Higher Ground Workout

I wrote this bass etude so you would have something fun to learn that will greatly improve your slapping on the bass. All of my bass students end up learning this and it greatly improves their slapping tone, comfort, and attack. This bass line starts off in the original key (E Minor) that the Red

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Route 66 Walking Bass Line

This Route 66 walking bass line uses a lot of chromatic-ism in it. Half step, double chromatic approach, triple chromatic approach… they are all in there, plus 5 to 1 resolutions, enclosures, and some rhythmic development. A good walking bass line will perform its basic function (set good time and outline harmony) and will be

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C Major Pentascale Practice

In this video I demonstraa C Major Pentascale practice technique by limiting myself to just the A and D strings. Breaking your scales up into cells, or smaller pieces is a great way to practice them. It also helps you to get away from thinking of these as just patterns. The idea is pretty simple

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F Major Patterns & Improv

I find it helpful to have several different ways to play through my scales and patterns. The video shows me playing through my patterns in a more traditional approach, and the improvised practice will get your fingers and mind thinking about these same notes in a different way. Below is a breakdown of how I am

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So What Walking Bass Line

This week for Walking Wednesdays we worked our way through the classic tune ‘So What’. The whole song is really just two chords a D-7 and Eb-7. It seems like that should make it easier but it actually makes it a little more difficult. I really liked all of the lines that you guys wrote and hope

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Autumn Leaves

This week we are going to work through Autumn Leaves for our walking bass line. This tune is mainly made up of a – ii V7 I – in major and a – ii-7b5 V7 i – in the relative minor. In measures 19-20 the Eb7, and Db7 are tri-tone chord substitutions. Without those substitutions

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