(I PLAY A 4 STRING BASS)


I find myself playing on the E/A strings a lot. I rarely, if ever, play around scales on the d/g strings, or even lower frets on E/A



Even when improvising with the faux band me and my friends have, I find I tend to stick to the notes of C/G/D etc (toward the top of the neck)


Lately I've been learning a few things (a few chords, like Major Triads dominant, pentatonic scales, etc) but maybe its the crappy bass I have or maybe its just out of tune (squier J-bass), the G string always sounds like shit to me and I avoid playing it like the plague.



I'm having trouble learning the fretboard as a whole in general, I guess I could use some advice for learning it. Aside from E/A, I don't know fret correlation for the other 2 strings.


can anyone help me? or ostracize me, I guess....lol

On Bass everything is just in 4ths. On guitar it's in fourths until you hit the B string, it's a major third above the G. So, on a bass you have the same relationships between all strings. The 7th fret on any string is going to be the open string below it an octave higher. You can use that as a guide point for memorizing pitches. I also think it helps to learn the note name of the low E on every dotted inlay, and use that as reference.

well the other day (since I play around it so much) I mapped out the C note all over the fret board. I've memorized it some what, and was wondering if I should do that for every note? Or just memorize 1-2 and work them out from there.


I'm also curious as to if it is just preference? or trying to meet a musical style/quota that some people play a lot on the d/g strings

then again, a lot of the references and people I watch/look up to are progressive/jazz artists who tend to stick out more so than traditional rock groups

Well, if you learn C all over them you should start to see where octaves occur. Since guitar/bass are fixed your octave shapes are going to occur with any note. If you can visualize where octaves happen with any note, you can begin to plot the fretboard in your head, and then it just comes down to actively practicing it.

On bass I would say it's extremely common to play on the A & E, but it does depend on what you're playing. In most basic rock situations you are just root hugging, which means you're going to be in the lower register, in most progressive music or music that involves you to function as a melodic instrument you will probably utilize all strings...either way, it's good to practice everything all across the neck simply so that you can do it when the time comes.

Guess I'll just keep on keepin' on then....



I just wonder at one point should I invest in a better guitar....

another question


I'm using the site STUDYBASS for my learning....and the author of the site emphasizes chords over scales/modes....


So far I've learned some of the more important ones...


one octave major triad/7th

one octave dominant 7th

minor triad

minor 7th

diminished triad




curious as to if I should focus only on the major/minor triads, since some of the stuff seems more jazzy.

Chords and scales really overlap. Scales generate chords...Chords fit into scales. There is definitely a lot more worth in practicing chord sequences, melodically, than running scales up and down, however. And as a bass player you're really aiming to accent chord tones, so it certainly has a level of usefulness in learning.

In rock music...you are rarely ever going to be playing 7ths (except dom7's). Beyond that, you will probably not be playing diminished or augmented triads. So I would say it's a good idea to place a lot of time into practicing major, minor, and dom7 arpeggios. I wouldn't neglect the others if you want to be well rounded, but purely from a perspective of possible usefulness...those 3 are at the top of the list.

Now, since you're going this route, here is a good exercise:

Learn your major scale in all positions across the bass.
Spend possibly a day or two on a single position, and within that position:
1. Arpeggiate every diatonic chord in sequence
2. Practice the scale pattern in groups of 3 & 4
3. Practice the scale pattern in thirds & fourths
4. Arpeggiate chord progressions within that pattern
5. Try to write basslines focusing on the chord tones, but using the other notes in the scale to bridge the gap.

Here is a tab for the first bit...this is the bread and butter or learning the fretboard & learning to bridge the gap between your ear and fingers.

G major scale (G A B C D E F# G)
POSITION 1


(fretboard view w/ scale degrees labeled)

ARPEGGIATE DIATONIC CHORDS WITHIN PATTERN
Diatonic chords of G major: G, Am, Bm, C, D, Em, F#º
G: G B D
Am: A C E
Bm: B D F#
C: C E G
D: D F# A
E: E G B
F#º: F# A C
(I start each arpeggio on the root, and then on the way down hit the other chord tones that exist on the string sets below

the root, then resolve it back to the root - just so you're hearing and seeing where they are)


PRACTICE SCALE PATTERNS IN GROUPS OF 3 & 4
This is an exercise in musical sequence. A sequence is when a group of notes are transposed over and over again. In

instance we will explore diatonically sequencing groups of 3 and 4 within the scale. It is a more musical exercise than

running scales up and down, and if you explore other variations & sequences you can start to build a foundation for melodic

material.

GROUPS OF 3


GROUPS OF 4

Descend in the same manner as the previous example, I'm too lazy/want to save space...principle is the same. Also, try doing

other groupings of notes, and more melodic sequences that aren't simply scalar.

PRACTICE SCALE PATTERNS IN THIRDS AND FOURTHS
This is similar the previous exercises, except you will be practicing melodic 3rds and fourths, meaning you will leap a third

or fourth as you ascend the scale.

THIRDS


FOURTHS


ARPEGGIATE CHORD PROGRESSIONS WITH PATTERN
Common chord progressions in a major key: I-IV-V-I, I-vi-IV-V-I, I-vi-ii-V7-I,
These are all similar, but a good exercise.

I-IV-V-I

I-vi-IV-V-I

I-vi-ii-V7-I


Obviously many of these arpeggios are not occurring in root position, and that is because I am gravitating to the closest chord tone when I start the pattern, in order to facilitate a smooth line.

This post was edited by chronowarp on Jun 17 2010 11:03pm

when you say patterns of 3 and 4, do you mean like the chord tones? Example: C, E, G, Bb? (for CMajor)


or just 3-4 notes off said scale

This post was edited by Eep on Jun 20 2010 02:18am

The first set is 3 & 4 note sequences( C D E, D E F, E F G, F G A, G A B, A B C; C D E F, D E F G, E F G A, F G A B, G A B C). The second is playing melodic 3rds & fourths (C E, D F, E G, F A, G B, A C, B D ; C F, D G, E A, F B, G C, A D, B E)

If you look at the tabs it should become pretty obvious.

ohh I see...