'A Portrait of Jaco' was written to reflect the work of legendary bassist Jaco Pastorius, both as a solo artist, and with pioneering fusion outfit Weather Report. The bassline for this piece is a busy, syncopated part that is very challenging to play up to tempo. As well as the groove elements, it also features harmonics, chordal parts and a complex bass solo. The entire line also has an improvised feel to it, and therefore includes very little repetition.
Don’t forget to hit the Download Resources button above to get the PDF transcription and the audio files for this piece (available to subscribers only).
This course contains the following videos, each of which can be selected from the video player above:
This video is a full demonstration of 'A Portrait of Jaco', performed on a Millman Jazz Bass.
This video gives a brief overview of the course.
In this video you'll learn how to play the A section, which is bars 5-20.
In this video you'll learn how to play the B section, which is bars 21-36.
In this video you'll learn how to play the C section, which is bars 37-52.
In this video you'll learn how to play the D section, which is bars 53-68.
This lesson covers Jaco Pastorius's tone and offers advice on how you can achieve something similar.