Skydiving. A first date. Reading a good book. Working your way through an epic RPG. Sometimes we get the opportunity to revisit those events, but chances are there’s nothing quite like experiencing them for the first time. I personally LOVE discovering new music. Getting hooked on an artist, anticipating their upcoming album, and finally getting …
If you’re a beginner bass guitar player, the concept of chords may be the last thing on your mind. “That’s just something guitarists and keyboardists deal with. What does that have to do with me? Don’t bassists just have to play one note at a time?” Typically, yes – but playing chords and double stops …
Hey bass players! Thanks for dropping by. It’s hard to believe this blog has been up and running for over a year and a half! Many of you are familiar with the type of content that gets posted on this blog… but for you new visitors, whether it’s gear or ear training, so far I’ve …
Lydian. Phrygian. Mixolydian. It just sounds confusing, right? These words used to intimidate the heck out of me, and this is honestly why I didn’t learn about modes for a long time. Well I’m here to tell you that MODES AREN’T THAT SCARY. You don’t need to transcend time and space or have a PhD …
Greetings, bassists! A few months ago we began exploring some basic music theory concepts that we’ll use to dive into the next key area: The major scale. What is it? What does it sound like? What does it look like? Find out with this guide to the major scale for the bass guitar. Let’s get …
I’m going to bet that many bass players (or anyone, really) reading this post took piano lessons as a kid, and whether your parents knew it or not it’s a great instrument for introducing children to music. Even if your days as an adolescent are long gone, it’s not too late to learn some basic …
The electric bass guitar has come a long way. It’s an instrument that has evolved physically, technically, and sonically over the past 60+ years, and bassists all over the world continue to push its limits. Once used only as a foundational instrument, the bass guitar has gradually found its way to the spotlight. Bass players …
Hey bass players! It’s been a few months since we talked about music theory. In my last post we explained the musical alphabet, the fretboard, and briefly introduced intervals. In this post we’ll continue the discussion on intervals: the next step in the journey to learning music theory. Intervals pave the foundation for understanding chords, …
“I’m sorry, but you’ve thrown off the Emperor’s groove.” Such a quoted scene from a classic Disney movie. Kuzco’s routine is suddenly interrupted by an innocent old man who is then cast from the tower. Years later, I recalled this scene again after I started playing bass and understanding the instrument’s role in a musical …
When I first started learning how to play the trombone in sixth grade, I really didn’t care that much for it. I mean sure, playing glissandos endlessly and competing with my friends to see how much condensation we could build up in our horns was a blast (gross, right?), but investing in practice time and …
