When starting out with walking bass lines, i would recommend that you always target the root when changing chords. Includes great two handed chord voicings, left hand voicings for soloing, walking bass that can be played using the left. We learn a really cool walking bass line that you can use under a 251. This is the first lesson of the piano shorties series. 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. Audio video music theory lesson, walking anchor bass, examples. Paypal will automatically convert from us dollars to your currency using the exchange rate at the. How to play walking bass lines at the piano cocktail.
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. In this 5 minute masterclass, were going create a bass line over a blues in f. In this lesson we are going to apply a simple but effective walking bass. Intermediate pianists will have no trouble learning how to play a descending walking bass line. I am introducing to you a complete course on how to create walking bass lines. In part 1 we created waling bass lines over major and minor 251s using the tones of the triad in combination with chromatic or stepwise approach patterns. A walking bass line generally consists of notes of equal duration and intensity typically 14 notes that create a feeling of forward motion. How to play basic walking bass lines bass wonderhowto. Walking bass line piano tutorial walking bass jazz piano. 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. 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. Simple jazz blues walking line breakdown talkingbass. 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 lines are a very specific and classic jazz piano sound and. We explore how to walk that bass in your left hand up basic triad shapes and scale fragments. If you know how to create a walking bass line, you can be more creative in your jazz playing. A nice place to start out with walking bass lines is to create lines using just the root and 5th in combination with either chromatic or whole step approach tones. By starting with the anchor bass line, you will be able to unlock the door to creating your own swinging walking bass lines. Here is the bass lines for autumn leaves that everyone contributed to last week. Play a boogie woogie bass line on the piano how to. Play 12 bar blues in c major with a triad bass line how to. This tutorial takes a look at five different approaches to playing walking basslines in a 12bar blues progression. It is possible to add rhythmic variations, but in general, a walking bassline drives the song forward step by step. Nov 28, 2018 walking bass lines are not just for jazz players. Walking bass line theory basics pdf file chris fitzgerald.
When creating walking bass lines, its important to outline the root and 5th of the chord. Bass lessons beginners guide to walking bass lines bass tab standard string tuning g,d,a,e recommended 1. Build a walking bass line from scales the jazz piano left hand. Improvise jazz piano with walking bass line piano with jonny. If youre amazingly extra awesome, youll be able to sing the melody and make a bass line at the same time. The function of the bass is to provide the foundation. How to play walking bass lines at the piano cocktail piano. Summertime walking bass line tutorial learn jazz piano. Just like walking with your feet, tyjwalking bass line is one step after the other that takes you somewhere. Oct 26, 2018 in this 5 minute masterclass, were going create a bass line over a blues in f. Share, download and print free sheet music for piano, guitar, flute and more on the worlds largest community of sheet music creators. Playing with a walking bass line is a style of piano playing that is used most often in solo jazz performance. Every chord change in the blues should be viewed as an opportunity to create harmonic movement and interest for the listener.
This is a short demonstration lesson detailing the basic principles of walking bass lines. When learning walking bass, you have to hear how the notes you play sound against the chord. This is a nice way to get started with walking bass lines and is also very effective device when playing solo piano. A piano arrangement for the song giant steps by john coltrane. Fundamental concepts for walking bass a systematic method ebook by george urbaszek. Walking bass lines are a very specific and classic jazz piano sound and generally considered an advanced concept. How to play walking bass lines at the piano cocktail piano lessons. Walking bass line sheet music for piano download free in. We introduce a simple walking bass which outlines the root and 5th of the chord. This is an important concept to remember, the walking bass line is. Jazz bass line construction thelonious monk institute of. Well play through it so you can get it under your fingers and then well have a look at what is going on in there so you can integrate parts of it into your own vocabulary and develop your own walking style. There is a big tendency for players to seek for advanced and complicated topics while they still did not master the basics.
In part 2 of this lesson we continue our study 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. Use leadingnotes on beat 4 before moving to the next chord. With this tutorial you will learn tips to improve your walking bass technique. The term walking is used lescribe the moving feeling that quarter notes create in the bass part.
Walking a bass line with the left hand is a skill every jazz, rock, and pop pianist should know. We can create a walking bass line over the following twelvebar blues chord progression. Summertime walking bass line tutorial simple walking. 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. A walking bass line can in principle contain arbitrary chromatic runs, but obviously its not a good idea to do that all the time. This is why i give you these play along tracks of drums and piano. Playing a walking jazz guitar bass line is a captivating method of comping for other musicians, and yourself. 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 essence, were using the b note in our walking bass line, plus the guitars standard tuning to create a very cool sounding chord change. Well be taking small single chord phrases as a practice tool for building your walking bass vocabulary in simple, easy steps. A slightly embellished version of this kind of line would also be typical of a basic boogie woogie type bass line, as in the following example. Walking bass lines piano tutorial 5 minute masterclass youtube. Dave frank school of jazz, new york city music videos.
A walking bass line is the most common approach to jazz bass playing. Guitar chords chart suited for beginners who are in the first steps of learning how to play all. R 3 5 6 7 walking bass line theory basics chris fitzgerald. Sep 24, 2019 every chord change in the blues should be viewed as an opportunity to create harmonic movement and interest for the listener. Check out the autumn leaves tutorial if you havent already watched it. 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. The pianomethod walking bass for piano can be downloaded at. Learning how to construct walking bass lines is the easiest and fastest way to start really learning your fingerboard. 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. As a subscriber you are getting a free backing tracks and pdf files with tab and notation to illustrate each lesson. Download the sheet music for the arrangement of lets fall in love that is featur ed in our walking bass for piano youtube video. These notes are half notes, and most jazz bass lines consist primarily of. Incorporating the 3rd of the chord will also give your bass line a stronger harmonic foundation.
A bassline is a melody line played in the bass by a lowpitched instrument such as the piano, double bass, electric bass, tuba, etc. 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. Walking bass line theory basicspart 1by chris fitzgerald. Often its best to keep mostly to the chord notes and add some extra melodic spice just when it makes sense for supporting the harmonic movement. Youre able to download printable sheet music john williams hedwigs theme for piano piano. It is found most commonly in blues and jazz, but as you learn bass guitar, you will hear its influence in almost any style of music. You will learn some easy scales and how to play a walking bass line for whatever song you are playing. If you are looking to begin playing the bass then this how to video is the place to start. I also included for you a backing tracks of popular jazz standards to help you practice lesson material in the way closest to live band situation. Lessons in this segment focus on the fundamentals of bass playing. Walking bass for piano tutorial no 1 by michael gundlach. Walking bass lines are an essential part of blues and jazz piano especially if youre playing solo or without any kind of.
The wonderful thing about it is that walking a basic bass line is not all that difficult once you learn a few simple steps. We then have a study of walking bass line patterns and apply the concepts to the tune autumn leaves. Walking bass lines are a fascinating part of jazz, as they support and mark the harmony underneath the chords and melody. A jazz bassist must learn how to walk a line based on the chords of a tune.
Watch this piano tutorial video to learn how to play a walk down bass line on piano. Does anyone know where i can find some easy sheet music for a beginner learning how to construct walking bass lines. Print and download in pdf or midi giant steps trio piano arrangement. The simplest walking bass line formula exactly where to. Walking bass lines always sound cool in any style of music, but are essential to jazz blues and great american songbook jazz standards. The intervalic bass line is created from your knowledge of what notes make particular chords. In this lesson we will be creating a simple walking bass line over a basic jazz blues progression.
In this example, the bass line consists of simple arpeggiations of each chord, giving the overall effect of a simple blues bass line. Intermediate pianists will have no trouble learning how to play a descending walking bass line on piano by watching this helpful howto video. How to play a blues walking bass line on the piano piano. The material has been divided into four modules containing various ideas of patterns one can use, when walking over chord changes. How to play a blues walking bass line on the piano wonderhowto. Jazz piano lesson left hand lines for any chord progressions.
It is absolutely crucial for the student to learn the material in the correct order and not to go ahead of oneself. And walking bass lines are a continuous sequence of quarter notes, generally played on the beat 4 notes per bar in 44 time. Chords and walking bass part 1 in this lesson ill demonstrate how i approach playing walking bass lines and chords at the same time. Pianists, anchor your walking bass lines with this terrific tool. 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.
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. It is a chord progression that contains only 4 chords and repeats back to the starting. Walking bass lines supplement this is a supplement for the lesson on walking bass. 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 roman numeral sequence that musicians use to identify the location and function of these chords for all major keys is. Your free backing tracks and pdf download walking bass. Walking bass mascari piano studios piano lessons, music. Instruction includes names of the chords and an overhead view so you can learn by watching. 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. The conference brought middle and high school teachers from all over idaho to the college of southern idaho for three days of seminars and workshops. The goal of a walking bassline is to outline the chord progression but with an interesting. Walking bass lines piano tutorial 5 minute masterclass.
Even though our intent is to spice up the a to c change just by walking up the bass notes from a to b to c, were able to do a lot more than that in this case. Instead of having a few different things to try in this lesson, we are going to learn a written. This is very useful in weaving a walking bass line through a chord progression while holding one position. Walking bass lines are really useful in jazz piano they give you a cool, pro sound and a. Looking forward to hearing your walking bass lines over autumn leaves. Print and download in pdf or midi walking bass line.
529 1452 800 1349 818 1441 1236 1417 1321 96 346 1267 1354 569 649 70 1199 823 511 102 439 832 777 1458 667 1329 298 158 968 186 1464 940 6 938 673 1140 812 211 531 540 981 223 1497 884 771 439 1081 1225