Nov 29, 2017 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. A walking bass line generally consists of notes of equal duration and intensity typically 14 notes that create a feeling of forward motion. Basic 12bar blues this is the most common 12bar blues form aka iivv progression. Walking bass lines piano tutorial 5 minute masterclass. The best way to introduce walking bass lines into your playing is to start with one short common chord progression. The function of the bass is to provide the foundation. At the bass solo where there is no other instrument, youll hear the melody as well as the harmony. Print and download in pdf or midi autumn leaves solo.
This is an important concept to remember, the walking bass line is. In this theory tip tuesday video i show how to play a simple walking bass left hand pattern on the piano using a 12 bar blues progression. The book will show the musician how to connect familiar chord shapes with the appropriate bass notes. How to write a walking bass line learn jazz standards. If you try to play notes that dont belong might sound. A walking bass line is the most common approach to jazz bass playing. 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. Under each phrase i wrote the logic behind it and how i came up with it. A bassline also known as a bass line or bass part is the term used in many styles of music, such as jazz, blues, funk, dub and electronic, traditional music, or classical music for the lowpitched instrumental part or line played in jazz and some forms of popular music by a rhythm section instrument such as the electric bass, double bass, cello, tuba or keyboard piano, hammond organ. In this lesson well take a look at scale style and intervalic bass lines, and even mix them up a bit. You will learn some easy scales and how to play a walking bass line for whatever song you are playing. Chord tones root, 3rd, 5th, 7th are the most powerful choice you can make when creating your walking lines.
In this seventh lesson of a blues piano crash course, learn how to play the simple but challenging walking bass. 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. In jazz, the quarternote pulse generated by the bassist is mirrored by the drummers ride cymbal. Walking bass line theory basicspart 1by chris fitzgerald. Includes great two handed chord voicings, left hand voicings for soloing, walking bass that can be played using the left. Learn how to play a walking bass pattern and and pretty funky right hand riff on the piano or keyboard. Apr 26, 2017 wallace stelzer is a professional jazz bass player and content creator from houston, texas. How to play a blues walking bass line on the piano piano. And walking basslines are a continuous sequence of quarter notes, generally played on the beat 4 notes per bar in 44 time. With this tutorial you will learn tips to improve your walking bass technique.
A walking bass line simply walks through the appropriate scale of each chord, one note per beat, hitting every beat of each measure. How to play walking bass lines at the piano cocktail piano. Incorporating the 3rd of the chord will also give your bass line a stronger harmonic foundation. As an active member of the new york city jazz scene, wallace has participated in jazz festivals, spoken and performed live on radio, and played at many prestigious jazz clubs and concert halls around the.
Jazz bass line construction thelonious monk institute of jazz. How to play walking bass lines at the piano cocktail. The function of a bass player in the jazz combo is to work with the piano player and drummer to provide both a harmonic and rhythmic stability for the tune. It is possible to add rhythmic variations, but in general, a walking bassline drives the. The walking bass technique with the piano left hand has great effect. The following is an example of a common bass line construction when the harmonic rhythm is moving at the rate of two chords per bar target notes are designated with t, and approach notes are designated with a.
For ascending lines im using the scale degrees 1 2 3 5. Walking bass for jazz and blues is a complete method to help beginners master each element of blues and jazz walking bass. Walking bass lines are a fascinating part of jazz, as they support and mark the harmony underneath the chords and. The term walking is used lescribe the moving feeling that quarter notes create in the bass part. Walking on the moon sheet music the police d sheetmusic. 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. 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 for jazz guitar digital sheet music. Mar 25, 2019 piano players and guitarists will generally create chords by playing all the chord tones together. This technique resumes in a direct way the style of a bass instrument. These walking bass patterns will equip you with the necessary skills to walk bass when playing jazz, blues, rock, gospel, etc.
Dave frank school of jazz, new york city music videos. Adhere to this basic rule and you can even tackle the approach notes in a similar fashion, creating the effect of walking to the new chord in onefret steps. In reality, if you ask people, nobody will be able to sum them all up and most people who do walking bass well either only use a handful of specific trick, or they are so deep in it that they cant even describe what they are doing. Walking bass on the piano can be one of the coolest things ever. Piano players and guitarists will generally create chords by playing all the chord tones together. Nov 21, 2016 walking bass for jazz and blues is a complete method to help beginners master each element of blues and jazz walking bass.
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. Jazz bass line construction thelonious monk institute of jazz online jazz handbook welcome to the bass chapter of the thelonious monk institute of jazzs online jazz handbook. For this walking bass line im going to use only two scale patterns as the foundation for the whole thing. Walking bass line piano tutorial walking bass jazz piano. So far we have patterns for each chord change in the 12bar blues except for one, moving from v to iv i. When piano players copy this idea of walking bass lines, they generally do so by using their left hand to play. When creating walking bass lines, its important to outline the root and 5th of the chord. Popularized by piano greats lennie tristano and dave mckenna, among others, the walking lh bass line can effectively subtitute for a rhythm section, if desired, and provides a rhythmic and melodic foundation for rh improvisations.
In this seventh lesson of a blues piano crash course, learn how to play the simple but challenging walking. How to create bass lines 2 3 play in four quarters. You can watch the video below as i demonstrate and show you various left hand patterns and right hand improvisational progressions you can implement in using. In lesson 2, we continued to build patterns for the common chord progressions we see in blues.
How to play a simple walking bass left hand pattern on the. Walking bass lesson 3 jazz blues fundamental changes. When you are a beginner on walking bass, you should mainly stick to the chordmelody notes. As bass players we can create strong sounding walking bass lines by playing them one by one. How to play basic walking bass lines bass wonderhowto. Chords and walking bass part 1 in this lesson ill demonstrate how i approach playing walking bass lines and chords at the same time. Once you have some basic rules down, youll be able to make bass lines over any chord progression. Walking bass lines are a very specific and classic jazz piano sound and generally considered an advanced concept. Playing a walking jazz guitar bass line is a captivating method of comping for other musicians, and yourself. 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. A piano arrangement for the song giant steps by john coltrane. A walking bass is a style of bass accompaniment or line, common in baroque music 16001750 and 20th century jazz, blues and rockabilly, which creates a feeling of regular quarter note movement, akin to the regular alternation of feet while walking. Walking bass lesson 3 fundamental changes music book publishing. Instruction includes names of the chords and an overhead view so you can learn by watching.
Listen to his cd called giant strides and youll see what i mean. Walking bass with the piano left hand classic jazz piano. Playing with a walking bass line is a style of piano playing that is used most often in solo jazz performance. The possible noterange of a walking bass can reach from subcontra a to middle c. As an active member of the new york city jazz scene, wallace has participated in jazz festivals, spoken and performed live on radio, and played at many prestigious jazz clubs and concert halls around the country. You can watch the video below as i demonstrate and show you various left hand patterns and right hand improvisational progressions you can implement in using the blocked and broken major sixth chords. If you are looking to begin playing the bass then this how to video is the place to start. In this 5 minute masterclass, were going create a bass line over a blues in f. Walking on the moon sheet music pdf the police free download walking on the moon sheet music pdf the police. Intermediate pianists will have no trouble learning how to play a descending walking bass line. When starting out with walking bass lines, i would recommend that you always target the root when changing chords. This blues lesson is great for intermediate to advanced pianists. Walking bass lines are a style of playing in which the bass player plays quarter notes which clearly outline the chords and chord tones, seamlessly outlining one chord and resolving to the next.
Walking bass lines for guitar jazz guitar workshop series. Wallace stelzer is a professional jazz bass player and content creator from houston, texas. With this course, youll not only learn 48 different walkingbass patterns over four popular chord progressions, but youll also develop robust lefthand techniques. The goal of a walking bassline is to outline the chord progression but with an interesting. Walking basslines pdf f blues in this 5 minute masterclass, were going create a bass line over a blues in f. Jazz bass line construction thelonious monk institute of.
T 1 2 a t 3 by chris fitzgerald a 4 t 1 a 2 t 3 a 4 walking bass line theory basics. Therefore being in control of them and becoming fluent is crucial. And walking basslines are a continuous sequence of quarter notes, generally played on the beat 4 notes per bar in 44 time walking basslines. Walking bass sound of emotions learn piano online with. Oct 26, 2018 in this 5 minute masterclass, were going create a bass line over a blues in f. A bassline is a melody line played in the bass by a lowpitched instrument such as the piano, double bass, electric bass, tuba, etc. This is a short demonstration lesson detailing the basic principles of walking bass lines. 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. Walking bass lines for jazz guitar by stephan badreau is a step by step guide to harmonizing bass lines on the guitar. 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. This arrangement is good for when you are in a trio setting with a bass player, but it can also be played alone without a rhythm section.
Bass lessons beginners guide to walking bass lines bass tab standard string tuning g,d,a,e recommended 1. The walkingbass practice regimen piano lesson with warren. Take two different chords and you want to move as stepwise as possible between the roots of the two chords. Beginners guide to walking bass lines bass tabs bass. Walking bass lines are a fascinating part of jazz, as they support and mark the harmony underneath the chords and melody. The walking bass line was developed by upright bassists like ray brown, milt hinton, paul chambers, and ron carter, but now its also commonly played on the bass guitar.
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. Sep 26, 2010 the walking bass technique with the piano left hand has great effect. Intermediate pianists will have no trouble learning how to play a descending walking bass line on piano by watching this helpful howto video. Here is a bass line constructed using ascending chord tones in the first 3 bars and descending in the 4th. The most important improv exercise for jazz piano duration. The problem is, there are lots of rules and then a billion more exceptions about how to get from one place to the other. It is designed to develop strong harmonic skills, rhythm, phrasing and note choice. Walking bass noterange usually the bass lies in the lower sound range of the music.
Therefore, the bass is played by the left hand on the lower part of the keyboard of the piano. 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. Print and download in pdf or midi giant steps trio piano arrangement. In that song youll hear how the walking bass line expresses the harmony and fills in the melody. Watch this piano tutorial video to learn how to play a walk down bass line on piano. It is possible to add rhythmic variations, but in general, a walking bassline drives the song forward step by step. There are a couple of exceptions as youll see but for the most part were looking at one line for ascending and one line for descending. 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. Just like walking with your feet, tyjwalking bass line is one step after the other that takes you somewhere.
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