noticed a p:mem emerging? Keys are rdated to their neigbboors by thc
n:lationsh1pofafifth.So1he11Carestkey10Cisn<KCsharp,orB.lt istheleywhichhai;
ihc fewest changed n0tes (shafPS or fiais) from til.e uaning poin1. Len mtc O major as
an examplc. se.: Ex.12 below. D majorh~ lw(I shaqx. The nean:si 11()/CJ to Dan: C sll.1Jll
Cor D f\:11) immcdiately below. Md D sharp (or E flat) immediately aboYe. Ho"'~"·er. lhe
De:Ln:$t «ys are 1hc ones fü·e ~leps away on ci1her sidc. A major (alxwe) and G major
Oxlow).Lookatlhe1r kcy sign.aturesandyou'Usec!histobeuue.0111.ajorh:isrw(lsh:lrps,
G major has one sharp (i.e. onc less) and A major has three sharps.
Exampk: 12; K ey Signatures

D Major GMajor A Major

Relative Minors
&eh imjor key sll;m:s ÍIS key signatun: (the numbcr of ~hrups or flat$ it lias) wilh its
ft'bl"e minor ke>. The n:lalive minor is always a mmor 1hird (lhrce semi tones. or fn:is)
below thc major" key. so for O major thc rclativc minar is E minar (E being threc
.emi1onesbelow O ).Thisis 1llus1ra1cJ in fa. l3
Ali n:lath·e minors i;:an bc found in lhi' way. Re111'.'mber. to finda note a minor lhird
io'<-"<:1 than yOl,lr swting nole tnO\"C thrcc freis down tllc fingcrboord.
Aftcrfa. l3 then: areafewblanksta''esforyoutofillinthcthrees.:.mitoncs1cpsdown
from caçh major key. This is how )'Ou fiOO lhe rcla1ive minor
i :::-~~: .~
Exampll'IJ
Major zG ReL M1nor•E Mojor "' F Rei. Minar:

M~jor= O Mojor• D~

MajQr•A~

; ~ li 1
 Major = G~

Major=CÓ

Where To Now?
Congraiulati<>ns on gcning to lhe end of Book One of The Complete 8.us Guitar Player.
Bynowyouwillhaveuperiencedthe pleasureofplayinggreat b~line$;your
tc<:hniqueis ímproving.andyourlrnowlcdgcofmusicisexpanding. Youshouldhave
realisai now 1hat lhe mo<e you leam. the rnott you want to leam
Thcre is a whole world of greill music 10 be enjoyed. and wc have only just begun 10
scratch lhe $Urface. ln BookTwo we move on 10 more advll.Dcal bass playing tc<:lmiques.