When starting out with walking bass lines, i would recommend that you always target the root when changing chords. Dave frank school of jazz, new york city music videos. Download the sheet music for the arrangement of lets fall in love that is featur ed in our walking bass for piano youtube video. How to play walking bass lines at the piano cocktail piano. Let me know what you think about them and if they are helpful or. Nov 02, 2020 chromatic walking bass line for piano on a c jazz blues for you by greg lloyd. Here is a bass line constructed using ascending chord tones in the first 3 bars and descending in the 4th. Learn how to play a walking bass pattern and and pretty funky right hand riff on the piano or keyboard.
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. Instead of having a few different things to try in this lesson, we are going to learn a written bass. Ive seen so many students feel like its something thats completely unachievable. Its important to actually write your bass lines down, because it helps you visualize the line and the harmony. Walking bass lines helps us learn and reinforce the fundamentals of jazz harmony. How to play walking bass on piano introductionwhat is a chore. If youre amazingly extra awesome, youll be able to sing the melody and make a bass line at the same time. Blank, 32bar bass clef staff paper pdf for bass players. 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. How to play a simple walking bass left hand pattern on the piano using a 12 bar blues progression. Incorporating the 3rd of the chord will also give your bass line a stronger harmonic foundation.
Jazz guitar music guitar piano music piano jazz music music jazz sheet music free. Migu music your downloadshop for playalongs, sheet music. 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. How to write a walking bass line learn jazz standards. The purpose of this book is to provide the beginning to intermediate jazz bassist a working vocabulary of walking basslines and concepts for improvising. Sep 16, 2014 walking bass on the piano can be one of the coolest things ever.
After the 5th, you will play the root again an octave higher or lower than where you began. Learn to play the bass line and the thirds and sevenths all at one time. Blank, eightstave staff paper in bass clef with barlinesfour bars per stave. 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. So far we have patterns for each chord change in the 12bar blues except for one, moving from v to iv i. How to play a simple walking bass left hand pattern on the piano. Twobeat bass lines are also used in playing ballads. 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. Pay close attention to the quality of the chords dominant seven or minor. Piano solo advanced intermediate digital downloadcomposed by. Chunky c this just so happens to be done in the key of a but you can play this in any key you like by following the same pattern for the chosen key. Before you learn to play the big chords on a piano, it is important that you know the keys to a piano and their names or. Michael gundlach download pdf file walking bass for piano an easy method for creating walking bass lines on piano table of contents 3 explanation.
The best way to introduce walking bass lines into your playing is to start with one short common chord progression. The white keys are in the key to c and natural keys. If youre enjoying these bass lines, you can learn 9 walking bass techniques in our jazz walking bass lines level 2, level 3 courses. 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. Popularized by piano greats lennie tristano and dave mckenna, among others, the walking lh bass line can effectively substitute for a rhythm section, if desired, and provides a. It is possible to add rhythmic variations, but in general, a walking bassline drives the song forward step by step. As bass players we can create strong sounding walking bass lines by playing them one by one. Continuing with repeating the notes bb and b which leads us to the 5 of the f. Also included in each example are the scales, modes and. Therefore, the bass is played by the left hand on the lower part of the keyboard of the piano.
Michael gundlach download pdf file walking bass for. Master walking bass lines, chord voicings, embellishments, and improv over the 2 most important progressions in jazz. Walking bass line piano tutorial walking bass jazz piano. Composing on paper can also challenge your perspective and expose bad habits, so dont neglect that pad of staff paper sitting on your music. Dave frank school of jazz, new york city welcome to nycs.
Oct 31, 2017 how to play a simple left hand walking bass jazz improv free pdf handout by jerald simon music motivation. Walking bass lines course free backing tracks and pdf files. Sep 29, 2019 learning walking bass is without doubt the fastest and most powerful way to learn the fingerboard and understand how to create bass lines over any chord or chord sequence. The bassline we cover is a combination of several bass lines i have transcribed from the bass players mentioned below. The possible noterange of a walking bass can reach from subcontra a to middle c. Other developments on this research have focused on the sequencer and harmonic content, as well as the walking bass algorithm 15. Gomez i let a song go out of my heart bass line by o. Onlinepianist offers the largest online piano tutorials collection.
We start with a simple 151 octave higher and then the 3rd of the chord leading chromatically to the 4 chord bb. How to play a simple walking bass left hand pattern on the. Walking bass lines in a 44meter swing style can also be used in playing ballads. Walking bass for piano by michael gundlach, is the first of its kind, and will remedy the situation. Walking bass on the piano can be one of the coolest things ever. Your free backing tracks and pdf download walking bass lessons. As a subscriber you are getting a free backing tracks and pdf files with tab and notation to illustrate each lesson. Basic 12 bar blues in a the walking bass bass tabs. 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. T 1 2 a t 3 by chris fitzgerald a 4 t 1 a 2 t 3 a 4 walking bass line theory basics. The goal of a walking bass line is to outline the chord progression but with an interesting melodic line that provides a counter. By starting with the anchor bass line, you will be able to unlock the door to creating your own swinging walking bass lines. Build a walking bass line from scales the jazz piano left hand.
How to play walking bass lines at the piano jazz christmas. 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. The first and simplest way to create a bass line uses just two notes per chordthe root and 5th. Write out those walking basslines and transcribe those solos. Sep 26, 2010 the walking bass technique with the piano left hand has great effect.
Build a walking bass line from scales the jazz piano. 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. Ballads are slow tunes that can be played with or without swing rhythms. Mar 25, 2019 piano players and guitarists will generally create chords by playing all the chord tones together. Walking bass lines are a very specific and classic jazz piano sound and generally considered an advanced concept.
Walking bass is a form of bass line, or a musical line that usually provides the lowest voice of the musical texture. Begin by walking up or down from the root to the 5th. Pdf a contourbased jazz walking bass generator researchgate. If you ever get confused or feel insecure, you can always return to this.
Pay attention, burn through this as fast as you can, and you. And walking bass lines are a continuous sequence of quarter notes, generally played on the beat 4 notes per bar in 44 time. You can take this pdf and arrange it any way you want. An easy method for creating walking bass lines on piano. Chromatic walking bass line for piano on a c jazz blues for. In this lesson well take a look at scale style and intervalic bass lines, and even mix them up a bit. A walking bass line generally consists of notes of equal duration and intensity typically 14 notes that create a feeling of forward motion. These blues bass lines are like having a one chorus lick that you can when piano players copy this idea of walking bass lines, they generally do so by using. Jazz bass line construction thelonious monk institute of. As jazz musicians, we spend a lot of our practice time trying to learn to think, hear, and play our way through complicated chord progressions as improvisers. The remaining three beats can be filled in by either repeating the root or playing the 5th of the chord. If you know how to create a walking bass line, you can be more creative in your jazz playing. 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. Walking bass line theory basicspart 1by chris fitzgerald.
Bass lessons basic 12 bar blues in a the walking bass bass tab. In this 5 minute masterclass, were going create a bass line over a blues in f. Read piano walking bass online by jesper kaae books scribd. Are you tired of playing jazz piano walking bass lines that lack authenticity. Walking bass exercise fly me to the moon joerundpiano. Each example includes not only written basslines, but also a series of exercises that stepbystep introduce root motion, chord tones, scale patterns and chromatic halfstep approaches. This is just one of the solutions for you to be 1 3. Playing with a walking bass line is a style of piano playing that is used most often in solo jazz performance. The collection of material of this book is, in our opinion, the basics to playing bass guitar for some event. 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 general, it is a good strategy to play the root of the chord on the downbeat of the measure. I have this book and no only is it a great way to get some very nice walking bass lines down, its a nice book for piano technique as well play. Pdf this paper describes a contourbased algorithm for the realtime automatic generation of jazz walking bass lines, following a given harmonic. This blues lesson is great for intermediate to advanced pianists. Walking bass lines always sound cool in any style of music, but are essential to jazz blues and great american songbook jazz standards. Before you learn to play the big chords on a piano, it is important that you know the keys to a piano and their names or labels. This technique resumes in a direct way the style of a bass instrument. If you are still wondering how to get free pdf epub of book piano walking bass. In solo music for piano and pipe organ, these instruments have an excellent lower register. With numerous practical exercises, many examples, and easytounderstand text, this method book is a must for every pianist that wants to learn to play walking bass. Migu music your downloadshop for playalongs, sheet. Dave frank school of jazz, new york city welcome to nyc. We can create a walking bass line over the following twelvebar blues chord progression. Walking bass with the piano left hand classic jazz piano.
Walking bass noterange usually the bass lies in the lower sound range of the music. When playing in a triple meter 34 or 68, walking bass lines are constructed the same as in a 44meter. Great for jazz standards in the 32bar aaba form and other 32bar formsone chorus per page. But the reality is with the right instruction any bass player can learn it quickly.
This approach can also be swung by adding eighth notes as shown below. As understood, completion does not suggest that you have fantast ic points. For a deep dive on rootless voicings, check out our smart sheet music on. Walking bass is an essential element in blues and jazz music. While walking bass lines are most commonly associa. The purpose of a good walking bassline or any bassline for that matter is twofold. Walking bassline clinic 121210 playing with a walking bass line is a style of piano playing that is used most often in solo jazz performance. Use the same method that is illustrated with the ii v is. Dave found a way to incorporate walking bass lines into his solo piano style in a unique way. The first lesson will be building walking bass lines in the 44 meter swing style. How to play a blues walking bass line on the piano piano. Chromatic walking bass line for piano on a c jazz blues. Basic 12 bar blues in a the walking bass bass tabs bass.
How to play a simple left hand walking bass jazz improv. In lesson 2, we continued to build patterns for the common chord progressions we see in blues. Mcbride it could happen to me two feel bass line by p. Walking bass lines are really useful in jazz piano they give you a cool, pro sound and a good sense of rhythm and movement right there on. Your free backing tracks and pdf download walking bass. For when you have to learn to play the bass right now. While often associated with jazz, walking bass can be found in any genre. How to play walking bass lines at the piano cocktail. The course starts right at the beginning with easy jazz improvisation, and then gradually leads you through different chord progressions, shows you how to find which scale to use when soloing on standard tunes, gets you playing walking bass lines with a surprisingly easy method. Oct 31, 2017 how to play a simple left hand walking bass jazz improv free pdf handout by jerald simon music motivation saved from.
A chord is three or more notes or keys on a piano that is pressed down at the same time. Walking bass lines are really useful in jazz piano they give you a cool, pro sound and a good sense of rhythm and movement right there on the keyboard if y. 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. Walking bass line theory basics pdf file chris fitzgerald. How to play a simple left hand walking bass jazz improv free. This just so happens to be done in the key of a but you can play this in any. Walking bass lesson 3 jazz blues fundamental changes.
Bass lessons basic 12 bar blues in a the walking bass bass tab blues basic 12 bar blues in a the walking bass by. Build a walking bass line from scales the jazz piano left. With this structured jazz swing learning track, youll learn essential techniques to becoming a jazz pianist. Pettiford inner urge bass line by bob cranshaw isfahan bass line by c. Pay attention, burn through this as fast as you can, and. Jazz is an inherently harmonically complex style of music. 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. The walking bass hitting a new note on every beat of each bar is a moving force. Dec 05, 2018 7 reasons to practice walking bass lines. A walking bass line is simply a melodic bass line found mainly in jazz and blues styles in which you walk around in quarter notes connecting the chords. Once you have some basic rules down, youll be able to make bass lines over any chord progression. This paper describes the new voicing algorithm for live piano. Walking bass lines are a fascinating part of jazz, as they support and mark the harmony underneath the chords and melody. Listen to his cd called giant strides and youll see what i mean.
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