For tabs on this please visit http://dannymstewart.com/free-bass-tutorials.html and search under Slap category; Tabs and notes appear under the video and can be downloaded by right clicking and saving image as….

Funky G minor bassline with minor pentatonic fill.
Sound is from the internal camera microphone, a bit too much compression

The chorus bassline from my original song Torn. This line incorporates slap and pop techniques at a moderate – advanced skill level. For tabs on this please visit http://dannymstewart.com/free-bass-tutorials.html and search under Slap category; Tabs and notes appear under the video and can be downloaded by right clicking and saving image as….Backing loop is also available from the media widget below…. Happy slapping!

Bass guitar funk fingerstyle groove with rake.
I used my Fender Jazz bass 3TS and Tech21 NYC SansAmp VT Bass recorded directly in LineIn.

Bass guitar funk pickstyle groove. I used my Fender Jazz bass 3TS and Tech21 NYC SansAmp VT Bass recorded directly in LineIn.

16th note funk groove in E, played on this lovely Music Man Stingray Classic series, inspired by and using Rocco Prestia’s approach to finger style funk. Rocco would use mostly his index finger on his fretting hand and then dampen and mute the strings with his other fingers. I use this technique here for part of the groove and then also use the more traditional finger-per-fret technique.

Hope you enjoy!

A quick lick recorded acoustic with my laptop crappy mic:-)
Im playing my old cheap Maison electro acoustic bass

A lick/run with a lot of slides only using notes from the E minor dorian scale.
A minor version of yesterday’s Major lick
I also show a E minor 7 voicing with harmonics -  from bottom up it is
E (root) – open E string
D  (minor seventh) – 5 fret D string
G  (minor third) – 5 fret G string

Download original quicktime movie here

The minor tetrachord is a four note scale that can be played with 4 different patterns/fingerings, you should practice them all.

Pattern formula is whole step, half step, whole step.
Here is Pattern 1,  4 notes on 1 string,

A method/series to learn the modes and common scales by dividing an eight note scale into 2 four note scales (the brain has an easier time remembering 1234 1234 than 12345678) You only need to learn 4 different tetrachords to be able to play all 7 modes : Ionian Major, Dorian minor, Phrygian minor, Lydian, Mixolydian Major, Aolian minor, Locrian half diminished.

Playlist with Four different fingerings for a minor tetrachord:

First all patterns played in sequence, then one by one:

Playlist with Four different fingerings for playing a One octave Dorian Minor  scale (a C Dorian minor scale is contructed of two minor tetrachords, the C minor and the D minor tetrachord)

Go to previous lesson on Major tetrachords HERE

Noodling with my MXR bass octave deluxe pedal with a little talk about what I usually play when improvising over a minor tonality. I’m playing a Fender Precision 70′s bass with flatwound strings I’m “babysitting” for a friend.
Regarding “fret noise”:
Its the acoustic sound of the bass strings you hear getting picked up by the microphone, im playing with a very low volume on the amp, hence the string noise

Nice fingerstyle 16th notes groove with dead notes, slides, legato and rake. FOR TABS mail me at mcrtchan@mail.ru

Click here to view the embedded video.

A continuation of the theme from previous video (Minor 7 chord improvisation with scale substitution ) , how to improvise over a D minor 7chord, this time using the pentatonic scales contained in the C major scale or any of the modes derived from it – look below

C major ionian and/or C major pentatonic
Dm dorian and/or D minor pentatonic (of course)
Em phrygian and/or E minor pentatonic
F major lydian and/or F major pentatonic
G mixolydian and/or G major pentatonic
Am aolian and/or A minor pentatonic
Bm locrian

These all contain the same notes, but you target the notes differently by cheating the brain to see new patterns

Click here to view the embedded video.

A practical theory lesson on how i approach improvising over a static m7 chord groove. In jazz, funk and rock, if a solo section consists of a static m7 chord, most often the Dorian minor scale is used (1, 2, b3, 4 , 5, 6, b7). The dorian minor scale is built on the 2nd step of the Major scale.
In this example the D dorian minor scale is 2nd step (or mode) of the C Major scale – or in other words it IS a C major scale just starting on the 2nd step/degree.
So on any given minor7 chord we can improvise a Major scale a whole step below.
ie if we play over a Em7 chord , we can play a D Major scale

Fingerstyle Dead Note Groove with A-Minor Pentatonic Scale and Major Sixth.

Dorian Slaplick with doublethumb and Miller style tab….

Click here to view the embedded video.

The slow version is WRONG (sometimes its hard to dissect yourself) – so  ive include a transcription / tab:-)

Mostly blues scale with added major third (its more a chromatic passing note here) – the last part of the four bar pattern is mostly notes from the dorian minor scale.
A good stamina exercise too.

Support PlayBassNow and download original video, transcription/TAB and mp3 version here

Im playing over a A7 to D9 chord sequence – We can call the tune “The Green Count”;-)
Even though the A7 chord has a major third, you can play minor thirds as well – its Blues!
Scales you can use:
A minor pentatonic / blues scale
A minor dorian scale
D mixolydian
A dimished – actually the A dim chord in arpeggio form
G Major scale – G Maj 7 arpeggio
E minor pentatonic scale

Quicktime version

iPod mp4 version

Flash flv version

Click here to view the embedded video.

Dm7 dorian scale: D-E-F-G-A-B-C

Try to transpose this lick to all different keys….

When constructing a bass line to a Suspended chord (the 4th “suspended” interval replaces the 3rd ), its a good idea to use another scale than the obvious choice C mixolydian, to avoid emphasizing the major third because when Im playing the mixolydian scale the positions and scale patterns I use are so  – root, major third, fifth, seventh based – because im a bassplayer.  So to avoid that very “root position thinking” and at the same time getting fresh ideas i use a  “scale sibling” * -  another diatonic scale based on the same notes.

The Csus13, Csus9, Csus7.. is  normally a substitution for the dominant  C7, C9, C13… chord.

And that chord – the dominant 7th chord / mixolydian scale is derived from the 5th step of the F major scale (ionian)
So if we look at the diatonic scale/chord steps of the F major scale we get:
FMaj7 chord and the F ionian scale (steps 1, 2, 3 ,4, 5, 6, 7)

Gm7 chord and the G dorian scale (steps 1, 2, b3 ,4, 5, 6, b7) The scale I choose in the creation of this bassline

Am7 chord and the A phrygrian scale (steps 1, b2, b3 , 4, 5, b6, b7)

BbMaj7 chord and the Bb lydian scale (steps 1, 2, 3 ,#4, 5, 6, 7)

C7 chord and the C mixolydian scale (steps 1, 2, 3 , 4, 5, 6, b7)

Dm7 chord and the D aolian/natural minor scale (steps 1, 2, b3 , 4, 5, b6, b7)

Em7b5 chord and the E locrianscale (steps 1, b2, b3 , 4, b5, b6, b7)

The thing to notice that all 7 scales contain the same 7 notes (F, G, A, Bb, C, D, E) – its just the F major scale starting on the 7 different steps and they have these funny “greek” names Ionian, dorian etc

But you should actually just think of it as just a Major scale starting on different steps and since most of us have practiced the Major scale a lot ( i personally never got around to the locrian scale;-)), the thing is to recognize the different Major scale steps.

So here we have it

Csus13 substituting C13, see as 5 step of F major, so then when you improvise you can use all the before mentioned scales derived frm th F major scale

Here im playing ogf the Gm7 dorian scale, the 2nd step of the F major scale – im still emphasizing the root note C but otherwise looking at as a G minor dorian scale

That forces me to invent new fresh patterns since i see the same notes in a new fashion.

Heres soem of the scale choices i frequently use could use when playing over dominant sus 7:

The root scale of course – C mixolydian
G dorian minor, G minor pentatonic, D aolian minor , D minor pentatonic, Bb Major lydian,  Bb major pentatonic,,,,

The pentatonic scale are interesting because you allready know that scale so well – try and take one of your blues pentatonic licks and play over this backing track – look above for hints of which you could try

AND REMEMBER ITS THE SAME 7 SCALE NOTES (F, G, A, Bb, C, D, E ), you just view it from different “angles of the fretboard” and trick your brain into playing new awesome licks;-)

* “Scale sibling” is my own expression for a scale derived from the “Mother” of all scales on the western hemisphere – the Major scale)

Ive done the backing track in Mac Garageband using a standard drumloop and playing a Squier Stratocaster;-)

Support PlayBassNow and download original video, transcription/TAB and mp3 version here

First part is mainly dorian scale with added major thirds, secon part is minor pentatonic / blues scale

iPod version

Click here to view the embedded video.

Download Quicktime version

Download iPod version

Download Flash version

This second lick inspired by Gary Willis, in E minor, combines dead notes, palm mute and chords.

Pack slap 1 – #01

You can find the transcription of this lick here

Trying something new, using lots of slides and hammerons. This fill is inspired by a great gospel bass player Thaddeus Tribbet i saw on youtube

Support PlayBassNow and download original video, transcription/TAB and mp3 version here

Moving up the neck playing all the different positions of the E minor dorian scale, this starts on the 5th (B) and ends on the 9th (F#) .
Notice the use of chromatic notes between the scale notes

Continueing the Em dorian scale in all positions

This position starts on A (the 4th), 5th fret on the G string and ends on the A, 9th fret on the G string.
Support PlayBassNow and download original video, transcription/TAB and mp3 version here

3rd part of this series of the Em dorian scale study in all positions

In this position you can reach from the G (the b3) on the Estring to the D (the b7) on the G string.

The lick is somewhat inspired by Miles Davis solo on his famous tune “So what”, THE study of the dorian minor mode.

Support PlayBassNow and download original video, transcription/TAB and mp3 version here

Part 2 of this Eminor dorian scale in all positions series

Still in first position but this time not using open strings, making it easier to transpose to other keys – You should be able to use both since open strings gives other melodic ideas because of the fingering, and its sounds really cool when the open string note overlaps a fretted note, see L255.

I also incorporate some chromatic leading notes in this lick, here the notes fall between the octave E and 9th F#, you can view it as walking from E to F# using the note in between:

E –> F –> F#

Same applies in the next similar pattern, where we have the chromatic run from B to C# spelling B –> C –> C# .

Its one of the keys to make scale patterns sound musical and interesting – adding chromatic notes inbetween the scale notes

TIP when ever you have a scale with whole step intervals (2 frets distance), you can add the chromatic note between – the key is to put it rhythmically right.

As a general rule the chord/scale notes should fall on the down beats and the chromatic on the off beats ie when playing the first pattern slow:

Here with 8 notes:

1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and 1
E F F#

Support PlayBassNow and download original video, transcription/TAB and mp3 version here

Scale degrees/intervals, example in Cm:
C, tonic (1)
D, major second (2)
Eb, minor third (b3)
F, perfect fourth (4)
G, perfect fifth (5)
A, major sixth (6)
Bb, minor seventh (b7)

Scale formula:
Whole step – C to D
Half step – D to Eb
Whole step – Eb to F
Whole step – F to G
Whole step – G to A
Half step – A to Bb
Whole step – Bb to C

For the FEED subscribers out there, this post contains more more videos than the one available in the feed

2nd example:
root note – 1 (C) on Astring – 15 fret
major third – 3 (E) on D string – 14 fret
major seventh – 7 (B) on G string – 16 fret