The Roots of Greatness, with Scott Devine
Scott Devine of Scott’s Bass Lessons, the #1 website for learning bass guitar, shares the secrets he learnt from studying with the world’s top musicians.
Bass
Bass instruments bridge the gap between pitch and rhythm in music, connecting drummer with singer and contributing a vital aspect of music.
Bass players therefore need a range of listening skills, broader than most musicians, and each can be developed with dedicated ear training.
Ear Training for Bass Guitar
Bass Ear Training: How To
Bassists need a strong ear in four different areas of music: bass lines, rhythm, playing by ear, and bass tone.Find out why and how to start improving your ear for each in “Bass Ear Training: How To”.
The Bass Tone series explores everything which creates the distinctive sound of the bass. From instrument choice (upright bass and electric bass guitar) to amplifiers, tone controls, and bass audio effects. Find out how to listen critically to the sound of the bass and how to perfect your own bass tone.
Topics Related to Bass Ear Training
The bass is a key part of the rhythm section in most bands, and bass players need tight, accurate, reliable timing for every note they play. Rhythm ear training is the key.
Improvising a bass line based on the chords, figuring out a song as you go along when called in for a performance at the last minute, and writing your own music all rely on your ability to play bass by ear. Some playing by ear ear training can considerably improve your abilities.
To the untrained ear, a low note is a low note—but in fact the sound of the bass guitar is hugely versatile. Use timbre ear training to help you hear the differences and craft your own perfect bass sound.
Free articles about Bass
The Road to “Making It” – A Professional Musician Reflects on the Journey
Chris Tarry, a bassist hailing from New York City, sat down with us to talk about the road to success – what it looks like and what it doesn’t. Take a look.
What gives the fretless bass its sound?
The fretless bass has a very distinctive sound. Whether it’s a fretless electric bass or a traditional upright double bass, there’s something about its sound that marks it out clearly from a normal bass guitar. What is it? There is one big factor: the lack...How can I improve my bass guitar tone?
So, you play bass and you want that powerful distinctive tone that will set you apart as a serious player and give you the control and expression you need to have a powerful musical impact. You’ve come to the right place! Step one is, of course, to make sure...How do you hear the difference between bass drum and bass guitar?
This is an understandable confusion, as both instruments occupy the same frequency band—i.e. they both have low-down sounds. They also tend to work together to create the rhythm part, so their notes often overlap and they make a similar musical contribution in the...How do you hear the difference between bass line and melody?
This is the kind of question which might seem trivial but can actually be quite challenging. So if you’re not sure if you can do it: don’t be embarrassed! Both the bass line and the main melody are essentially “tunes”, normally played one note...
Bass Ear Training: How-To
Bass ear training can help any bassist develop their musical ear in several areas, including relative pitch, playing by ear, bass tone and sense of rhythm.
The Power of Listening (Chris Tarry)
Ear training is not just note recognition; it is a complete awareness of everything going on in a musical moment. Learn how to listen when playing in a band.
Learn Music Like You Learn A Language: Naturally! (Victor Wooten)
In this fantastic short video, Victor Wooten explains his philosophy on music as a language, and how organic learning music can be. Doing ear training passively through exposure to music can develop aural skills in the same natural way as language.Just as children...
Utterly Integral: Playing by Ear with Steve Lawson
Steve Lawson is one of the world’s leading solo bassists and a forward-thinking music educator. Here’s his ear training advice.
Bass Tone Podcast
Discover the ins and outs of the sound of the bass guitar in this series dedicated to the lowest of the lows. Upright bass, electric bass, fretless bass, acoustic bass. Bass amps and bass audio effects. Tune your ears to all things bass! Read the series View the...
Bass Tone Podcast 6: Bass FX, Part 2
In episode 6 of the Bass Tone podcast, Bass FX Part 2, Nick Long explores some more unusual effects you can add to your bass tone. You’ll learn:
• What modulation effects are and how they work
• The Chorus and Flanger effects and how they impact your tone
• The sound of Wah-Wah effects, and why they combine well with distortion effects
• Pitch-shifter effects (including octaver effects)
