As you now probably know, the fingerboard of the bass guitar contains a great deal of symmetry and repetition. With this being the case, it stands to reason that there will be certain useful combinations of notes that fall naturally under the fingers wherever you are on the instrument. In this video course – the first of two on the subject – we’re going to be looking at a group of notes that over time, you will come to think of as your ‘go-to’ notes.
Don't forget to hit the Download Resources button above to receive the PDF worksheet and backing tracks that accompany these lessons! This course contains the following videos, each of which can be selected from the video player above:
In this video we’ll be looking at a basic ‘box shape’, a group of valuable notes that fall easily under the fingers, no matter where you are on the bass.
This exercise makes use of the box shape over a very common chord progression: C-Am-F-G.
This exercise is a rock bassline, once again making use of the root, fifth and octave box shape.
This exercise puts the box shape to use with a slow tempo reggae groove.
This line uses the box shape as the key part of a simple funk groove.
This exercise is a simple example of a ‘walking bassline’, using the box shape that we’ve covered in this video course. This line is a great illustration of just how much you can with these simple notes.