Slap Pop Exercise

Hi,

This is a nice and not too difficult slap pop exercise.

You can loop it over and over til you get a nice slap tone and also slowly increase the tempo.

Just note that the G and A are triplets.

Slap G on the 3rd fret twice and pop the octave G on the 5th fret.

You can break it into 3 parts

1. TTPT
2. TTP - triplets (123)
3. TTP - triplets (123)










Ok have fun

Rub Alcohol

Someone once asked me if it will improve his bass playing speed by rubbing alcohol on his hands.

My answer to him was practice, not rubbing alcohol or drinking.

Anyway why some people rub alcohol on their hands is to prevent the strings from rusting. By doing so, it will keep your hands dry.

You may also use it as a string cleaner.

I have dry hands so not a problem for me.

Sweaty palms, this is your helping star :)

Adjusting Intonation

To adjust your bass's intonation is as important as adjusting the neck action, but slightly easier.

The tools required are screwdriver and a tuner.

When tuning the screw at the bridge, it will move the saddle either forward or backward.

1. Now hold a note at the 12th fret and check it with your tuner.

2. If the note is too sharp that mean the string is too short. Move the saddle away from the neck.

3. Tune again to check if it is accurate.

If you are not confident to do it yourself, do send in and get the pros to do it. Also get them to adjust your action as well.

Cheers

Arpeggios

What are arpeggios?
Arpeggios are chords pluck note by note instead of pressing all at the same time.

When guitarist mention 'play arpeggios', they usually pluck string by string on the chord that they are pressing.
For us bass players, we do the same as well.

As we already know, a chord is formed by pressing root 3rd and 5th together.

So just press note by note of the chord now. e.g G arpeggio - G B D (3rd fret on E string, 2nd fret on A string and 5th fret on A string).


This is useful when your band is playing one bar of G, instead of just holding the G note, you can play the G arpeggio - G B D G.

Now trying going further up the fretboard.

Starting with:
G B D (3rd fret on E string, 2nd fret on A string and 5th fret on A string),
followed by:
G B D G ( 5th fret on the D string, 9th fret on the D string, 7th fret on the G string and 12th fret on the G string).

By doing this exercise, you won't be restricted to just play within the first few frets(obtain different tone) and it also help you to be more familiar with the fretboard.

Try reversing back from the high G ( 12th on the G string) back to the low G ( 3rd fret on the E string).

Have fun!

Scales in C

Hello,

Today, I will list down 7 scales in key of C which is often used.
I have mentioned some of the scales before in my previous post.
If you are interested to scroll through, just subscribe to my RSS and place it on your browser's toolbar. :)

Ok, although it is more easy for you to practice the fingering if I post the tabs,
but I think it is good that you can find out the position of the notes this time.
You can either use the C on the 3rd fret of the A string or go further up the fretboard.

C Major - C D E F G A B C
C Mixolydian - C D E F G A Bb C
C Dorian - C D Eb F G A Bb C
C Natural Minor - C D Eb F G Ab Bb C
C Major Pentatonic - C D E G A C
C Minor Pentatonic - C Eb F G Bb C
C Blues - C Eb F F# G Bb C

There are lot of good articles out there to explain how you can apply the above scales.

Have fun!

Slap Bass DVD

Hi, usually the good slap materials out there are pretty dry and those fancy ones we can't learn much.
I would like to recommend this Dvd by Ed Friedland - Slap Bass (The Ultimate Guide).
This Dvd provides the essential of playing slap style(beginner, intermediate) and it's not boring.

You will learn the techniques of playing triplets, 16th notes and more using the slap style. Very useful material to guide you play like Louis Johnson, Marcus Miller, Victor Wooten and etc.

Go for it man!!

Basic Rhythm and Note Duration

Thought this might be useful. You can read up from the web for something more complete.
I'm just giving a brief explanation. :)

Play on the "Bold" only and count out loud.
e.g Playing a whole note with G - G 2 3 4 G 2 3 4 G 2 3 4 G 2 3 4


Whole Note - 1 2 3 4 1 2 34 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4

Half Note - 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4

Quarter Note - 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4

Eighth Note - 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 1 & 2 & 3 & 4

Sixteenth Note - 1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a 1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a


Hope that will give you a headstart.

Are Tabs evil?

Hi,

I came across quite a few beginners who learnt by memorizing the notes position without knowing what notes they are pressing.
Some learnt by reading using tabs.

So is it wrong or not very musically inclined to learn a song by reading tabs instead of transcribing with your ears?

In my opinion, one should strike a balance. Firstly, you definitely need to know what notes you are pressing and not just memorize by position (i.e 5th fret on D string is a G note).

Tabs are good tools for beginners to kickstart, but as you grow musically, you should try to use your hearing and figure out the notes.
You may occasionally referred to it when certain songs or bass lines are difficult to transcribe.

After you look at the tabs, see if you can derive the theory behind it and not blindly follow. Maybe from the tabs you learnt that by pressing this note and that note it form a certain chords. See, you are learning something.

Be the master over your learning tool and instrument! :d

Cheers

Hartke Bass Attack

Hi,

Just a short sharing of how I use the Harkte Bass Attack VXL Tone Shaper Pre Amp cum DI(Direct Input) if you have no time to read the manual.

1. Plug in your bass to the input and adjust the "Bass" and "Treble". 5 is neutral. My "Bass" is 3 and "Treble" is 6.

2. Step on the "ON/OFF" switch and adjust the "Harmonics", "Mix" and "Brite". " My "Harmonics" is at 4, "Mix" at 1 O'clock(not too dry) and "Brite" at 3.

3. Step on the "SHAPE" switch and adjust the "Shape" knob. I set mine at 850Hz frequency.
For "Shape", it can affect your slapping tone.

For this setting, it depend what sound you want and how you adjust your output's EQ. It also depend how you adjust your bass's preamp(if any). You can get the pure sound of the bass attack by connecting to the effect loop of your amp.

If your bass has a built in preamp, adjust the sound you like first before setting the "Harmonics", "Mix" and "Brite".

Take some time to explore and experiment.

A typical set up propose by the manual is, your bass to input of Bass Attack,the XLR output or line output to mixer and parallel output to amp.

For me, instead of using the parallel output to amp, I used the line output and set the amp as my monitor.

Harkte Bass Attack is designed and engineered in the US by Samson Technologies. Made in China :)

Rugged Aluminium Chassis. You can use a 9V battery or DC adaptor.

Cheers

Warm up exercise

If you are planning to play in a gig or practice for a longer duration, you can start off by doing some simple warm up exercise.

There are probably hundred of exercises for warm up, but today I'm going to introduce the spider scale. Most people will know it as chromatic scales.

On a 4 string bass starting from the E string.
Postion your left hand on the fretboard. One finger per fret and for right hand just play normal alternate fingering.
Start from the first fret, F(fore) F#(middle) G(ring) G#(pinky) than move to the A string and press the Bb B C C#.
Do the same fingering pattern for the D and G string.
Reverse the pattern. On the G string, B(pinky) Bb(ring) A(middle) Ab(fore) to D string and all the way back to the E string.

Now start from the 2nd fret on the E string and repeat what you have done. Once you reach the 12th fret your fingers should be warmed up.

You do not have to do it very fast. Start slow and build up the speed. Objective is to stretch your fingers and also get a clear tone. Speed is not the objective of this exercise, but eventually it will help you play fast.

Have fun and explore other patterns. As usual, you can also practice your slapping with the chromatic scale.

Cheers

Ghost notes

Hi,

A simple ghost notes exercise to help you "feel" the groove.

Ghost notes are produce when you place your left hand lightly on the fretboard of and pluck with your right hand. Try to place your left hand in between the frets and not on the fret if not you will get the harmonics out.

Now try playing the G major scale as followed where "x" is the ghost note.

GxGGx AxAAx BxBBx CxCCx DxDDx ExEEx F#xF#F#x GxGGx. Simple?
you can also try slapping the exercise if you want.

You can also imagine the "x" to be like the snare drum. and the note to be the bass drum(ask your drummer friend if you are not sure which is the snare).

Try the above pattern on different scales and experiment other patterns.

Have fun!

Cheers,

Ben

Relative Minor

For those who have been grooving around might have come across this term 'relative minor'.

How I remember or recognise the relative minor of each key? Simple!!

For me, I know that the vi is the relative minor.

e.g. The relative minor for A is F#m,also because both keys have 3 #

So what do we do with this relative minor? Let's use Key of C to explain.

The notes in the Am scale are A B C D E F G A. Hmmm isn't that the same notes in the C major scale? Correct. Am scale in key of C is also called A Aeolian scale.

So when someone play a C chord, you can solo within the Am scale or C major scale.

Have fun!

1 3 5

Hi,

After you have memorize the fretboard on the bass guitar, it's time to create some simple bass lines.

If you have a song with chord progression like G Em C D, you should have no problem playing the root note (i.e G E C D )

You will sound right just playing the root note but now you also want to start playing a bit more. You can use 1 3 5 (notes inside a chord) to create something more interesting.

Let's write out the 135 in each chord:

G - G B D
Em - E G B
C - C E G
D - D F# A

Say I start with G and want to link to the next chord Em, I can play G B D E.
Next from Em I can play G B B C then E G G D

This is just the basic idea of creating bass line using 135. You can take it from here and explore which note sound better and try to get a nice line.

Cheers

4,5,6 String Tuning

For those who are new to bass playing, you might want to know what are the common tuning for the 4,5 6 string bass. There are 7,8 12 string bass as well.
Anyway let's not stress ourselves.

4 string bass - E A D G ( E is the thickest string)
5 string bass - B E A D G ( B is the thickest string)
6 string bass - B E A D G C ( Same as 5 string but with additional high C)

Some people said that for beginner it is better to start with the 4 string bass as it is more easy to handle.
I think it is up to individual.
There are many people who started out playing 5 or 6 string too.

With the additional strings, you will have a wider range of voicing. A person who played 5 or 6 string bass does not mean that he or she is more superior than a 4 string bass player.
You can decide which bass to start with and put in effort to control it.

Here are a few famous bass players that you can listen and learn from.

4 string - Victor Wooten(He plays a tenor bass too A D G C), Marcus Miller, Jaco Pastorius.
5 string - Nathan East, Abraham Laboriel, Richard Bona
6 string - John Patitucci, Gerald Veasley, Jimmy Haslip

Victor Wooten plays in a band called Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. He has his own solo album as well.
Marcus Miller is more of a solo artist. For Jaco, you can find his solo album or some of the old Weather Report album. Jaco Pastorius Big Band is a tribute to him.

You can find Nathan East playing in some of Eric Clapton's album and the Fourplay.
Abraham Laboriel Sr has his own solo album and he played for many artists including Lee Ritenour, Stan Turrentine, George Benson and etc.
Richard bona was featured in Jaco Pastorius Big Band and has his own solo album.

John Patitucci has his own solo album. He played for Chick Corea in the akoustic and elektric band.
Gerald Veasley was featured in Jaco Pastorius Big Band and has his own solo album.
Jimmy Haslip is in a band called Yellowjackets. He was featured in Jaco Pastorius Big Band as well.

There are too many good bass players like Chuck Rainey, Stanley Clarke, Louis Johnson, John Myung, Stu hamm and etc. Take your time to listen to their music.

Right Hand Technique

I guess there are many ways to increase one's fingering speed. One of them is to practice your scaling, plucking near to the bridge area.
Reason is simple since the tension is greater at the bridge area, it require more strength to pluck.
So as you practice more, your finger will be strengthen and hence can play faster and longer duration too.

Billy Sheenhan make use of his bass pickup and his 3 finger technique in order to play fast. You can check out his DVD to see his live examples.

Victor Wooten uses his unique thumb and finger technique. The concept is thumb down, thumb up, pluck with forefinger and pluck with middle finger. He teaches that on the bass Day 98 DVD. That is a "must watch" DVD for those who are interested to explore bass.

Abraham Laboriel uses Thumb follow by pluck with forefinger and middle finger. You can also learn about chords and thumping at his Beginning Funk Bass DVD.

Bass Strap

This is a simple but useful tip about bass strap.
Some people asked why when they practice a bass lick at home and it is smooth but when they jam with their friends, that bass lick has more difficulties to come out.

One possible reason is that the bass strap is not adjusted to the comfortable length when you stand and play, while at home it rested nicely on your lap.

If you want, you can practice at home with the strap on as if you are standing.
Many rock and heavy metal bass players like to put the bass near their waist. For people with long arms you can do that but might face slight difficulties when slapping.

cheers

Listen to them

Here is a list of bass players whom you can listen to.

1. Abraham Laboriel
2. Anthony Jackson
   
3. Bill Dickens
4. Billy Sheehan
   
5. Brian Bomberg
6. Bootsy Collins
   
7. Chuck Rainey
   
8. Chris Squire
9. Christian McBride
10. Ed Friedland
11. Flea
12. Francis Rocco Prestia
    
13. Gary Grainger
14. Gary Willis
15. Geddy Lee ( Haven't hear him play)
    
16. George Porter Jr
17. Gerald Veasley
18. Jaco Pastorius
19. James Jamerson (I haven't hear him play but he is a legend)
20. Jeff Berlin
    
21. Jimmy Haslip
22. Jimmy Johnson
    
23. John Entwistle
24. John Patitucci
25. Larry Graham
26. Louis Johnson
27. Marcus Miller
28. Mark King
29. Michael Anthony
    
30. Michael Manring
    
31. Nathan East
32. Noel Redding (Haven't hear him play)
33. Norm Stockton
    
34. Oteil Burbridge
35. Paul McCartney
36. Richard Bona
    
37. Stanley Clarke
38. Steve Bailey
    
39. Steve Harris (Haven't hear him play)
    
40. Sting
    
41. Stu Hamm
42. Tetsuo Sakurai
43. Verdine White
    
44. Victor Bailey
    
45. Victor Lemonte Wooten
46. Will Lee

That's all for now. There are too many good bass players in the world. Don't stop listening

In The Pocket

We often ask ourselves (at least for me), how come a season player sounds more groovy when playing the exact same notes than that of an amatuer player.
Beside knowing how to accent certain notes and playing ghost notes to add some feel, the main reason is TIMING.

Top priority for a bass player in any genre of music is keeping time. Sorry it is not just the drummer's job but it is everybody's job to keep time in a band.
For the groove to be happening, the band have to play together.

I was demonstrating to a friend recently, playing the blue scales. With the metronome clicking, the groove is there. You can feel the music as the 12 bars flow through smoothly.
I also showed him that playing funk do not mean you have to slap. It's the timing.

For bass player, we have to locked in with the drummer. When both can play together, it will formed a solid rhythm section.

For examples of people playing in the pocket, please listen to Rocco Prestia, Victor Wooten, Abraham Laboriel and etc.

If you can sound groovy on a metronome, you will sound even better on a drum machine. If you don't have any tool to keep time, either buy one or use the online metronome.
Remember, the tool will not lie. If you can't groove, the problem is with you not the machine.

Rock Music Can Boosts Our Brain Power

I read an article recently that claim that listening to rock music can boost our brain power.

Researchers believe that rock-based songs by Flea, Noel Redding and etc can help improve concentration and boosts memory.

Recent studies suggested that by listening to classical music, it can improve your intelligence, especially material by Mozart.

As group of volunteers were asked to listen to Beethoven's 2nd symphony and a piece by Steve Vai. While the classical music improved the concentration and memory of both groups, there is also a significant effect of the rock fans.

To read the full article : http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,176-2340869,00.html

Personally I prefer more Jazzy stuff and I think it will also boost my brain :)

Glossary of Common Bass Terms

Bass Guitar - 4,5,6 (or more) low frequency electric or acoustic guitar

Chord tone/notes - Note within a chord (G major chord consist of G, B and D)

Crescendo - Gradually get louder in volume

Flat (b) - Lower the pitch of a note by half step

Genre - Type of style of music (Jazz, Blues, Rock, Metal, Classical and etc)

Groove - Playing on time, creating a feel and rhythm to the music (Locked with drums)

Hammer on - Generate a sound of a note with the force of your fretting finger

Harmonics - Touch lightly on the strings or fret (Natural harmonic on 5th 7th 12th fret)

Interval - Distance between 2 pitches

Legato - Long note

Mute - To muffle or lightly touch the strings

Octave - Interval of 12 semitones

Open string - A string is played and not fretted

Pentatonic - scale made up of 5 notes

Pickup - Magnetic coil that transfer the signal to an amp

Pinced Harmonics - nice sharp harmonics (something like artificial harmonics)

Pluck - Use your fingers to play the strings (Pop is to pull the string)

Preamp - Increase the electric signal ( include bass, treble, mid, tone and etc)

Root - The first note of the chord (G is the root of a G chord) also know as the tonic

Scale - Notes that followed an interval formula

Sharp (#) - Raise the pitch of a note by half step

Slap - Using your thumb and strike at the fret to create a solid tone (or left hand strike the fretboard)

Staccato - Short note

Strum - Use your fingers and go through the strings (Just like guitar)

Tap - Hammer on the notes with your left hand and right hand (2 hand tap)

Thump - Use your palm or finger and strike accurately on the string

Vibrato - Waver the pitch of the note

Whole step - Distance of 2 half steps (2 frets)