Learn to Play Bass Guitar

Technorati Tags: Learn to play bass guitar

Now that you have associated numbers with notes in a scale, we can now learn the arpeggios starting with the two simplest arpeggios, the major and minor arpeggios.  

The first thing in creating arpeggios is to pick the root note.  This root note is the 1st note.  For this example, I will use A.  In the image of the scale pattern in the previous lesson, it is the 1.  

The next step is adding the other notes to the arpeggio.  The simplest arpeggios have only three different notes.  The first and most common is the major arpeggio.  This consists of a root, a third, and a fifth.  This is not just mumbo-jumbo!  You already know the 3rd and 5th from the previous lesson.  The third is the third note in the major scale, and the 5th is the fifth note in the major scale.  The root is the A, the third is the Db, and the fifth is the E.  Shown here.

The second most common arpeggio is the minor arpeggio.  This consists of a root, a flat third and a fifth.  The flat third is the only difference in this arpeggio, but it makes it a completely different sound.  Now a flat third is nothing difficult to grab.  It is only a half step below the third note in the major scale.  so in this case it would be a C.  So an A minor arpeggio consists of an A, a C, and an E.  Shown here.

You know how to create arpeggios now, so what are the used for?  When you play along with a guitarist or pianist, they will be playing chords.  These chords are made up of entirely of notes from arpeggios.  For example, if a guitarist plays a G chord, that chord consists of only the notes, G, B, and D.  If a guitarist plays an A minor chord, they are playing an A, C, and E.  So now you can create bass lines with the notes from the arpeggios while the guitarist or pianist plays the chords.  Try using different rhythms, and patterns of arpeggios while playing along with someone else.  You are now creating bass likes off the top of your head!  Congratulations!  Try adding some notes from scales, and you will be on your way to brilliant bass lines on tap.

Here are the chords to Dispatch’s The General

Bb, F, C minor, G, D#, A#, F

Try playing along with the band!!! 

Technorati Tags: bass fingerings, bass theory, music theory

Technorati Tags: Bass Guitar, Bass Guitar Scales, Learn to play bass guitar

Technorati Tags: Bass Guitar

Technorati Tags: bass fingerings, bass octave, Bass Octaves, bass theory, music octaves

Hey guys, Welcome to your first bass lesson on LearntoPlayBassGuitar.org!  Today, you will be shown the different notes on your bass.  To play a note, hold the bass on your lap with the long neck of the bass held in your left hand, unless you are left handed, in which case, you would hold the neck with your right hand.  With your finger press down a string on the fretboard, and pluck the same string with your other hand which should be positioned by the body.  

Your thumb can rest on the pickup as you pluck the strings.

Now in modern western music, there are twelve different notes to play, and each of these notes are one fret away from each other.  The order of notes in music are as follows:

A, A#, B, C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#

And then it repeats itself, however, the next A in that progression would be higher than the first A, the next A# would be higher than the first, and so on.  When a note is the same pitch, but higher, this is called an octave.  

In the progression of notes, there are certain symbols called accidentals.  There are sharps, which is symbolized as (#) as you could see above; and there are flats, which are symbolized as (b).  A sharp means that you go one fret higher, so an D# is one fret higher than a D.  A flat means that you go one fret lower, so a Db is one fret lower than a D.  Here is the order of notes with flats instead of sharps:

A, Bb, B, C, Db, D, Eb, E, F, Gb, G, Ab

You may notice that in between A and B, there is a note that in the order of notes above is named A#, but in the bottom it is Bb.  They are the same note, only named differently.  These are called eharmonic equivalents.

On a bass, there are four strings each decreasing in thickness.  The fattest string if played without pressing any frets, is an E.  Then string next to it, is an A.  After that is a D, and the thinnest string is a G.  

Naturally, the first fret on the E string is an F if you follow the progression of notes given above.  The next is a Gb, and after that is a G, and so on.  Here is a picture of the notes on the first two strings.

The reason that the picture only shows the notes on the first two strings is because you will be able to know the notes on the other strings when you learn about octaves in the next lesson.  For now, here is a fun riff to play on the first two strings called Smoke on the Water by Deep Purple.

G, Bb, C—G, Bb, Db, C—G, Bb, C, Bb, G.  And repeat

Try playing this riff on just the E string, then try incorperating both strings.  You can play on both strings because the 5th fret on the E string is the same as just plucking the A string.  Try it!

Rock out on your first bass riff this week!  Once you get it up to speed, try playing along with the song by clicking here.  Pretty soon you will be just like those guys on stage!

Technorati Tags: Learn to play bass guitar

In order to begin to learn to play the bass guitar, you must first familiarize yourself with the parts of the bass.  Doing so will help you to understand what to do in the upcoming lessons.

Tuning Keys:  Used for tightening the strings.  In effect, the strings are either loosened or tightened to make the correct pitch for the string.

Strings:  When the strings are plucked, they vibrate causing the human ear to hear a specific note.  The notes of each string are as follows:  E is the thickest string, A is next, then D, and finally, G, the thinnest string on your bass.

Frets:  In between the frets mark each of the notes that can be played on the bass.  When talking about a fret position, for example, the note G is played on the third fret on the E string, we are talking about depressing the string in between the second and third frets.

Dot Position Inlays:  These dots mark certain frets on the fretboard so you can easily see where the third, fifth, seventh, ninth, and twelfth frets are.

12th Fret Marker:  This special marker marks the twelfth fret which happens to be the same note as the string that it is on only higher

Pickguard:  The pickguard is present on many basses in all different shapes and colors, however, it is not needed in most situations, because the bass is not often strummed with a pick like the guitar is.

Pickups:  The pickups all look different and are in different positions depending on what type of bass you have.  These devices are there to pick up the frequencies that are given off by the strings.  They then send that information through the chord and into the amplifier and into our ears.  Try plucking some strings when the bass is not plugged in.  If not for the pickups, most electric basses would not be able to be heard very well.

Bridge:  The bridge is where the strings are connected to the large part of the bass called the body.  If you are playing a right-handed bass, the bridge will be on your right, and if you play the left-handed bass, the bridge will be on your left.

Tone/Volume Knobs and Switches:  The knobs and switches (some basses such as the example, but not all so don’t be scared that your bass is missing parts, because most likely, it is not) control the tone and volume.  Play around with them a little and get to know which knob is which and what they each do.

Input Jack:  On the edge of your bass, there is a hole where you plug in the chord that goes into the amplifier.  This connects the bass to the amplifier and allows it to have a loud sound.

Technorati Tags: Learn to play bass guitar

I would like to welcome you to LearnToPlayBassGuitar.org!  First of all, you are taking a huge step in becoming a bass player just by visiting this site.  Here is a piece of wisdom that I would like to share with you today.

Many bass players feel like they never get any attention and are not as important as the other players in a band.  Let me tell you that it is false that the bass player is not as important.  Think of it this way.  If a band is like a brick building, the bassist is like the mortar that runs through the bricks and brings them together.  You may not be playing the melody to the song, but you are bringing the notes together and bringing a fullness to the music that cannot be made by just the melody.  Think of a pianist that only plays in the treble clef with only one hand.  The piece is not nearly as fulfilled as if it were played with both hands, and the bass player is that second hand.  So go out and bring the music together!  

Technorati Tags: Learn to play bass guitar